Rick’s Summer Spaghetti with Uncooked Tomato Basil Sauce

 July 23, 2022 by richardlfloyd

We’ve been cooking variations on this recipe on hot summer days for decades. The original “Silver Palate Cookbook“ had a version that called for Brie, but  we felt that was too rich for a hot summer dinner.

We only make this in late summer when the good local tomatoes come in, and we have fresh herbs in pots ready to go. You do have to cook the pasta, but the rest is uncooked. I combine all the other ingredients in a pasta bowl earlier in the day and let them get happy.

INGREDIENTS

2 big ripe fresh tomatoes, chopped

¾ cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 cups shredded whole milk mozzarella

2 big cloves of garlic, finely chopped or put through a garlic press

1 cup fresh basil leaves, snipped into shreds with kitchen scissors

½ cup of fresh Italian oregano, stems removed, snipped into shreds with kitchen scissors. (Optional)

Salt and pepper to taste

1 pound spaghetti or other long pasta

Parmesan cheese for grating

RECIPE

Earlier in the day put all the ingredients except the pasta in a large bowl, stir to combine and let sit out at room temperature.

Bring water to a boil, cook pasta, saving a cup of pasta water. When the pasta is al dente or to your liking, drain without rinsing, and add to the pasta bowl. Stir to combine. Add some pasta water as needed to get the right consistency. Serve onto plates and grate Parmesan cheese to taste.

Some crusty bread, a cool salad, and some chilled dry Rosé would round out this easy and tasty summer meal.

Rick’s Summer Tabbouleh Salad

 June 6, 2022

I had never had tabbouleh until I met my wife’s family in my early twenties.  It was a staple of their summer picnics and I loved it. I seldom make it, as I was reminded yesterday by my unopened Bob’s Red Mill Bulgur with a 2012 sell-by date. A quick trip to Guido’s for new bulgur and I was ready. We had friends over for a Mediterranean dinner last night. We started with pita, hummus, feta and mixed olives, some nice Rose from Provence. Then I made grilled marinated butterflied leg of lamb and grilled veggies with the tabbouleh. Summer dining on the back porch at its best!

Ingredients

1 cup bulgur

2 cups boiling water

4 ripe tomatoes finely chopped

½ red onion finely chopped

½ cup fresh mint finely chopped

½ cup fresh dill finely chopped

1 cup fresh parsley finely chopped

The juice of one lemon

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

A dash of ground allspice

Salt and pepper to taste

Recipe

Put the bulgur in a good-sized bowl and pour the boiling water over it. Invert a dinner plate over the bowl and let it sits for 30 minutes. Strain the bulger through a big fine sieve until most of the water is gone. Return the bulger to the bowl. Add the chopped ingredients. Make a dressing by whisking the lemon juice and olive oil until it thickens. Add to the bowl. Season with salt, pepper and allspice and toss well. Serve at room temperature.

Rick’s Vietnamese Pork Chops

 March 19, 2022 by richardlfloyd

We had a great little Vietnamese Restaurant nearby and their pork chops were one of the best things on their menu. Sadly, for us, the family that ran the place retired and moved to Florida. I’ve found several recipes and this is my take. Serves four.

Ingredients

4 bone-in pork loin rib chops about an inch thick

½ of a small onion or the white part of a couple scallions, finely chopped

½ cup of Vietnamese or Thai fish sauce

4 TBS brown sugar

2 TBS rice vinegar

1 Tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 TBS peanut oil

Recipe

Add fish sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar, and pepper to a small bowl and whisk well to make the marinade.

Poke the chops through with a fork in several places, so they will take the marinade. Put the chops in a freezer bag, add the marinade and turn the chops to coat. You can leave them on the counter for at least a half hour (or overnight in the refrigerator.) Turn them over from time to time.

Add the oil to a well-seasoned cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Scrape off the marinade and put the remainder in a small pot and bring to a boil, and simmer to reduce. Wipe the chops with a paper towel.

Cook the chops until they are well browned, about four minutes to a side.  Serve with the marinade sauce, Jasmine rice, and lime wedges. An Asian beer would go nicely. Or a sturdy red wine.

Rick’s Pork Tenderloin with Garlic Honey Sauce

February 13, 2022 by richardlfloyd

A pork tenderloin is an inexpensive, delicious dinner that can be put together in very little time. For this recipe you need a big pan that can start on the stovetop and be finished in the oven. I have a 14-inch well-seasoned cast-iron pan that does the trick. You’ll want your kitchen fan on high during the initial searing.

Ingredients

Pork tenderloins (they come two to a package)

2 TBS peanut oil

3 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced

Kosher Salt

Black pepper

Paprika

Sauce

!/2 cup honey

1 TBS soy sauce

1 TBS Chinkiang Vinegar

1 TBS Chinese rice wine or Saki

2 Tsp Dark sesame oil

Recipe

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Whisk the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and mix well. Set aside. Sprinkle the tenderloins with salt, pepper and paprika.

Set pan over burner on medium high heat until it is very hot. Put in the oil and when it starts to smoke sear the tenderloins all over, until they are nicely browned, about three minutes per side.

Turn off the burner and toss in the garlic and stir it in the hot pan for about 15 seconds (don’t burn it!) Give the sauce a final stir and add it to the pan, coating all sides of the pork.

With a couple good potholders carefully put the pan in the oven, and cook for about 15 minutes, or until internal temperature is 150 F. The tapered ends will be medium and the center will still be pink. Something for everyone! I would serve this with rice and apple sauce or chutney. Or baked beans.

Art’s favorite dessert: New England Indian Pudding

 

November 18, 2021 by richardlfloyd

If you are not from New England, you probably have never had Indian Pudding, a much loved regional dessert. It is basically cornmeal slow cooked in molasses and milk, and was given its name because of an American Indian dish that used maple syrup to sweeten ground cornmeal.

The Boston Globe recently had a piece suggesting it be renamed Puritan pudding, but I’ll stay with the original name, and think of it as an homage and not an appropriation.

It is a humble dish, often on the menus of good diners. Both my father and father-in-law (Boston born) loved it, as well as my brother and my son. I love it.

My beloved father-in-law , Art, died a few weeks ago at age 94, and I have made it a couple times since then. He loved the Indian Pudding at the famed, now gone, Durgin-Park Restaurant at Faneuil Hall in Boston. Durgin-Park was in operation since 1827 and closed in 2019. Sad.

My mother-law found and gave me a handwritten card with the Durgin-Park Recipe, but it bakes for 5 to 7 hours, so I have tweaked my own that can be done in under 3. 

I consulted several cookbooks, including Fannie Farmer (Boston Cooking School) and Jasper White’s “Cooking from New England.” White suggested using Johnny Cake meal (an heirloom corn meal from RI). It turns out that Gray’s Grist mill that makes it is a stone’s throw from my daughter’s house in Adamsville, RI, and so I got some last time I was there (The mill is actually in Westport, MA right on the line.)

Ingredients

3 TBS unsalted butter (divided)

3 cups good whole milk (I used local High Lawn Farm from nearby Lee, MA)

5 TBS yellow cornmeal or johnnycake meal

1/3 cup maple syrup

1/3 cup dark (unsulfured) molasses

¼ Tsp salt

¼ Tsp dried ground ginger

¼ Tsp cinnamon

1 egg, beaten

1 cup whole milk, cold

Recipe

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Grease a 1 ½ quart ceramic baking dish with a tablespoon of the butter (I used my soufflé dish). Heat the 3 cups of milk on the range just to the boiling point and stir in the cornmeal, reducing the heat to low. Stir like you would polenta, until the mixture starts to thicken. Turn off the heat, and add the maple syrup, molasses, salt, ginger, cinnamon, remaining butter and egg. Pour into the buttered dish.

Place in the preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes. Pour the cold milk over the pudding and return to the oven. Bake for 2 hours. It’s OK if it separates a bit.

Serve with cream or vanilla ice cream.

Baked Sea Scallops with Tarragon and Panko

 April 19, 2021 by richardlfloyd

The best way to cook sea scallops is to sear them in a hot cast-iron pan, but when you are cooking for a crowd, baking is a good second best, and much less labor intensive. These were delicious.

Yields 4-6 servings

Ingredients

2 pounds sea scallops, rinsed and drained

4 tablespoons butter, melted

4  cloves garlic, minced

1 small onion chopped

2 teaspoons dried tarragon

Salt and pepper to taste

3/4 cup Panko

3 tablespoons olive oil 

Chopped parsley for garnish

Lemon wedges for garnish

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Place scallops, melted butter, garlic, onions and tarragon in a bowl. Season with salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Transfer to a casserole dish. Arrange the scallops in a single layer.

In a separate bowl, combine Panko and olive oil and stir to mix. Sprinkle on top of scallops.

Bake in the preheated oven until crumbs are brown and scallops are done, about 12 to 15 minutes. Top with parsley, and serve with lemon wedges on the side.

I served this with couscous and a salad, and a crisp white wine.

Rick’s Mediterranean Sheet Pan Roast Chicken

February 24, 2021 by richardlfloyd

Since COVID has enlarged our family bubble, I have rediscovered ways of cooking for a crowd. The slow-cooker is my friend. And I have been having fun roasting things on sheet pans. Lo, and behold, the New York Times just had an article about this as a trend. When you think of trendy, I’m sure you think of me.

So, tonight I roasted some bone-in skin-on chicken thighs with some vaguely Mediterranean flavors and it came out pretty good.

Ingredients

2 TBS extra virgin olive oil

8 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs, about 4 lbs.

1 red onion, peeled and cut into thin ribbons.

1 small jar of chopped pimentos

1 dozen whole pitted green olives

1 dozen whole pitted Kalamata olives

Spices

Salt 

Pepper

Smoked paprika

Garlic salt

Onion salt

Cumin

Oregano

Recipe

Pre-heat oven to 425 F.

Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and brush it with the olive oil to coat. Place chicken skin side up on the sheet. Sprinkle the rest of the ingredients around the chicken. Shake the spices onto the chicken to your taste.

Cook for 35 to 45 minutes until the chicken is brown on the top. An insta-read thermometer should read at 165 F.

I served this with yellow saffron rice and a tossed salad. A nice red blend from Portugal carried the Mediterranean theme. Enjoy!