A Summer Salad for your Labor Day Cookout!

If you read my blog regularly, you know that I’m in a wine dinner group that meets monthly. The host picks the theme and makes the main course and each guest couple signs up for a different course along the same theme.
Everyone in the group loves to cook and does it well so we have some stellar dinners. Recently it was our turn to host, and I picked Spain as our wine region.

Once again, every single course was exceptional. This is the last of the ones I wanted to share with you. Jeanene Lawhead Feinstone brought a most delicious salad called "pipirrana."

Pipirrana is a vegetable salad that is found pretty much everywhere in Spain, with regional variations. Some add diced cooked potatoes, others diced avocado or lightly steamed carrot. Although Jeanene used green bell pepper, you can use red, or a mixture of red and green. In the Basque region, the peppers are often sautéed in olive oil with the onion and cooled before adding the remaining ingredients. I’ve had it with sherry wine vinegar in the dressing, and once I’m pretty sure there was a touch of honey in the vinaigrette.

Jeanene suggests that you add the dressing a little at a time. You want it to coat all the vegetables, but not to have a big pool of it in the bottom of the bowl.

However you do it, since there is no mayonnaise, it would make a perfect picnic food or side dish for your Labor Day cook-out. And for another variation, I stuffed the last bit of Jeanene’s salad into a pita half with sliced tomato and hummus and it made a great lunch. I might do that for the next Botanic Garden concert!

Jeanene’s Pipirrana
(Diced Vegetable Salad)

1 ½ green bell peppers
6 Roma tomatoes squeezed
1 small sweet onion
1 cucumber seeded
3 hard boiled eggs
2 tsp. tarragon finely chopped
1 to 1 ½ cans of tuna in oil (slightly drained)
½ cup olive oil (very good grade)
4 tablespoons white wine vinegar

Dice all the ingredients finely into ½ in. cubes and toss with blended olive oil and vinegar. Salt to taste.
Chill for at least one hour before serving. Spoon on bed of chopped green leaf lettuce. Serves 8 generously.

Sweet smoky Spanish-inspired ribs!

A couple of weeks ago, I promised more of the recipes from our wine dinner club Spanish meal. I was the hostess, so I made the main course.

I had had "Costilla de Cerdo Lacada," or glazed pork ribs, in a tapas bar in Washington, DC, a while back and thought I’d attempt a similar recipe. I knew it had smoked paprika and a lot of brown sugar and garlic. The first time I tried it, it was tasty enough but didn’t have the glazed look of the original. And was missing a spiced flavor that I decided was cinnamon and ginger.

I tried it again and intended to glaze it with reduced sweet sherry, but didn’t have any in the liquor cabinet. I looked to see what might be a good substitute and there was a bottle of maple syrup in the pantry. Talk about serendipity! It was the perfect glaze, and so easy!

I served the ribs with a yellow rice pilaf and the wonderful rum-baked black beans from a much earlier column. You can find the recipe on my blog.

I did them as noted below. But last week I visited my son and his family and wanted to make them again for a group of his friends. He has a smoker and smoked them for about four hours on low heat, then glazed them on the grill. They were wonderful, so if you have a smoker you might want to try it.

With the Fourth of July weekend upon us, why not give these ribs a try? With rice, baked black beans and a salad, you have a dinner that will have your friends saying "Ole"!!!

SPANISH GLAZED PORK RIBS

2 racks baby back ribs (about 3 lbs each)
½ cup dark brown sugar, packed
2 tbsp. Spanish sweet smoked paprika
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 tbsp. ground ginger
5 plump cloves garlic, put through a press
2 tbps. Chipotle Tabasco sauce
1 tbsp. kosher or sea salt
¼ cup maple or other pancake syrup
Fresh cilantro, for garnish

Rinse the rib racks and pat dry. In a bowl, combine all remaining ingredients except maple syrup and cilantro.

Tear off a strip of heavy duty aluminum foil large enough to seal around one rack. Using half the spice mixture, rub evenly over the meat. Use about a third on the bottom (bone) side, and the rest on top. Seal the foil completely, then over-wrap with another sheet of foil. Repeat with the second rack.

Place on a baking sheet and refrigerate at least four hours or up to 24 hours. Remove from the fridge about an hour before you plan to cook.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the racks side by side on a baking sheet. Bake for an hour. Remove the foil and place the racks on a clean baking sheet. Discard foil and any cooking juices. Brush the meaty side of the rack with the syrup.

Pre-heat your grill to medium-high. Place the racks with the glazed side down and cook for about 5 minutes. Turn and brush again. Cook for another five minutes. Cut into three-rib servings and sprinkle with the cilantro. Delicious hot, but also perfectly tasty at warm room temperature. Serves 6 generously.

NOTE: Spanish smoked paprika is available in many supermarkets, and at Fresh Market and Whole Foods.

French Summer Picnic Sandwich

In my much younger days, I spent several summers at the University of Montpellier in the south of France. After morning classes, we would all grab a towel and a bathing suit and take a tiny quaint little train out to the beach at Palavas-les-Flots.

Our first stop would be one of the little stands along the beach selling “real” French fries. Piled up and already par-cooked, they would be thrown into a tub of boiling oil and emerge perfectly crispy. A sprinkle of salt and a twist in piece of waxed paper and we’d be on our way to the next little stand, selling drinks and “pan bagnat.”

This sandwich was a staple of ours. The name means “bathed bread,” or “wet bread.” Crusty French bread rounds would be cut in half, a little of the bread pulled out to make room for the filling and wrapped. Then trays would be set on top and weighted, to allow the juices from the tomato, the oil from the tuna, and a bit of vinaigrette to seep into the bread and the rest of the filling.

So when we planned a cooking class titled “Picnic in Provence,” this was the first thing that popped into my mind. We accompanied it with a salad of haricots verts, the tiny French green beans, tossed in a zesty vinaigrette and sprinkled with shaved red onion and fresh basil. Fresh beans from the farmer’s market would be lovely. Just be sure not to overcook them. They should be just barely crisp-tender.

You can make the sandwich on large crusty rounds, as we did, and cut it into wedges, or on smaller individual crusty rolls if you can find them. A regular sandwich bun or roll would get too soggy to work here.

This is a sandwich that definitely needs to be made ahead for the best flavor, making it perfect for a picnic. If you make the salad, don’t put the dressing on until shortly before serving. It wouldn’t affect the flavor, but the vinaigrette makes the bright green beans a sort of olive drab color after a bit.

So gather a few friends and head out to the park with a perfect French picnic!

PAN PAGNAT

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon each salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup good fruity olive oil
1 large crusty bread round
1 can (6 to 7 ounces) tuna packed in olive oil
1 green pepper, cut into very thin strips
1 small red onion, very thinly sliced
2 eggs, hard-cooked and sliced
1 tablespoon capers, drained
1/4 cup sliced black olives
1 large red ripe tomato, thickly sliced
4 anchovy filets (optional, if you hate them)
1 large handful arugula or baby greens

In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper. Whisk in the olive oil until emulsified. Set aside.

Cut the bread in half horizontally and scoop out some of the insides. Brush the bottom with a bit of the dressing. Layer ingredients as listed, drizzling the remaining dressing on top of it all. Place the top on the bread and wrap tightly in foil or plastic wrap.

Traditionally, this is weighted—a cookie sheet with a couple of cans on it will work well—f or a couple of hours, and not refrigerated. If keeping longer than a couple of hours, refrigerate, then let come back to room temperature before serving if possible.

To serve, cut the bread round into quarters or sixths, as desired.

DRESSING FOR GREEN BEAN SALAD

1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 generous tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon each ground cumin, ground coriander and ground ginger
1/2 cup good fruity extra-virgin olive oil

Whisk the vinegar, mustard and seasonings together. Add the oil a little at a time, whisking until well emulsified.

Cooling summer soups

 Lordie, isn’t it hot? And there’s nothing better on a hot summer evening than dinner with a cool salad main course. But it can be tough, if you’re entertaining, to come up with an appropriate first course when salad is the dinner. Personally, I love a cold soup in the summer. For some it takes a bit of getting used to; I have friends who think the only good soup is a hot soup! But I think if you try it, you’ll agree that it’s a refreshing and delicious first course.

I’ve chosen two soups with the nuevo latino influence I've been sort of stuck on lately. Neither takes any cooking and either can be prepared in a jiffy with the aid of a food processor or blender. Whip them up in the morning, or even the night before, so they can chill well. Or just keep them in the fridge for a quick refreshing pick-me-up when you come in from the heat!

WATERMELON GAZPACHO

8 cups diced, seeded watermelon (from half a large melon)
½ cup almond meal*
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 slices firm white bread, torn into chunks
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
3 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tbsp kosher or coarse sea salt
Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup cilantro, for garnish
Lime wedges, for garnish

Reserve one cup of the diced watermelon. Purée remaining melon with almond flour, garlic and bread. Blend until smooth. Add vinegar, lime juice, salt and a couple of grindings of pepper. With the processor on, add the olive oil in a thin stream, blending until smooth. You may have to do this in two batches. Pour into a glass or ceramic bowl and stir in reserved melon dice. Chill well. Serve in wine or martini glasses rimmed with salt (add a little chili powder to the salt if you like). Sprinkle with the cilantro and garnish each serving with a lime wedge. Serves 6-8 as a first course soup.

*Available at gourmet markets and most natural food stores

CANTALOUPE GAZPACHO

1 large cantaloupe, peeled, seeded and diced
½ to 1 jalapeño, with seeds and veins removed, diced
1 cup water
1/3 cup light rum (optional)
Juice and zest of two large limes
1 tbsp minced cilantro, plus more for garnish

Place all ingredients except lime zest and cilantro garnish in a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Transfer to a glass or ceramic bowl. Stir in lime zest and refrigerate covered until very cold. Serve in wine glasses, or flat soup plates, sprinkled with additional finely minced cilantro. Serves 6-8 as a first course soup.