For the best marinated olives recipe, we started with good brined olives that still contain their pits, which have a better flavor than pitted olives. For the marinade, we started with a base of olive oil and added garlic, herbs like thyme, and red pepper flakes. In addition to these basics, we liked thinly sliced shallots, which softened in the mixture and contributed their welcome allium bite, and grated orange zest for a lively citrus kick. The real surprise in our marinated olives recipe came when we added a splash of anise-flavored (or Pernod), which enhanced all the other flavors.
This week’s recipe is a super simple take on the kabob that can be done with or without a grill. Sabrina Ghayour’s recipe for Spice-Marinated Beef Kabobs from her book, Feast, relies on that powerful combo of spices plus time. Sirloin steak is cut into generous pieces and marinated with smoked paprika, turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, lots of garlic, lemon juice and oil. She sears the marinated beef on the stovetop until crusty and then threads them on skewers for the table. If you have a grill at the ready, don’t hesitate to grill them on the skewers over medium heat until crusty. If the beef marinates a little longer, say overnight, it will be even more flavorful.
The first recipe any Mexican will cook as soon as they move out of their parents’ home and live on their own is chicken tinga. It is easy, reminds everyone of home, and the ingredients are very accessible. Although it is better made with dried chipotle chiles, canned chipotles work if in a pinch. It can be a soupy stew served over white rice and with tortillas. If you cook it down to thicken a bit more, it is a great topping on a tostada with fresh shredded lettuce, some crema, cheese, and fresh salsa.
We first had this in Sydney in a funny little tapas bar we used to go to called Capitan Torres. When we were in Spain we discovered that it was a staple of most traditional tapas bars. We liked the fact that you could use a plain cultivated mushroom and turn it into something with so much flavor.
Cottage cheese was a favorite of early colonial settlers, who made it at home in their “cottages.” I especially love it with warm egg noodles, a habit formed as a kid in my own home and at the homes of Jewish friends, where it was served as kugel. Over the years, I’ve gussied up the basic concept by adding creme fraiche, leeks melted in butter, and a sizable amount of dill (by far my favorite fresh herb). Lemon zest lends brightness, and a flurry of creamy feta adds salt and soul. My cottage-cheese-and-noodle dish is “good enough for company”—as my grandmother would say—while still satisfying my nostalgic craving.
Flex your cold pack preserving skills with a batch of Spicy Pickled Green Beans. They’re good alongside a sandwich and even better pressed into stirring service in a Bloody Mary.
Falafel are a Middle Eastern specialty of savory fried chickpea balls or patties generously seasoned with herbs and spices. The best falafel have a moist, light interior and a well-browned, crisp crust.
This Basque mixture of peppers, onions, and tomatoes flavored with piment d’Espelette is the basis for the chicken dish known as Poulet Basque as well as for Eggs Piperade. But it’s also great as a relish served alongside pork, lamb, or any mild fish. It’s even good just scooped up on a cracker.
The reason this salad holds up so well at room temperature is because you dress it twice. It absorbs the first round of dressing completely, the second addition keeps it glossy, and a fistful of walnuts and breadcrumbs means there’s always something to bite into.
Fresh Pacific halibut is a seasonal splurge. It needs very little to enhance its flavor—in fact, it’s almost a sin to fuss too much with it. I like to prepare it simply: pan-seared until golden and crisp with a quick sauté of sweet, garlicky cherry tomatoes on the side. Depending on how long you cook the tomatoes, they can be firm and fresh or soft and jammy. I usually aim for somewhere right in between, but they’re delicious either way.