Cut half a red cabbage into medium-thick shredded strips. Place in a large bowl. Add long-cut medium-thick strips of carrots. About 3:1 cabbage to carrots. Add 6 thinly sliced scallions, white ends with some of the green.
Add 1/2 cup + to taste Balsamic vinegar. Fini brand is great. Add 1 tbs. Dijon mustard. Season with celery salt and a generous amount of ground black pepper.
Toss thoroughly with 2 forks and serve at room temperature with your favorite grilled steak or burger.
Burmese Lamb Stew
Raita
Hot & Sweet Mango Chutneys
Naan
Serves 4 as a side salad.
Into a large bowl add~
6 peeled sliced pickle cukes
1 small sliced red onion
Generous amounts of:
dried oregano
cracked black pepper
fresh basil leaves chiffonade
Sprinkle celery salt to taste. Add 1/2 cup red wine vinegar. Toss. Taste. Add more vinegar as desired. Toss. Chill until ready to eat.
Remove from fridge and bring to room temperature. Add 1-2 quartered, sliced native heirloom tomatoes. Toss. Serve with grilled meat.
Note:
Do not put tomatoes in until ready to serve. They get tough if chilled in the vinegar.
Watermelon. So refreshing in hottest humidity of summer. Recently at Nougatine restaurant had the most sinfully simple salad.
Cubes of seedless watermelon with dollops of whipped goat cheese. Drizzle with virgin olive oil and finish with cracked white pepper.
Superb. Jean-Georges prefers white to black pepper in most things.
Note: Just whisk softened goat cheese by itself. Don’t add cream cheese or anything else.
Red White & Blue Dessert
Fresh strawberries, sliced with fresh blueberries in small bowls. Melt Herrell’s malted vanilla ice cream and pour over the berries.
Or. Berries over homemade shortcake with fresh whipped cream.
Grilled Corn in Husks
Fresh corn on the cob as soon as it hits the stand. Peel back the husks and take out the silk. Put the husks back up and soak the corn in a pot of cold water until ready to grill.
Place soaked corn with husks still up on the hot grill and turn as necessary on the outer edge of the grate, so as not to burn. Cover to heat and eat. No need for butter.
Grilled Flank Steak
2 lb. flank steak. Pound with pyramid meat mallet to tenderize. Season with sea salt, fresh ground pepper, garlic powder. Sear on both sides quickly over hot coals, then cover so it stays moist. 8-10 minutes. Rest 5 minutes off heat. Slice against the grain and add favorite barbecue sauce.
Summer Slaw
Red cabbage slaw is my favorite. I shred a small fresh cabbage into a large bowl.
Toss in-
3 thinly sliced scallion ends
2 tbsp. Boar’s Head Pepperhouse mayonnaise
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
A handful of sesame seeds
1/2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. celery salt
Check for tanginess, I like it more vinaigry than mayonnaisey. Toss well to coat the cabbage. Cover, refrigerate.
Cucumber Salad
Into a salad bowl toss-
6 pickle cukes, thinly sliced
1/2 large red onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 tsp. each oregano, basil, celery salt, black pepper
Proportions vary to your taste, could use some fresh basil instead of dried. Serve chilled or at room temp.
Quick side dish for 2.
Shred a quarter green or red cabbage into thin slices into a bowl.
Add:
1/8 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup plain yogurt or mayonnaise
cracked black pepper to taste
celery salt to taste
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tsp. sesame seeds (optional)
Toss thoroughly.
Peel and slice 4-5 small pickle cukes into a medium sized bowl. Add 1/2 red onion, finely minced. Season with celery salt, cracked black pepper, dill weed, to taste.
Toss with 1 cup plain yogurt, a little red wine vinegar. Refrigerate.
Side Hill Farm yogurt from Western Massachusetts is great.
August greens from local farm fields. Manchego cheese, shaved. Sweet fresh peaches, sliced. Walnuts, crumbled.
Drizzle with a Balsamic vinaigrette, or just Balsamic.
That’s it. El Cielo meets Sancho. Cervantes notwithstanding. Perfecto.
It’s finally up. Hadley grass. Pioneer Valley’s famous asparagus.
No need to shave tender stalks, just cut off the ends.
Blanch until cooked but still crisp.
Stop cooking with cold water and divide on small plates when room temperature.
Sprinkle with dried oregano (crushed in the palm of your hand), ground white pepper, halved cherry tomatoes with a pinch of celery salt, fresh basil leaves chiffonade, crumbled Stilton cheese, and drizzle with the best Balsamic vinegar you can get.
My favorite Balsamic vinegar is Fini.
Recipe Detours 