Al Dente

Brownie Bake-off: Ruth Reichl's Artpark Brownies

This summer's Brownie Bake-off continues with a suggestion by Al Dente reader sbz to try Ruth Reichl's Artpark Brownies. I'm a huge fan of Reichl and her memoirs, Tender at the Bone, Comfort Me with Apples, and Garlic and Sapphires, and her Artpark Brownie recipe was included in Tender at the Bone, the first of the trilogy.

If you have a stand mixer, this brownie recipe is super fast and easy. Because the eggs are beaten so long, Artpark Brownies are double the height of ordinary brownies, but are still incredibly fudgy and moist, not cakey. I'm not sure if the thin meringue-like crust that developed on the top of the brownies was intended, but I loved its crunch.

Artpark Brownies

Ingredients:
2/3 cup butter
5 ounces unsweetened, best-quality French chocolate
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
1 cup sifted flour

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Butter and flour a 9-inch square baking pan.

3. Melt butter and chocolate in double boiler, over boiling water. When melted, add vanilla and set aside.

4. Beat eggs and salt in mixer. Add sugar and beat at high speed for about 10 minutes, or until the mixture is quite white.

5. Add chocolate and butter mixture and beat at low speed, just until mixed. Add flour and combine quickly, until there are no white streaks.

6. Pour batter into baking pan and put in oven. Immediate turn oven down to 350 degrees F. and bake for 40 minutes. (the normal toothpick test will not work on these brownies, but if you want to try pricking them with a toothpick, it should come out not quite clean.) Do not overbake; these brownies should be fudgy.

7. Makes 12 brownies.

Tender at the Bone, Ruth Reichl, Broadway Books, 1999

--Tracy Schneider

My Cooking Repertoire: Salade Nicoise

Entertaining is so much easier when you have a repertoire of tried and true recipes that you can pull from to prepare for guests. One of the more fuss-free examples is a salade composée, a salad that is arranged, typically on a platter, rather than tossed in a bowl. My favorite among them is the Provencal Salade Nicoise, as lovely to look at as it is delicious to eat. 

Many well-know cooks have written on the subject of Salade Nicoise, including Julia Child and James Beard, but my favorite musings are from Simon Hopkinson, which appeared in his book, Roast Chicken and Other Stories.

Of late I have come to the conclusion that tuna is redundant in a salade Nicoise. This is purely personal and I know that some aficionados would heartily disagree with me. It's just that I don't think cooked tuna is anything to write home about--and I've even tried cooking my own in olive oil. So, as long as the anchovies used are of superior quality, I say just up the quantity and ditch the tuna.

The other ingredients are also a matter for debate. Rather than say what I think are key ingredients I would only ask that strips of raw green bell pepper are not included. I also like green beans to be cooked though--not so that they squeak when you bite them.

I am in total agreement with Hopkinson when it comes to the bell peppers and the green beans. And while I can take or leave the tuna, I find that finicky American palates have trouble with the humble anchovy, so I typically leave them out. When time permits, I like to poach a bit of salmon to use in place of the tuna, or if you're game, seared tuna is fun, but good quality canned tuna is authentic and delicious with the proper vinaigrette.

My favorite vinaigrette comes from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything. I always double and sometimes triple his recipe, it's so good, and any last drops are sopped up with the ends of the baguette I've served with it. 

My Salade Nicoise is generally composed of poached salmon, hard boiled eggs, thin French haricots verts, yellow baby Dutch potatoes, cherry or grape tomatoes, scallions, Nicoise olives and capers. It doesn't hurt that this meal can be made vegan- or vegetarian-friendly simply by leaving out the fish and the eggs. Picky eaters can just pick out what they like. And for those who like everything, it's a meal that is pretty enough to eat.

Salade Nicoise Vinaigrette

Ingredients:
About 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 small shallot, minced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Directions:
1. Make the vinaigrette by adding the vinegar to the oil, along with the salt and pepper, shallot, and mustard. Stir and taste. Add more vinegar if necessary and adjust seasoning. Stir or shake vigorously, over the salad, and serve.

How to Cook Everything, Mark Bittman, MacMillan, 1998

--Tracy Schneider

Two Tarts Bakery is a Sweet Success

One of the most interesting aspects of the Portland Farmers Market is its influence as a business incubator, offering the opportunity for ordinary people to go after their dream and see where it takes them.

Two Tarts Bakery, which produces beautiful bite-sized cookies, was one of those ideas that took off. Now the market stand has morphed into a stand-alone bakery, open since September of 2008.

If you can't make it to the Farmers Market on Saturday, you can satisfy your craving for their miniature creations, their Fleur de Sel Chocolate Chips, Cappuccino Creams, Honey Graham Crackers, Hazelnut Baci, and Lil' Mama's, all pictured here, at their shop just off NW 23rd. Thanks to their new store, you could say that purchasing their delicious cookies is as easy as pie. Don't miss them.

--Tracy Schneider

Friday Foodie Links Worth a Click--4th of July Edition!

It's Friday again! And this time we've got the whole long weekend ahead of us. As we all planned our 4th of July festivities, a lot of the focus was around food (of course). Here are a few patriotic AND tasty links the Al Dente editors obsessed about this week:

• Wilton's fabulously firework-y cupcake is reason enough to celebrate.
• More cupcake genius: 4th of July cupcakes with built-in ice cream cones!
• Turn to Gourmet's Red, White, and Blue Showcase for 16 colorful recipes.
• We're still not getting over the beauty of this red, white, and blue berry tart--plus, white balsamic custard?!
• Start a tradition of "Food Independence Day."
• Sweet! Red, white, and blue parfaits!
• A little patriotic pousse-café...but how does it taste?
• To fill the weekly Jell-O link quota: stained-glass Jell-O stars!
• Just call us when the fire's hot: Whiskey grilled baby back ribs.
• For those who prefer the oven to the grill: Sticky Hoisin roast chicken wings.
• Let's Bake Some Cake has some 4th of July Fondant Fun with these amazing cupcakes:

 

Photos courtesy of Let's Bake Some Cake.

While you're out and about, reading up on food news, don't miss our top picks for 4th of July kitchen essentials:

• Cuisinart ICE-30 ice cream machine
• Strathwood corn grilling kit
• Oxo corn stripper
• Weber Q portable outdoor gas grill
• Strathwood barbecue tool set
• Emile Henry pie dish
• Outdoor melamine tableware
• Bodum iced-tea glasses

Did I miss a not-to-be-missed foodie link from this past week? Add a comment or tweet at me!

Have a great 4th!

--KitchenMaus

Great Regional Fare: Eating Whoopie Pies in Lancaster County

When Al Dente blog reader Pat Hawn recently shared her inexpensive regional foodie finds, I was thrilled to learn that one of them, Whoopie Pies, originated in Pennsylvania Dutch country, an area I was planning on visiting this summer.

I stopped in at the Lancaster County Farmers Market just a few days ago, eager to scout out regional delicacies including the famed Whoopie Pie. And I found that homespun treat at J & R Baked Goods.

The chocolate pies had been snapped up earlier in the day, so I settled for the pumpkin, an option I might have considered out-of-the-ordinary, had I not just read Micheline Maynard's New York Time's article "Whoopie! Cookie, Pie or Cake, It's Having It's Moment". In it Maynard tracks the recent migration of Whoopie Pies from a regional Amish delicacy (it's also native to Maine, go figure) to bakeries across America, singling out several of these newer purveyors including Chicago's Fraiche Bakery Café, where the two most popular flavors are chocolate and pumpkin.

One look at a Whoopie Pie and you know right off the bat that it's not a pie at all. It is, rather, two rounds of cake with a fluffy, gooey filling that's eaten in-hand like a cookie. And my pumpkin Whoopie Pie was yummy. If your neighborhood bakery hasn't discovered the Whoopie Pie, you can find them online at specialty food stores including Dean & Deluca or Hancock Gourmet Lobster Company.

Thanks again, Pat, for passing this tip along. If anyone knows of other cheap and fun foodie souvenirs from the farmers market or the grocery store, let me know.

--Tracy Schneider

Have a Red, White, and Green Holiday with Pretty Party Pinwheels

I think it’s un-American to have a Fourth of July weekend shindig without good snacks. And sorta sad, too. Especially when the below recipe for Pretty Party Pinwheels (from Party Snacks, 2008, Harvard Common Press) is darn easy to make, scrumptious, and colorful, with its combination of cream cheese, spinach, tomatoes, and some spices to ensure your party isn’t tasteless. Of course, it does flip in green for blue in the traditional fourth color scheme, but maybe you can serve it on a blue patter? One thing that’s for sure--your guests will love these, and you don’t have to stress out much when making them. That’s a step on the road to party success on any weekend.

Pretty Party Pinwheels
Makes about 70 pinwheels

Ingredients:
2 jalapeño chilies, quartered (leave the seeds in if you like it hotter)
4 green onions, coarsely chopped
2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 of a 0.4-ounce package ranch dressing mix
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
10 large flour tortillas
5 cups loosely packed fresh spinach, washed and dried
5 to 7 Roma tomatoes, seeded and very thinly sliced
Salsa or Louisiana-style hot sauce, for serving

Directions:
1. Put the jalapeño and onions in a food processor, and process for 3 to 5 seconds, until well chopped. Add the cream cheese, dressing mix, and pepper, and process again until all is well mixed.

2. Using a spatula or butter knife, spread the mixture evenly over one side of each flour tortilla. Add 1/2 cup spinach and a few tomato slices on top of the mixture on each tortilla.

3. Roll up each tortilla, making a tight roll. Once all are rolled and stacked on a plate, cover with plastic wrap or foil and put them in the fridge to chill for about an hour.

4. Using a sharp chef’s knife, slice each rolled tortilla into 1/2-inch-thick rounds. Arrange attractively on a platter. Serve with salsa or a bottle of Louisiana-style hot sauce on the side.

 

--A.J. Rathbun

Three Kitchen Gadgets That Work

Of the roughly 100,000 kitchen utensils and gadgets we sell at Amazon, there are always some that don't work as well as they should, or even though they're nifty, get relegated to the junk drawer. You know the one. With the extra keys don't seem to fit any lock in your house. So it's always a delight to find gadgets that work--really work! Recently I've added a few essentials to my ever-growing repertoire of culinary odds and ends.

Last month when I discovered that one of my favorite brands, Built, now makes oven mitts, I may have actually squealed with excitement. I tote their stylish and practical lunch bag back and forth every day and am always on the lookout for what cool things this brand is going to do next. Their new line of oven mitts and pot holders is made with the same colorful and fun material as the rest of their products (plus, Built uses wetsuit material, which somehow makes their products extra cool). And, while I do like to look fashionable while taking cookies out of the oven, the best part is that the oven mitt is the best I've found in years. Built smartly designed it to hold the shape your hand is in when grasping a pan. No longer do I have to contort my wrist and hand to make those old-style quilted mitts actually grip a searing hot pan. Also, and I don't know if you've ever noticed this, but those classic mitts have seams right where you hold the pan and the heat seeps through after just a few seconds. No more! Now I'm protected and prettified!

My next find of late is not exactly an essential, but it's a fun tool that gives your plating of meals and desserts a little special flair. If you've been to "fancy" restaurants, you've probably noticed that the mashed potatoes don't come heaped on the plate. No, the kitchen takes special care to dollop them on in perfect ovals. And ice cream or gelato? You know it tastes better when presented in smooth ovals rather than commonplace spheres. Piazza's oval gelato scoop comes in handy for all these instances. While I do primarily use it to fancy up ice cream for dinner guests, it's also fun for artful presentations of wilted greens or pretty mounds of rice. Again, not exactly essential, but definitely fun for the home gourmand.

The last gadget I added to my arsenal recently is the Contigo double-wall travel mug. I first saw it in an industry magazine where it touted a lid that is "100-percent leak-proof and 100-percent spill-proof." Now that I had to try! I bring my coffee to work every day and generally have too few hands for all the work necessities and toddler paraphernalia (and toddler) I need to lug out the door. I'd been dreaming of a mug I could fill up and just throw in my bag without worry. THIS is the mug. Not only has it never leaked even a single drop, even when laid horizontally in my Built lunch tote and jostled for miles, but it also has kept my hot coffee hot and my cold coffee cold for hours on end. I've noticed when I make iced coffee at 8 a.m. that when I leave at 5 p.m. the ice isn't even melted. But still, the tumbler had me at "leak-proof"...

Got any essential kitchen gadgets that have recently come into your life? Add a comment and let me know!

--KitchenMaus

Tom Douglas's Recipe for Whole Salmon on the Grill

Barbecuing a whole salmon on the grill is a Seattle tradition, especially when celebrating any significant event or holiday from the Fourth of July to Christmas.   Try cooking a whole fish once in a while.  It will be infinitely more satisfying than boned fillets, and it’s probably a lot quicker and easier than you think.  Jackie spent 10 minutes getting this salmon ready to go on the grill, then only about 30 minutes grilling it.  Believe me, it will make a huge impression on your guests when you carry this gorgeous, slightly charred, sizzling hot salmon to the table.
     
Some people don’t like to eat the salmon skin, but if you do want to eat it be sure to remove the scales, or ask your fishmonger to do it for you.  A small sharp knife or a boning knife works well for scraping the scales off, though Jackie likes to use our Italian cheese knife, which does the job perfectly.  I lightly dust the skin with flour and brush with olive oil before grilling, to keep the fish skin from sticking to the grill.  I like to use an instant-read meat thermometer to check when the fish is done, just like I would check a roast. 

Try to get a wild salmon for this recipe, rather than a farmed salmon, because a fish with a nice firm texture is best.  A 3-1/2- to 4-pound fish is the perfect size for grilling. You can grill the salmon with the head and tail on, or you can ask your fishmonger to remove them.  Instead of salmon, you could substitute a steelhead, a large trout, a striped bass, or a red snapper.

Whole Salmon on the Grill Stuffed with Sea Salt, Lemon, and Onion
Makes 8 servings

Ingredients:
1 whole salmon, about 4 pounds, gutted, rinsed, and patted dry
Sea salt
1/2 medium onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1/2 lemon, thinly sliced
1 small bunch fennel fronds or fresh dill
Olive oil, for brushing
Flour, for dusting

Sweet Fennel Butter, softened (see recipe below)
Lemon wedges and fennel fronds or fresh dill, for garnish

Directions:
1. Fire up the grill, with the coals lined up for direct heat about 5 to 6 inches below the fish.  Sprinkle sea salt generously in the cavity of the fish and over the skin, then stuff the cavity with the onion, lemon, and fennel fronds.  Tie kitchen string around the fish in three or four places to hold the stuffing in.  In between the string, make deep incisions with your knife through the thickest part of the fish on both sides, all the way down to the spine, so the fish will cook more quickly, and the smoke flavor will get inside the fish better.  Lightly dust one side of the fish with flour. Brush both the floured side of the fish and the grate with oil, then place the salmon on the grill, floured side down. Once the salmon is on the grill, lightly dust the other side of the fish with flour and brush it with oil.

2. Grill the salmon over medium-hot direct heat, with the lid on and the vents open.  If your grill has a thermometer, maintain the heat at 300 to 350 degrees F.  When the skin side facing the grill is nicely browned, after about 20 minutes, use two large grill spatulas to flip the fish to the other side.  Slide your spatula under the fish in several places first, to help detach the skin from the grill.  Then continue to grill until the fish is just cooked through and an instant-read thermometer inserted in thickest part of fish reads 125 degrees to 135 degrees F, about 10 to 20 minutes longer, for a total grilling time of 30 to 40 minutes.  Remove the fish from the grill, place it on a large platter, cut off the string, and let rest for 10 minutes.

NOT Your Ordinary Breakfast Roll

Popovers have made the move from the breakfast nook to the dining table, so it's no surprise then that traditional breakfast rolls are eyeing similar opportunities.

A recent lunch at Bourbon Steak, Michael Mina's steakhouse at the Four Seasons in Washington, D.C., began with what looked like a buttery cinnamon bun, but was in fact a glorious breakfast roll made with black truffle butter. Pure decadence.

If you love to bake and entertain, this recipe will no doubt surprise and delight your guests. In true baker's fashion, it is written in grams for accuracy. If you don't already have a kitchen food scale, inexpensive versions are easy to find.

Truffle Butter Rolls

Ingredients:
1628 grams bread flour
1136 grams whole milk
16 grams instant yeast (not active dry yeast)
36 grams fine sea salt
196 grams unsalted butter, softened
36 grams brown rice syrup or honey
Truffle butter

Directions:
1. Combine the flour and the milk in a mixer fitted with a dough hook and mix for about 1 minute, just until the dough comes together. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 20 minutes.

2. Remove the plastic wrap and add the yeast. Mix on medium speed until the yeast s absorbed, about 2 minutes.

3. Add the salt and continue to mix on medium speed for several minutes until gluten is well developed and 'window panes' is achieved.

4. Add the butter and brown rice syrup and mix until all of the butter is incorporated and the dough is homogeneous and smooth.

5. Place the dough in a plastic container lightly sprayed with canola oil spray and cover with a lid. Move to the refrigerator and allow the dough to retard proof overnight.

6. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature - about 30 minutes.

7. Uncover the dough and gently remove from the container onto a work surface.

8. Roll dough down to 1/8" thickness and cover with fine layer of truffle butter.

9. Roll up dough like a cinnamon bun and cut into 1-1/4 inch slices.

10. Arrange into truffled butter cast iron pan giving enough room for bread to double in size.

11. Proof in a warm moist place until doubled in size.

12. Bake in a hot oven 400 degrees F until bottom of buns are golden brown. Slather on more truffle butter and serve.

--Tracy Schneider

Tom Douglas's Recipe for Charred Squid Skewers on Garlic Toast

This is one of my favorite recipes for summer parties. Squid can be very tender when grilled--just make sure to pull the skewers off the grill as soon as the squid is cooked. Charmoula is a slightly spicy Moroccan sauce made with cilantro and garlic--it adds a nice kick to this appetizer. For grilling, you can use bamboo skewers found at most markets, or check out my new double-pronged skewers--they'll keep the squid in place so you can grill evenly and also avoid having any squid fall into the fire. Plus, the "pusher" helps you get the squid off the skewers and onto your plates.

Charred Squid Skewers on Garlic Toast with Arugula

Ingredients:
2 pounds cleaned squid bodies, with or without tentacles
12 or more 10-inch skewers; if using bamboo skewers, soak them in water for 30 minutes and drain

For the Charmoula Marinade:
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flatleaf parsley
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons sambal oelek
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

6  garlic toasts (see recipe below)
5 cups loosely packed arugula leaves, stems trimmed, washed and dried

For the Lemon Vinaigrette:
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice,
2 teaspoons minced shallots,
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Lemon wedges, for garnish

Directions:
1. If your squid bodies have fins (thin flaps) attached to them, slice off and discard them. Put the blade of your knife inside a squid body and carefully slice it open, cutting away from you, so you have one flat piece. Cut this piece in half, lengthwise. You will have two squid pieces, shaped like two long, tapered rectangles.  Using your knife, lightly score the inside of each rectangle in a crosshatch pattern, not cutting all the way through. Repeat this procedure with all the squid bodies. 

2. To skewer the squid, thread one rectangle, lengthwise, onto a skewer, followed by 2 tentacles (if using), then another rectangle.  Pick up another skewer and continue until all the squid bodies are used. (You may have some tentacles left over; you can thread them together on a skewer.)  Place the skewers in a nonreactive pan.

3. To make the marinade, combine the parsley, cilantro, lemon juice, garlic, paprika, sambal, lemon zest, salt and pepper in a bowl and whisk in the oil.   Pour the marinade over the squid, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

4. To make the lemon vinaigrette, combine the lemon juice and shallots in a small bowl and whisk in the olive oil.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Set aside.

5. Fire up your grill.  Remove the skewers from the refrigerator and allow the squid to come to room temperature.  Shake off excess marinade, then grill the skewers over a hot fire, direct heat, with the lid off. Turn the skewers several times as needed, until the squid is cooked through, opaque, and charred in a few places, about 1 to 3 minutes total time, depending on the heat of your fire.  Do not overcook, or the squid will be tough. Remove the skewers from the grill.

Popcorn Cookies: Snack Happiness, Vegan Style

Out-of-towners who attended my sister's wedding last weekend found a bag full of goodies in their hotel rooms, including a box of cookies from the vegan kitchen of Sidra Forman.

Sidra is no slouch when it comes to cookies. She bakes hundreds of them every weekend for the Twin Springs Farmers Market in Montgomery County, Maryland. Her herbal shortbreads have been celebrated in song over at Daily Candy. And her snack happy popcorn cookies are the perfect junk food, salty and sweet and utterly addictive.

Of course, you won't find any "junk" in these cookies. Made with air-popped popcorn and raw oats, they're a healthy snack food alternative. And they're so easy to make, you'll wish you had discovered a long time ago.

Popcorn Cookies

Ingredients:
5 cups air-popped popcorn
1 cup raw oats
1/3 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons soy milk
5 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a mixer combine ingredients and mix until popcorn and oats break down.

3. Spray a sheet tray with vegetable oil. Divide the dough to make individual cookies and place on cookie sheet.

4. Bake until golden brown, about 8-10 minutes.

Makes 15 large cookies or 30 small cookies

--Tracy Schneider

Hotter Than Georgia Asphalt: July 4th Barbecue Chicken

In the heat of the summer, there’s nothing better for keeping the heat out of the kitchen than firing up the grill. My grandfather used a potent vinegar bath on grilled chicken that produced a pungent, meaty odor, sending out billowing clouds of steam and smoke as the chicken cooked. I like to make a batch of the marinade and keep it in the refrigerator in the spritz bottle. It works well with pork chops, too.

The birds in the photo are spatchcocked and threaded on a spit. Spatchcocking is a technique used with small birds like Cornish hens, quail, or even small chickens. You remove their backbones and spread them open so that they are fairly flat. Besides creating an intriguing presentation and making them simple to carve, a spatchcocked bird requires less time cooking, so the breast meat is more likely to be moist and tender.

To spatchcock a bird, place the bird on a clean cutting board, breast side down. Using poultry shears, make a lengthwise cut on both sides of the backbone from neck to tail. Remove the backbone and save it for stock. Open the bird like a book. Proceed with the recipe. For an especially flat bird, place the bird on a baking sheet, top with a second baking sheet and weigh it down with a brick or several large cans of tomatoes for several hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

Bon Appétit Y’all!
VA

Dede’s Barbecued Chicken

Ingredients:
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup peanut oil, plus more for the grate
2 tablespoons hot sauce
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon coarse salt, plus more for seasoning the chicken
1 (4 to 5-pound) chicken, cut into 8 pieces
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
1. Prepare a charcoal fire using about 6 pounds of charcoal and burn until the coals are completely covered with a thin coating of light gray ash, 20 to 30 minutes. Spread the coals evenly over the grill bottom, position the grill rack above the coals, and heat until medium-hot (when you can hold your hand 5 inches above the grill surface for no longer than 3 or 4 seconds). Or, for a gas grill, turn on all burners to High, close the lid, and heat until very hot, 10 to 15 minutes.

2. Combine the water, vinegar, peanut oil, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and salt in a squirt bottle. Set aside.

3. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Apply some oil to the grill grate. Place the chicken on the grill, leaving plenty of space between each piece. Grill until seared, about 1 to 2 minutes per side for legs and thighs, and 3 or so minutes for breasts. Move the chicken to medium-low heat or reduce the heat to medium; continue to grill, turning occasionally and squirting with the marinade, until the juices run clear when pierced, 12 to 18 minutes. Remove the pieces from the grill as they cook and transfer to a warm platter. Give them a final squirt of sauce for flavor and serve immediately.

Serves 4 to 6

Virginia Willis Culinary Productions, LLC © 2009
Adapted from Bon Appétit, Y’all: Recipes and Stories from Three Generations of Southern Cooking by Virginia Willis, copyright © 2008. Published by Ten Speed Press.

--Virginia Willis

Japanese Cat Cafes

What to do if you love cats but work long hours, have a no-pets-allowed apartment, or are constantly traveling? In Japan, you'd go to Calico, a cafe in Tokyo that lets customers have a cup of tea and play with the feline staff. According to a writer at globalpost.com, when Calico first opened in March 2007 it was "an oddity and the preserve of lonely women and cat fanciers. It is now staggeringly popular. This March it opened a second branch in the high-rent Shinjuku business and shopping district. Last October it published a glossy coffee table book featuring its "feline staff." The original branch is so packed that reservations are recommended on weekends." The cafe charges about $9 for an hour of fur-fueled catisfaction.

--AndreaLeigh

Tom Douglas's Recipe for Crab and Pork Shao Mai

Shao mai or gyoza wrappers, available in Asian groceries, are 3-inch diameter rounds that are very thin.  If you buy square wrappers, it’s easy to stack the wrappers in groups of 10 or so and shave the corners with a pair of kitchen shears to make rounds.

For steaming the shao mai, a multi-tiered Chinese bamboo steamer with two steaming baskets works best. Set your bamboo steamer over a wok or a large saucepan partially filled with boiling water.  If you don’t have a multi-tiered bamboo steamer, divide the dumplings between two pots with steamer baskets. (If you use metal steamer baskets instead of bamboo, lightly oil them first so the shao mai don’t stick.)

If you like, you can make these ahead, chill, and reheat in the steamer baskets for about 5 minutes.

Crab and Pork Shao Mai

Ingredients:
1 large egg white
1 tablespoon sake
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons cornstarch, plus a little more for dusting the plate
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced scallions, white and green parts
2 teaspoons peeled and grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup drained, canned water chestnuts, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup peeled and grated carrot
1/2 pound ground pork
1/2 pound crab meat, drained, picked clean of shell, and lightly squeezed of excess moisture if wet
About 24 raw green peas, fresh or frozen
1 package shao mai or gyoza wrappers

For serving:
Chili oil or Chinese hot chili paste

Directions:
1. In a bowl, lightly whisk together the egg white, sake, soy, sesame oil, cornstarch, sugar, salt, and pepper. Add the scallion, ginger, cilantro, water chestnuts, and carrot and stir.  Add the pork and crab meat and mix with a rubber spatula until well combined.

2. Set a shao mai wrapper on a work surface and place a heaping tablespoon of filling in the center.  Then gather up the edges of the wrapper, pleating it around the filling.  Hold the dumpling between your thumb and index finger, squeezing it to form a “waist,” while flattening the bottom of the dumpling with your other hand.  The dumpling will be open on top, leaving the top of the filling exposed.  Press one pea into the center of the exposed filling.  Set the dumpling on a large plate lightly dusted with cornstarch.  Repeat until all the crab-pork mixture is used. You should have about 24 dumplings.

3. Fill a large saucepan or wok about halfway with water and bring to a boil over high heat.

4. Divide the shao mai between two bamboo steamer baskets.  Stack the baskets, cover with the lid, and place over the saucepan or wok. Steam until the shao mai are cooked through, about 15 minutes, reversing the baskets about halfway through the steaming time.

5. Remove the shao mai from the baskets, transfer to plates and serve with ramekins of chili oil or chili paste.

Makes 6 appetizer servings

Recipe from I Love Crab Cakes (Morrow, 2006)
Photo by Robin Layton

--Tom Douglas

Tom Douglas is currently working with Amazon.com on the exclusive line of kitchen and dining products, Tom Douglas by Pinzon, aimed at building confidence in the kitchen.

Best Bang for Your Buck: BLT Steak

Who would have thought that a celebrity chef's tony steakhouse could offer the best bang for your buck?

But that's exactly the case at BLT Steak, where Chef Laurent Tourondel showers his diners with complimentary treats: great snacks at the bar, chicken liver paté with toasted ciabatta first thing once you're seated and fresh from the oven popovers shortly thereafter.

Sure, steak isn't cheap and like other steakhouses, the sides are all a la carte. So if you want the decadent Parmesan gnocchi or the grilled asparagus, it's a separate charge. But a delicious hanger steak with chimichurri, that I can easily share with one or two other people, is only $29. Share two sides at about $10 each and you're more than sated. A great deal for a grand dinner, stellar service and a cool, clubby atmosphere. You'll want to come back when you're flush for the seafood platter, the lobster Cobb style salad, and the bone-in double sirloin.

Whatever you order, Tourondel won't let you leave without dessert. His molten chocolate espresso cookies are delicious. And they're also complimentary.

--Tracy Schneider

Mahi Mahi 30-Minute Recipe with Greek-Style Dressing

A recent switch in our household to a diet less defined by red meat, has opened up a world of simple and tasty recipes for fish.  I'm always on the lookout for something that takes no more that 30 minutes to prepare and cook.  The following recipe for Greek-Style Mahi Mahi was featured in the June 2009 edition of Gourmet.  It's a savory, citrus-flavored summer dish and I suppose you could substitute a number of other white fish for the mahi mahi. I served this with a side dish of orzo dressed with fresh herbs and olive oil.  The whole thing was such a big hit we've added it to our 12 favorite summer meals list and it's now on permanent rotation.

Greek-Style Mahi Mahi

Ingredients:
3 medium tomatoes (about 3/4 pound total), each cut into 8 wedges
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar
4 (6-ounces) pieces mahimahi fillet (1 1/2 inches thick) with skin
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup crumbled feta
3 tablespoons chopped mint
2 tablespoons chopped dill
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
8 very thin lemon slices

Directions:
1. Preheat broiler.

2. Toss tomatoes with 2 tablespoons oil, vinegar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

3. Line a broiler pan or small 4-sided sheet pan with foil or parchment paper and lightly oil foil. Put fish, skin sides down, on pan and season with 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.

4. Whisk together mayonnaise, feta, herbs, and lemon juice and spread over top of fish. Put 2 lemon slices (slightly overlapping) on center of each fillet. Drizzle lemon slices with remaining 2 teaspoons oil.

5. Broil fish 8 inches from heat until just cooked through, 14 to 16 minutes. If topping browns before fish is cooked, cover loosely with foil. Serve fish with tomatoes.

--flauersmartini

Potato Chips: Cheap and Fun Foodie Souvenirs From the Grocery Store

Whenever I travel overseas I like to stop at outdoor markets, specialty food shops and grocery stores to see what people are buying and eating. It's harder to discern regional tastes when traveling around the U.S., since so much of what you'll find in the grocery store is generic.

I love combing the candy aisles across Europe. English Flakes, Double Deckers and Smarties. Viennese Mozartkugelns. German Ritter Sports. But the candy aisle in the U.S. is basically the same all across the country. Here you'll find the same cereal in the cereal aisle, whether you're in Seattle or New York. The same cans of soup, boxes of crackers and containers of ice cream.

Fortunately, that's not the case when it comes to potato chips, where regional chips still prevail. My sister, Jennifer, has made sure that all of her out-of-town guests, who are in D.C. this weekend for her wedding, head home with a bag of Utz Crab Chips, potato chips made with Chesapeake Bay crab seasoning. According to Jennifer, they're the quintessential District chip.

It's good to know that I can travel the U.S. and bring back a fun (and cheap) souvenir simply by shopping the local grocery store and honing in on the region's favorite chips. In fact, I seem to recall a recent magazine article that featured regional potato chips all across the country. (I can't remember what magazine it was. Anyone know?)

I'm always on the lookout for other inexpensive foodie souvenirs, so if you have some favorites, please share them with me.

--Tracy Schneider

Friday Afternoon Internet Happy Hour: Foodie Links Worth a Click

It's Friday again! Here are a few tasty links the Al Dente editors obsessed about this week:

• This cheese-covered horror story will be haunting me for some time. Possibly in a good way. Or not.
• Get 'em while they're ripe! Gourmet showcases super seasonal cherry recipes. Yum!
• Just say cheese! A slideshow of "foody" faces.
• A frosting-shot taste test. Frosting lightweights, beware!
• Sky Full of Bacon profiles an Iowa prosciutto maker.
• Smashing! A recipe for a Raspberry-Thyme Smash cocktail.
• What to cook this weekend: Celebrate the 4th of July early with these red, white, and blue ice cream cupcakes.
• Continuing on the Jell-O theme from past weeks, check out Eat Me Daily's chronicling of a Jell-O mold competition in Brooklyn. My favorite--Jell-ROE:

Photo courtesy of Eat Me Daily

While you're out and about, reading up on food news, don't miss Al Dente's most popular posts of the week. Here are a few reader favorites:

• Wine in a box--the debate continues.
• Whip up an easy cheesecake with the help of your food processor.
• The brownie bake-off continues with Maggie's Fudge Brownies.

Did I miss a not-to-be-missed foodie link from this past week? Add a comment or tweet at me!

Have a great weekend!

--KitchenMaus

Le Pain Quotidien for Fresh & Healthy Fast Food

Le Pain Quotidien just opened on Dupont Circle, a stone's throw from my sister's apartment in Washington D.C. How lucky is she!

We discovered Le Pain Quotidien eight years ago on a trip to France. We walked by it one day in Nice, never guessing that this lovely cafe with great pastries, simple breakfasts, inventive tartines, and boards of cheese and charcuterie, was actually a chain of cafes begun in Belgium.

We went back again. And again. When Le Pain Quotidien arrived on U.S. shores, we made a beeline to its shop on New York's Upper West Side and were pleased to find that our love affair had withstood both time and distance. Le Pain Quotidien was as good as ever.

Le Pain Quotidien, which means "daily bread" in French, is known for its large communal tables, commitment to organic ingredients and strong environmental stance, in addition to its superb breads and pastries.

If Le Pain Quotidien can offer fresh and healthy fast food around the world, shouldn't there be others that will follow suit?

--Tracy Schneider

Walla Walla Onions--In the Raw and Oh So Sweet!

During the winter months, I rarely use sliced raw onion on my sandwiches or in my salads. I simply find them to be too harsh to eat straight up.

However, now that summer is here and Washington's Walla Walla sweet onions are hitting the markets, I find myself tucking the sweet crisp slices into everything from pita pockets and homemade gyros to burgers, salads, and salsas.  They are one of those seasonal regional treats that simply can't be purchased year round.

These onions hail from Washington's Walla Walla Valley, but they are originally from the Island of Corsica, which is off the west coast of Italy. More than 100 years ago, a French soldier named Peter Pieri gathered the onion seed and eventually brought it to this fertile valley in Eastern Washington. The rest is history, and the onion has been revered ever since.

Although there are other sweet onions on the market such as the Vidalia and Texas 1015, Kathryn Fry, the Director of Marketing for the Walla Walla Onion Marketing Committee explained the factors that set the Walla Walla apart.

She said, "The Walla Wallas are hand harvested and open pollinated... with a Walla Walla it's a natural sweetness. It's a really big deal."  She also explained that consumers should look for the onion's official sticker which declares "Walla Walla Genuine Sweet Onion."  This helps to ensure authenticity when various onions are sometimes carelessly combined in a produce bin at a store.

I had been poking through the onion's official website for ideas and stumbled upon this recipe for Walla Walla Sweet Onion and Watermelon Salsa. It seemed intriguing but odd. I asked Fry if the recipe was good, or if she had any other "best recipes." She told me the salsa is very popular and that it's awesome.

Over the years, I've learned to trust tips from industry folks like Fry. They know their product inside and out and they know what consumers like. So, Fry's endorsement sent me slicing and dicing last night. The salsa is cool, spicy, sweet, crunchy, and herbaceous. Perfect for a hot summer day.

Walla Walla Sweet Onion and Watermelon Salsa

Ingredients:
2 cups chopped watermelon (seeds removed)
3/4 cup chopped Walla Walla Sweet Onion
3/4 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup chopped seeded jalapeno chilies
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Stir together all the ingredients in bowl. Refrigerate, covered, at least one hour to blend flavors. Stir before serving.

Recipe Courtesy of the Walla Walla Sweet Onion Marketing Committee and The National Watermelon Promotion Board

Photo by Melissa A. Trainer

--Melissa A. Trainer