Food & Sex: The Best Way to a Man's Heart?... An Artfully Sensual Valentine's Day Dinner Offering a Light Menu with Sex Appeal

Ah, Valentine's Day. A romantic day filled with hearts, flowers and......... food.

Sex may enter into it; but, somehow, food plays an instrumental role before the conquest.

We've all been told that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. (Of course, women possess those organs, too, and many of us are equally interested in having them courted by our wooers. Who do you think most of the recipients of those chocolate-filled heart-shaped boxes are anyway, hmmmm?)

Unfortunately, what no one tells you is that a romantic dinner laden with the fatty fare of most Valentine menus not only wreaks havoc on the waistline; but, also, has marooned many a bloated traveler on the sea of love; leaving them stranded on the Isle of Misfit Celibates instead of basking in the glow of Fantasy Island.

You're more likely to bust a gut than bust a move after eating all that lobster and chocolate mousse. So in the interest of raising metabolisms and libidos everywhere, I offer a menu to help keep the sin in the saint of St. Valentine's Day (so that the only resemblance you have to the day's martyr is in name only); but, don't think that I would ever consider sacrificing the sensuous textures and fabulous flavors of the Valentine's Day classics.

Au contraire, mon cher. I only seek to enhance the food's aphrodisiac qualities by lightening it; thereby, allowing for the enjoyment of later, more intimate pleasures.

Which begs the question.... What makes a certain kind of food sexy or, better yet, which foods make you feel sexy?

For many people, eating sensuously is all about texture:

.... such as silken, unctuous foods that glide over your tongue while coating it with their essence as you devour them. These foods not only feel and taste wonderful but they also make you look good in the process. Think of how sexy licking an ice cream cone looks vs. chomping down on a burger. Both can be messy but the former is enticing to watch, while the latter is just disgusting giving you all the glamour of a jungle beast tucking into an antelope instead of an angel of Eros enjoying her daily dose of ambrosia;

..... or, how about juicy, self-contained foods that use your fingers, preferably while making contact with your lips, and, capable of being eaten in one or two bites. Think of soft, pouty lips wrapping themselves around: a fresh strawberry, a red cherry, the ripest fig, or piece of ahi nigiri. The light tooth-grazing consumption of the tender leaves of steamed artichokes also falls into this category of food come-ons.

Of course, many cultures tend to reckon shape with sexual aphrodisiacs. Take the obvious likeness of avocados, apples, bananas, eggs, asparagus spears, ginseng, zucchini, oysters, mangoes or even the more far-flung rhinoceros horn to their sexually reproductive anatomical counterparts and you can come up with an interesting, if somewhat unappetizing menu.

Some foods, over time, have been endowed with magical, potent sexual powers for their ability to excite rather than their physical characteristics. My four favorites: chocolate, champagne, caviar and chilis fall into this category.

Dark chocolate with its LDL lowering stearic acid, mood-elevating theobromine, "love chemical" inducing phenylethylamine, pleasure enhancing serotonin and energy boosting caffeine was considered not only an aphrodisiac but also quite the health elixir by the Aztecs and the Mayans and was revered as a food of the gods; 2000 years before more recently undergoing its latest health food status. It sure tastes good! Ask Montezuma; he drank 50 gold goblets full of it a day & look at how potent he was!

The hot spice of chili peppers with its tear inducing capsciacin mimics the feelings of arousal by elevating the blood pressure & body temperature leaving you flushed, moist & panting.

Champagne has always been the wine of love & celebration with bubbles that tickle your tongue as well as your fancy. The alcohol in it is a powerful relaxant, allowing you to shed your inhibitions (if not your clothing).

The goddess of love, Aphrodite, (Venus to her later Roman worshippers) was born from the sea, so all of the sea's creatures were said to be endowed with her aphrodisiac powers. It doesn't hurt that most seafood contain prodigious quantities of the mineral zinc which is known to be an effective nutrient for the erotically-challenged. Caviar is sturgeon roe. The many eggs of caviar also represent fertility; procreation and the propagation of the species, of course, has always been the most powerful catalyst for the sex act. Just ask Darwin. Money is a pretty good conductor of sexual electricity, too, and caviar costs lots of it which only adds to its romantic allure!

Of course, too much of anything, champagne and caviar included, can douse the most ardent fire, so I advocate a little discretion in all things edible. While moderation may not seem to fan the flames of molten passion, it's always good to be a little hungry for something more, especially on Valentine's Day.

Just ask yourself, how would Aphrodite satisfy those hunger pangs?

My suggested Valentine's Dinner Menu, as all good romantic menus should, will definitely include the four C's: chocolate, champagne, caviar & chili peppers; though, not necessarily in that order. I will also add a few other yummies from my heart-thumping bag of tricks. The champagne should be a brut rose' for it's magnificent color and depth of flavor. I couldn't make up my mind about what to concoct for this special day; so why not double your pleasure, double your fun: offer two options and have your intended choose one?

Most of the dishes can be made in advance, except for the fish which needs to be cooked a la minute, then you can have the pleasure of sharing; nothing is sexier than guiding the hand that feeds you in a dark, candlelit room. However, for those less inclined to divvy up their din din, I will include in each recipe enough portions for at least two & let you could decide whether tonight's culinary muse will be Asian or Italian when you choose which dish per course.

What the menu lacks in innovation it makes up for in raw sex appeal. Whether you finish the meal by feeding each other sumptuous spoonfuls of parfait or tasty morsels of chocolate dipped strawberries is up to you; but, I guarantee that will not be the conclusion of the evenings activities. Bon Appetit & Happy Valentine's Day!!!

A Valentine's Day Menu with Lots of Sex Appeal

Salmon Poke with Ossetra Caviar

or

Carpaccio of Ahi with Shaved Hearts of Palm, Asparagus Tips & Truffle Oil

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Duo of Cannelloni Dungeness Crab & Goat Cheese, Roasted Sweet Potato & Mascarpone or

Macadamia-Crusted Thai Red Snapper with Passionfruit-Infused Bercy, Curried Bhutanese Red Rice Risotto

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Raspberry & Dark Chocolate Parfait with Greek Yogurt, Agave Nectar & Toasted Walnuts

or

Chocolate-covered Strawberries

Salmon Poke with Ossetra Caviar

Note: Traditionally, Poke is made with limu kohu, a red seaweed harvested near the Hawaiian isles, and crushed roasted kukui nuts. Both ingredients can be found at San Mateo's Takahashi Market.com online shop. However, if, like me, you are more interested in the spirit of the dish rather than a strict interpretation, you can substitute furikake or nori strips for the limu kohu; white & black sesame seeds for the kukui nuts; and, add a pinch of Hawaiian red sea salt for color. I also stray from tradition by dicing the fish a bit finer, adding cilantro and a little fresh lime juice & /or blood orange juice to the mixture at the very end just before molding & plating. I like the kick that citrus adds to the dish but I try not to add it too early because the acids "cook" the fish and mar the beautiful color turning the bright flesh opaque.

Needless to say the salmon needs to be very fresh and preferably wild (which are frozen this time of year) or from a sustainably raised farm like U.K. Greenpeace-endorsed Loch Duart's Scottish Salmon from CleanFish. Ahi is traditionally used and the natural substitute if you don't like raw salmon. The caviar is for extra luxe appeal & sevruga has nice firm eggs that cost less than its cousins, ossetra & the ever disappearing beluga. American Caviar from sustainably-raised California white sturgeon (Tsar Nicoulai), Missouri & Mississippi Rivers hackleback sturgeon (Petrovich Caviar), Montana golden white fish and paddlefish (Seattle's Caviar) is now much more widely available and less costly than international brands such as Petrossian. Click on the name of the various purveyors for more info. If you can't find a ripe avocado (it's been a tough year for them), substitute the layer of avocado for a little chive oil on the bottom of the dish. Just take a bunch of chives (scallions will work, too), rough chop, add to a blender with a cup of the highest quality cold pressed olive oil, blend & strain through a strainer lined in cheesecloth or a chinoise, if you happen to have one lying around your kitchen. This recipe serves 2 lovebirds as a first course.

 Ingredients

• 4 oz. very fresh sashimi-grade salmon fillet, skin & bloodline removed, finely cubed
• 1 Tablespoon of reduced sodium soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons of toasted sesame oil plus more as needed, to taste
• 1 teaspoon of furikake, seaweed gomasio, shichimi (or plain nori cut into small thin strips)
• 1/2 teaspoon black sesame seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon toasted white sesame seeds
• 1 Tablespoon of cilantro, minced
• 1 Tablespoon sweet onion such as Maui or Vidalia, finely minced
• 2 scallions, tougher dark green stalks removed, finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon of finely minced fresh ginger root, skin removed
• 1 Tablespoon of Lowfat Mayonnaise (Best Foods or Hellmans brand)
• 1 teaspoon of Vietnamese Sriracha sauce (Huy Fong Foods Inc. brand found at Safeway or at www.huyfong.com)
• the juice from 1/2 a blood orange (or lime)
• 1 pinch of Hawaiian Red Sea Salt, optional
• 1 small ripe Hass avocado
• 1 oz. of caviar
• 4 blue potato chips from Terra Chips (optional)

Directions

1. Whisk together the mayo, citrus juice, soy sauce & sriracha sauce in a small bowl, combine well and set aside.
2. Place the salmon in a medium-sized bowl and toss with sesame oil until well-coated. Add the cilantro, sesame seeds, onion, scallions, furikake and ginger to the salmon. Mix well.
3. (The salmon poke can be stored in the refrigerator at this time for 12 hours; store it separately from the dressing. Just be sure to remove both from the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before serving)
4. Slowly add the sriracha dressing to the salmon poke, gently folding it in to thoroughly combine without breaking up the salmon cubes. Add as little or as much of the dressing as you like, making adjustments to suit your taste. Then sprinkle a tiny pinch of the sea salt over the poke and gently combine. Taste for seasoning.
5. Cut the avocado into half, removing the pit carefully, using the edge of a sharp paring knife between the skin and the flesh, gently trace the circumference of each cut half of the avocado with the knife to loosen the flesh. Unmold each half, cut side down, onto a clean cutting board and slice avocado thinly to form a fan. Place each avocado half onto its serving dish, cut side up, and delicately fan out the slices onto the plate; or, instead, form a thin ring of avocado slices with a hollow center.
6. Place a ring mold over the center of the avocado slices and, using a spoon, fill it with the salmon poke, tamping it down to mold the shape, dip your paring knife in hot water, run it carefully around the inside of the ring to loosen the ring, then slowly unmold the poke. Repeat with the other dish. (If you don't have a ring mold, just fill a ramekin with the poke, pack it tightly, tamp it down, run the knife around it & gently unmold it as you turn the ramekin upside down over the center of the dish.)
7. Garnish both plates with a 1/2 oz. of caviar over the center of each poke and 2 blue potato chips from Terra Chips.

Ahi Carpaccio with Shaved Hearts of Palm, Asparagus & Truffle Oil

Note: You can quickly sear the sides of the ahi with a peppery crust as photographed then flatten it; looks pretty, but, it doesn't add much to the dish; so, the recipe will skip that step. The fresh hearts of palm I originally intended to use are nearly impossible to find easily. There is a family-owned company in Costa Rica, the #1 source of domesticated palms bred for food production, named DeKing of Hearts (click here to go to their website) but a highly perishable 1 lb. bag (perishes within 2 weeks from the day it was harvested)is $25 per lb plus overnight shipping. So in the interest of using money more judiciously, I am using canned hearts of palm that are rinsed & dried and incorporating the more traditional arugula into the salad for more bitter contrast & flavor. Still looking for frozen hearts of palm so if you know of any email me. Canned hearts of palm are too watery to shave, so I just tried to slice them as thinly as possible using a very sharp knife. A thin shaving of pecorino romano into shards will curb my mad Sweeney Todd-like urge for the moment. This recipe serves 2 inamorati as a starter.

 Ingredients

• 2 (3-ounce) pieces of sashimi-grade ahi
• 1 tablespoons plus 4 teaspoons of extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 hearts of palm (from a can), drained, rinsed, patted dry and thinly sliced
• 2 cups of baby arugula, rinsed and dried
• 12 thin spears of asparagus, tips only, blanched for 30 seconds and chilled
• the zest of 1 meyer's lemon
• the juice of 1 meyer's lemon
• 6 grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 tablespoons of chives, finely minced
• 1 sprig of fresh thyme, stripped of leaves and chopped
• 2 generous shavings of pecorino romano or parmiggiano-reggiano (1 per plate)
• 2 generous drizzles of truffle oil (as a garnish for each plate)
• pinch of truffle salt and a pinch of fleur de sel
• freshly milled black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Stretch four large sheets of plastic wrap on your countertop, smear each piece with a teaspoon of olive oil.
2. Place a piece of cold ahi in the center of the first two pieces of the plastic wrap & then cover each fillet, (olive oil-smeared side down) with a remaining plastic sheet.
3. Gently pound with a mallet, working from the center out until the ahi is paper thin.
4. Store wrapped tuna on a plate in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
5. In a medium sized bowl, combine the hearts of palm, arugula, tomatoes, thyme & asparagus. Then add the Meyer lemon juice & remaining tablespoon of olive oil, black pepper & sea salt to taste, toss gently but be sure to coat the vegetables thoroughly.
6. Remove the ahi from the fridge and prepare to plate it on dishes large enough to accommodate them. (The average dinner-sized plate should do).
7. Plate the ahi by first carefully removing the top sheet of plastic; next, place the ahi side on the center of the dish; then, gently remove the last piece of plastic, carefully molding together any pieces of ahi that have torn apart.
8. Sprinkle each ahi carpaccio with a pinch of lemon zest, truffle salt, pepper & 1/2 Tablespoon of the chopped chives then drizzle with truffle oil.
9. Top the center of each plate with a small mound of the greens.
10. Sprinkle the remaining chives around the perimeter of each plate, followed by an additional drizzle of truffle oil over the chives. Using a microplane, shave the pecorino over the greens and serve.

Macadamia Nut Crusted Thai Red Snapper with Passionfruit-infused Sauce Bercy, Curried Bhutanese Red Rice Risotto

Note: This recipe was heavily inspired by a dish I ate at Canyon Ranch during my recent stay there. The Canyon Ranch version is made with mahimahi instead of thai red snapper which is similar in look & texture and offers a caramelized pineapple sauce that is a little sweet for my taste but still quite good. They served it with coconut black rice on the side. Pacific halibut would be a fabulous substitute & my preferred fish for this dish but unfortunately the season runs from March to November or December, making it impossible to find for Valentine's Day. Atlantic halibut, which is available now, is not a great substitute for this particular dish. I opted to celebrate Valentine's Day by using Bhutanese Red Rice to make a creamy coconutty risotto finished with Thai red curry sauce. Both rices can be found at Whole Foods, the Lotus Foods brand is the best and the Lotus Foods website has some really great recipes, too. Bercy sauce is a variation of a fish veloute' with shallots, wine & stock; however, instead of the classic veloute' which is a heavy white sauce with a roux base, we reduce a combination of equal parts fish stock (or clam juice if you don't have time to make the stock) & vegetable stock then add a slurry of cornstarch dissolved into a little cold stock to thicken it. The result will be a lighter, more richly colored sauce. It is important that you remove the stock from the heat before adding the cornstarch slurry. When the cornstarch is heated for too long, it loses its ability to bind the sauce. Just keep on the stove without heat while you prepare the bercy. In honor of Valentine's Day, I will be making a variation of the classic bercy by adding (what else?) passion fruit to it. If you can't find fresh passion fruit or its pulp, you can add a 1/3 cup of passion fruit nectar (the Looza brand is sold at most SF bay area grocery stores) or substitute 1/2 of a Hawaiian papaya (seeds removed) for the passion fruit. I recommend preparing the sauce first, then prepping the fish but not cooking it, before making the risotto. When the risotto is more than half way done ( 20 minutes into cooking it), start the fish saute, browning it for 2-3 minutes on each side, then pop it in the oven in a baking dish for 8-10 minutes while you finish the risotto. When both risotto and fish are done, remove them from the heat but keep them in a warm place, gently reheat the Bercy sauce, (remember you don't want to overheat the cornstarch) & plate it up. If the sauce seems too thin, you can always add a little butter to the sauce then froth it up with the an immersion blender before plating. A few pea shoots or microgreens complete the dish but you can add stir-fried bok choy if you're craving some veggies. This recipe serves two.

Ingredients:

 For the fish

• 2 (6 ounce) Thai red snapper fillets, of even thickness
• 2 Tablespoons of mirin (optional)
• 1/2 cup unsalted macadamia nuts, roughly chopped
• 2 egg whites, from large eggs, slightly beaten
• canola oil or grapeseed oil, (you want a flavorless oil with high flashpoint for the saute)
• sea salt & white pepper to taste

For the fish veloute'

• 1 cup of fish stock (bottled clam juice or prepared dashi can be substituted)
• 1 cup of vegetable stock (Wolfgang Puck makes a great one sold in supermarkets)
• sea salt and white pepper to taste
• 1 Tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot
• 3 Tablespoons cold vegetable stock or white wine

For the passion-fruit bercy

• 2 large shallots, minced
• 1 Tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup of white wine, preferably one that is not over-oaked like a sauvignon blanc
• 1 cup of stock (fish, vegetable or chicken)
• 2 whole passion-fruits, strained of seeds ( 1/3 cup of passion-fruit nectar or 1/2 Hawaiian papaya can be substituted)
• 1 teaspoon of minced fresh ginger
• 1 Tahitian vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
• 1 teaspoon of low sodium soy sauce
• pinch of ground szechuan white peppercorns
• 1/4 teaspoon of sriratcha sauce
• 1 Tablespoon of unsalted butter
• 2 sprigs of chervil, stripped of leaves & chopped

For the Bhutanese Red Rice Risotto

• 1/2 cup of uncooked Bhutanese Red Rice (Lotus Foods is a good brand)
• 2 teaspoons of olive oil
• 1 teaspoon of unsalted butter
• pinch of sea salt
• 2-1/2 cups of chicken or vegetable stock, kept just below a simmer on stove top
• 1/2 cup of white wine
• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 teaspoon Thai red curry paste (Thai Kitchen brand is widely distributed & pretty good)
• 1/3 cup of unsweetened coconut milk (Thai Kitchen brand has a good one)
• 1/4 cup of cooked unshelled edamame, pre-cooked (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon of Thai fish sauce (nam pla or in Vietnamese nuoc cham)
• 5 basil leaves, finely julienned
• 2 sprigs of cilantro, finely chopped
• 2 scallions, finely chopped

Directions Heat oven to 400 degrees For the fish

1. Place the fish on a clean cutting board and season both sides to taste with sea salt, white pepper & mirin. Pat dry with paper towel.
2. Using a pastry brush, brush fish on both sides with beaten egg whites.
3. Sprinkle each side with chopped macadamia nuts. Pressing the nuts firmly into the flesh to secure them. (At this point, you can just put the crusted fish on a baking sheet and bake in the pre-heated oven for 12-15 minutes, skipping the steps 4-6. I just like to brown them a little in a saute pan before I bake them)
4. Heat a 10" (cast iron is the best) pan with non-stick coating over medium heat, when pan is heated, add enough oil to cover its surface & distribute a pinch of salt evenly over the oil. Do not allow the oil to smoke.
5. Carefully add the fillets one at a time to the center of the pan, keeping space between them. Cook for 2-3 minutes on the first side; checking heat & the fish after 2 minutes to be sure that the nuts are not burning. When the first side is light brown, then gently turn over & cook the other side for an additional 2 minutes or until crust is lightly browned.
6. Remove fish from pan, briefly blotting excess oil with a paper towel, then place in a baking dish in the oven for 8-10 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the center of the fish is slightly resistant to touch. If you can smell the fish it is done. Do not overcook it.
7. Remove from oven and keep in a warm place until sauce is heated & ready to be plated. Serve on warm plates.

For the fish veloute'

1. Place both stocks in a heavy sauce pan and reduce over medium-high heat for about 20 minutes until stock is reduced in half. Then remove it from the heat.
2. While stock is reducing, place cornstarch in a small bowl & slowly whisk in cold stock or wine a little at a time until cornstarch is completely dissolved and the resulting slurry is homogenous looking. Set aside until stock reduces.
3. When stock is reduced, remove from heat & rapidly whisk the stock continuously to cool it slightly while slowly adding the cornstarch slurry. When sauce is thickened, season to taste with pinch of sea salt, & white pepper then set aside pan in a warm place (but not over heat) while you prepare the bercy.

For the passion-fruit bercy sauce

1. Heat a heavy sauce pan over medium heat, add the olive oil, heat it for a few moments then add the shallots & a tiny pinch of salt to sweat them without browning them.
2. When shallots are soft, add the ginger, stirring until aromatic then add the passion-fruit.
3. When the passion fruit cooks down, add the wine, reducing it for a few minutes then add the stock, allowing that to cook down until halved. (about 10 minutes)
4. When liquid is reduced, scrape the seeds out of the vanilla bean using the tip of a small paring knife and add them as well as the vanilla pod halves to the stock along with the soy & the sriratcha sauce, stirring well to evenly distribute them.
5. Reduce heat to lowest setting & allow it to simmer for a 5-10 minutes until sauce looks glossy & well-integrated then remove from heat & add the prepared veloute' sauce, stirring well to fully incorporate both sauces.
6. Taste for seasoning and adjust accordingly. Remove the vanilla bean halves. Swirl in the butter until emulsified.
7. When the sauce looks completely incorporated, return it to the heat on lowest possible setting, until sauce is warmed through, then serve immediately. (If sauce has thinned out by the time you are ready to serve it, just blend it by either using an immersion blender in the sauce pan to froth it up or by carefully pouring it into a blender & whirring it for a minute.)

For the risotto Make sure to have the stock in a separate pot at a bare simmer (just below a simmer) on the stove. (Keep in mind that risotto gets its creamy texture from the release of the rice's starch which means you've got to continuously stir it for the first 15-18 minutes, after that it's just a matter of keeping it from drying out by continuing to slowly add warm stock until the rice grains are fully cooked.)

1. Heat a large shallow pan (a paella or La Creuset braising pan work well) over medium heat, add the olive oil & when warm but not smoking, add the onions with a pinch of salt. Sweat the onions stirring often. Do not allow them to brown.
2. When onions are soft, add garlic & red curry paste, stir until aromatic and slightly darkened in color. Do not allow to burn.
3. Add butter, when butter melts add rice, toasting it in the paste for a minute or two.
4. Add the wine, stirring continuously until fully absorbed into the rice. When wine is fully absorbed, lower heat to medium-low to low (keep it at a bare simmer) and add coconut milk, stirring continuously, until fully absorbed.
5. Slowly begin to add the stock one ladleful at a time (about 1/2 cup), stirring often and making sure the rice has absorbed it before adding more stock. By the fourth absorbed ladleful, you should see a visible difference in the size of the grains and begin testing for doneness. Risotto is done when the rice grains are tender but still retain a slight "bite" and the overall texture is creamy.
6. When risotto is almost done, add fish sauce and edamame (or cooked sweet peas), gently stirring in & cooking until beans are warmed through.
7. Add basil, scallions & cilantro. Test for seasoning, if it needs any, add sea salt (Red Himalayan Salt would be pretty & yummy) & freshly ground pepper to taste.
8. Serve by packing risotto in a large ramekin until ramekin is fully packed & placing the center of the warmed serving plate on top of the ramekin, then inverting both dishes & carefully unmolding the rice from its ramekin. Place the snapper fillet on the side of the rice and drizzle the Bercy sauce over half the fish and the circumference of the plate. Garnish the rice with pea shoots, micro greens or a sprig of cilantro. Serve.

Duo of Baked Cannelloni: Dungeness Crab & Goat Cheese Roasted Sweet Potato & Mascarpone Wilted Spinach

   

Note: When I was at Canyon Ranch last month, I ordered a crab quesadilla with a crisp but tender shell and a delicious creamy filling that imparted a slight but pleasant tang to the dish without overwhelming the crab. I thought they had used a special Oaxacan cheese but when I asked my server she said it was just fresh goat cheese. The combination was a good one & I thought it could make a very elegant dish for a romantic dinner if I used cannelloni as the delivery system for the crab & goat cheese. Of course the object of this Valentine's dinner is to keep everything light & sexy, so I thought I could lighten the dish by making two separate fillings, offering one cannelloni of each and a Duo of Cannelloni was born. I wanted the second filling to be light and complement rather than compete with the crab & goat cheese so I knew it would have to a vegetable filling; but, I wanted a luxurious mouth-feel that was satisfying & a little sweet. My first thought was butternut squash or pumpkin but they have been done so often this way and too laborious to tackle with everything else & then it hit me: roasted sweet potatoes. Great texture, sweet & healthy taste with a touch of mascarpone, a hint of vanilla and herbs. Eureka! While I'll admit my inspiration may not be quite on par with Archimedes' discovery of the displacement of water (which was his legendary Eureka moment), I'm still pleased with the results.

I've lightened the bechamel sauce by using lowfat milk. You can substitute skim milk if you like but don't substitute the butter with anything else. It's not a lot of butter per person & it's absolutely necessary for sauce. Do use freshly grated nutmeg, it is an essential component and very easy to find these seeds in the seasonings section of mainstream supermarkets.

If you can't find dried cannelloni shells, use manicotti shells instead. Just but the highest quality pasta you can find because the flavor of the pasta is very important with these delicate fillings. If the pasta is too thick or poorly made it will show much more with these fillings than if you were using a meat ragu.You can also buy or make your own fresh crepes if you like. You just need to fill them then roll them tightly with the seam facing the bottom of the baking dish.

If you're not a crab eater, just omit the crab & substitute it with additional cheese or add wild mushrooms (chanterelles or hen of the wood mushrooms are nice & meaty) that you have sweated with olive oil & shallots. It'll still be yummy if not as aphrodisiatic (if that's a word). Serve this dish with a side of wilted spinach (baby spinach sauteed in olive oil, minced garlic & a touch of stock & freshly ground black pepper.) You will have leftover stuffing which you can use to stuff additional cannelloni shells, layer over no boil lasagne noodles which have a much finer texture & some egg added to them allowing them to cook thoroughly without as much liquid (Nature's Pasta, available at Real Foods is the best so far): just double the bechamel sauce recipe & use it as a sauce to layer into the lasagne, or turn it into ravioli or tortellini by using ready made thin wonton wrappers. Then cook & freeze for another time.

This recipe will serve four, unless you're starving. To make it for two, I would have had to split an egg in half. Perhaps that will be my future contribution to science... I'll get cracking!!! (pardon the pun)

  Ingredients

 For the cannelloni

• 8 cannelloni shells, cooked in a large pot of salted boiling water for about 7 minutes if dried or about 3 minutes if fresh; always be sure to check the manufacturers instructions (8 fresh small crepes could be substituted, obviously no boiling required) Remember, these shells should be cooked until just barely al dente. Overcooked pasta will not work in this recipe. It's going to cook further in the oven.
• 1 gratin dish or small to medium-sized baking dish, greased with olive oil & a paper towel (the dish should be just large enough to accommodate a single layer of cannelloni)
• 1/2 cup of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• 2 pastry bags (or 2 ziploc plastic bags, with a small edge of one bottom cut out & the tops folded back) or 2 teaspoons

For the crab filling

• 1 cup of fresh Dungeness crabmeat (about 1/2 lb.), picked through to remove any shell
• 1 clove of garlic, grated
• 3 scallions, light green part only, minced
• 5 oz log of fresh goat cheese, softened to room temperature (Laura Chenel chevre is good)
• 1 cup of part skim ricotta, softened to room temperature (don't use more than 1 cup of this or you will lose the goat cheese flavor)
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten in a small bowl
• 1/2 teaspoon of white pepper
• 1 cup of tightly packed baby spinach leaves, rough chopped
• 2 Tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

For the sweet potato filling

• 3 large or 4 small sweet potatoes (jewel yams)
• 1 cup of mascarpone cheese, softened to room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon of high quality vanilla extract
• 1 large shallot, finely chopped & sweated in butter
• pinch of sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon of freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon of herbs de provence
• 2 Tablespoons of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• 4 amaretti cookies, crushed (optional, it will make the filling much sweetier which you may or may not like so feel free to leave out, if you're in doubt)
• 2 egg whites

For the Bechamel sauce

• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2-1/4 cups lowfat milk
• 1/8 teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg
• sea salt & white pepper to taste (go easy on the salt, we're going to use a lot of salty parmesan to cover the cannelloni after we pour the salt, so beware)

Directions Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Clean and dry the sweet potatoes thoroughly then prick the tops of each one with a fork. Place the sweet potatoes directly on the center rack of the oven and bake for 1 hour until completely soft & oozing. Then remove & allow to cool until they are cool enough to handle. While potatoes bake, make the Bechamel sauce. For the Bechamel sauce

1. Using a heavy bottomed sauce, melt butter over medium heat.
2. When butter is melted, add flour; whisking it in. Continue to whisk until butter & flour have completely combined & the resulting paste loses it raw look (about 2-3 minutes) Do not burn the roux but do cook it until nutty aroma is released & roux is light gold in color.
3. When roux is ready, reduce heat to low and slowly begin to trickle in the milk, whisking it continuously while pouring it slowly in a steady stream to avoid making lumps of flour.
4. When all the milk is poured, whisk often until sauce thickens and ribbons form (about 10-12 minutes).
5. When sauce reaches the desired texture, remove from heat & season with nutmeg, pepper & salt. Set aside in a warm spot until ready to assemble dish. Prepare the crab filling.

For the crab filling

1. In a large stainless steel mixing bowl, combine the grated garlic, minced scallions, goat cheese, ricotta and parmesan. Mixing thoroughly.
2. Add the spinach leaves and the white pepper. Combine well.
3. Add the lightly beaten egg, thoroughly incorporate into the cheese mixture
4. Gently fold in the crabmeat, using a rubber spatula to thoroughly incorporate being careful not to over mix the filling and break up the crabmeat. Fill one pastry bag (or ziploc bag) with crabmeat mixture. You may need to use a teaspoon if your crab pieces are large. Set aside & prepare sweet potato filling.

For the sweet potato filling

1. On a cutting board, while potatoes are still warm, cut each potato in half, lengthwise.
2. Over a large bowl, remove the flesh of the cooled sweet potatoes by peeling the skin off or scooping it out with a spoon into the bowl & mashing them thoroughly with a masher or large fork. (You can also put them through a ricer for a finer texture)
3. In a small bowl, combine mascarpone, cooked shallots, vanilla extract, nutmeg, herbs, pepper & parmesan. Mix well.
4. Add the mascarpone mixture to the large bowl of sweet potatoes. Incorporating everything thoroughly.
5. Beat the egg whites until foamy & light with soft body (but not into stiff peaks)
6. Gently fold into the sweet potato mixture using a spatula to fully incorporate the eggs without taking all the air out of them
7. Fill one pastry bag (or ziploc bag) with sweet potato mixture.
8. Prepare cannelloni.

For the cannelloni Reduce preheated oven to 350 degrees.

1. Fill half the cooked cannelloni shells with the crab mixture, using the pastry bag to pipe them in. Do not over fill. Set on clean cutting board.
2. Fill the other half of cooked cannelloni shells with the sweet potato mixture. Set on clean cutting board.
3. Place baking dish, bechamel sauce, filled shells & grated parmesan on the work surface. Start by pouring a ladle or two of bechamel to completely cover the bottom of the pre-greased baking dish.
4. Now assemble the dish by placing the filled shells in a single layer side by side on the baking dish, alternating one crab cannelloni with one sweet potato cannelloni. You may need to pack them tightly together.
5. Pour the remaining bechamel over the top and sides of the pasta.
6. Sprinkle the parmesan evenly over the entire dish & bake in the center rack of the oven for 30 to 40 minutes until sauce is bubbling & parmesan is golden brown. If the gratin is not golden enough, briefly broil the dish at least 6 inches from the heat source until desired color is reached. Remove from heat and allow to cool at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving.
7. On pre-warmed plates, serve two cannelloni per person, one of each type of filling, with wilted spinach (see note if you don't know how to wilt spinach). Mangia!!!

Chocolate-Covered Strawberries

Note: This is a classic Valentine Day dessert that is both decadent & healthy. You can find them ready made for Valentine's Day at Godiva or other chocolatiers but they are fun and easy to make. Stemberries (or strawberries with the stems still attached) are available in supermarkets right now & are the best strawberries to use as the stems provide a natural handle for dipping. They are exorbitantly priced but worth the splurge for a special occasion. The darker the chocolate (60 % cocoa or above) the better for both melting and health purposes. You can use semisweet chocolate chips or really splurge and buy a hunk of Valrhona or Callebaut chocolate... so worth it & it's sold in bulk at Whole Foods!!!! The dipped berries can be stored for a couple of days in the fridge.

To temper or not to temper, that is the question. It's a way of heat treating then cooling it to change the crystalline structure of the chocolate. Tempering it makes the chocolate pretty, hard & glossy as it dries. Most commercial chocolate is already tempered . If you don't temper it, the chocolate may appear streaked or cloudy when it cools after dipping the strawberries into it. Strawberries introduce moisture into the chocolate which will cause the sugar & cacao in the chocolate to absorb it & seize up, forming little cloudy clumps. The texture will not be as satiny as the chocolate melts on the tongue. Some recipes suggest adding butter or heavy cream to the chocolate while slowly melting to avoid the need to temper but you still don't get that great snap when you bite into it. Jacque Torres aka "Mr. Chocolate" suggests the microwave method for people melting less than 1 lb. of chocolate which is what I will post here. Another site called cooking for engineers.com delivers a great chocolate tutorial and tempering, click here to go to the website.

You will have leftover strawberries, just store them on the parchment paper in a plastic container in the fridge. They'll keep for a day but not more than two days.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz. of dark chocolate (over 60% cocoa), chopped into small pieces
• 12 large strawberries with stems attached, washed & completely dried with a towel
• 1 small microwaveable bowl
• 1 baking sheet fitted with wax paper

Directions

1. Place chocolate pieces in the microwaveable bowl, & microwave in short bursts for 30 seconds at a time, stir between each microwave session to evenly distribute the heat. Be patient & stick to the 30 second intervals.
2. It's important to stop heating it just before the chocolate starts to melt. When the chocolate is just beginning to warm & melt lightly but the pieces still retain their shape, it's time to stop heating it. The chocolate pieces should be slightly shiny & mushy as you stir it.
3. Keep stirring and allow the residual heat to melt the rest of the chocolate. You'll lose the temper if you overheat it.
4. Place the melted chocolate, wax paper covered baking sheet & completely dry strawberries on a work surface, creating an assembly line of strawberries, melted chocolate & pan.
5. Picking the strawberry up by its stem, gently but quickly dip it until it's covered 3/4 of the way up with chocolate, swirling the strawberry as you remove it from the chocolate to cover all the pores; then invert the strawberry, pointing the end up to the sealing to "seal" the chocolate.
6. Place the strawberry on the sheet & repeat with the remaining berries.
7. Allow the berries to cool at room temperature until chocolate is hard and glossy. Then serve.

Raspberry and Dark Chocolate Parfait with Greek Yogurt, Agave Nectar, and Toasted Walnuts

Note: This recipe is all assembly & no cooking. It's as delicious as it is simple and healthy. Just use a large clear glass with an elevated bowl, like a martini, wine or margarita glass. If you're unconcerned about fat or calories, you can make a sabayon, click here for a simple recipe or just use softened vanilla gelato.

Serves 2.

Ingredients

• 1 pint of fresh raspberries, rinsed & dried
• 8 oz. of lowfat Greek-style yogurt (Fage brand, pronounced fa-yeh, is by far the best)
• 1 oz high quality dark chocolate, shaved into large shards with a microplane
• 6 teaspoons of toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped
• dark agave nectar in its squeeze bottle
• 2 sprigs of mint (optional)

Directions

1. Assemble all the ingredients, teaspoon, a tablespoon & the two parfait glasses.
2. Start with a layer of two tablespoons of yogurt at the base of each glass.
3. Follow with a layer of raspberries to cover yogurt.
4. Follow the layer of raspberries with a squiggle (highly technical term) of agave nectar over the berries.
5. Follow the agave nectar with a layer of chocolate shards
6. Follow the chocolate with a layer of a teaspoon of chopped walnuts
7. Repeat the layers until you have three layers of all the ingredients and top each glass with a sprig of mint. Voila.

Back From Hiatus: An Indulgent Hawaiian-inspired Autumn Menu

It's been a long time since my last posting. Six weeks; if you, my imaginary readers, happen to be counting. I have been a busy little girl:
Two weeks in the land of Aloha; one week in that land's near polar opposite: Manhattan; and playing catch-up in San Francisco between trips.
It's astonishing how much time can be spent preparing to pack, then the actually packing, then the post-trip unpacking which includes the garb organizing into hand-washables, dry cleanables, machine washables, disposables (something always needs to weeded out after either careless handling or never-fitting properly) and there's the always exciting, newly purchased piles that need to be carefully hidden until the appropriate "What this old thing?" or "Oh sweetie, I've had this for years, I can't believe you've never noticed it!!!" moment when the hubby remarks on the totally hot Dolce & Gabbana trench coat recently liberated from Barneys NY.

All of this, while not exactly one of the more rigorous forms of manual labor, not quite on par with say... coal-mining, does take time & requires effort that might otherwise go into more creative endeavors like blogging, for instance.

But fear not, gentle reader, all those sunsets, massages, cocktails and gourmet meals were not for naught. Every second that I spent soaking up the sun or scarfing down ahi poke & Krug rose was spent for you and your continuing edification (always keeping the budding gourmand in mind). A martyr to my cause... that's what all who know me think and the next few blogs will prove it, you'll see.

For starters, an indulgent yet light Hawaiian-inspired autumn meal made with foods that are readily available in this season of mists & mellow fruitfulness.

Don'tcha just love that Keats dude. You can click on the title of this blog to a link to his "Ode to Autumn" and read it in its entirety. I can't believe he died so young but the early 19th century wasn't exactly a picnic. 

Three of the English language's most beloved romantic poets (Keats, Shelly & Byron) all died within a year or two of each other; all before the age of 30. Ain't that a coincidence? I'd welcome the views of any conspiracy theorists out there with regard to the untimely demise of these young Lotharios who were ill-regarded by the society of their day.

 Well, the fact is even if they were scandalously murdered by some Jack the Ripper of libertines (actually Keats died of TB, Byron of some venereal malady and Shelly drowned "accidentally"), they're immortal words will never be forgotten. (Take that you narrow-minded hate-mongers!)

To the romantic boys of the early 19th century and other fellow hedonists (actually I lead an almost ascetic lifestyle, really I do), I dedicate these recipes for their sensual textures; vibrant, jewel-like colors and exotic flavors. Here's looking at you, kids!!!

Autumn Salad of Smoked Duck Breast, Avocado, Pomegranate Seeds, Dried Figs and Feta over Curly Red Savoy Cabbage and Romaine Lettuce with a Jerez Sherry Vinaigrette

Note:

Don't let the lengthy name of this recipe fool you. It's easier to make than it is to type. The crisp lettuces are really the stars of the show.

Grimaud Farms makes a nice smoked duck breast that they cook with sweet spices (clove, cardamon, etc,) giving the duck a light pleasant asian flavor which I highly recommend using. You top chef wannabes can, of course, smoke or even sous vide your own duck breast, if you have the time and the inclination but sometimes it's better to sub it out. Think of an excellent pre-cooked gourmet product as your very own sous chef; assisting you with some of the more mundane tasks while you create & execute your ultimate vision. If you really don't like duck you can substitute with prosciutto.

Pomegranate seeds come from, you guessed it, pomegranates which you can find from now until January in most grocery stores unless you live in the hinterlands; then, I suggest you substitute the best grapes you can find & cut each grape in half for easier consumption with a fork. Apples cut into dice would work, too; but pomegranates are so sexy, jewel-like & beautiful, you should really try to find them. They are chock full of anti-oxidants & have a surprising nutty crunch along with a sweet/tart juice that really is nice with the duck & salad.

The pomegranate should feel heavy for its size & look plump & round. If it looks too leathery with heavy indentations, it's probably too old to eat but would look great in a flower arrangement or wreath, The seeds are not hard to remove but you want to make sure you remove them in tact. (Wear dark clothes if its you're first time ever.) Just use a very sharp knife, cut the fruit in half at its equator. Then cut each half in half, again. You'll see all the ruby-like seeds grouped together in bunches separated by papery segmented pith. Just grab the bunches of seeds & carefully separate them from the pith using your fingers. Once you do that, you can easily separate the seeds from each other & sprinkle them over your salad.

The sherry vinegar is important. You should have all kinds of vinegar in your pantry because different vinegars can really enhance or detract from a dish not unlike different wines would. Use the Spanish Vinagre de Jerez "La Bodega" which is produced & bottled by Bodegas Paez Morilla, S.A. It is not crazy expensive & will add a more nuanced balanced acidity to the dish than a white wine vinegar or the ubiquitous balsamic vinegar would. If push comes to shove use cider vinegar & a little dijon mustard as a substitute.

Equally important is the olive oil. Use the best you can find, buy it in small quantities so it doesn't go rancid before you use it all (which never happens in my house because I'm an olive oil junkie. I'd mainline it if I could taste it being pumped into my arteries) It must be extra-virgin, preferably cold-pressed and unfiltered. You really want the fruitiness in the oil for this dish. California makes some really great ones right now. I'm always trying different producers but my latest fave is Hillstone Olive Oil, an artisanal producer out of Yolo County, Ca. It's hand harvested from Arbequina Olives, a Spanish variety of olive grown primarily in Catalonia, Spain. The oil in my bottle was harvested 10/23/06 according to the handwritten date on the label. Delicious!!!
For more info http://www.hillstoneoliveoil.com/ourStory.htm

The mission figs air-dried naturally in the small walnut basket where I kept them which is why the recipe calls for dried figs (because I happen to have them on hand, silly) but you could easily use fresh figs which quite remarkably still seem to be available in some markets even this late in the season.
The curly leafed red savoy cabbage (I used only the small inner leaves) is beautiful if you can find it , if not use radicchio.

You'll notice I do not create a salad dressing per se. Instead I choose to simply drizzle the oil, vinegar, pomegranate juice & toss well. This creates a fresh, light coating over the salad ingredients. You can create an emulsion using a touch of dijon mustard, if you prefer it; but, it can be a little heavy & is not huge value add with this particular salad with all of its rich ingredients.

Ingredients:
1/2 smoked duck breast (Grimaud Farm's brand recommended), skin removed, thinly sliced & brought to room temperature
2 oz. feta, crumbled
1 large avocado, pitted & cut into large dice
1 pomegranate, seeds removed & retained (see note), reserving a tablespoonful of seeds for a final garnish & a spoonful of the juice for the dressing
8 dried figs, stemmed & cut into quarters
2 heads of Romaine lettuce, crisp inner leaves only, washed, dried & torn into small pieces
1 head of red curly-leafed savoy cabbage, tender inner leaves only, washed, dried & separated (tear larger leaves into bite-sized pieces
1 small shallot, minced (optional)
2 sprigs fresh tarragon, leaves only, roughly chopped (optional)
sea salt & freshly cracked pepper to taste
2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil (see note)
1 Tablespoon Jerez (Sherry) Vinegar (see note)

Directions:
Toss the salad greens, shallot & tarragon together in a large serving bowl.
Add the remaining ingredients drizzling the oil & vinegar over the salad makings, tossing well to evenly distribute the ingredients & coat the lettuce leaves with the dressing. Add a final sprinkle of the reserved pomegranate seeds over the top. Serve family style or, alternatively, serve on individual salad plates. If you choose that route, for a more elegant presentation, you might like to reserve the duck breast, toss the remaining ingredients and place the salad on the individual plates & fan the thin duck breast slices on the plate around the salad with an additional drizzle of olive oil, pomegranate seeds & pomegranate juice over the duck.

Serves 4.

Opah Poke: Big Island Style Tartare

Note:
The opah looked particularly fresh & delicious at Bryan's (my neighborhood seafood & meat purveyor) the day I made this which is why I chose it. It looked like toro, an unctuous, fattier, sinful cut from the belly of bluefin tuna, which made it doubly appealing to me but a little strong in flavor for some. Sashimi grade ahi, kampachi and/or fresh wild Pacific salmon (which inexplicably still seems to be in season at this posting) make excellent substitutes. All the fish should be firm to the touch with no scent whatsoever except maybe a light pleasant ocean smell.
Make sure whatever fish you buy is at least 1-1/2" thick and impeccably fresh. Remember this is a raw food dish where the fish is flash-cured for flavoring but freshness will be essential to minimize risks of contagions or food-borne illness.
You will have to trim any bloodlines and uneven pieces when you get it at home. Hone your knife beforehand for good clean cuts. The Hawaiians tend to cut their poke into larger cubes but you can make them smaller dice if you prefer a more refined texture. Make sure to cut the avocado the same size as you cut the fish but don't chop the avocado too finely or you'll have fishy guacamole instead of poke.
Add the lime juice after you add the oil to the fish to minimize "cooking" it. You will be adding all the ingredients to the fish first & folding them in before adding the avocado to the poke to minimize mashing the fruit into guacamole.

Ingredients:
about 1 lb. of at least 1-1/2" thick Opah (Hawaiian moonfish), all bloodlines removed then discarded, cut into 1/2" dice
1/2 large Haas avocado, ripe but still firm to the touch, seeded & cut into 1/2" dice
1 Tablespoon of the highest quality extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil
the juice of one lime
1-1/2 teaspoons of high quality, low sodium shoyu (soy sauce)
1/2 teaspoon of sriratcha sauce (vietnamese chili sauce look for it in the Asian section of your market)
10 chives or 2 scallions, finely minced
1/4 of one jalapeno chile, seeded & finely minced
1 Tablespoon of cilantro, leaves & stems, finely chopped
1 teaspoon unsalted & roasted macadamia nuts, chopped (optional for garnish)
fleur de sel & fresh cracked pepper to taste (after mixing the poke & tasting for seasoning)
6 white corn tortillas, that have been cut into 1/8 of a tortilla wedges & baked in a 350 degree oven on a baking sheet for 10 minutes

Directions:
In a large stainless steel mixing bowl, add the opah & mix in the olive oil using your hands or a spatula being sure to coat the fish completely. In a smaller mixing bowl, whisk all the remaining ingredients together except the avocado & the macadamia nuts. Add the dressing to the opah & mix well being sure to completely coat the fish. Now gently fold in the avocado, using your fingers to evenly distribute the avocado. Taste for seasoning & acidity & judiciously add another splash of lime juice an/or salt & pepper, if necessary. Set aside & allow to marinate for no more than 1/2 hour.
Serve in individual martini glasses with a sprinkle of the macadamia nuts atop or, alternatively, in one large caviar server with fresh baked tortilla chips on the side for dipping.

Serves 4.

Olive Oil Poached, Vanilla Scented Shrimp "Ceviche"

Note:
Although you will see dishes like this all over Hawaii, the real inspiration for this "ceviche" comes from a lobster dish served with a vanilla bean buerre blanc at a restaurant called Pitahayas on the hotel & residential corridor known as Los Cabos, a stretch of land between San Jose Del Cabo & Cabo San Lucas on the Baja Peninsula. The combination of the shellfish with the vanilla scented butter sauce was surprisingly good. I've lightened the dish considerably by lightly poaching the shrimp, an easier protein option for the home cook, until just barely cooked through in an olive oil bath that has been "scented" (i.e. steeped) with Tahitian vanilla bean instead of serving it with a vanilla cream sauce. You can easily substitute the vanilla bean with a few drops of high quality vanilla extract. I call it ceviche because except for the olive oil vanilla poaching, I serve the shrimp as a salad with a typical ceviche ( i.e. citrus-based) marinade.
Use a shallow sauce pan or small saute pan to poach the shrimp.

Ingredients:
For the poaching liguid:
3/4 cup olive oil (don't use extra-virgin oil just a nice quality olive oil will do)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 Tahitian vanilla bean, sliced in half & scraped with a knife (make sure to add scrapings to the poaching oil at athe appropriate point) or 1 teaspoon good quality vanilla bean extract
1 garlic clove, peeled & lightly smashed
1 whole dried red pepper or 1/8 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
1/2 lime, cut in half
1/4 bunch of chives, cut in half
a pinch (1/8 tsp) of sea salt & few grinds of very coarsely ground pepper
1/2 lb. #16 size shrimp ( about 8 large shrimp), keep shells on but remove the pleopods & pereopods (small legs underneath)

For the ceviche:
the juice of half a lime
the juice of one blood orange
1/2 bunch of chives, finely minced
1/2 Haas avocado, cut into 1/2" dice
half a handful of cilantro, leaves only, finely chopped
1 tablespoon of the poaching liquid
the above (see poaching ingredients) shrimp, poached, de-shelled, de-veined & each cut into 4 equal sized pieces
sea salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
lettuce leaves and lime wedges for garnish
8 warm small white corn tortillas or tortilla chips

Directions:
For the Poaching:
Place olive oil in small (10") saute or sauce pan over low heat, the temperature should be somewhere between 130 - 160 degrees F with a thermometer or barely "shivering" as the French say which is below normal poaching temperature for liquids like water or stock. The oil should not be shimmering, be well below a simmer (185 degrees) & never reach the boiling point (212 degrees F).
When the oil is warm, carefully squeeze the lime juice in the oil and add the lime & all the poaching ingredients except the shrimp to the oil.
Allow the ingredients to steep in the oil for 15 minutes to flavor it then after making sure that the oil is at the proper temperature, add shrimp in a single layer to the pan. Watch shrimp closely for subtle changes in color & translucency. When the bottom appears slightly pinkish (about 2-3 minutes), flip the shrimp over poaching it for another 2 minutes then remove the pan from the heat & allow the shrimp to cool in the poaching oil about 15 minutes.

For the salad:
After the shrimp has cooled in its poaching liquid, remove them from their shells & devein them using a sharp paring knife to make a long shallow incision along the "spine" down to the tail exposing the digestive tract ("vein") & removing it, using a paper towel to brush away any remains. Cut each shrimp into quarters. Add the shrimp to a mixing bowl with the remaining ceviche ingredients and gently toss with your fingers, careful not to smash the avocado into guacamole.
Get a pretty white bowl, large enough to accommodate the shrimp ceviche & line it with the lettuce leaves, add the ceviche to the bowl mounding it atop the lettuce & garnish with lime wedges. Serve the ceviche with just warmed tortillas or tortilla chips.
Serves 4.
Ai ā hewa ka waha, ʻo ka leo ka uku!
(Eat until the mouth can have no more, [my] reward, [your] voice!)
Aloha!

The Fruits of Labor: A Labor Day Feast for Late Summer Harvest

It's the Friday before Labor Day.

Labor Day weekend has always represented the end of summer to me; practically if not technically. As a child in Manhattan, this weekend meant the sad end of the old year and the beginning of a new one; even more so than New Year's Eve in January, which always felt more like the end of the Christmas season than the beginning of anything new.

Yes, for me, Labor Day always marked the end of all the long lazy days spent reading, daydreaming, and wandering through a nearly empty city enjoying all the parks, museums and other amenities that New York had to offer a curious child with a hunger for everything, including food.
Street vendors with tiny carts that rang little bells to announce their presence offered delights like Italian frozen ices, Puerto Rican piraguas which are shaved ice snow cones filled with exotic syrups like guava, tamarind and guanabana (my favorites with just enough sweetness to make them palatable but a touch of sourness to make them refreshing on sticky 95 degree, 95 % humidity days) as well as coconut ices called coquitos which were creamy frozen concoctions much more like fruit granitas than frozen ices, and there was, of course, the Good Humor and Mr. Softee trucks with their sweet musical melodies resounding through the streets who were welcomed by the neighborhood children during the dog days of summer like conquering heroes freeing the wretched and oppressed.

As an adult now living in San Francisco, the advent of Labor Day has come to mean something quite different. The strange confluence of nature with its Bay Area topography makes San Francisco's weather from late May to early September the greyest, coldest, gloomiest, 55 degree and foggy time of the year; as can be attested by any tourist who had the misfortune of coming here during the summer months and took home a pair of sweats with "San Francisco" emblazoned on them as unintended souvenirs. Rather than marking the end of summer here, Labor Day represents its beginning. The sunniest, warmest weather of the year in San Francisco starts now and ends the first days of November. Labor Day now means to me the best of summer's produce: yummy, ripe, amazing heirloom tomatoes in all shapes & colors, avocados, peaches and figs. While we chill in San Francisco, the surrounding areas north, east and south of us are sweltering in the more typical summer heat producing lush fruits that are just now at their most abundant and ready to be harvested.

So for all of you who will be spending this long holiday weekend at home either picking fruit from your garden or your favorite market, here are a few simple delicious recipes that will allow you to showcase the "fruits" of your labor and share goodies with your family and friends. These recipes are an excellent way to use fruit that may not be picture perfect because they've somehow gotten bruised on their way from the market or the garden to the kitchen. (By the way, tomatoes are definitely fruits; just ask the chefs at Oliveto's whose annual tomato dinner we attended last night, and who had mostly great success with them as desserts particularly the amazing fried ravioli filled with tomato jam & topped with confectioner's sugar. Delicious!)

We start with a fresh bruschetta of caponata and burrata with prosciutto crisps, and an easy bake pizza using a store-bought lavash crust, roasted heirloom tomato sauce with fresh mozzarella, shitake mushrooms and sweet Italian sausage. Next, we grill skewers of ahi tuna, cherry tomatoes & Greek haloumi cheese as well as Niman Ranch baby back ribs with a side of grilled corn on the cob. We then add an additional side of Caprese pasta salad made simply with fresh boccocino (tiny mozzarella balls) or feta (if you have o.d.'ed on mozzarella), calamata olives, fresh heirloom tomatoes, basil & olive oil. For dessert, warm blackberry & apricot crumble with mascarpone ice cream garnished with balsamic syrup and mint leaves. (There is definitely a bread, fruit & cheese theme running through this meal; they are often the best ingredients for a satisfying summer meal.)

This is a feast that's impressive to see, easy to make and even easier to eat! As always, substitute anything you like for the ingredients in the recipes except the ribs which have no good substitute and are a Labor Day tradition in my home. If you really don't like ribs grill a steak or pork tenderloin just don't use the ribs' recipe instructions as the heat & timing are intended for the slower cooking method more conducive to ribs.

Menu For A Labor Day Weekend Feast
All recipes for the Labor Day Weekend menu serve 4-6 people.


Bruschetta with Caponata, Burrata and Prosciutto Crisps

Note: Burrata is fresh mozzarella with a creamy curd interior and a very short shelf life of about 2-3 days If you can't find burrata in your market (Whole Foods, Fresh Market or other specialty grocers usually carry it) substitute fresh buffalo or cow's milk mozzarella from Italy or a good fresh creamy ricotta from your local dairy farmer; otherwise, skip the cheese because Polly-O while ok on a pizza will not be good over the caponata.

Ingredients:

• 1 fresh loaf of Ciabatta or other country-style Italian bread, sliced into 3/4" rounds
• 1 lb. of fresh burrata, left at room temperature (about 1 hour)
• 1/3 cup of extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 lb. of very thinly sliced prosciutto
• 1/2 large onion, sliced & cut into fine dice
• 1/2 large red pepper, cut into strips then chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, crushed then minced
• 2 japanese eggplants, cut into 1/2 inch dice, erring on the side of larger dice if in doubt
• 2 zucchini, cut into 1/2 inch dice, same size as eggplant
• 1 tablespoon italian tomato paste
• 2 lbs. of heirloom or roma tomatoes, stemmed, seeded and cut into small dice (or 28 oz. can of plain crushed tomatoes)
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup fresh calamata or black olives, pitted & roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons of capers, drained
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 handful of fresh parsley, minced
• 3 sprigs of fresh oregano, leaves only, minced
• 10 large basil leaves, thinly julienned
• 1 pinch of herbes de provence
• freshly ground salt & pepper to taste

1) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Fire up grill.

2) Heat a large saute or braising pan to medium high. When hot, add half the olive oil letting it heat up for a few seconds then add onions and 1 grind of salt & pepper mill.

3) Saute onions for a minute then add red peppers & garlic, lower the heat to medium and add the eggplant followed by the zucchini, stirring to coat vegetables evenly with olive oil & aromatics. If the eggplant has absorbed the oil in the pan and still appears dry add additional olive oil one tablespoon at a time until the eggplant appears moistened.

4) Now add the red pepper flakes & herbes de provence, gently stirring until fragrant (10 - 15 seconds) followed by the tomato paste. Coat the vegetables with the tomato paste and let the mixture cook for 2 minutes until paste loses its raw color.

5) Add the tomatoes, gently stirring to completely incorporate, then add the parsley, oregano & olives. Lower heat to low. Allow the sauce to cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to insure that sauce does not burn. When sauce has thickened, add lemon juice, capers & half the basil, stirring gently, careful not to break up the eggplant or the zucchini. Taste sauce. Add salt & pepper to taste. Turn off the heat and let cool or keep at the lowest simmer possible and cover pan with lid to keep warm.
Caponata can be prepared & refrigerated after cooling up to 4 days in advance then either reheated or served at room temperature.

6) While sauce is cooking, place prosciutto slices on a baking sheet that has been covered with either foil or parchment paper. Bake prosciutto uncovered in middle rack for 5- 7 minutes until crisp. Do not let it burn. When prosciutto is crisp, remove from oven & let cool. When cool, crumble each slice into smaller pieces like large bacon bits. Set aside in a small decorative serving bowl.

7) While prosciutto, cools lightly brush bread slice on both sides with remaining (or additional) olive oil and place on grill. Grilling both sides about 45 seconds or so each side until bread is warm & has grill marks.

8) Now assemble the platter: On one very large or two smaller platters, place a bowl filled with the caponata & a serving spoon in the center, the burrata with a serrated cheese knife, the prosciutto bits in another bowl, the remaining basil and the bread slices around the perimeter. Have each guest serve himself. Take a slice of bread, top first with the caponata, then the cheese, sprinkle with the basil & the prosciutto. Mangia!!!


Pizza with Roasted Heirloom Tomatoes, Shitake Mushrooms, and Grilled Italian Sausage

Note: I have greatly simplified this dish by using store-bought Middle Eastern lavash not the crispy cracker kind but the soft, large rectangular sheets of Armenian flatbread used for levant and other kinds of sandwiches. the result is a very pleasant crisp crust that reminds me of pizza you'd find in Rome. You can use any flatbread you like including whole unsliced pitas or large flour tortillas; just remember the thinner it is the less cooking time you'll need when you pre-bake the bread. A great sweet French baguette like the San Francisco Bay Area's bakery "Acme's" sweet baguette also works beautifully. Please don't use Boboli. It is a calorie rich, flavor-deficient, sodium laden brick of dough that is not worthy of summer's loveliest ingredients. If, however, you are more adept than I am at making pizza dough & have decided to make your own crust, by all means, more power to you!

As to cookware, I prefer the use of a preheated pizza stone that you can find at William-Sonoma, Macy's or on the internet. It really makes a difference; but, if you don't have or want one, a preheated cookie sheet would work, too.

As for the tomatoes, I choose to roast them for two reasons: 1) roasting the heirlooms really concentrates their flavor & sweetness 2) a wetter, more traditional sauce would be too watery for the lavash and would result in a soggy, messy crust that falls apart when you try to eat it. Definitely not appetizing!


Ingredients:

• 2 soft lavash , carefully folded in half & brushed with refined olive oil (not extra virgin) on both sides; or 2 sweet baguettes, sliced in half horizontally; then cut in half vertically
• 4 large or 2-1/2 lbs of heirloom tomatoes of different variety & color, cut into 1/4" slices
• 4 large garlic cloves, crushed then minced
• 1/2 of a large red pepper, sliced into strips
• 6 large grilled or fried Italian sausages with fennel seed, cut into long slices lengthwise after grilling; then cut each half slice into quarters again (should be about 48 pieces); or, alternatively, remove the uncooked sausages from their casings & saute the ground meat in a pan breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon until cooked through
• 1/2 lb of shitake mushrooms, sliced, sauteed in extra virgin olive oil & seasoned with salt & pepper to taste
• 1/2 teaspoons of dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon fresh oregano, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon of herbes de provence
• 10 large fresh basil leaves plus more for garnish, julienned
• 2 Tablespoons of fresh minced parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon each of fresh ground salt & pepper, to season tomatoes
• 1 lb. of fresh mozzarella, patted dry with paper towels & sliced thinly (Polly O is ok here, if necessary)
• 1/2 cup of fresh parmagiano-reggiano, shaved or coarsely grated
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil plus more on hand for drizzling

1) Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place pizza stone in center rack. Adjust oven so as to have an additional rack on the top for the roasting of the tomatoes.

2) Prepare a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Place tomato slices & red pepper strips in one single layer on sheet. Tomatoes on one side, peppers on the other side. Use two baking sheets if necessary. Season vegetables with salt, pepper, oregano, herbes de provence a pinch of parsley & basil and minced garlic. Drizzle half of the oil over the vegetables, using your fingers to completely coat them in the oil, tops & bottoms, and distribute the seasonings evenly over them. When oven reaches 450 degrees, place the tomatoes in the oven & roast about 15-20 minutes until lightly browned, soft and fragrant. Do not leave them completely unattended as the garlic as well as the tomatoes can burn quite easily. When done, remove tomatoes & peppers from oven & let cool completely

3) While the tomatoes roast, organize the remaining ingredients to be prepared for assembly of the pizzas.

4) While the tomatoes cool, blind bake the lavash (one at a time if your pizza stone is small and you only have one) for 2 minutes each crust. It is very important that you use light or refined olive oil to brush the lavash with; extra-virgin olive oil will burn in the dry heat of the stone & ruin the taste of your crust. Carefully remove the pizza stone from the oven (it's hot & heavy) and assemble your pizza. Turn the oven temperature up to 500 degrees.

5) With the crust still on the hot stone, start assembly by brushing the lavash with any remaining oil in the tomato roasting pan, then, using half the tomatoes and a flexible spatula or your fingers to remove them from the baking dish; you should almost be able to spread them like a jam on your crust. Sprinkle them with half the parsley & basil & add a very light drizzle of extra virgin olive oil as the moisture from the cool ingredients should not prevent the e.v.o.o. from burning.
Next, place half the sausage evenly over the tomatoes. Taking care to leave a 1/2 inch border around the crust free of the ingredients to prevent crust from prematurely cracking under their weight.
Repeat with half the shitakes, finding the open spaces between the sausage pieces. Do the same with half of the roasted red peppers.
Sprinkle half of the parmagiano over the entire pizza, followed by half the slices of mozzarella, being careful not to overload the crust. If the stone is large enough to fit both, repeat the above assembly using the other crust. If not just bake one at a time.

5) Place the pizza on the stone in the center rack of the oven & cook 5-7 minutes or until mozzarella is bubbly, lightly golden & melted. If the mozzarella has not yet melted, leave pizza stone in center rack but turn on the broiler & broil watching very carefully the entire time until cheese reaches desired texture. Once you're happy with it, turn off the broiler, remove the pizza stone, let the pizza stand, for two minutes then slice with a pizza cutter & serve with an extra sprinkle of fresh basil.


Grilled Corn with Grilled Baby Back Ribs

Note: This is the easiest thing to make on the menu. I find it completely unnecessary to boil the ribs first, then slow smoke them, then grill them. A rack can be cooked completely on a gas grill in 40 - 45 minutes replete with a beautifully glazed crust & tender, succulent meat if you know where your hot spots are & don't leave them completely unattended ( one bathroom or wine run is ok). Use Niman Ranch pork if you can. Although the ranch is much larger now than when they started almost 30 years ago, their pork is still humanely raised & slaughtered and the proof is in the taste of the meat which you can just tell came from a contented pig. A happy pig is a tasty pig!
The corn can be grilled with the husks on for added moisture but a hot husk is a wicked thing to try to remove when your guests are hungry. So husk them first, rinse them in water to remove any remaining cornsilk and leave them damp when you wrap them in foil to allow them to steam. You can lightly butter the foil or corn before you wrap them but you are only inviting flare ups in the grill. Butter & season them before eating.

Ingredients:

• Dry rub & wet rub, as directed in the directions to follow
• 2 racks of baby back pork ribs, preferably from Niman Ranch
• 12 ears of white corn, prepared according to the preceding note
• 1 stick melted unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup (plus more for the table) of your favorite barbecue sauce (Mine is Bryan's Smooth and Spicy Barbecue Sauce, a private label sold by my favorite butcher shop, Bryan's)
• salt & pepper, at the table to taste
• lime wedges for corn

1) For seasoning, I use a dry rub that I mix of garlic powder, hot Hungarian paprika or Chipotle chili powder, ground cumin, a tiny amount of fresh ground sea salt (too much salt toughens grilled meat) and a more generous amount of fresh ground pepper. I usually use 2 parts of garlic powder to one part cumin & chili powder or paprika. The actual amounts depend on the size of the slabs, how the seasonings taste that day to me & my mood. Mix more than you'll need and save the mixture for another time in a empty spice bottle.

2) Let the ribs with the dry rub sit at room temperature for an hour.

3) Preheat the grill to high heat.
After the meat has reached room temperature, prepare a wet rub of about:
1/4 cup refined (not virgin or unrefined) olive, peanut or sesame oil
2 tablespoons of low sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons of sherry or cider vinegar (do not use balsamic)
1 teaspoon of sriratcha or other hot sauce
Whisk the ingredients together.
Cover the ribs well with the marinade and let them sit on the counter for another 15 minutes before you pat them gently with a paper towel to remove excess marinade.

4) Grill is hot when you can barely hold your palm 1 foot above the grill for a count of five; about 15 - 20 minutes after lighting it, depending on the grill.
When grill is hot, turn temperature down to medium and place ribs directly over the hottest part for about 3 minutes on one side then 3 minutes on the other side. At this stage, we want to sear the meat to caramelize it and seal in the juices but we don't want to burn it. Repeat cycle of 3 minutes per side once more, this time either turning down the heat slightly again or alternatively, moving the ribs away from the hottest part of the grill but still keeping it over direct heat. Watch for flare ups and be prepared to lower heat further or move ribs to the coolest part of the grill, if the flame seems too hot.

5) After about 12 minutes or so, move the ribs to the coolest part of the grill and lightly brush the top side with your favorite barbecue sauce. Let ribs cook on that side for 5 minutes then turn and baste ribs with the barbecue sauce cooking the other side for an additional 5 minutes.
Here is where the grilling becomes more of an art than a science. You must be cognizant of how much the glaze is browning, to avoid burning it but some charred bits are absolutely essential for that grilled flavor. Keep basting and turning each side every 5 minutes until you have cooked each side for about 15 minutes. Don't be afraid to test the ribs for doneness by hacking a little piece off. Don't forget to also change the right side / left side orientation of where the ribs are on the grill as well as turning their tops & bottoms. The right side (as well as the front portion) of my grill is always hotter than the left side (and the back portion) of it.

6) When the ribs are tender, baste them one final time each side; moving them to the hottest part of your grill for a few seconds each side if the glaze is not as browned as you like it. Just be careful not to burn the glaze. Remember, the sugar in it burns very quickly. Remove from the grill to a warm platter & loosely cover with foil, keeping them in a warm place until ready to serve.

7) Place damp corn in its foil wrap over medium heat on the grill about 5 minutes each side while ribs rest. After 10 minutes, check 3 ears of corn: the one on the hottest part of the grill, the coldest part of the grill & the middle part of the grill & gauge cooking time accordingly. Serve with melted butter, salt & pepper & lime wedges.

Grilled Ahi Skewers with Heirloom Tomatoes, Haloumi and Mint Pesto Dipping Sauce

Note: It is important that the Ahi fillet be at least 1" thick so when you cut it into cubes & grill it, it will be remain moist & rare inside with a good char outside. Ahi is expensive & you don't want to spend $20 per lb. for something that tastes like styrofoam from overcooking. Ask your seafood purveyor to cut it to order if you don't see a thick enough piece. You can also use swordfish as a substitute since the swordfish is oiler, can be 3/4" thick & stand being fully cooked. Sea scallops or shrimp would also make excellent substitutes and have the added bonus of naturally being the perfect size for skewers.

Use metal skewers, if you have them. You don't need to soak them first like you do bamboo skewers and you won't be contributing to our overloaded landfills because the stainless steel skewers can be used over & over making them more "sustainable" (my new favorite word) & economical.

Cherry tomatoes are great for the skewers. There are all kinds of varieties of heirloom being sold in bay area supermarkets now. You can use larger tomatoes cut into chunks, of course, if you need to. Haloumi is a cheese from Cyprus traditionally made from sheep's and goat's milk with a firm texture and salty flavor that holds up well to grilling and broiling. If you can't find it in your market, you can substitute smoked mozzarella or smoked provolone but may have to use larger chunks of cheese and cook them at a lower temperature to prevent a cheese meltdown all over your grill.
The dipping sauce is a minty pesto sauce which should offer a cool sweet counterpoint to the hot, spicy skewers and the salty haloumi.
This recipe will make 12 skewers.

Ingredients:

For the skewers:

• 2-1/4 lbs. of 1" thick sashimi grade Ahi, cut into 36 1" thick cubes
• 48 large cherry tomatoes
• 1-1/2 lbs. of haloumi, cut into 24 1" thick cubes
• 12 metal skewers that have been oiled or 12 wooden skewers that have been soaked in water for one hour

For the marinade:

• 1/4 cup of refined vegetable oil: olive, sesame or peanut
• 2 Tablespoons of low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
• 1 Tablespoon of fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon of oregano
• 1 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper
• 1 teaspoon of sriratcha sauce or 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

For the dipping sauce:

• a handful of fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped
• a handful of parsley leaves, roughly chopped
• 2 sprigs of oregano, leaves only
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
• 1 shallot, roughly chopped
• the juice of one lemon
• salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• 1/4 cup of unsalted roasted walnuts
• 1/4 cup of chicken stock
• 1/3 cup of high quality extra virgin olive oil

Directions

1) Assemble skewers: each skewer will have 3 pieces of ahi, 4 cherry tomatoes & 2 pieces of haloumi arranged with ahi, then add cherry tomato, then add haloumi, another cherry tomato, another piece of ahi, cherry tomato, halomui, cherry tomato and ends with a piece of ahi.

2) Arrange all twelve skewers in a shallow baking dish trying to keep them in a single layer. Now combine all the ingredients for the marinade whisking them in a medium mixing bowl. When well combined, pour marinade over the skewers making sure to coat them completely using a pastry brush or your hands to insure the marinade has evenly coated each skewer. You can at this point cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for as little as 15 minutes up to 24 hours.

3)Preheat grill on medium high.

4)Prepare pesto: Using a food processor (or you can make it by hand with a large mortar & pestle if you like a more rustic texture), add the mint, parsley, oregano, garlic, shallot & lemon & pulse together lightly for a two seconds to mix the herbs together. Then add the walnuts, pulsing for a few seconds until the mixture begin to look like a paste & walnuts are very finely chopped. Then with the processor running slowly add the olive oil until an emulsion forms and the mixture resembles pesto. Then add the honey & pulse for two seconds to incorporate well. Finally add the chicken broth in a slow steady stream watching carefully until the pesto is smooth but not too runny. Remove the sauce from the food processor, place in a serving bowl and set aside. (You can heat it in a microwave for 20 seconds before serving but it really isn't necessary if the pesto has been kept at room temperature.)

5) Remove skewers from refrigerator. Blot off all the excess marinade with a paper towel then carefully place as many skewers as will comfortably fit on your grill, you may need to cook the skewers in batches depending on the size of your grill. Grill skewers for one minute each side for a total of two minutes each skewer. The ahi & haloumi should blacken slightly but don't overcook the fish. Place skewers on a warm platter, brush lightly with some of the pesto sauce & serve with the remaining pesto on the side.

Pasta a la Caprese with Boccocino & Heirloom Cherry Tomatoes

Note: It really doesn't get any easier than this dish. Cook the pasta, add the other ingredients raw, stir & voila. It's great hot or cold. You can use any small shape pasta you have on hand: fusilli, shells, orrechiette, farfalle are all good choices. Boccocini and cherry tomatoes have a natural affinity for each other; being as perfectly sized for each other as they are. You can obviously use small chunks of larger mozzarella & tomatoes or get away from Capri & head to Greece by substituting chunks of feta & oregano for the mozzarella & basil. I add calamata olives to the dish; not a traditional part of the caprese salad but then neither is the pasta. Olives add a nice bite and acidity to the dish and balances the sweet mild flavor of the mozzarella & the cherry tomatoes. Remember the quantity of each ingredient can & should be adjusted to suit your taste. This recipe like most is just a guide, an outline; it's up to you to color between the lines and make it the way you'd like it .

Ingredients

• 1 lb. box of small shaped pasta like fusilli, shells, etc.
• 1/2 cup of very good quality extra virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling
• 1 pint of heirloom cherry tomatoes, halved if large
• 8 oz. of fresh boccocino, patted dry
• handful of basil leaves, julienned
• 2 oz. pitted calamata olives, halved
• 2 oz. freshly grated parmagiano reggiano
• 1 clove garlic, grated (optional)
• the juice of one lemon (optional)
• fresh ground salt & pepper to taste

Instructions:
1)Put a large pot to boil with salted water.

2)When water is rapidly boiling, slowly add the pasta, stirring it in and being careful not to stop the water from boiling. Cook the pasta according to the manufacturers instructions.

3)While pasta cooks, assemble all the ingredients (have them on hand). Place a large pasta serving bowl next to range & add garlic, whisk in olive oil, lemon juice, salt & pepper. Add basil, mozzarella, olives & tomatoes gently stirring them in & coating them with olive oil. You can refrigerate it at this time, if you'd rather keep the mozzarella from melting. Just be sure to bring the bowl next to the pasta pot (if you want to eat the pasta warm) so as to have it handy when you are ready to combine it with the pasta.

4)When pasta is cooked, turn off the heat & using a large slotted spoon or pasta fork, slowly remove the pasta from the pot, one spoonful at a time, allowing the water to drain completely before adding each spoonful to the large pasta serving bowl. When all the pasta is added, stir gently to combine all the ingredients, sprinkle the parmagiano over the pasta. Drizzle additional olive oil if desired & serve. Garnish with basil leaves.
If you prefer this as a cold salad, you can simply cook the pasta one minute less then drain the pasta in a colander, fill half the pasta pot with cold water & ice and plunge the colander in the pot for two or three minutes to cool it before draining and adding to the other ingredients.


Warm Blackberry and Apricot Crumble with Mascarpone Ice Cream

Note: Sorry, there is no real recipe for ice cream here. There are too many high quality premium ice creams available out there for me to suggest that I have a better way to do it at home. Instead, I think you should buy a pint of your favorite vanilla ice cream, allow it to soften at room temperature for an hour and then mix in well half a pint of mascarpone that has been "lightened" by whisking it with 3 oz. very cold heavy cream, 2 Tablespoons Frangelico liqueur, & 1/8 cup of confectioners sugar. Make sure you use a stainless steel bowl that's large enough to accomodate everything & then cover the surface of the ice cream with plastic wrap & put it in the freezer for a few hours. You could even do it a day ahead. The balsamic syrup adds a nice finishing touch to the dish but is not essential. Omit it if you like.

Ingredients

For the fruit:

• 2 cups blackberries or blueberries
• 3 cups of apricots or peaches, pitted & sliced thickly
• 2 Tablespoons cornstarch (don't use flour)
• 1/4 cup of sugar
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla
• 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

For the crumble:

• 1/2 cup unsalted walnuts, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup unsalted almonds, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
• 3/4 stick of unsalted butter, very cold & cut into 1/2" cubes

For the balsamic syrup: (optional)

• 1/3 cup of balsamic vinegar (don't use your finest, just a good $5-$10 vinegar will do)
• 2 Tablespoons of honey
• 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice
• a few sprigs of fresh mint

For the ice cream see note

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees

2) In a large mixing bowl, combine well all the ingredients for the fruit and pour into a small to medium lightly buttered gratin/baking dish (about 3-4 quart baking dish, Le Creuset or Emile Henry are the best & prettiest).

3) Using a food processor (or another large stainless steel bowl, if you're doing it au naturel), place all the ingredients except the butter in the bowl and pulse until ingredients have combined well; then, add the butter & pulse (or use your fingers, if food processorless) until the butter is the size of very small peas or the mixture resembles coarse oatmeal.

4) Crumble the dry ingredients over the fruit, and gently pat down on top of the fruit. (you may have leftover crumble mixture). Then place baking dish in oven & bake for 35-40 minutes until top is golden brown & aromatic and fruit is bubbling. Remove from oven.

5) Let crumble cool on a baking rack for 30 minutes. While crumble is cooling combine 1/3 cup of balsamic vinegar with 2 Tablespoons of honey and 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice by whisking together in a small saucepan set over low heat. Keep vinegar mixture over heat until reduced by half, stirring occasionally to prevent it from burning. When done, remove from heat & allow it to cool slightly. Serve crumble with a scoop of mascarpone ice cream a, a drizzle of balsamic syrup and garnish with a sprig of mint.