My NPR app has become something of a lifeline to the real world for me this summer. You see, since I no longer have my 8:43 commuter train to Manhattan, I no longer have my dedicated reading time for my New York Times. I know what you’re thinking — now that I’m working from home don’t I have big, fat, wide swaths of time available to leisurely read the paper cover to cover? (Or pageview to pageview?) Well, yes. I guess. But therein lies the problem. For whatever reason, in my life, Large Wide Swaths of Time seem to be the arch nemesis of Dedicated Time, and unless there is a ritual attached to something like reading, it becomes an effort. When it becomes an effort, it doesn’t happen. One of my School Year’s Resolutions is to figure all this out, but in the meantime, I have my NPR app. Lately I’ve been downloading a few programs to my playlist (usually some combo of “All Things Considered,” “Fresh Air”, and “Morning Edition”) and listening to them while I go running. Not only does it make me feel a little more up to date — it makes the run go faster. (Not to be misread as “It makes the runner go faster.”) (more…)

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Is there anything better than looking at the calendar for the weekend and seeing a big huge block of…absolutely nothing? Somehow, last Sunday was the first weekend day in a little while that wasn’t spent shuttling the girls to and from birthday parties, or catching up on errands, or barreling north on 95, or south on the Taconic home from a road trip. And when we get wind that this kind of day is coming, we seize on it like a pack of wolves on a bunny, identifying it as “Moratorium Saturday” or “Moratorium Sunday” and anticipating it like Christmas. Plans are forbidden No playdates — for the kids or the grown-ups. No road trips. No errands that don’t include food. (Trader Joe’s falls into the Leisure category.) It’s a day to do nothing…or, at least, a day where we commit to nothing…but end up doing a million things anyway. Like making a big-ass Sunday dinner: Classic barbecue chicken, chutney potatoes, corn off the cob (Abby is missing a few choppers) and a Lee Brothers- inspired Cabbage and Lime Slaw with Peanuts. (more…)

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When it comes to family dinner, unanimity of approval is the dream. Over the past few years, we’ve developed a pretty solid rotation of meals – shrimp with feta, pork chops, grilled cheese — that achieve something close to 100% satisfaction around the table, that elicit not a squeak of protest when plate hits table. But that rotation, like the diamond-crusted roster of the New York Yankees, is in constant need of refurbishing and reinvention. Move forward or perish, right? We’re always trying to introduce new things that we can come back to again and again, things that taste a little better that what we ate last night, or are a little more heart healthy, or a little easier to make.

Here’s the problem with introducing something new: most of the time, at least one of the kids won’t touch it.

But that’s okay! We have a theory around our house: If we can achieve 75% happiness with a new meal – that is, if 3 of the 4 people at our table eat the meal without complaining, crying, or vomiting – then that meal is worth making again. And the more we make it, the more likely our li’l holdout will be to try it, and once she tries it, the more likely she will be to come around eventually to, you know, liking it. And in this way, our dinner rotation expands.

Take last Sunday, for example. It was hot and muggy and the back of my neck was getting both dirty and gritty. It felt like a burger night, only we’re trying not to eat as much beef these days and the thought of another dry, workman-like turkey burger, even dressed up with cheese, hurt my soul. So we got some ground chicken – white meat and dark — from the guy with the cooler full of farm-raised stuff at our farmer’s market, and went for something different: tandoori burgers with yogurt sauce, doctored up from an old Martha Stewart recipe. The verdict? 3 out of 4. – Andy

Tandoori Chicken Burgers

1 1/2 pounds ground chicken
4 scallions, chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger
Juice of one lemon
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
Salt and lots of pepper
Whole wheat hamburger buns
1 cucumber, thinly sliced

In large mixing bowl, combine chicken, scallions, ginger, lemon juice, paprika, cumin, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Cover and put in refrigerator for 45 minutes (this lets it all marinate, and also makes it easier to handle). Form into patties and grill (or fry in pan) until cooked through, about 6-7 minutes a side. (Make sure to oil the grill beforehand, as the burgers will stick.) Serve on whole wheat buns, topped with lots of crunchy cucumber slices and yogurt sauce.

For yogurt sauce: Whisk together 1 cup nonfat plain yogurt, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, couple pinches of sugar.

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There was a photo in one of the last issues of Gourmet that haunts me to this day. In a good way. (What is the word for haunting in a good way? Word people…help, please.) You know how much I love the concept of Deconstructed Dinner? The idea of leveraging the “no-touching!” decree regularly issued by toddlers into a beautiful salad where everything is separated into individually delicious elements? Well the Gourmet photo showed a rustic platter holding about eight or nine different “stripes” of food — grilled chicken, grilled mushrooms, chick peas, radishes, greens. In other words, the most glorious Deconstructed Dinner ever constructed. I lost the issue and have had no luck finding the recipe on epicurious, but finally, a year later, Andy and I replicated the platter in our kitchen. That’s it up there. A veritable celebration of farmer’s market fabulousness. Shredded romaine, “campfire potatoes”, fresh garden peas, tiny spring onions, asparagus, chicken, and some homemade pesto drizzled on top. (Storebought will do, too.)

The only “stripe” on the platter that wasn’t prepared on the grill was the one made of orange-thyme roasted carrots — which is a big fave with the girls. I think this is probably because the recipe only really works with the small, tender, sweet carrots from the farmer’s market that resemble the kind Bugs Bunny walks around with. (Try saying “What’s up Doc?” while holding a nubby little baby carrot. So incredibly depressing.) To make: Chop off most of the carrot stems, rinse slightly (no need to peel if you rinse well), and slice them horizontally as shown. Toss with olive oil and some fresh thyme leaves and roast in a baking dish in a 425°F oven for about 15-20 minutes until tender. Halve an orange and roast alongside the carrots. (This concentrates its juices.) When the carrots are finished, squeeze about a tablespoon of orange juice all over them. (more…)

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Phoebe was about four years old the first time she walked into a McDonald’s. It was somewhere in Virginia, an I-95 pitstop on our annual 800-mile drive down to South Carolina from New York. I remember her wide-eyeballing the playground outside, the Wizard of Oz doll display inside. Before she had taken a single bite of food, she turned to me and said, “Mom, this is the best restaurant I’ve ever been to.”

It was terrifying how they got her. So efficiently! So insidiously!

We bought her a Happy Meal so she could get her Dorothy doll, then we took her and her sister to the bathroom to change them into their pajamas. The goal was for them to be stuffed and comfortable so they would fall asleep for the remaining 300 miles. It worked.

I read Fast Food Nation and all the rest of them, but somehow still lodged in my brain is a McDonalds chip that equates the golden arches with happy childhood memories — heading to the drive-thru with my Dad to pick up a big order when my parents were going out and the sitter couldn’t cook, going after school with my best friend Jeni to scarf down a deep-fried apple pie before lacrosse practice.

As I said. Terrifying.

It’s hard to justify eating there more than our once-a-year roadtrip pitstop, but the McDonald’s happiness chip (and the better burger trend) had me experimenting with a Big Mac makeover recently. This is what I did:

• Replaced ground beef with dark ground turkey (and rolled them In-n-Out style as usual)
• Used whole wheat buns (For the middle layer, I used an extra bottom bun, sliced horizontally)
• Replaced American cheese with Trader Joe’s sharp cheddar slices
• Used organic ketchup, mustard, and mayo instead of “special sauce”
• Had the grill been fired up, I would have flame-broiled the patties Burger-King-style, which my husband claims to this day is what makes BK home of the superior burger
• Garnished with a parasol instead of an action figure

What is the opposite of “supersize?” Whatever it is, I recommend doing that, too. Served with a salad and baked french fries (coming soon), one of these mega-burgers is good enough for four people.

Lovin’ it.

Related: McDonald’s vs. Chipotle: Does the Big Mac Win?

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I had the pleasure of interviewing Ted Lee last week — he’s the co-author of the James Beard Award-winning book The Lee Bros Southern Cookbook (what they call in the trade a “category killer”) and most recently, Simple, Fresh, Southern, which is their entry into the “Everyday” category of cookbooks. (A favorite category of mine as you might imagine.) I asked Ted what I should cook from the book to prepare for our conversation and his reply sent me sprinting into the kitchen.

“Jenny, I see the weather in the NY-metro region is going to be thunderstorm-y and steamy this weekend, so go with the cold salads–Soybean and Cherry Tomato, Gingered Beets with Field Peas and Lemon, Easy Ambrosia, Cabbage Salad with Lime and Roasted Peanuts, Carrot and Turnip Slaw with Dill (sub equal qty carrots for turnips if desired). For entrees, do something quick in the broiler, like Gran’s Flank Steak or Crispy-Skin Salmon with Buttermilk Mint Sauce. And the Jersey strawberries should be slammin now: Strawberries with Port Syrup and Sour Cream. But if there are ripe Jersey peaches in yet (doubt it…) do the Cornmeal Drop-Biscuit cobbler, worth heating up the kitchen for!”

Is there any question that the guy knows how to get people excited about cooking? I instantly started plotting summer parties around each dish he mentioned. And for (more…)

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Last year, we hosted Christmas dinner for the first time – the full deal, too, with both sets of grandparents, brothers, sisters, kids, cousins, and an insane puppy, all wilding through the house. We needed a meal that everyone would like and were determined not to serve chicken fingers and crinkle cut fries. We discussed various festive options — filet (too expensive), turkey (too Thanksgiving), goose (too inedible) – but just weren’t feeling any of them. So I asked my friend Adam , who has the kind of dinner parties that make you wonder why you even bother trying. Adam’s a man of strong opinions. About everything. There’s a right way to do things, and a wrong way to do things. “Dude,” he said. “You make a smoked ham. And you glaze it so it gets all shiny and shit. Put it in the middle of the table and let people admire it.”

His recipe contained all of two ingredients – apricot jam and dark rum – took about fifteen minutes to prepare, and was, as Adam would say, rindonkulously tasty. Guests were practically weeping with joy as their sodium levels skyrocketed, and the kids loved the crackly, candied crust. The dog seemed to approve of the leftovers.

Fast forward six months, to last Saturday night. A beautiful, warm June night, the perfect night for grilling. The only kids wilding through the house were our own. We decided to try Adam’s glaze on a one-pound pork tenderloin we’d had in the freezer for a couple of weeks. We added one ingredient (rosemary), but otherwise, we’re pleased to say that the same technique works for any occasion. Clean plates all around. We’ll be making this one again soon. – Posted by Andy (more…)

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I feel like I owe you guys an apology. I’m sure when you read last week that this was Grill Week on Dinner: A Love Story, that you were picturing sizzling ribeyes, creamy slaws, fatty ribs — Not a bunch of healthy lean meats and omega-3-rich fish. (It’s only Thursday, and it’s only May, so don’t worry, there’s still plenty of time to redeem myself.) But I would like to remind everyone that this is precisely why I’m so happy that the Weber is open for business again  – because grilling makes it is so easy to impart deep, rich flavors without relying on a whole lot of fat.

This salmon brushed with candy-like hoisin sauce, will become your go-to fish dish of summer 2010. But the real learning here is the potatoes. Buy them fresh and buy them little, wrap them in foil with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper, then put them on the grill grate for 30 minutes. (Listen to them  – if they sound really sizzly, check to make sure they’re not burning.) When they’re cooked, dump them into a bowl, smash with a fork, just so enough so the flesh bursts out of their skin, pour a little more olive oil on top, a squeeze of lemon, whatever chopped fresh herbs you’ve got (we used mint) and a dollop of sour cream or creme fraiche. (There, that’s not so healthy, right?) We had baby bell peppers and super fresh asparagus leftover from Monday night’s chicken-asparagus-potato-salad menu so we threw those on the grill to round out the plate.

Simple and Sweet BBQ Salmon
Anyone got a kid obsessed with the color pink? Make sure you point out that this fish fits right into the plan — that’s how we convinced Abby to embrace salmon when she was about 3 or 4.

Marinate a 1-pound piece of wild salmon in olive oil and 1-2 tablespoons soy sauce for about 30 minutes.

In separate bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce and the juice from one lime. Set aside.

Grill salmon about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Brush with the hoisin-lime sauce and grill, flesh-side down, for another 3 minutes. Serve.

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Let me just say that I was not proud of my google history last Thursday — how exactly does one justify spending a solid 30 minutes on keyword searches like these:

homemade marshmallow fluff
marshamallow fluff from marshmallows
marshamallow fluff recipe
marshamallow fluff recipe using marshmallows
how to make marshmallow fluff without corn syrup

You get the picture. But I had a vision — and you’re looking at it right there in that picture. I was determined to find some sort of marshmallowy whip to finish off a chocolate pudding pie recipe that I could then call Smore Pie. And amazingly, all-powerful Google gave me nothing.

After picking up a strong what-am-I-doing-with-my-life vibe coming from her mother, Phoebe said to me: “Why don’t we just roast the marshmallows and put them on top?” With that one question she saved me an hour…and whatever dignity I had left. (more…)

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No, not fish tacos with roasted marshmallows, though I have a feeling that wouldn’t be too hard a sell on the kids. But before I even get to this simple, fresh, crowd-pleaser, I want to say something about the corn in these tacos, or more generally, about cooking with local, seasonal ingredients.

My good friend and neighbor (and fabulous home cook) logged on to my website last Friday. The photo, which of course you all remember, showed a few ears of corn on the grill. This was his comment:

Corn? In May?

And here is the second-by-second playback of the ruminating that took place in my brain over the course of the next minute. Why am I even bothering to do this website? I am a complete fraud. What kind of food expert would eat corn in May? What kind of food person would have that corn-filled May photo be the one to announce grilling season for all her readers? [Pause. Lightbulb flickers somewhere in darkness of cerebrum.] I know what kind of food person. The kind of food person who has children. A mom food person who knows that a kernel of corn on her six-year-old’s plate is culinary gold. The kind of mom food person who knows what a difference it makes to always have something on the plate that her children feel comfortable with.

But I didn’t tell him all that. Because he certainly wasn’t saying it to make me feel bad. (He had apparently mistaken me for an emotionally secure person.) This is what I replied:

If my kids eat it, it’s always in season!

OK listen, you won’t find anyone happier than me when farmer’s market season rolls around. Our local market opens June 5, and that day that has been marked on my mental calendar (real estate that not many events are capable of securing these days) for months now because it means a guaranteed 1-mile family walk (including the dog) to the market every Saturday. It means reconnecting with people in the community I (more…)

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We never used to grill chicken. It was… eh. Never quite satisfying. We were always throwing it back on the grill (“does this look cooked to you?”) because we were paranoid about getting sick, or complaining that it was too dry, or overwhelming it with some ketchup-y four alarm KC BBQ sauce that, instead of tasting good, just ended up burning and tasting like ash. Then, last summer, we discovered two tricks that turned some things around for us, chicken-wise:

1. Pounding the cutlets flat, which makes them very easy (and quick) to cook evenly, and
2. Marinating in yogurt, which seems – by some trick of physics – to result in unfailing juiciness.

Though we don’t exactly advertise it to the kids, we pretty much add yogurt to all of our chicken marinades now – we do a curry-ish one, a onion-ginger-cilantro-and-lime one, and the one you see here, which we’re calling lemon pepper chicken. Try it with some good potato salad, grilled asparagus, and some cold rose. The marinade takes all of ten minutes to prepare, promise. — Andy (more…)

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Just wanted to let everyone know that we’ve been firing up the Weber all week long in preparation for…Grill Week!!! starting on Monday here on Dinner: A Love Story. So whatever your Memorial Day plans are — whether you’re feeding kids, grown-ups, kids and grown-ups, bosses, or just your own darling little monsters, come back next week for some inspiration. If you have any specific questions (such as “What do I grill for a Vegan?” or “Do you think Coach Taylor has a fighting chance to turn around East Dillon?”*) feel free to comment and I’ll try to work the answer in to the line-up next week. Have a great weekend and, as always, thanks for all the heartfelt feedback.

*If you do not know this reference, you are not allowed back to my website until you Netflix every episode of  Friday Night Lights, seasons 1 through 4 (currently running). Free cookbook for first person who quotes Tami Taylor in a comment field.

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