I Love You More Than Food

Category: grilled

Fennel & Stone Fruit Salad, Tri-tip on Coconut Corn Salad, Flourless Chocolate Cake with Creme Anglais Whipped Cream

For seven weeks, we’ve had family staying with us. They’re really nice people, interesting, appreciative, but man.. It was rough. I wasn’t conditioned for this. Never in my life did I think I’d have people living effectively in my house for seven weeks in a go. I’ve barely cooked for two months because of it, but the eve before their (very recent) departure (which was followed by 24 hours of blissful retreat in Calistoga), I made a seasonal and tasty multi-course dinner for us all to enjoy. Then, I made it again, a little modified, in Calistoga for our hosts.

Fennel & Stone Fruit Salad Recipe
Serves 4-5 as a starter
Very fast if you have a mandolin! See the mango version here.

1 small head fennel, sliced very thin, with a mandolin
1 white peach, sliced with a mandolin
1 red plum, sliced with a mandolin
1 black plum, sliced with a mandolin
1 large cucumber, cut in half, seeds removed, sliced with a mandolin
1 orange, yellow, or red bell pepper, diced
1 T seasoned rice vinegar
2 tsp mirin
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
raw sesame seeds to top

Mix it all together, and serve in beautiful messy lumps, like bedhead, with sesame on top.

Tri-tip on Coconut Corn Salad with Chard Recipe
Coconut Corn adapted from Heidi Swanson
Serves 4-5

1.5-2lb tri-tip or flank steak*
5 ears corn, kernels sliced off
2 T butter
1 T fresh thyme
1/2 C raw, soaked almonds, chopped
1 very small red onion (1/2 large)
1 C raw, dried flaked coconut (The bigger the better), toasted freshly
4 C torn chard

Sautee on the corn in the butter at high heat, giving it color but retaining crisp texture. Add chard, thyme and some salt to taste. Turn heat off, mix in onion, almonds, and coconut.

Season tri-tip with salt and pepper. Cook on low heat in a closed top grill for about 10 minutes each side. It will be medium.

*You could also choose to make a roast (5 lbs=4 hrs in oven at 250=rare, delicious roast beef) and serve that on top instead, or use flank steak, which you may want to marinade in garlic, whiskey, sesame oil and soy sauce for at least an hour or no more than overnight.

Quick Flourless Chocolate Cake with Creme Anglais Whipped Cream
Serves 5-6

No-Bake Chocolate Cake From Heidi Swanson

I made cremeÂ anglaisÂ the evening before with Gran Marnier Souffle (which photographs terribly!), and had some leftover. I mixed it into whipped cream; it was divine.

September 4, 2012
Herbed Chicken on the Grill with Tangerine Raw Summer Vegetables

Lavender Chicken on the Grill with Tangerine-dressed Raw Summer Vegetables
Serves 2-3

Chicken & Poultry Rub
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/4 inch thick
2 tsp dry rosemary
2 tsp lavender
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp salt

Vegetables
1 medium zucchini
1 yellow patty pan squash
2 C baby kale (or other hearty salad green, or blanched mature chopped kale)
1/2 avocado

Dressing
Juice of 1/2 orange (about 2-4 Tbsp)
1 tsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt

Chop your zucchini julienne (matchsticks) and use a mandolin on your patty pan squash to create discs. Set aside.

Grind all spices in a coffee grinder or with a mortar & pestle and dress your pounded chicken generously. Use olive oil spray to briefly coat each side, or alternatively, rub with olive oil prior to applying spice rub. Get your grill ready.

Whisk all dressing ingredients together and toss your kale in it, placing it in warmed salad bowls. In the remaining dressing, toss the summer squash and place 2/3rds of it on top of the kale, gently mixing in avocado slices.

When chicken is done cooking on the grill (or in a cast iron in a pan with a lid, or however you’d like to do it!), slice in 2 inch pieces and layer with remaining squash and avocado in bowls.

September 7, 2011
Fried Baby Artichokes & Potatoes with Flank Steak

From A Platter of Figs – totally doable on a Tuesday night, shopping and all!
Recipe for Fried Baby Artichokes and Potatoes with Flank Steak
For Two

1.5-2lb flank steak
2 C new potatoes or other tender spring potatoes, washed, boiled until just tender and halved/quartered
8-10 baby artichokes, outter layers peeled, tops cut off and halved or quartered*
4 cloves garlic, minced
10 sprigs parsley (or more/less), chopped finely
1.5 C arugula, optional
2 T olive oil
lots of vegetable oil (sunflower or safflower or other high heat oil)
salt & pepper

* As you clean and prep the artichokes, place them in acidulated water (water with juice of a lemon or lime) to prevent browning.

For the Steak
Generously salt & pepper both sides of the flank steak and set aside. Can refrigerate overnight ahead or season within 2 hours of cooking and leave out at room temp.

For the Potatoes & Artichokes
Prep all ingredients ahead. Heat the grill for the steak and begin cooking steak as you start this processs:

Heat a large skillet to medium high heat and cook the artichokes until beginning to color. This is to remove moisture and prepare for frying. Add the potatoes after about 2-3 minutes of cooking and cook. In a large cast iron or other high sided skillet, heat a generous inch of vegetable oil to frying heat. Test with a potato if needed for even bubbling. Add the potatoes and fry 1 minute, then add artichokes and fry all until deep golden. Remove and drain on paper towels or cooling racks.

In original skillet, heat 2 T olive oil with garlic, cooking at low heat until flavor isÂ infused, about 3 minutes. Add fried artichokes and potatoes, salt, pepper, and parsley. Toss and serve. * Original recipe calls to add fresh arugula to potato mixture if you like.

May 24, 2011
Ribeye from BiRite Market in San Francisco

Saturday night dinner for two. Birite Market – Five Dot Ranch.

The fat was so tender and tasty; just salt & pepper and the fat was catching on fire at the grill. Crispy on the outside, rare on the inside.

April 3, 2011
Five-Spice & Salted Pimento Pork with Rum Peaches & Chard

At a dinner party for six, I made a few quick courses that ended up with a fabulous “bang” on an easy, warm weeknight in the backyard.

– Pluot slices with seasoned Sheep’s ricotta and Prosciutto

– Grilled pork tenderloin with “5 spices” & rum braised peaches + rainbow chard

– Dark chocolate ice cream with bergamont olive oil & sea salt

The first and the last were partially stolen from a previous dinner and a local creamery, so aside from giving you a brief hint* on the first I’ll leave you to your own devices.

*mix your sheep’s milk ricotta with some orange or lemon zest, some bergamont olive oil, and vanilla salt, then drizzle the whole combo, once wrapped and held together by prosciutto, with balsamico.

1 pork tenderloin, rubbed generously with mixture of dried pepper & salt, and five spice powder. Allow to marinate as such for 30-1hr, then drizzle with high heat oil such as macadamia, and throw it on a medium grill, turning a little frequently to prevent charring.

1 bunch rainbow chard, stems removed and chopped 1 inch, cooked at medium heat in olive oil, with salt and pepper, the leaves added to wilt at the end.

Peaches into the chard pan once the chard is removed, brought to high heat with butter, get them golden on one side and douse in bacardi 151 or another rum (or calvados). Flip them, get them golden on the other side, add more rum. Cook it off and serve it all together!

September 3, 2009