Cooking with Alyce Morgan
Come summer, I grab a stack of grilling books and magazines and leave them by our chairs in the sunroom, rotating them every few weeks so we have new things to consider as the summer moves along, the heat builds, and the kitchen is used less and less. (I have a horrifically hot range–wonderful in the winter and a bear in the summer.)
Continue reading “Spicy Citrus Halibut with Asparagus + a Grilling Book Recommendation”
Some years we have no bunnies at all in our yard. Other times, such as now, we are overrun by the the dreaded chomper-hoppers. (Have you ever seen one hop straight up 4 feet or more? They can. ) I blame it on the lack of outdoor cats and our local bob cat family temporarily taking up residence in the next subdivision over. While cute, especially when oh so very small, they eat everything we don’t want them to eat but perversely leave the weeds for us to pull.
Continue reading “Pork Tenderloin and Vegetables on Arugula with Lemon Vinaigrette plus Pork and Blue Cheese Tacos for the Next Night”
For many Americans of my generation, meatloaf was a regular dinner event as we were growing up. Perhaps it still is? And while meatloaf is easy and simple, it’s neither easy or simple to make well. Just bring up meatloaf when you’re gathered with a few other people. The responses will range from…
Continue reading “Grilled Mini Southwest Turkey Meatloaves with Cilantro Coleslaw and Tuxedo Cowboy Beans”
If the goal of feeding folks in the summer is to keep the cooking and the heat at a minimum, I’m in. As my friend Jodie says, “I turn into a troll when the temperature gets above 65 degrees F.” Even it it’s not terribly hot outdoors — or is, in fact, lovely — my house seems to turn into a hot box on June 1 every year. Of course that’s just one reason Americans grill (the contemporary version of the separate summer kitchen) and eat outdoors anytime we can. The other is we’re inordinately attached to kicking back for three months every year. Or we say we are anyway.
Continue reading “Tomato-Chickpea Salad”
Correction: If you printed this recipe on July 5, there was a mistake in the ingredients for the blue cheese salad dressing. It is corrected today, July 6. Thanks and apologies.
Mid-summer heat. I’m doing a slow burn while the garden is drooping perilously and the grass is being watered daily simply to survive. 4th of July is over and maybe you, like me, are burger-ed/brat-ed out. The thrill of the grill might be gone or at least waning. It’s the time that stretches between holidays without another one in sight until Halloween unless you count that last gasp of summer Labor Day BBQ. I kind of like that part.
Grilled Zucchini and Corn Salad
This week marks the beginning of weekend picnics, warm holiday get togethers, nights in the backyard, weeks at the beach, days at the cabin, and all kinds of thrilling grilling on your balcony or patio! For fun, I ran through my TOP FAVORITE original summer sides on More Time at Table and brought them all together in one place just before Memorial Day. I’ll keep perusing my files and as I find other luscious things I think you’d like, I’ll stick them in. Be cool!
Continue reading “Best Summer Sides from More Time at the Table”
Now you and I know that there might not actually have been something called Basil-Bacon Salsa, but there is now. It could be mis-named, but it seems to work for gilding the lily of this tender, crisp, juicy simple grilled chicken. I occasionally do a sort of Italian salsa (generally called Raw Tomato Sauce) with just tomatoes, basil, and garlic or onion for a quick topping of meat, grilled bread, or pasta; this time I had bacon cooked and thought, “Why not?” Chicken and bacon are certainly compatible–and now “Basil-Bacon Salsa” is a thing around here.
Continue reading “Grilled Chicken with Basil-Bacon Salsa and Grilled Zucchini Salad”
Cod is something I usually associate with fish and chips, if I am even remembering what fish fish and chips are made of, that is. But cod can be cooked in many other ways (try it wrapped in foil and baked a la Mark Bittman) and because not each and every home cook chooses it stateside, the price is lovely and often under $10 a pound–a real bargain for fish. (Europe is another story; cod outsells salmon in France, for instance.) Watch for it at your grocery fish counter; I watched and found it at mine! By the way: if you suffer from fish cooking fear, a common American phobia, cod is a great place to start. It’s forgiving, cooks quickly, and comes in close to one-pound well-filleted pieces with nary a tiny bone to worry your sweet mouth.
(below: Cod is no longer a huge fishing industry off the coast of eastern Canada and the U.S. as it was largely overfished for centuries, but we heard lots about its interesting history in our travel to the eastern provinces over the last few years. Top- Dave at Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia and bottom- a view of the shore from the St. Lawrence River and Seaway. Dave and I have cruised it three times and hope to go back.) 
Continue reading “Grilled Cod Salad”
When the first day that truly feels like spring arrives — as it did yesterday — I’m likely to wander around wondering what to cook that feels like spring. If Dave’s in on the conversation, he’ll be talking grill while I’ll be dreaming salad. And not only will Dave be talking grill, he’ll be thinking hamburgers. As I rarely eat hamburgers unless he cooks them at home, I jumped in the car and ran to the store for low-fat ground beef and whole wheat buns.
Continue reading “Roasted Potato-Asparagus Salad with Mushrooms and Sweet Onions”