Note that if you purchase something via one of our links, including Amazon, we may earn a small commission.
Spring is nature's way of saying, ‘Let's party.'
– Robin Williams
RECIPE: Fried Oyster Po’ Boys
- Yield: Serves 4
Description
This famous New Orleans sandwich specialty translates perfectly to any locale that has plentiful oysters. These crispy cornmeal-coated oysters are served with a jazzed-up mayonnaise, lettuce, and tomato on a roll. In New Orleans, po’ boy makers use soft-crusted French bread.
Ingredients
- 1 qt vegetable or canola oil
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 eggs
- 1 dozen (or more) oysters, shucked
- Homemade tartar sauce (see below) or plain mayonnaise
- 8 brioche rolls or hot dog rolls
- Lettuce leaves
- 1 lemon, cut into wedges
- 1 tomato, sliced
The tartar sauce
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tsps capers, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 2 Tbsps relish
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- In a heavy pot or a fryer, add oil and heat to 375°F.
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, salt, cayenne, and black pepper. In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs. One at a time, dip the oysters into the egg mixture, then coat in the cornmeal mixture. Fry in small batches, until oysters are golden on both sides, about 2 to 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels.
- If making tartar sauce: In a small bowl, mix mayonnaise, capers, garlic, lemon juice, and relish. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- To assemble the po’ boy, slather the bottom bun with the tartar sauce or mayonnaise, and layer with lettuce, 2 oysters, a squeeze of lemon, tomato slice, and top with bun. Serve immediately.
RECIPE: Spring Niçoise Salad
- Yield: Serves 4 to 6 1x
Description
Watercress makes a nice salad base in the spring, especially if you can pick it fresh in the wild near running streams. Considered a super food — loaded with iron, calcium, fiber, and vitamins — watercress is among the top 10 healthiest vegetables. If watercress is unavailable, arugula, baby kale, or spring lettuce mixes you find at local farm stands all work great. Fish markets often sell roasted salmon, bluefish, or trout. It’s chunky and slightly smoked — and very convenient to add to a salad. It is NOT the cured, thinly sliced salmon. Use this go-to lemon herb dressing for any spring or summer dinner salad.
Ingredients
- Small roasting potatoes or fingerlings, scrubbed
- Olive oil
- Salt
- 1 small bunch of asparagus, rinsed and woody bottoms removed
- 1 14-oz can artichoke hearts, rinsed and dried (optional)
- 6 cups watercress or other spring baby salad greens
- 1 or 2 endives, cored and thinly sliced
- 1 or 2 packages smoke-roasted salmon, broken into chunks
- 1 cucumber or avocado, peeled, halved and sliced
- 1/4 red onion, cut into slivers
- 1/2 cup pitted niçoise, calamata, or your favorite olives
- Feta cheese, to taste
The lemon herb dressing
- 3 Tbsps fresh lemon juice
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 tsps maple syrup or raw honey
- 2 tsps Dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 Tbsps finely chopped fresh parsley, basil, dill, or chives (a combination of herbs is nice!)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Slice potatoes in half and mix well with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and salt to taste. Spread out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat, and bake until easily pierced with a fork, about 30 minutes. Mix once or twice while baking. Set aside.
- Peel the asparagus, if desired. Mix well with 1 tablespoon of oil and spread out one side of a lined baking sheet. On the other side, add the artichoke hearts, drizzle with olive oil. Add this sheet pan to the oven where potatoes are baking and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the asparagus is fork tender. Set aside.
- Prepare your salad platter. Put the watercress or other spring greens and endive on the platter. Place all the ingredients in sections: the roasted salmon, cucumber or avocado, red onion, olives, feta, roasted potatoes, roasted asparagus, and roasted artichokes.
- Make the dressing by mixing all the ingredients together. Pass at the table. Remind people to mix the dressing a little before spooning onto the salad. Be generous with the dressing — it ties the salad together.
RECIPE: Middle Eastern Lamb Meatballs with Rice and Greens
- Yield: Serves 4
Description
This recipe is inspired by the Middle Eastern food vendors in New York City from my time living there. There was one cart that I would frequent when craving a gyro. The sizzling meat, hot and flavorful, would get sliced off the spit and served with rice, lettuce, a white sauce, and spicy harissa sauce to round it out. In this recipe, I use pastured lamb mixed with herbs, aromatics, and Middle Eastern spices like tart ground sumac berries and Moroccan spice mix ras el hanout to give these meatballs their distinctive and flavorful taste. You can find the more exotic spices in gourmet or specialty stores or online. The meatball-centric meal is plated with a cool and crisp mix of greens, cucumber, and mint along with rice and a yogurt sauce, a study in the balance of hot and cold, rich and refreshing, this recipe is perfect for bringing to a potluck, or just for making any day of the week.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup fresh breadcrumbs torn from a stale loaf of country bread
- 2 Tbsps whole milk
- 1 1/4 lbs pastured ground lamb
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground sumac
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- 1 tsp ras el hanout (Moroccan spice blend), see note
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 3/4 tsps salt
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 Tbsp olive oil, plus more as needed
- 3 cups chopped romaine lettuce
- 2 cups baby kale
- 1 cup thinly sliced cucumber
- 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
- 3 cups cooked long grain rice
- Lemon wedges, for serving (optional)
The sauce
- 2/3 cup whole-milk plain yogurt
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp white vinegar
- 1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Make the sauce: In a medium bowl, whisk together the yogurt, olive oil, sugar, vinegar, lemon juice, and salt until combined. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Preheat the oven to 200°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat, and set aside.
- In a large bowl, soak the breadcrumbs in the milk until most of the milk is absorbed, about 3 minutes. Add the lamb, egg, parsley, garlic, ginger, cumin, sumac, paprika, ras el hanout, coriander, cardamom, salt, and pepper, and mix well until combined. Roll the lamb mixture evenly into 16 meatballs.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large cast-iron or heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the meatballs, and let cook, turning a few times gently until all the sides are browned and the meatballs are just cooked through, about 8 minutes. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and place in the oven to keep warm. Repeat this process with more oil, if needed and the remaining meatballs. Keep warm until ready to serve.
- In a medium bowl toss together the romaine, kale, cucumber, and mint. Set aside.
- Divide the cooked rice among 4 plates. Top each with some of the meatballs and the greens. Drizzle all over with the sauce and serve with a lemon slice if desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
Ras el Hanout: The mixture usually consists of more than a dozen spices in different proportions. Common ingredients include cardamom, cumin, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, allspice, dry ginger, chili peppers, coriander seed, peppercorn, sweet and hot paprika, fenugreek, and ground turmeric. If you don't have a chance to buy it or make a batch, try using cinnamon, mace, allspice, dried ginger, or turmeric, or just a few of the spices you like from the list above not already in the recipe.
Meatless Meatballs: Generally, beef and lamb have the biggest carbon footprint per gram of protein. Use Impossible or Beyond Meat instead of lamb for a vegetarian version of this dish.
Print
RECIPE: Garbanzo Stew with Collards and Winter Squash
- Yield: Serves 3 to 4 1x
Description
This is a meal-in-one recipe I’ve been making — and modifying — for nearly 25 years. I first had it at a friend’s house one Halloween night, after we took our young children trick-or-treating. It was still new to me back then to cook with Indian spices, and I thought this dish was the most delicious thing I’d ever eaten. All these years later, I continue to make it several times a year, but I particularly like making it in winter, when I can still use squash, onions, and garlic harvested the previous summer and stored in my cool basement, along with collard greens that remain growing in my garden throughout the winter unless there’s a severe freeze. It’s a meal that can be made in advance and quickly reheated, and the recipe can easily be doubled or tripled to feed a crowd.
Ingredients
- 2 cups peeled butternut or other winter squash, diced in 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- Pinch of salt
- 2 onions, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 Tbsps ghee or butter
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 Tbsp garam masala
- 1 tsp ground chili powder
- 1 2-inch piece ginger root, peeled and finely chopped or grated
- 1 15-oz can diced tomatoes, or 2-3 medium fresh tomatoes, chopped, juices reserved
- 1 15-oz can garbanzo beans, drained
- 1/3 cup plain yogurt
- 1 medium bunch collard greens or kale, stems removed, leaves chopped into bite-sized pieces, or one 5-oz bag baby spinach
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro (leaves and stems), plus more cilantro leaves for garnish
- Cooked rice or quinoa for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. In a medium bowl, mix the diced squash with the olive oil and salt until evenly coated. Spread the squash in a single layer on a baking sheet, and roast in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, stir and turn over the pieces, then return to the oven. Roast 15 to 20 minutes more, until the squash is easily pierced with a fork.
- Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven or a frying pan with high sides and a lid, sauté the onions and garlic in the ghee or butter on medium heat until translucent, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the turmeric, garam masala, chili powder, and ginger, then add the tomatoes (and reserved juice, if using fresh).
- Purée half the garbanzos with the yogurt in a food processor or blender until smooth. Stir them into the tomato-onion mixture, along with the whole beans. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low. If using chopped collard greens or kale, place them on top, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the lid, stir the greens (now wilted) into the stew. If the stew seems too thick, add a little water. Replace the lid and simmer for 15 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the cilantro, roasted squash, and baby spinach (if using). Taste, and add a little salt if needed.
- Serve over cooked rice or quinoa. Garnish with the cilantro leaves.
Notes
There is salt in canned garbanzo beans and in canned tomatoes. Therefore, the only additional salt I use in this recipe is a pinch stirred into the squash before roasting.
Saving Your Harvest: Many vegetables including most root vegetables, winter squash, onion, and garlic harvested from your garden can last several months after picking when stored in a cool, dry place, such as a basement. Read Laura Roosevelt’s piece on making a garden you can eat from year-round.
