Sometimes, upon returning from vacation, I feel renewed and inspired by dishes sampled abroad. I’m comforted by a reunion with the worn wood of my cutting boards and the feeling of a familiar knife. Recently, we returned from a blissful trip to northern Norway, filled to the brim with midnight sun and the simplest seafood imaginable—fjord shrimps and oysters, marinated herring, nutty bread and brown cheese. I’m sorry to say that none of this transferred to my kitchen. It didn’t help that the skies in New York turned yellow overhead for a few days, before breaking open and sending heavy branches into the back of our car (which is now broken open, too). Also: is it OK to eat salad in the U.S. this summer? My personal conclusion is yes, I will risk it with well-washed greens from the farmer’s market, or otherwise grown nearby.
Our children returned from their summer travels as well, one girl with a tattoo and one, the teen boy, six inches taller with a backpack full of muddy clothes and gear. Eventually, a full house and a trip to the farmers market shocked me back into cooking, but a low-lift summer version that I’m totally OK with. Here are some highlights.
Pantry cooking: We always have anchovies, pasta, and probably parsley growing in our planters. Behold pasta with anchovies and parsley!
Garbage salads: A perennial favorite in our house; these consist of greens, some kind of leftover grain, chopped vegetables and herbs, sliced chicken or steak (leftover grilled and a little bit charred is best), maybe a cheese or nut, and a good vinaigrette to toss the whole thing together with. Voilà! Garbage salad.
Boards can be dinners, too: a World Cup gathering reminded me of this fact. My friend Madeley brought one of her glorious snacking boards, replete with all four food groups and lots of tasty surprises, and after Spain had cleaned up and taken the party to the streets, we found we didn’t need supper.
Dips can be dinners, too. This ricotta dip, in particular, does the trick if served with piles of chopped vegetables and torn baguette or, better yet, slices of living bread from ACQ. In winter, a hot artichoke or crab dip would serve the same purpose.
Stale bread magic: panzanella is nothing new, but sometimes I have to be reminded of its genius. Sometimes all it takes is leftover baguette and a surplus of tomatoes to do that…or the inspo of Tara’s pan con tomate. Below is a Greek-ish panzanella, which you can make with or without peppers (hi Cece!), add olives or anything else you like; riff on it as you like. Note this one has nary a lettuce in sight ;)
Greekish Panzanella
Serves 4
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups stale baguette or country-style bread, crusts removed, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 medium tomatoes or the equivalent–cut into wedges then halve the wedges
1/3 cup diced, peeled cucumber
Optional: chopped bell peppers and/or kalamata olives
1 small onion or shallot, sliced thin
1/4 cup crumbled feta
a few leaves of basil, torn
a few mint leaves, minced
For the vinaigrette:
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
pinch salt
freshly ground pepper
Instructions:
In a medium bowl, put the bread cubes, vegetables, a sprinkle of salt, and herbs. Whisk together vinaigrette ingredients then drizzle over the salad ingredients, tossing together to combine. For best results, let this sit for at least an hour while you pull together dinner, then add the feta and toss one last time, adjusting seasoning as needed before serving. If it seems too dry, you can sprinkle a little more vinegar and olive oil over the whole thing.
Below are some photos from our recent trip to Norway’s Lofoten Islands, plus a couple from Stockholm:
Scallop crudo with uni on the Varg, by our excellent chef Kevin 2. 1 AM sun while hiking 3. Fisherman’s cottage in Skrova 4. Cloudberry 5. View from midnight hike on Skrova 6. The plushest moss 7. Wake-up view from the sailboat 8. Drowsy bee 9. Hikers’ treat 10. Wildlife 11. Lofoten views 12. Cocktails at Godot in Stockholm 13. The galley of the Varg, where magic happens 14. A very good boy portside in Svolvaer 15. Seafood dreams at Sturehof, in Stockholm 16. View from above Trollfjord
Minke whale surfacing quite close to us, as we were dinghying back to the sailboat.