Peaches with Dry Cured Pork Jowl

Clayton Beck captured these peaches so ripened they had developed a blue cast: a sure sign they are ready. All the road sides now have Georgia peaches for sale (along with boiled peanuts much to my puzzlement - does any one know what to do with boiled peanuts besides throw them out?) which are dead ripe and so full of juice it runs down your arm.

So many peaches and so many options leads me to pairing peaches with dry cured pork jowl. Simply: Thinly slice guacinal i.e. dry-cured pork jowl. (Available on-line from http://www.heritagefoodsusa.com/ ) and saute over medium high heat with a great olive oil until lightly crisped. Drain on paper towels. In a cast iron pan or griddle over medium heat saute slices of yellow vidallia onions in butter until soft, add thick slices of peaches and sprinkle with brown sugar and fresh thyme leaves. Drizzle a little maple syrup and cook until the sugars carmelize and the peaches are soft, onions browning; turn frequently to avoid burning the sugars. Place on a bed of mixed greens, top with the guacinal and sprinkle with a bit of citrus vinegar, olive oil and grind pepper over the whole thing.

This dish pairs well with cold tomato based soups. A baguette along side slathered in sweet cream butter and sea salt accompanied by ice cold Tio Pepe dry sherry with a twist of lemon peel makes for a simple but wonderful summer lunch. Enjoy!

Maggie Kruger

Guy Savoy, Paris

Oysters in the shell set on oyster purée, lightly enriched with cream, which covers the base of the shell; the raw oyster is placed on top and then the jelly is poured on, followed by a little chopped sorrel for a note of acidity, lemon, pepper, and that's it - pure heaven!

"It was a brave man who first ate an oyster" - Jonathan Swift

Summer Corn Soup

Soup:
3 c. whole milk
1 c. chicken stock
1 c. heavy cream (optional)
4 ears fresh corn, preferably 2 white, 2 yellow, kernels cut from cobs, cobs broken in half, reserve
1 large white onion, diced
2 carrots, peeled, diced
1 garlic clove, diced
2 large fresh thyme springs
2 large fresh rosemary sprigs
1 fresh bay leaf
salt and ground pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter

Garnish:
chopped green onion and fresh cilantro

Bring milk and corncobs just to a boil in a medium pot. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep while sautéing vegetables.

Melt 2 T. butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, salt, pepper & sauté until translucent. Reserve. Sauté corn kernels in butter, salt, pepper until tender , about 10 minutes, reserve.

Add chicken stock, 1 c. heavy cream if desired, herbs bundled together with string, & vegetables. Increase heat to high, bring to a boil and then simmer 20 minutes. Discard corn kernels and herb bundle. Garnish and serve with crusty bread.

Bayonne Iberian Ham

St. Jean Pied de Port, France

2005 - 87.24 euros ($138)

6.4 kiliograms - 13.6 euro per kilo

(15.33 pounds - $9.00 per pound)

Price today: $19.00 per pound

Wild Mushrooms

Basque Country

2005 - 20 euro per kilogram

($13.25 per pound)

(Photos: RLW)

Citrus Granita

Natalie George painted this great little painting of citrus and it reminds me that in Florida this time of year nothing tastes better than a simple Citrus Granita.

4 Cups of water
1.25 Cups sugar
1.25 Cups mixed fresh citrus juice
1 Lemon rind, finely grated

Boil water and sugar for several minutes creating simple syrup. Cool. Add citrus juices & lemon rind. Chill until cold. Prepare in a common ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions. Or freeze in ice cube trays and process in a food processor until a soft frothy slush...Enjoy!

Maggie Kruger

Caldo Tlalpeño
(Soup of Tlalpan[1], Mexico)
Serves 6 as a Main Course

Our good friends, Lucy and Gilberto of Mexico City, are responsible for this great soup/stew. Lucy and I have exchanged recipes and discussed cooking over the past few years. I sent her Jacques Pépin's autobiography recently and Lucy responded with her “family” cookbook, Los Rangel: Cocina de familia. Caldo Tlalpeño is the first recipe in this book I have tried. As Los Rangel is entirely in Spanish, Sharon suggested that I look up the recipe on the Internet, where I found various English translations.

This soup was served to Queen Elizabeth at President Reagan’s ranch during her visit there in 1983. The White House chef had asked Craig Claiborne (the late, great New York Times food critic [1920-2000]) to provide a recipe for a light, intensely flavored Mexican soup. This is certainly that.

2 dried chipotle chilies
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon butter
3 Roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 small onion, peeled and quartered
1 clove garlic, peeled
6 cups chicken stock
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 chicken breast haves; skinned and boneless; each cut into thirds
1 potato, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
1 chayote squash, unpeeled, cut into bite-sized pieces (optional)
1 xoconoxtle[2] (optional) (substitute zucchini)
1 cup garbanzo beans; dried and soaked, or canned.
1 small zucchini, cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup chopped green beans
1 cup green peas (thawed if frozen)
1 cup white corn (thawed if frozen)
1 Key lime, halved (or regular lime)
1 avocado; spoon-sized chunks (aguacates[3])
6 scallions; sliced into bite sized bits
1 Can of chipotle chilies or hot sauce to your taste
4 sprigs epazote[4] (optional) (substitute cilantro)
Fresh cilantro and mint to your taste
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation: 1. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large soup pot; fry the 2 dried chilies slowly, turning them over often in the oil until softened and puffed up. The oil should not be too hot or the chilies will burn. 2. While cooking the chilies, dredge the 12 chicken pieces lightly in flour, salt and pepper. In a fry pan heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of the oil and the butter. Brown the chicken well and drain. 3. Place the tomato, onion, garlic and one can of chicken stock in a blender and whirl until pureed. 4. When the chipotle chilies are softened, add the puree to the soup pot, increase the heat and "fry" the mixture until it deepens in color. 5. Add the chicken pieces to the pot, along with more chicken stock as needed (about 2 cups), the cubed potato, chayote squash, xoconoxtle, garbanzo beans and salt. Cover the pot and simmer the soup for 20 to 30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked. 6. Then add the zucchini, green beans, white corn, and green peas to the pot and cook 10 minutes longer, until the vegetables are tender. 7. Add the epazote, cilantro and mint and stir. 8. Remove the two chipotle chilies from the pot, mince and return it to the soup. 8. Add the canned chipotle chilies and their sauce to the soup to your taste. Heat through and season to taste with more salt and pepper, more chicken stock, and more chilies if needed.

Presentation: 1. Place one piece of chicken breast and one thigh in the bottom of each soup bowl. Ladle the soup and vegetables on top. Garnish with chopped scallions and sprigs of cilantro. Squeeze lime juice on each serving. Serve with fresh peasant bread and a cold Mexican beer, or a late harvest Gewürztraminer white wine.

Secret Ingredients: I happened to have some pearl onions at hand, which I plunged in boiling water, shocked in cold water, popped out of their skins, and tossed into the soup for the last ten minutes of cooking. I also added one tablespoon of dark brown sugar, which I think rounds out the flavor of the chilies (like chocolate in a mole).

Richard L. Wottrich

[1] Tlalpan (tlahl-pahn), city (1990 pop. 484,866), Tlalpan delegation, Federal dist., central Mexico, 10 mi/16 km S of Mexico city; 19°17'N 99°09'W. Elev. 7,526 ft/2,294 m. Resort and residential suburb on NW slopes of extinct Cerro Ajusco volcano, with orchards, picturesque fountains. Textile- and paper-milling center. Has church of San Agustin de las Cuevas (1532). Anc. Aztec city. Famous Cuicuilco pyramid, 1.5 mi/2.4 km W. Sometimes spelled Tlalpam.
[2] Xoconoxtle Also spelled: xoconostle; a small, sour, pink and green prickly pear cactus.
[3] Aguacates (noun, masc., plural): testicles. (lit) avocados; (Mexican slang)
[4] Epazote pronounced [eh-paw-ZOH-teh] An herb well-known to Mexican and Caribbean cooking. The name comes from the Aztec (Nahuatl) epazotl. It is also known as pigweed or Mexican tea and is frequently regarded as a garden pest. It is most commonly used in black bean recipes to ward off some of the "negative" side affects of eating beans. Much like cilantro, it is referred to as an "acquired taste". Also called wormwood.

Braised Cabbage
Serves 6

This dish is a substitute for the usual sauerkraut served in German restaurants. It has a more home cooked flavor than commercially prepared sauerkraut and is easy to make. Braising adds layers of flavor.

Sauerkraut is finely-sliced white cabbage fermented with lactobacillus bacteria. The sugars in the cabbage are thereby converted into lactic acid and serve as a preservative. Basic sauerkraut is made by cutting fresh cabbage into fine strips, and packing it into an airtight container while mixing in a certain amount of salt, approximately 1.5%. Traditionally, a stoneware crock is used. The fermentation vessel is kept at 23C for three days, then left in cooler temperatures for eight weeks.

Sauerkraut is thought to have originated in the north of China among the Mongols and was introduced in Europe by migrating tribes. Eastern Europeans, in particular, consume large amounts of sauerkraut. Germans adopted sauerkraut as part of their cuisine and are thought to have introduced it in the northern countries Western Europe and the United States. Sauerkraut is a staple of the winter diet in Germany and the Netherlands. Sauerkraut is customarily prepared with pork, goose or duck meat.

 1 medium head of white cabbage, halved, cored & shredded
1 medium white onion, sliced
2 strips of smoked bacon, cooked and chopped
2 cups of beef stock
2 tablespoons of apple vinegar
1 baby carrot peeled and cut into ¼-inch sections
2 tablespoons of butter
1 bay leaf
Caraway seeds to taste
celery salt to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
Chopped parsley and chives to taste

Preparation: 1. Sauté the sliced white onions in a heavy casserole over high heat on the stove until softened, about five minutes. 2. Add the shredded cabbage and toss with the onions. 3. Add the beef stock, apple vinegar, carrots, bay leaf, Caraway seeds, celery salt, salt and pepper, and the chopped parsley and chives. Toss the mixture. 4. Sprinkle the chopped bacon over the top. 5. Place the casserole in an oven at 300 degrees and cook for at least one and one half hours.

Presentation: Either serve immediately or refrigerate and serve the next day. This dish is excellent with pork, duck or a roasted chicken. Oven roasted potatoes and gravy are a must!

Richard Wottrich

45-Minute Pan Roasted Chicken

This is a Jamie Oliver inspired dish that encompasses all that is wonderful about simple cooking with perfect ingredients. Roasting means just that. There is no liquid present when roasting, which allows temperatures next to the meat to exceed the boiling point. The key to this dish is a very high temperature that sears the juices in the chicken, while retaining the flavor of the chicken fat and herbs in the surrounding potatoes and bread.

1 - 5 to 7 pound roasting chicken or capon, cut into sections
6 - potatoes, peeled and quartered lengthwise like steak fries
1 - whole loaf of rustic crusty bread
1 - leek cleaned and cut in quarter-inch rounds
1 - red pepper, sliced
1 - large bunch of fresh herbs of your choice
½ - cup lemon juice
1 - spray can of olive or canola oil
6 - tablespoons of butter, melted
salt and pepper
1 - 14-inch cast iron or steel fry pan

Preparation: 1. Heat your oven to 425~450 degrees or set your outside grill to the same general temperature. If using a grill, indirect heat is best. Take the 14-inch cast iron fry pan and spray the interior with the oil. Arrange large clumps of fresh herbs to cover the bottom of the pan. I used rosemary, lemon balm and chives for this dish. This will perfume the chicken. 2. Place the peeled and quartered potatoes in a bowl and toss them with olive oil, salt and pepper. Arrange them around the perimeter of the fry pan. 3. Take the loaf of bread and rip it into bite sized chunks and cover the center of the pan to make a bed for the chicken. 3. Wash the chicken pieces and rub them with lemon juice. Spray the chicken with oil and then arrange them in a single centered flat layer in the pan, pieces just touching 4. Scatter the chopped leek and sliced red pepper across the pan along with sprigs of rosemary. Salt and pepper generously. 5. After 30 minutes of roasting brush melted butter on the tops of the chicken pieces. Roast for a total of roughly 45 minutes, or until the chicken juices run clear. When done remove from the grill and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Presentation: Each plate should have a little of everything from the pan. You will not believe how delicious the bread is. Serve with a dry white wine. A simple salad of sliced tomatoes and goat cheese is a nice accompaniment.