Spice (63 page)

1 small ripe cantaloupe

2 medium heirloom tomatoes or another good vine-ripened tomato variety, such as beefsteak

1 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh oregano leaves (2 to 3 sprigs)

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons sherry vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

2 balls buffalo-milk mozzarella (about 12 ounces total)

½ teaspoon Urfa chilies (optional)

½ crusty French baguette

1.
Cut both ends off the cantaloupe so that it stands up on cutting surface without rolling. Using a sharp chef’s knife, trim off the skin, starting at the top and working around the middle towards the bottom, following the shape of the melon. Try to remove only the skin.

2.
Cut the peeled melon in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds with a small spoon. Cut each half lengthwise into ½-inch-thick slices. Cut each strip in half and then dice the melon into a ½-to 1/3-inch dice. Place the diced melon in a sieve over a medium mixing bowl to let the juice drain off, for about 5 minutes.

3.
Meanwhile, dice the unpeeled tomatoes the same size as the melon by slicing them into rounds and then into strips and then into a dice.

4.
Pour the melon juice into a glass and chill it, reserving it for drinking later.

5.
Add the tomatoes to the sieve with the melon pieces and let them drain for about 5 minutes. Discard the tomato juice or reserve it for another use.

6.
Place the tomatoes and melon into the medium mixing bowl and gently stir in the oregano, olive oil and vinegar. Season the salad with salt and pepper.

7.
Cut each ball of mozzarella into 6 slices and arrange the pieces so that they slightly overlap on a serving platter. Season the cheese with salt and pepper.

8.
Just before serving, place a heaping spoonful of chopped melon and tomato over each slice of mozzarella. Sprinkle with Urfa chilies and serve with crusty French bread.

Variation

Substitute 12 ounces of French sheep’s milk feta or barrel-aged cow’s milk Greek feta for the mozzarella. Slice the cheese into ¼-to 1/3-inch-thick slices. It’s okay if it crumbles a little bit.

Nookie’s Pickles: Green Tomato, Turnip, Cucumber, and Pear Variations

Nookie, who served as Oleana’s sous-chef for more than 4 years before moving to Spain in the late summer of 2005, grew up in a Jewish household in New York City, where his love for pickles began. When he was a good boy, the deli owners in his neighborhood let him fish a pickle out of their barrels for a treat.

Nookie brought his passion for pickles to Oleana, and started creating his signature condiments with the abundance of fresh vegetables we were lucky to get during peak harvest at my husband Chris’s farm. Nookie would make big batches of pickles that we served with grilled meats, Chicken and Walnut Pâté (page 146), and Spinach Falafel (page 185). In late fall and winter, when the farm was quiet, Nookie would pickle pears or turnips instead; in the spring, he’d use ramps or wild leeks. The staff got addicted to Nookie’s condiment specialty and altered the vegetables according to the seasons.

Pickles are a key condiment in Mediterranean cuisine; they’re eaten as snacks and with grilled lamb or beef. See the suggestions below for pickle-making in different seasons.

M
AKES
2
QUARTS PICKLES

2 pounds vegetables (see suggestions below)

½ cup salt

1 cup white wine vinegar

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon brown mustard seed

2 tablespoons black peppercorns

½ cup whole garlic cloves, peeled and smashed (about 1 whole large head)

1 large bunch summer savory or fresh thyme, washed and roughly chopped

1.
If you’re using cabbage, pears, onion, or green tomatoes: cut the vegetables into ½-inch wedges. If you’re using ramps or green garlic: leave them whole and wash them. If you’re using Brussels sprouts: split them in half. If you’re using turnips, carrots, or pumpkin: peel and slice them into ½-thick sticks. If you’re using beets: peel and cut them into ½-thick wedges. If you’re using cucumbers: leave them whole and follow the instructions for making cucumber pickles below.

2.
In a large saucepan over high heat, combine 8 cups of water with the salt, vinegar, and all the herbs and spices and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.

3.
Place the vegetables in a nonreactive glass or stainless steel bowl and pour the simmering brine over them. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and leave them at room temperature for 3 hours. You can also cover them with plastic wrap, but make sure to poke a hole in the wrap so that steam can escape. Refrigerate the pickles overnight. They will be ready to eat after 24 hours and will last up to 2 weeks.

Vegetable Suggestions

Winter:
cabbage, turnips, beets, carrots, Brussels sprouts, pears

Spring:
ramps or wild leeks, turnips, beets, green garlic (the first growth of mild garlic in the spring, which looks like a thin leek)

Summer:
green or unripe tomatoes, turnips, onions, thick-skinned cucumbers such as lemon cucumbers or pickling cucumbers

Fall:
pumpkin, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cabbage, beets, cauliflower

Making Cucumber Pickles

Select thick skinned, small cucumbers such as pickling cucumbers or lemon cucumbers. Boil the brine and simmer it as described in step 2 above. Cool the brine for 3 hours at room temperature before pouring it over the cucumbers. Let the brined cucumbers stand in the refrigerator, loosely covered, for 1 week; they will be “half-sours” at that point and they’re delicious. At the 1-week mark, pour off half the brine and add water to replace it. You can then keep the pickles, now considered “full sours,” for up to a month in the refrigerator.

Brie Soup with Fried Oysters and Sage

I’ve served this recipe at Oleana every New Year’s Eve, and it’s always a big hit. It’s not inspired by the Mediterranean, but rather by a New Orleans restaurateur named Anthony Uglesich.

When I went down to the Big Easy to visit my mother, who’s lived there for years, I would try to fit my days around a big lunch at Uglesich. The restaurant was housed in a rundown neighborhood next to the central business district, but it offered the best New Orleans–style food in the city.

At Uglesich, Anthony served an oyster brie soup that made me break my rule of serving only Mediterranean dishes at Oleana. This recipe is dedicated to Anthony and his wife Gail for the many great meals I’ve had with them. Anthony and Gail retired in the spring of 2005. You can check out the
Uglesich Restaurant Cookbook
for great recipes including Oyster Brie Soup.

Try pairing this soup with a rosé champagne (see page 357).

S
ERVES
8
AS A MAIN COURSE