Spice (69 page)

2 cups fresh sweet corn (about 4 to 6 ears)

1 white onion, finely chopped

½ cup chopped scallions (about 4)

¼ cup brown sugar

3 whole eggs

¾ cup flour

1 tablespoon heavy cream

Salt and pepper to taste

1 stick plus 2 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature

2 cups nasturtium blossoms, washed, dried, and finely chopped

1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

1.
Using a food processor fitted with a metal blade, purée the corn, onion, and scallions for 2 to 3 minutes, until the mixture is finely chopped and starts to become creamy.

2.
Place the puréed corn cake batter in a medium mixing bowl and stir in the brown sugar and eggs. Stir in the flour and finally the cream. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

3.
In a medium mixing bowl, use a whisk to combine 1 stick of the butter with the nasturtium blossoms and basil and season with salt and pepper. Whip this mixture for a few minutes with the whisk, until the flowers are well incorporated and the butter is light and fluffy and stained with bits of flowers.

4.
In a large nonstick skillet or heavy cast-iron pan over medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter, until it starts to brown. Add ¼ cup of the corn cake batter at a time to form 4 arepa or however many your pan can fit. Lower the heat to medium and cook the arepa on one side until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Flip the arepa with a spatula and cook the other side for another 4 minutes.

5.
Remove the arepa from the heat and place a tablespoon of nasturtium butter on each to melt over the hot cakes.

6.
Make 4 more arepa with the remaining batter, repeating the same process with the remaining tablespoon of butter. Serve them immediately, warm or hot.

Zucchini Fritters with Nasturtium Aioli

These tasty fritters are inspired by classic Turkish zucchini pancakes called
mucver
. I’ve eaten these fritters in Greece, and they are eaten as a mezze all over Turkey.

I like to incorporate shredded nasturtium leaves into the zucchini batter to enhance the delightful peppery flavor. Add a western Mediterranean twist to this recipe by serving the fritters with a homemade garlic mayonnaise—or aioli, which in old Provencal dialect means “garlic sauce”—further flavored with lemony nasturtium blossoms. Adding yogurt makes the aioli softer, lighter, and creamier.

Aioli is wonderful served as a dip for or spooned on top of grilled vegetables and fish on a hot summer night. I also love to stir a spoonful of aioli into my boiled potatoes that I’ve roughly mashed with a fork and seasoned with salt and pepper.

These fritters can be served as a mezze with Dunia’s Iced Tea (page 329) before a meal or as an accompaniment to grilled meat, fish, or vegetables for a main course.

M
AKES
12
SMALL FRİTTERS TO SERVE
4
TO
6
AS A MEZZE

For the Zucchini Fritters

2½ cups grated zucchini (about 1 pound)

1 teaspoon salt

1 medium red onion, peeled and grated

1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill or mint

1 tablespoon chopped nasturtium leaves (2 or 3 leaves, depending on the size)

Black pepper to taste

½ cup flour

2 eggs

½ cup olive oil for frying

For the Aioli

2 large cloves garlic

2 egg yolks

1/8 teaspoon salt plus more to taste

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 cup canola oil

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 cup packed, washed, and dried nasturtium blossoms

2 tablespoons Greek-style or plain whole-milk yogurt

Pepper to taste

To Make the Zucchini Fritters

1.
Place the grated zucchini in a colander, sprinkle it with 1 teaspoon of the salt, mix it, and allow it to sit for 15 minutes.

2.
Remove the excess moisture from the zucchini by squeezing it between the palms of your hands. Place the zucchini in a large mixing bowl.

3.
Add the onion, dill, nasturtium leaves, pepper, flour, and eggs. Mix the ingredients well to form a thick batter.

To Make the Aioli

1.
Place the garlic in a food processor fitted with a metal blade, and chop until the garlic is very finely minced. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl once. Add the egg yolks, 1/8 teaspoon of salt, and mustard, and puree for a minute, until smooth and creamy. With the motor still running, slowly pour in ½ cup of the canola oil. Add the lemon juice and continue to purée with the motor running. Add the remaining ½ cup canola oil, little by little, until you have a mayonnaise that is slightly thinner than the consistency of commercial brands. Add the nasturtium blossoms and yogurt and blend until smooth and creamy. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

2.
Heat the olive oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. When the skillet’s hot, drop heaping tablespoons of the zucchini mixture into the oil and fry the fritters until they’re golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes on each side. Drain the fritters on paper towels.

3.
Serve immediately with a small spoonful of aioli on each fritter.

Ruth Ann Adams’s Rhubarb Rose Jam with Quail

Ruth Ann Adams is the chef at Cambridge’s Casablanca restaurant in Harvard Square. She and I were teammates at a “battle of the sexes” cooking contest in Boston in 2005 in which we had to create dishes using mystery ingredients. Ruth Ann’s mystery ingredient turned out to be quail, and she prepared this dish. I loved the innovative combination of sweet rose and tart rhubarb, which cuts through the rich quail meat, and so did the judges. We won the contest.

Quail is a small, slightly gamey dark-meat bird that makes a great first course because each bird provides only a few ounces of rich, flavorful meat. You can use Cornish game hens or squab as a substitute, but remember that these birds are slightly larger; you need only four Cornish game hens or squab in this recipe. It’s important to use the dried rose petals with a light hand so that you won’t overwhelm the meat.

In New England, rhubarb is in season from early spring through the fall; it grows and regrows all summer long.

Serve this recipe with Rice Cakes (page 65) and a glass of dry Gewürztraminer.

S
ERVES
6
AS A FİRST COURSE

4 pounds rhubarb stalks, washed, peeled, and cut into medium dice (about 8 cups)

¾ cup sugar

½ ounce dried rose petals, washed

Pinch of salt plus more to taste

1 tablespoon chopped lemon confit (see Crispy Lemon Chicken, page 245)

6 quails

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Pepper to taste

1.
Prepare a charcoal grill (see Grilling Tips, page 100).

2.
Cook the rhubarb and sugar in a large saucepan over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. The rhubarb should be soft, but somewhat chunky.

3.
Add the rose petals and a pinch of salt, and let the jam continue to cook on low heat for about 10 more minutes. The petals should melt into the jam, leaving only a little texture.

4.
Remove the jam from the heat and stir in the lemon confit.

5.
Split the quail in half and rub them with the olive oil. Season all sides of the quail with salt and pepper.

6.
Grill the quail for a 3 to 5 minutes on each side.

7.
Serve the quail immediately with 1/3 cup of rose jam alongside as a condiment. You will have some leftover jam to freeze.

Chamomile Berry Soup with Chamomile Sabayon

Sabayon
is a French word meaning a sweet egg or custard sauce flavored with wine. Oleana’s pastry chef Maura Kilpatrick serves this sweetly scented light fruit dessert in the summer months, when berries are at their best. Maura has a talent for creating decadent desserts that satisfy the palate but aren’t heavy. This is one of those desserts.

Maura recommends seeking out the best chamomile tea that you can find. It’s best to buy loose tea leaves full of whole chamomile blossoms, which look like tiny daisies, and should be very fragrant.

Maura also suggests adding a mild and versatile chamomile grappa made by Paolo Marolo. If you can’t find it through your local wine shop or on the Internet, you can use a decent standard grappa instead.

The chamomile and berry syrup can be made up to 3 days in advance.

S
ERVES
8