Corn! Part 2

Here's a really fabulous recipe for these last few weeks of summer. It combines seafood, corn and a little spice, is easy to put together, and pretty much constitutes a full meal on its own, though you could make a tomato or green salad alongside it. And then you're set: a summery, (reasonably) healthy, easy, seasonal dish that--bonus!--looks pretty on the plate, too. (And you don't need a grill to make it; I used a cast-iron grill pan and it worked marvelously.)

To make Grilled Scallops with Mexican Corn Salad, you start by grilling ears of corn, letting the kernels get charred in places and a little blistery in others. Once they're done and cool enough to handle, you cut the kernels off the cob, and mix them with a light dressing of garlic, red onion, lime juice, mayonnaise (I said this dish was reasonably healthy) and chile powder. You can add cotija or ricotta salata cheese, though I skipped it, since I thought the mayo would lend the dish enough creaminess (which it did--for our taste, anyway).

Corn salad done, you grill sea scallops, which takes all of six or so minutes, and lay them atop the corn. Squirt a little lime juice on top, and voila! The corn salad has a fantastic kick (I did add a touch of hot sauce in addition to the chile powder), and a little heft from the mayo. The kernels of corn are the perfect springy contrast to the tender scallops. Fork and I ate every last bite of this terrific meal on a recent weeknight, alongside a green salad, and then enjoyed some watermelon sorbet for dessert. Ah, summer!--S

Grilled Scallops with Mexican Corn Salad

serves 4

1 garlic clove, minced
1 T minced red onion
2 T fresh lime juice
8 small ears of corn, husked
Vegetable oil, for brushing
1/3 c mayonnaise
1 t pure ancho chile powder
4 oz cotija or ricotta salata cheese, crumbled (1 1/4 c)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Hot sauce
12 large sea scallops
Lime wedges, for serving

1. Light a grill. In a large bowl, toss the garlic and onion with the lime juice and let stand for 10 minutes.
2. Brush the corn with oil and grill over moderate heat until charred and just tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a work surface and cut the kernels off the cobs.
3. Whisk the mayonnaise and chile powder into the garlic, onion and lime juice. Add the cheese and corn to the bowl and toss. Season with salt, pepper and hot sauce.
4. Brush the scallops with vegetable oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill over high heat until nicely browned and barely cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Spoon the corn salad onto 4 plates and top with the scallops. Serve with lime wedges.

Recipe courtesy of Food & Wine

Forget Cornflakes

I've heard of using crushed cornflakes to coat chicken, but crushed tortilla chips? That's a new one. Turns out it's a really good one, too.

To make Tortilla Chicken Drumsticks, you whirl corn tortilla chips in a food processor with chili powder, cumin and salt (though you'll want to watch your salt since the chips are pretty salty themselves) until they're coarsely ground. Then you dip chicken drumsticks in a mixture of egg and chili powder (I used cayenne), let the excess drip off, and roll the drumsticks in the ground chip mixture. It adheres quite nicely, thanks to the egg, though you may want to press it on to any spots that didn't pick it up. And into a hot oven they go. After 40 or so minutes, you have crispy, moist, spicy, delicious chicken that could become your new favorite weeknight dinner. No huge ingredient list, items that are easy to find, and inexpensive, to boot.

On the side, roast some potato wedges, and serve everything with Cilantro-Lime Mayonnaise, which tempers the chicken's heat really nicely, and a squeeze of lime juice. You can keep your cornflakes. I'm sticking with tortilla chips.--S

My Silver Palate

Last Monday evening found me kicking back on the terrace outside the Central Park Boathouse, overlooking the Lake, enjoying a glass of white sangria with some of my colleagues. Along with 250 other people, we were there to celebrate the publication of the 25th anniversary edition of The Silver Palate Cookbook. The party was pretty fabulous: waiters passed hors d'oeuvres, buffet tables offered tastes of some of the book's main courses, and a guy was even taking partygoers out for gondola rides on the lake.

By the end of last week, I finally got around to checking out the goodie bag, and pulled out an apron, a bag of cookies and the book itself. I brought the book home to my mom over the weekend, and the two of us pored over it, she reminiscing about her old b&w edition--which she may or may not have sold at a garage sale at some point--and me learning the story of Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins's claim to fame. The women opened a gourmet food shop called The Silver Palate on New York's Upper West Side in 1977, and it became a tremendous success. They wrote their cookbook in 1982, and it arrived on the scene in the same decade as chichi creations like Newman's Own Oil and Vinegar Salad Dressing, Tofutti, and Boboli Pizza prefab crusts. With its recipes for Cream of Mango Soup, Cold Poached Salad with Blueberry Mayonnaise, and Pizza Pot Pie, The Silver Palate Cookbook fit right in with that chic aesthetic. It went on to sell more than 2 million copies.

Fruity soups and bizarre combinations notwithstanding, The Silver Palate Cookbook actually contains some terrific recipes. Its Chicken Marbella is a legend, and while I haven't cooked it yet, I tasted it at the party, and it was delicious. This weekend I made a Sesame Mayonnaise, which we drizzled over grilled asparagus and also used as a salad dressing. Made with rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil and a touch of Szechuan-style hot and spicy oil, it was a tasty French-Asian hybrid. I also made an Orange Pecan Bread, which my mom said was definitely a keeper and could contend with my grandfather's favorite birthday treat, an orange raisin cake from none other than the famous Aunt Winnie.

I'm definitely going to keep my Silver Palate handy, and plan on making Chicken Marbella for my next dinner party. Maybe we'll even have Mango Soup... for dessert.--S

Sesame Mayonnaise

1 whole egg
2 egg yolks
2 1/2 T rice vinegar
2 1/2 T soy sauce
3 T Dijon mustard
1/4 c dark sesame oil
2 1/2 c corn oil [I used only 1 cup of vegetable oil for a thicker dressing]
Szechuan-style hot and spicy oil

1. In a food processor, process the whole egg, egg yolks, vinegar, soy sauce, and mustard for 1 minute.
2. With the motor still running, dribble in the sesame oil and then the corn [or veg] oil in a slow, steady stream.
3. Season with drops of the hot and spicy oil if you use it, and scrape the mayonnaise out into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Orange Pecan Bread
1 loaf

8 T (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing the pan
3/4 c sugar
2 eggs, separated
Grated zest of 1 large or 2 small oranges
1 1/2 c unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 t baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
Pinch of salt
1/2 c fresh orange juice
Orange glaze (see recipe below)

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Grease an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan.
2. Cream the butter. Add the sugar gradually, beating with an electric mixer until light. Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time, and the grated orange zest.
3. Sift the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and add the dry mixture to the batter alternately with the orange juice, beginning and ending with the flour. Gently mix in the pecans.
4. Beat the egg whites until stiff and fold them carefully into the batter.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, set on the center rack of the oven, and bake for 50 to 60 minutes.
6. Spoon the hot glaze over the bread as soon as the bread is removed from the oven. Cool in the pan on a wire rack.

Orange Glaze
Enough glaze for 1 cake

1/4 c fresh orange juice
1/4 cup sugar

Combine the orange juice and sugar in a small saucepan and simmer gently for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until a light syrup forms. Remove from the heat and keep warm until using.

Recipes courtesy of The Silver Palate Cookbook