Summer Salad Marathon: Seared Ahi Grapefruit Watercress Salad

Tonight's installment of The Lady of Shallots "Summer Salad Marathon" was inspired by two recipes. The first was this "Grilled Mahi-Mahi with Grapefruit, Avocado, and Watercress Salad" from Real Simple (March 2008). The second was this recipe for Seared Ahi Tuna from SimplyRecipes.com.

I made only one minor adjustment to the tuna marinade, and that was that I used powdered ginger out of necessity. I marinated the tuna for two hours and it was terrific.

As for the salad, I obviously left out the mahi-mahi (and substituted the seared tuna), left out the avocado*, and added fresh chopped cucumber from my neighbor's garden (a gift, not stolen). I used the dressing as stated in the recipe.

This was a terrific and healthy meal for a very hot and humid summer evening. The sweetness of the grapefruit and the honey-lime dressing balances the slight bitterness of the watercress very effectively and is just gentle enough to support the tuna without overshadowing it. The marinade for the tuna, despite the soy sauce, is surprisingly subtle, so you don't want to overdress the salad. I made each plate individually: watercress, cucumber, grapefruit, tuna, then drizzled dressing.

*Heresy, I know, for a California girl, but I'm not a fan of avocado unless it is mashed up with spices and called guacamole or in small chunks in ceviche. Don't hate me.

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Winter Farmers Market: Sautéed Scallops and Herbed Rice

Somerville, MA is a great city. I love living here, and this year's new Winter Farmer's Market just added to my joy. It runs between now and March, and it has been inspiring to see people trudging out in the cold, ice and snow, to the Armory (yes, the market is inside). This past Saturday, I stocked up on locally grown leeks and potatoes, grabbed some hot Italian sausage from Stillman's , and then ventured upstairs to buy some FRESH FISH from Jordan Brothers Seafood. Yes, that's right: haddock from Gloucester, and scallops from Maine. Not frozen--fresh. When she showed me the scallops I might have cried, just a little. Oh, and I picked up a baguette, brioche, and potato bread. Scallops don't require a lot of fuss, but are easy to overcook. I pulled out my San Juan Classics Cookbook (San Juan Islands in the Pacific Northwest, not Puerto Rico) and went straight to the shellfish section where I found a recipe for "Sautéed Prawns or Scallops" from Thibert...

Miscellanea: Sicilian Caramelized Onions and Homemade Pita Chips

Last month, my family came to visit. My father, who has recently been getting back in touch with his Sicilian roots, is a wonderful cook and I'll admit that I've always been a little daunted cooking for people who cook really well. At any rate, we decided to have a barbeque, invited a few close friends, and I cooked...for three days. This was certainly the most cooking in which I have ever engaged for a single event. Because the attendees to our barbeque ran the gamut of dietary concerns and preferences, I wanted variety. And variety there was. The menu (aside from the meat, which we left to my dad to grill): homemade roasted peppers Sicilian caramelized onions homemade pita chips tabbouleh Amish slaw Chorizo salad watermelon and fresh mint salad To keep this blog post short and sweet, I'll only blog two recipes (the ones that are hyperlinked have been blogged before). First, the pita chips. My dad wanted to help me in the kitchen (something toward which I am usuall...

Quinoa Pilaf with Artichokes, Leeks and Sugar Snap Peas

More Quinoa! This was healthy, easy, and, "a way I actually *like* quinoa" as reported by my husband. The recipe is here , and I made the following notes: stir the quinoa in the oil and leeks for 2-3 minutes before adding the broth definitely use low-sodium chicken broth---quinoa absorbs salt very well and I found that the regular chicken broth was too salty. If you are using homemade stock or veggie broth, you are probably fine. I will add the snap peas last next time (with the artichoke hearts). I like my peas to retain their "snap." This is really a terrific meal for summer or to bring to a potluck.

THE LADY OF SHALLOTS

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