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Favorite Cookbooks
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The Nantucket Table
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Unfortunately, we can’t all spend the month of August vacationing on Nantucket, eating lobsters and bluefish and the island’s famous bay scallops. The Nantucket Table is a vicarious visit, an invitation to accompany the author on her visits to local farms and fish markets for the freshest ingredients, to figure out a simple supper menu for weekend guests, or to create an appetizer from unexpected components.
The author lived on Nantucket for years, working on her brother-in-law’s scallop boat in the winter and running a catering business in the summer. Her recipes, influenced by extensive travel around the Mediterranean, are not difficult but invariably take an interesting twist or turn. The book is enriched with anecdotes about life on Nantucket, past and present, including a classic Nantucket Clam Chowder modeled after the steaming bowl described in Herman Melville’s Moby Dick. Mr. Eckerle’s evocative photographs capture the seaside atmosphere and let you smell the salt spray or the rugosa roses in the pictures.
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Recipes:
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Sample Recipes from The Nantucket Table
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Red Pepper-Walnut Dip
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| Serve this in your prettiest bowl alongside a tray of sliced raw vegetables. |
1 large egg
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sherry vinegar
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 red bell pepper, cut into pieces
1/2 cup walnut pieces
about 1-1/2 cups corn oil
Combine the egg, salt, and vinegar in a food processor and process until the egg is frothy. Stop the machine and add the cayenne, tomato paste, half of the red pepper, and half of the walnut pieces. With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the corn oil to make a firm mayonnaise [Editor’s note: I used 3/4 cup oil, which made a thick dip, and toasted the walnuts first for extra flavor]. Add the remaining red pepper and walnuts (reserve a few pieces of each to use as a garnish, if desired) and process for a few seconds. Garnish with reserved pepper and walnut pieces if desired. Makes about 2 cups of dip.
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West Creek Café Roasted Corn Soup
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8 ears of corn
4 tablespoons pure olive oil
salt and freshly ground white pepper
1-1/2 fresh jalapeno peppers, minced
1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
4 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
2 cups heavy cream
3 corn tortillas for garnish
corn oil for sautéing
Preheat oven to 425°F. Peel each ear of corn down to a single layer of husk and cut off the brown silks. Coat the corn with olive oil, using 2 tablespoons oil in all. Season with salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes, turning once. Cool, remove husks and silk, and scrape the kernels from the cob.
Saute the onion, garlic, and jalapenos in the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a heavy stockpot over medium heat. Add the corn kernels and stir. Pour in the broth, lower the heat a notch, and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the cream and simmer for 20 minutes more. Remove from the heat and let cool for about 15 minutes.
Puree the soup in a blender in batches, until smooth. Strain if needed. Taste; adjust seasonings.
Slice the corn tortillas into 1/8" wide strips and sauté in a small skillet in about 1" corn oil over medium heat. When the strips start to "ripple," remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Serve the soup hot with a garnish of tortilla strips. Makes 6 servings.
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Laura Simon’s Best Nantucket Barbecue Sauce
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| This recipe is from the author’s sister, who farms and raises bees on Nantucket. You may as well double the recipe — it will keep for weeks in the refrigerator, and the sweet, spicy taste is perfect with chicken or ribs. |
Sauce:
3/4 cup dark soy sauce
grated zest and juice of 3 limes
2 rounded tablespoons grated fresh ginger
1 cup pure honey
3 teaspoons dark molasses
1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1 cut-up chicken, about 3 pounds
2 pounds country-style pork ribs
In a bowl, combine all sauce ingredients and stir. Pour over chicken and ribs, and marinate in refrigerator for 6 hours before grilling. To cook, remove meat from sauce, reserving the sauce, and grill each chicken piece and rib for about 6 minutes per side, or until the juices flow clear when the meat is pricked. Baste with the excess sauce every 3 minutes.
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Carrot-Corn Saffron Rice
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| This saffron-tinted rice is the perfect accompaniment to grilled fish or a spicy main course. Make sure all the ingredients are summertime fresh. |
1-1/2 quarts water
1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
2 new onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons corn oil
4 carrots, shredded
kernels from 4 ears of corn
1 cup basmati rice
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
salt
In a saucepan, boil the water and saffron, reduce the heat, and simmer, cover askew, for 45 minutes, to color and flavor the cooking water for the rice.
In a skillet over medium heat, sauté the onions in the corn oil until transparent. Add the carrots, stir, and cook for 5 minutes. Add the corn and cook for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
Cook the rice in the boiling saffron water over medium heat, cover askew, until tender but not soft, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain and let cool.
In a bowl, mix the vegetables and cilantro with the rice. Season to taste with salt. Serve at room temperature. Makes 6 servings.
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Zucchini Posing as Fettuccine with Lemon Cream
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| Another answer to late-summer ZAP (Zucchini Abundance Problem). |
1 cup heavy cream
6 tender young zucchini, 6 to 7 inches long
1 rounded tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
grated zest of 1 lemon
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh chives
salt and freshly ground white pepper
Simmer the cream in a small, heavy saucepan until reduced by half, about 30 to 40 minutes. Cut the ends off the zucchini. Using a vegetable peeler, cut each zucchini into lengthwise strips. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add the Parmesan and lemon zest to the reduced cream. Stir to combine and continue to simmer. Add the zucchini strips to the boiling water, stir a few times, and cook for 2 minutes. Drain well. In a large bowl, toss zucchini with lemon juice. Add the chives to the lemon cream and pour over the zucchini. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot or at room temperature. Makes 6 servings.
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Fresh Fruit Chutney
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| This recipe was inspired by the simple chutneys of the Seychelles Islands in the Indian Ocean, a port-of-call in the mid 1800s for Nantucket whalers. It’s a perfect accompaniment to fish, fowl, meat, or grain dishes. |
2 red onions, thinly sliced
3 large peaches, peeled, pitted, and diced
1 small cantaloupe, peeled, seeded, and diced
3 Granny Smith apples, cored and diced
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 cup dried currants or raisins
1/3 cup finely julienned crystallized ginger
1/4 cup pure olive oil
2 fresh hot peppers such as jalapeno, Thai, or cayenne, finely minced
salt to taste
Soak the sliced onions in a bowl of salted ice water for 1 hour. This will remove some of the bite associated with raw onions. Squeeze the onions dry with your hands. In a bowl, combine the onions with the remaining ingredients except the salt. Add salt to taste, bearing in mind that the onions are salty. The chutney lasts for up to a week when refrigerated. It may discolor a bit. Makes about 6 cups.
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Puzzle Pudding
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| This recipe is an update of a summer pudding from the 1920s. It’s an ideal dessert and an even better breakfast the next morning. |
2 large eggs
2 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups blueberries
1-1/2 cups raspberries
3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup heavy cream
1-1/2 cups sliced strawberries
Preheat oven to 350°F. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, sugar, and vanilla until well blended. Sift together the flour and baking powder and add to the egg mixture a little at a time, whisking until smooth after each addition.
Generously butter a 9-1/2" by 11" baking dish or a gratin dish. Distribute the blueberries and raspberries evenly in the dish. Pour the batter over the fruit. Sprinkle with brown sugar over the top. Bake until the batter is set, at least 1 hour. Some of the berries will rise to the top, forming puzzlelike patterns. Serve cool, which brings out the flavor of the fruit. Place each serving on a puddle of heavy cream and cover with a cascade of strawberries. Makes 6 servings.
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