Fattoush

If the history of this blog is any indication, I'm a huge fan of bread salads. My love is easily explained: bread adds heft to make a salad feel like a meal, and since i'm going to dunk a hunk of baguette in my leftover dressing anyway, ripping bread right into the salad is the best kind of shortcut.

Fattoush is a member of the bread salad family, an honored and much loved one at that. Its origins are Levantine, and in various Middle Eastern countries, it's a definitive staple. Instead of the crusty bread you often find in American or Italian bread salads, fattoush relies on the Middle Eastern staple, pita. Like other bread salads, the idea behind fattoush is to use stale bread -- but the salad is so addictive, I confess to finding myself at the bread basket, grabbing some perfectly unstale pita to toast for the purpose.

For some, fattoush is all about the pita. For others, it's about those beautiful persian cucumbers -- the skinny, seedless variety that have finally found their way to farmers' markets on the east coast. But if you ask me, especially in this season, fattoush begins and ends with excellent tomatoes.

I use a mix of big, voluptuous heirlooms and the small, bursting red and yellow cherries. This week, I got my hands on some baby heirlooms in red, yellow, and a beautiful greenish purple; in they went.

The dressing on fattoush varies widely; sometimes it's heavy on the lemon, almost to the point of masking the other flavors in the salad. Other times, it has such a low proportion of acid to oil, it brings to mind Julia Child's vinaigrette. My ideal is somewhere in between. I like some lemon -- just a bit -- tempered with pomegranate syrup, which adds sweetness. I also add sumac, a tangy spice that's traditionally in fattoush.

Whatever you do, make sure your tomatoes are top-notch. Their seeds and juice will commingle with the dressing, and the result is not to be missed. That's also why it's important to dress the fattoush at least 20 minutes before serving (I usually give it 30): the cucumbers, scallions, tomatoes and pita will soak up some of the dressing, and they'll also lend their juices to the mix, allowing the flavors to marry. Writing this, I just wish I had another bowl of the stuff.

While I'm a pretty straightforward gal when it comes to making fattoush, you can add any number of things to it: feta, olives, and even watermelon would tip it in the direction of Greek salad, and really, who complains about that?

Fattoush serves 6 as a first course

For the salad: 3 big heirloom tomatoes in different colors: I like one red, one purple cherokee, and one yellow 1 pint cherry tomatoes, most flavorful you can find - I favor yellow ones 3-4 persian cucumbers, halved lengthwise and sliced into chunks 3 scallions, bulb end removed, sliced 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced, optional 4 pieces good quality pita bread 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 teaspoon sumac salt and pepper 1/4 cup mint, roughly chopped 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped

For the dressing: juice of 1/2 lemon 3 tablespoons pomegranate syrup 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 1/2 teaspoon crushed dried mint 1/2 teaspoon sumac 1/2 teaspoon salt freshly cracked pepper

Preheat the oven to 350. If pita is pocket-style, slice open. Put in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and sumac. Bake pita 15-20 minutes, until crisped. Alternative: if it's too hot to turn on the oven, you can just slip the pita slices in the toaster and toast until crisped. Remove toasted pita from oven or toaster, and break into uneven bite-sized pieces. Set aside.

Set aside a bowl for making the dressing; as you slice tomatoes, you'll add the collected juices to the bowl. Rinse and dry large heirloom tomatoes delicately. Halve tomatoes, then slice each into 2-bite wedges, taking care to reserve the collected juice and transfer it into the dressing bowl. Halve cherry tomatoes. Transfer all tomatoes to large, shallow bowl or rimmed serving platter. Add cucumbers, red onions if using, scallions, and mint to salad bowl, and carefully incorporate without smushing tomatoes. (That's a technical term.) Add pita chips on top.

Make dressing: combine all ingredients except oil, and whisk to combine. Add oil in slow stream, whisking as you pour to emulsify dressing. Drizzle dressing over salad, and let sit for 20-30 minutes before serving, tossing every 10 minutes or so to meld flavors.

Taco Night Coleslaw

Taco night is a perennial favorite. It's an easy meal to prepare, most components can be prepared well in advance, and if you make it for a dinner party, you'll be feasting on leftovers for days. When I say "taco night," of course, I'm referring to that generic category of weeknight suppers, including but not limited to tacos, fajitas, burritos, and anything else involving tortillas, fillings, and toppings of your choice.

In case you're at a loss for where to start, here's my go-to iteration of Tex-Mex dinner: I serve warm flour tortillas, refried beans, sauteed peppers and onions, cabbage slaw with lime and chile, and salsa, guacamole, and queso fresco to top it all off. It's a regular feast.

And please, don't let me cramp your style: the possibilities aren't limited to beans and whatnot. If you're not a fan of the legumes, pan-fry some chicken, fish, or beef slices over high heat until charred, squeeze a lime juice and sprinkle some salt and pepper, and you've got yourself a taco or fajita filling.

The peppers and onions are dead simple. Halve a red onion, trim the ends, and slice each half into three. Take a few bell peppers (I like red) and poblano peppers (the big dark-green ones -- they're pretty mild, with just a whisper of spice) and slice them into long strips. Add pepper and onion slices to a hot pan with a bit of olive oil and some salt, much like you did with the protein. Stir at regular intervals so that lots of different pieces get charred. When you see enough brown spots, turn off heat, and transfer hot vegetables to serving bowl. They'll steam and soften while sitting there, so by the time you're ready to serve, they're ready, too.

Another great dish is simple charred corn. If you have fresh ears available (and there's no time like July for fresh, sweet corn), use them. If not, frozen kernels work great here, too. Follow the rules above: into a hot pan with just a spoonful of oil, and maybe some epazote (if you have it) or cilantro (works too). Toss once in a while, let the kernels char, you get the drill. Hit with some salt and pepper, maybe a squeeze of lime, done.

The crown jewel at dinners like these is the cabbage slaw. (When isn't it?) This one is about as basic as they come: red and green (or Napa) cabbage, lime dressing. Fin. The tangy crunch of this simple concoction, provides the perfect contrast to tacos and fajitas. It's the must-have dish in the spread, if you ask me. Then again, I'm hard-pressed to pick a favorite element. Every dish in this meal is pretty darn tasty.

Taco Night Coleslaw

1 small head red cabbage 1 small head green or Napa cabbage (I prefer Napa, as it's slightly softer but just as crunchy) juice and zest of 2 limes 1/2 teaspoon chile flakes, preferably something smoked like chipotle or ancho, but any will do 1/3 cup olive oil 1/2 teaspoon salt black pepper to taste

Shred cabbage using sharp knife or mandoline; you're going for as thin slices as possible. Combine remaining ingredients in a large bowl and stir to combine. Add cabbage, and toss to coat. Set aside to macerate for at least 15 minutes before serving. If you leave it for more than an hour or so, put it in the fridge. You'll note that as time passes, the red cabbage will turn the dressing (and with it, the rest of the slaw) a bright pink shade. All the prettier, if you ask me.

Arugula and Bean Salad with Cumin Dressing

DC does not mess around with summer, and boy, this one's a scorcher. This week, temperatures climbed into the upper 90's -- maybe even the triple digits -- and the A/C at our apartment is, well, the little engine that could. We're getting to that point in the season where it's too hot to even consider turning on the oven, and even stovetop cooking must be kept to a minimum. Needless to say, we're not doing much bread-baking around here.

But let me tell you, we're eating salad like it's our job. It's cool and refreshing, it requires no heat (phew!), and it can take on many different personas. There's a big bunch of romaine in our fridge right now, waiting to become a crouton-loaded Caesar; I've got a couple heads of butter lettuce that I dress simply with horseradish dressing and top with toasted breadcrumbs; and of course, I've been making my way through a pound of arugula in salads just like this one.

Two things about this salad make it a staple. First, it's substantial. When I eat butter lettuce salad, I always have something else after. This arugula salad, with black beans and avocado and, if you feel like it, feta cheese, is a meal in a bowl. Second, it's flexible. Arugula could be traded for any other lettuce, and if black or kidney beans aren't your thing, pintos would work as well.

But the best thing about this salad, the thing that keeps me returning to it time after time, is the dressing. This lime juice-based vinaigrette, sharpened by raw red onion, has a nutty, spicy undercurrent of toasted cumin and hot chile running throughout. The most unexpected flavor? Date honey; it gives just the right sweetness and depth to round out the other flavors. Honestly, I could eat a piece of bread and this dressing and be happy.

But I don't usually do that. When I can pour the dressing on a pile of sharp arugula, add juicy cherry tomatoes and vibrant orange pepper, finish with the black beans, and call it dinner, there's no need to do much else.

Arugula Black Bean Salad with Cumin Dressing

For the salad: 1/2 pound arugula 1 can black beans, rinsed well and drained 1 can kidney beans, rinsed well and drained 1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced lengthwise 1 red pepper, coarsely chopped 1 orange pepper, coarsely chopped 3 mediterranean (small) cucumbers or 1 English seedless cucumber, halved lengthwise and sliced 2 avocados, halved, pitted, and coarsely chopped small block of feta cheese, cubed (optional)

For the dressing: 1/2 medium red onion, diced 2 teaspoons cumin seeds 1 teaspoon diced jalapeno chile 1/2 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped 2 teaspoons date honey (regular honey will work, too) juice 2 limes 1/8 cup red wine vinegar 1/3 cup olive oil salt to taste

Combine all salad ingredients in large, shallow bowl.

In medium mixing bowl, combine lime juice, red wine vinegar, diced onion, and jalapeno. Let macerate while you prepare the oil.

Heat olive oil and cumin seeds in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook about 3 minutes, monitoring closely to make sure oil doesn't burn or smoke; you want the oil just hot enough to bring out the fragrance in the cumin seeds. When the oil becomes aromatic, remove from the heat and set on the counter to cool for about 3 minutes.

Add date honey to onion mixture, and add salt to taste (I use a little under 1 teaspoon). Add oil, and whisk to combine. Taste again and adjust salt level as needed. Just before dressing the salad, add cilantro leaves to dressing and stir to incorporate. Serve.

Spicy Smoky Sour Cucumber Salad...and a Giveaway!

In my kitchen, cucumbers are always the bridesmaid, never the bride. They find their way into so many of my salads, and play supporting roles in soups and even cockails (working on a sake-ginger martini...). But still, I've never been one to swoon over a dish composed entirely of cucs. In my mind, it'd be like eating a bowl of nothing but tofu. Meh. Where's the good stuff?

I hope cucs can forgive me for overlooking their star power. In this salad, this humble combination, cucumbers need no company. In fact, what makes this salad great is that without the dominating flavors and textures of their usual salad accompaniments, the cucumbers can really shine. Their fresh crunch provides a perfect canvas for an addictively spicy dressing of lime juice, hoisin sauce, chopped scallions, and the real magic -- freshly ground chili powder. Subtlety has no place in this dish. The combination is at once sour and salty, tongue-lashingly spicy and utterly clean. Make enough for two, and I guarantee just you will eat it all.

There were several inspirations behind this salad. First, the buns at Momofuku, which come with a few slices of pickled cucumber, a dab of hoisin, and a generous squirt of sriracha. The combination is like crack, and I had it in mind in creating this dish. Second, a salad I saw this week in NYMag that combined cucumbers with lime juice and fresh chili powder, which lodged itself in my mind. Third, David Chang's ginger scallion noodles, also from Momofuku, in which the scallions essentially become the dressing. It was a brilliant idea, and the scallions in this dish have a similar effect. I could go on about what caused me to make this dish, but once you make it, you really won't care. You'll be making a B-line for the kitchen to get some more.

ALSO: After nearly three years of blogging, the time has finally come: I'm doing a giveaway on the blog! better late than never, right? The wonderful folks at Marx Foods sent over a chili sampler, which is where I got the smoked serranos for this salad. They've graciously offered to send one lucky reader a chili sampler as well. Leave a comment sharing your favorite use for chilies, and I'll pick a commenter at random on Monday, June 14th to get the sampler. Good luck -- I can't wait to hear your favorite chili recipes! Wow, you guys rock! Love these recipe ideas. Mango-jicama salad with chiles? Yes, please!

The giveaway has ended, and our lucky winner is commenter #1. Congrats, Natalie! I'll email you with the information about your free chile sampler. Enjoy, and thanks everyone for participating!

Spicy Smoky Sour Cucumber Salad serves 2, questionably

Note: The freshly ground chili is what makes this recipe great. If you use the jarred stuff, your salad may taste a bit like sawdust. Just sayin'. In terms of how much chili to use, you'll have to taste and adjust, as heat is clearly a matter of preference. I used two smoked serrano chilies, which have a moderate level of heat. They're certainly not mild. Ground, they amounted to about 1.5 teaspoons. I added the chili slowly, starting with 1/2 teaspoon and working up to the level that tasted best. You should do the same. If you want to use a milder chili, try ancho (smoked poblano) or something else smoked; that smoky flavor is key.

1 Japanese or (small) English seedless cucumber, or 3-4 small Mediterranean cucumbers; aim for 6 oz. total 1/4 cup finely chopped scallions (I needed 1 long scallion for this) 1/4 cup lime juice 1 teaspoon hoisin sauce 1 teaspoon flavorless oil, such as grapeseed or safflower 1/2-1 teaspoon freshly-ground chili (see note) 1/4 teaspoon salt, or more to taste

Combine all ingredients except cucumbers in a medium bowl, starting with 1/2 teaspoon of chili and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Taste and adjust heat and salt levels according to your preference.

Trim ends of cucumbers, and slice into thin coins, 1/8-inch thick if possible. Don't fret if some are slightly thicker than others; call it textural contrast. Add to bowl with dressing and toss to combine. That's about it. Salad will be ready to eat in about....now.