HotLinks

4.2.21

Spring classic

Math has never been my strong suit — including counting. 😂 And so last Friday, when I sent out HotLinks, I knew that Passover would be included in the coming 7 days because it started that Friday night, but I incorrectly calculated that Easter was in the upcoming week as well, and so offered an Easter brunch dish — Asparagus Gribiche. Let’s just pretend I was planning ahead!

Well, here we are on Good Friday, and so now I have some MORE Easter dishes for you for the weekend. Or for any springtime moment — you definitely do not need to be a member of any religion to enjoy these dishes.

Before we get to those selected for the Easter table, soup’s on!

Soup of the Week: The Greenest Gazpacho

I’m offering up my favorite green gazpacho — The Greenest Gazpacho — because in my neck of the woods, we have a heat wave on the way early next week, and I’m thinking something refreshing yet satisfying will be welcome. It is so very springy, especially if you pile on all the fresh herbs.

Based on puréed cukes, celery, raw almonds or cashews and a few other things, it gets a beautiful tang from sherry vinegar. And it is vegan! If you like green gazpachos, you will be happy sipping this from now through the summer. I was honored to learn that a fabulous farm-to-table home food delivery service here in Dallas, À Table (my former consulting client), featured it last week on their menu. They kindly sent me a quart, sans fresh herbs for the top, but it’s fabulous even without them. I hope you love it as much as I do.

Smoked Trout Pâté

We enjoy some version of this classic recipe probably once a week — usually served with endive leaves and crackers. It’s why we always have smoked trout on hand (the best price we find is at Trader Joe’s.) Once you make for the first time, after that you can go by feel — using either sour cream or crème fraîche, any soft herbs you happen to have around, as much lemon juice and zest as tastes right.

It would be right at home starring in an Easter brunch, kicking off an Easter dinner, or (yep!) any old time.

Roasted Asparagus with Radishes

Here’s a beautiful and super-easy side dish, one that goes great with lamb. Or chicken. Or salmon. It’s from Steven Satterfield’s excellent cookbook (which I really need to review!), Root to Leaf.

Don’t skip the spuds!
👇 👇 👇

The Brenner Family’s Roasted Potatoes

Here’s my family’s recipe. Change it up as you please, adding garlic (or not), subtracting onions, changing to spring onions, changing the herbs.

Simon Hopkinson’s Roast Lamb

To be quite transparent, the photo of lamb shown at the top of this missive was a grilled butterflied lamb; you are welcome to that recipe, of course, but it is supplemental. As it is still a wee bit early for grilling in most parts of the country, I’m going to give you another favorite lamb recipe — a roast. It’s from Simon Hopkinson’s wonderful 1994 cookbook Roast Chicken and Other Stories. I did not realize Hopkinson, a renowned British chef-turned-author, has a website with recipes. (Good news!) The anchovy treatment may sound odd at first, but it’s like an umami injection, and does not make the lamb at all fishy. Trust me on this.

Happy Easter! Wishing you a delicious weekend. 🐣🌷🐣🌷

Lots of love, Leslie

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Have a comment, or want to tell us about something you’d like to see covered here? Drop me a line at leslie@cookswithoutborders.com.