Ingredients
The ultrafine cauliflower purée makes the soup seem as if it is cream based—it's that shockingly satiny. The initial taste of the cauliflower comes off as earthy, but within moments it is clear just how regal this vegetable truly is. Dehydrated red onion pieces and Bibb lettuce leaves provide sweet and sharp flavor notes and a textural counterpoint, while a whisper of balsamic vinegar pushes this humble combination of ingredients to scale great heights.
This refreshing salad goes perfectly with the ham. To make short work of trimming the green beans, use kitchen scissors.
On paper, yams (a.k.a. sweet potatoes) should make a great-tasting salad with a gorgeous golden color. However, my first attempts turned out mushy and cloyingly sweet. The answer to the problem turned out to be to use a combination of roasted yams with boiled potatoes (peeled after boiling, for the same reason), and a brightly acidic lemon vinaigrette to balance the sugary yams. Mint supplies a fresh note, but cilantro or parsley can be substituted. Use medium potatoes so they cook evenly and with relative speed.
This rasam brings back memories of being a young boy in Nagpur, a small city in the western state of Maharashtra where my family lived for about three years. My dad's boss there was South Indian, and I was introduced to the exotic smells and tastes of southern Indian cooking in his home. Every time we went there for dinner, his wife would meet us with glasses of this rasam. It took only a very short time for me and my family to become enchanted by these wonderful tastes.
Turkish Braised Eggplant (Engin's Imam Bayildi)
A fruity Spanish olive oil, preferably from Andalusia, is important, as is a good sherry vinegar, preferably aged. Both can be found at specialty groceries or mail-ordered. If you can spare the time, garnish the gazpacho with tiny bread croutons fried in olive oil.
Ingredients
I first made this coarse olive paste as a way of using some olives that had been languishing in my refrigerator and were a little past their prime. Warmed and spooned onto peasant bread as an hors d'oeuvre, it was a revelation: The flavor of olives changes when they are heated, somehow becoming milder.
This is a summer classic. Make large batches for lunch, supper or any time a refreshing, low-fat pick-me-up or a one-dish meal is needed. You can snack on this soup all day, especially when it’s hot, humid, and the idea of actually cooking is enough to drive you to the drive-thru.