Chickpea & Feta Orzo Salad

This is one of those recipes where every flavor stands out nicely, but the dish as a whole blends well.  It's also incredibly simple. And it's perfect for summer because it won't heat up your kitchen.

It serves mainly as a side-dish, though I suppose one could make a double recipe and treat it as a main course.  Serve at room temperature, or cooled in the fridge.

Chickpea & Feta Orzo Salad

1 cup orzo pasta, uncooked
1/2 cup green onions, sliced thinly
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped
1 15-oz. can of chickpeas, rinsed
3 TBSP fresh lemon juice
1.5 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil
1 TBSP cold water
1/2 tsp. coarse salt
1/2 tsp. minced garlic

1. Cook the pasta according to directions being sure not to overcook.  Drain and rinse with cold water.  Drain well again. 
2. In a large bowl, combine the cooked pasta, cheese, green onions, dill, and chickpeas.  Toss gently. 
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, oil, water, salt, and garlic. 
4. Drizzle the sauce over the pasta mixture and toss to salt. 

Family Ratings: 

Lucy, who never met a cheese she didn't love: 10

Jamie, who's taken to picking small bits of something or other out of all of his foods, but likes chickpeas:  8

Will, who's becoming increasingly easy-going:  9

Ellen, who's no fool:  10

Paul, who's searched his whole life for a pasta salad that didn't seem forced:  10

Smoky Frittata

This is one of those recipes where you really don't care if your kids like it.  It's just that good.  That said, it's not out of the question that your kids will indeed gobble this dish up:  it contains cheese and more cheese and cream and eggs, and is like a tasty version of scrambled eggs, albeit with cauliflower thrown in.

A few notes:  if your kids aren't cauliflower fans, cut it into small pieces and reduce the boiling/frying time dramatically so as to not overcook.

The recipe calls for scamorza affumicata, a fancy Italian cheese that's often labelled "smoked mozzarella."  If like most people in the known universe you don't have access to this cheese, substitute comte or a similar gruyere-related cheese.  Don't be afraid to allow a little of the skin or rind to get grated in as well, for extra taste texture.

This recipe comes from Yotam Ottomlenghi's PLENTY, which is fast becoming my favorite vegetarian cookbook.

Smoky Frittata

1 small cauliflower, cut into medium-sized florets. 
6 eggs
4 TBSP creme fraiche (I just used sour cream)
2 TBSP dijon mustard
1 tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp smoked paprika (if you don't have both kinds of paprika, just use one kind & don't worry about it)
3 TBSP finely chopped chives
5 oz. smoked scamorza, grated
2 oz. mature cheddar, grated
salt and black pepper
2 TBSP olive oil

1. Simmer the cauliflower in boiling salted water for 4 minutes until semi-cooked (do not let it get completely soft!).  Drain and dry. 
2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Mix the eggs, the cream/creme, the mustard and the paprika and whisk the heck out of it, making sure everything is thoroughly blended.  
3. Stir in the chives and 3/4s of the cheeses.  Season well with salt and pepper.  
4. Heat the olive oil in a large, overproof frying pan.  The pan MUST BE OVENPROOF.  Not that I've tried it without, mind you . . . 
5. Fry the cauliflower in the pan on medium-high for about five minutes until golden brown on one side.  Pour the egg mixture into the pan and spread evenly.  Cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes.  
6. Turn off the burner.  Scatter the remaining cheeses on top of the ingredients in the pan, then carefully transfer the pan to the over.  Cook for 10-12 minutes, or until the frittata has set. 
7. Remove from oven and let rest for 2-3 minutes before serving.  

Family Ratings:  

Lucy, who loves everything, the more adventurous the better as long as it's not too spicy:  10

Jamie, who never got around to trying it:  No score. 

Will, who is actually becoming fairly adventurous himself:  8

Ellen, who is happy I've finely discovered vegetarian cooking:  10

Paul, who likes anything where the cheese to non-cheese ratio is high:  10

Kid-friendly Tuna with Vietnamese Ginger Dipping Sauce

This is clearly one of those recipes where, if your kids are the least bit fussy at all, you've already dismissed it as a possibility.  Which means you're probably not even reading this, so I should probably ignore you.  But what can I say?  I'm a nice guy.  I want everyone to feel important, even if they might just have thoughtlessly dismissed arguably the greatest recipe I've ever posted on my blog.  

Oh my god.  This is SOOOO good.  All three of the kids love it, even Lucy who's almost actually given up claiming she doesn't like fish, solely because of this dish.  

The key is the dipping sauce, which is so good that in truly big fat American style I've gone ahead and doubled the recipe here so that there's enough to go around.  Speaking of fat Americans, though, this recipe is extremely low in fat and really very good for you.  Serve it with jasmine rice and green beans or baby carrots, or some other simple vegetable.  

This recipe is from Andrea Nguyen's wonderful book "Into the Vietnamese Kitchen."  If you don't own this book, you should get on Amazon and buy it immediately.  

Final tip:  if your kids try to reject this dish just because it's tuna, lie and tell them it's chicken.  

Kid-Friendly Tuna with Vietnamese Ginger Dipping Sauce

3 Tuna steaks, roughly 1.5 pounds total (they should be about 1-inch thick)

Marinade

1/2 tsp sugar

1.5 TBSP fish sauce

1 TBSP fresh lime juice

2 TBSP canola or vegetable oil

Dipping sauce: 

A 3 to 4-inch piece of ginger, peeled and minced

9-10 TBSP fresh lime juice (about 5-6 limes)

5 TBSP sugar

4-5 TBSP fish sauce

1. Combine marinade ingredients in a large plastic bag or a small (8x8) baking dish. 
2. Add tuna steaks to marinade and turn to coat.  There's no need to marinate, but it doesn't hurt to let them sit for a while as you prepare the dipping sauce and any side dishes.  
3. Combine the first four ingredients of the dipping sauce.  Adjust ginger and lime juice to taste.
4. Begin by adding 4 TBSP fish sauce.  Adjust to taste.  When you have it just right, mix well and divide the sauce into individual bowls.  These sit alongside each person's plate.  
5. Heat a skillet over medium-high until hot. 
6. Add the tuna steaks. 
7. Cook for 2 minutes on one side. 
8. Carefully turn steaks. 
9. Cook on the second side for 3 minutes. 
10. Test the steaks with a knife.  They should be white at the edges and pink in the middle.  If they look too rare, cook for another minute or two at most, but be careful:  you want pink in the center.  Overcooked tuna tastes like unsalted cardboard.  
11. Transfer steaks to a cutting board and slice into 1/4-inch thick slices.  
12. Serve.  

Family Ratings:

Will, who likes to tease his sister about hating fish:  10

Lucy, who's loathe to surrender her hatred of fish, just because: 10

Jamie, who's pretty sure he's eating chicken:  10

Ellen, who likes that her husband is serving something healthy for once: 10

Paul, who figures that if he eats a healthy dinner he can then have a huge slice of cake: 10

Tasty Tasty Tasty Lamb Stew

Oh my god.  I love this recipe.  It's easy.  It's tasty.  Kids like it, but it's also classy enough that when you serve it to company, you look like a friggin' culinary genius.

That said, it's likely a weekend dish, as it really does require a couple hours to simmer itself into melting tenderness.  Serve over rice (brown or white) with some kind of vegetable.  Hide the leftovers from your spouse.

This comes from A TASTE OF THE MEDITERRANEAN, by Jacqueline Clark and Joanna Farrow.  Last I looked, it seemed to be out of print, but this cookbook is so consistently good it would be worth it to hunt down a used copy and sell your Beamer to pay for it.

Tasty Lamb Stew

3 TBSP olive oil (divided)

3-3.5 lbs lamb fillet, cut into 2-inch cubes (I just use lamb stew meat.  It works dandy).

1 large onion, chopped

6 large garlic cloves, unpeeled

1 bay leaf

1 tsp paprika

1/2 cup dry sherry (I just use your generic cooking sherry.  Works dandy).

4 oz. fresh or frozen f-f-f-f-fava beans (sorry--you knew I was going to do that). 

2 TBSP chopped fresh parsley

Salt and fresh-ground black pepper  

1. Heat to medium high 2 TBSP of the oil in a heavy, flame proof casserole dish or dutch oven (now might be a good time to ask your mother for some Le Creuset . . . )
2. Heat the meat and brown on all sides.  Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels.  (I usually do the meat in two batches).  
3. Heat the remaining oil in the pan, then add the onions and cook for five minutes or so, until soft.  Return the meat to the pot. 
4. Add the garlic cloves, the bay leaf, the paprika, and the sherry.  Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer gently for 2 hours.  Feel free to stir it once or twice in that time to make sure all the meat is soaking in the juices. 
5. Test the meat.  At this point it should be fall-off-your fork tender.  If it's not, cook for another 10-20 minutes, still on low.  
6. When the meat is tender enough, add the fava beans.  Cover and cook for another 10 minutes.  
7. Stir in parsley and serve.  

Family Ratings

Lucy, who is likely the most culinarily adventurous 11-year-old you've ever met:  10

Jamie, who spends most of his meals trying to get Lucy to laugh:  8

Will, who's never liked meat he needs to pick from his teeth:  8

Ellen, who thinks baby sheep are cute and isn't much of a meat eater:  7

Paul, who thinks this is the tastiest stew he's ever encountered:  10