Tried & True - Summer Menu Inspiration

I say it every year. Summer is my favorite time to cook. From simple yet elegant meals driven by the best seasonal ingredients (basically my goal all year), to desserts that practically make themselves, no time of year inspires me more. 

Neurotic Kitchen Summer Favorites 

As you think about your own cooking goals this summer, whether they include big parties or intimate entertaining, I thought it might be helpful to compile a list of just some of my tried and true summer dishes. You can rest assured that all of them have been made multiple times and, better yet, you can prep or make almost all in advance. This means you'll have more time to enjoy your parties, which is as it should be. I hope you enjoy and I wish you a season you can savor in more ways than one.  

Neurotic Kitchen's Summer Menu Ideas

"Surf" Mains/Starters/Sides
Turn any dish into a Surf & Turf with one of these

Grilled Marinated Calamari Salad - serve alongside Steak for an easy Surf & Turf, salad included, or as a great starter
Tuna Crudo with Peach & Jalapeno
Skewered Shrimp - Season the marinate large shrimp in flavors to your liking. Stack one serving (3-4 shrimp) and skewer them in two places for easy flipping. Grill on a piastra, pizza stone or grill basket
Clams in Cartoccio - these grillable hobo packs makes any main a Surf & Turf
Cooked Shrimp Ceviche
Fluke Ceviche
Rose Mignonette for Oysters
Margarita Oysters Verde (Salsa Verde, Lime & a splash of Tequila) 
Grilled Scallop Salsa Cruda


Pastas/Pizzas - App, First Course or Main
Lemon Pizza in Grill or Oven 
Scallop & Sungold Tomato Pasta

Menus:
Latin Inspired Menu
Mojo Marinated Skirt Steak
Yellow Rice
Watermelon Arugula Salad 
Or
Grilled Pineapple, Basil & Cucumber Salad
Corn with Jalapeno Lime Butter 

Florentine Inspired Menu
Prosciutto & Melon
Bistecca Florentina - T-bone Steak Marinated in Herbs on the Grill, 
Italian Corn
Summer Stone Fruit Panzanella Salad (use any seasonal stone fruit)
Assorted Gelati  

Classy American BBQ Menu
Israeli Couscous with Seasonal Additions  (ideas here, here or here) 
Tomato and White Onion Salad, Red Wine/Olive Oil/Oregano Dressing 
Corn on the Grill - just remove the silk, soak the corn a long while and grill in the husks
Ribeyes Marinated in Caper Vinaigrette then grilled 
Strawberry Pretzel & Gelato Sundae

Greek Inspired Menu
Shepherd's Salad (Any variation like Cucumber, Tomato, Scallion etc)
New Potatoes & Green Bean Salad with Vinaigrette
Leg of Lamb Marinated in Mint and Yogurt - Grilled
Assorted Sorbets (Mint, Lemon, etc) 

Other Easy Sides/Starters:
Sweet & Savory Watermelon Wedges 
Tomato Carpaccio
Grilled Peaches with Goat Cheese
Crab Salad served on or with Cucumber Chips
Grilled Asparagus on a Grill Basket or in Foil Packets 

Ready to Serve - Products We Love
Xotchitl Tortilla Chips 
Xotchitl Salsa
Tate's Chocolate Chip Cookies
Il Laboratorio del Gelato - all flavors (especially the mascarpone used in our Pretzel Strawberry Sundae)
Talenti Gelato - Particularly Sicilian Pistachio
Spoonable Salted Caramel - Makes any Ice Cream special 
Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers - add to Ice Cream, serve with coffee, etc

Your favorite Pie a la Mode -- we like Briermere Farms Peach Cherry 

Are You Ready For The Country? Girls' Weekend In The Catskills

Photo: NK

Two words:

Girls. Weekend. 

Sometimes, we chicks just need to head to the country, breathe some fresh air, and renew those unshakeable bonds...

all while eating our weight in cheese and imbibing more wine than is, shall we say, ladylike.

Such a trip will, from time to time, include the occasional spontaneous living room dance party, preferably to the music of our glorious teen years. 

You haven't really lived until you've completely
shuffled off the hustle and bustle of city life for one bucolic getaway with your fellow womenfolk. 

Cheese on arrival, Photo: NK

That's why last weekend, my friends and I headed up to the Catskill Mountains in Upstate New York for the second year running. Again, we rented a nice little house in Monticello overlooking a pond. 

It was a blast. 

I hope you will enjoy today's recap of our Girls' Weekend extravaganza. And don't fret, we'll be sure include the most delicious and easy dessert recipe for you to add to your repertoire:

We arrived to our rental house quite late on a Friday night after several wrong turns and one hair-raising trip down the world's darkest and rockiest road cutting through what may as well have been the forest primeval. Cell service a distant memory, we were mildly shaken upon reaching our remote destination. 

A rustic cheese plate was immediately in order.

Rhianne, who is an amazing baker, had the presence of mind to bring her delicious Southern Cheese Wafers - her grammy's recipe. These crispy little crackers are savory and crunchy, just perfect with pimiento cheese or anything else, really. 
Their clever, secret ingredient: Rice Krispies! 
They were a great addition to our very humble cheese plate. For a close approximation of this secret family recipe, click HERE. 

Delectable Cheese Wafers, Photo: NK

Speaking of Rice Krispies, Rhianne also brought these amazing Brown Butter & Chocolate Salted Rice Krispie Treats - baked using her own light adaptation of Deb Perelman's (of Smitten Kitchen) recipe. It would be cruel of me not to share how to create this absurdly delicious treat. They are an absolute must-make!

Brown Butter & Chocolate Salted Rice Krispie Treats, Photo: NK

Brown Butter & Chocolate Salted Rice Krispie Treats
Recipe from Rhianne L./ Very Lightly adapted from Deb Perelman/Smitten Kitchen
Yield - about 16 2-inch squares 

Ingredients:
4 Ounces (1 Stick) Unsalted butter (sliced up) + extra for greasing the pan
1 10 Ounce Bag of Marshmallows
Heaping 1/4 teaspoon Coarse Sea Salt (or more to taste)
6 Cups Rice Krispies - about half the small cereal box
1/2 Cup Hershey's Chocolate Chips

Method: 
1. Generously grease an 8-inch square cake pan with butter. 

2. In a large pot, make the brown butter by melting it over medium low heat. Swirl it around until it melts, after which point, don't disturb it. The butter will then foam up before turning golden and beginning to smell nutty. Stir frequently now, being sure to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. It's very important to stay with the butter! It can burn in an instant so you must keep your eye on it. 

3. Once the butter takes on a nice medium brown color, turn off the heat and stir in the marshmallows and chocolate bits. They should melt in the still-hot butter but if not, you may turn the heat back on low until marshmallows are totally smooth. 

4. Take the pot off the stove and add both the salt and the Rice Krispies. Stir everything together and rapidly spread the mixture into the prepared pan. Press the mixture well into all corners of the pan. Allow to cool, slice, and enjoy!

Can we say, "yes please?!" 
For more ideas on baking with brown butter, check out Joy The Baker's post HERE.  

The next morning, our friend Felice arrived after making the long drive out to spend the day with us. She came bearing the gift of breakfast which included Blueberry Muffins and a really tasty Spinach Quiche, in, get this, a graham cracker crust. 

Spinach, Egg & Cheese Quiche in a Graham Cracker Crust, Photo: NK

Yup. You heard right. Felice informed us that after preparing her egg and spinach mixture, she realized that she'd purchased a graham cracker crust by accident. Never being one not to take the plunge, she went for it. I have to tell you, the ever-so-slightly sweet graham cracker against the savory egg mixture worked amazingly. This is how great recipes are born.

Now, I'm sure you've gathered that we aren't the type of girls that wait until noon to drink so, clearly, there were plenty of adult beverages at breakfast. Rhianne's Blueberry Wine from Pauley's Island mixed with some bubbly made for a fantastic Blueberry Mimosa on our scenic porch.

Photo: NK

The remainder of the day was spent laughing in between rides on the owner's rickety old rowboat. The pond had the most water lilies I'd ever seen.

Photo: NK 

Israeli Couscous with Pomegranate and Arugula
Photo: NK 

Still, It didn't take very long for us to start thinking about dinner. 

The plan was for a grilled pizza feast to be served on our beautiful deck. 

Also, my friend Natalie got to work on her delicious Couscous with Pomegranate and Arugula, a perennial favorite. 

Luckily, we had a really nice sparkling white to fuel all the prep work: 

Coppola's Blanc de Blancs, Photo: NK

This was our first time grilling pizza and, admittedly, we had some setbacks. Our efforts were further thwarted by the fact that our rental kitchen was missing some basics like flour.





After several comically atrocious pizza-making attempts, this beauty came off the grill:

Grilled Pizza with Green Peppers and Mushrooms, Photo: NK 

And with that, dinner was served

Photo: Rhianne L. 

and it was mighty good.

Photo: NK 

Sunday morning rolled around way too fast and we were all sad to see the weekend go. Some more than others:

Photo: NK

Happily, we are able to extend the magic a bit by taking a little side trip to nearby Bethel, NY, home of Bethel Woods, the site of the famous Woodstock festival. The day was warm and clear but fall was definitely in the air. 

Harvest Festival, Photo: NK 

The Bethel Woods Center for the Arts has a great harvest fest each weekend in September. The home of Peace, Love and Music provided a fitting end to a great weekend. Until next year, ladies!

Bethel Woods, Photo: NK