Dill and Onion Batter Bread

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I suspect the blast of the latest winter storm has set the soup pot simmering in many a kitchen. It certainly has in mine. Yesterday, I made tomato soup and wanted to dress it up a bit with some homemade bread. Actually, I was more interested in the aroma of bread than the loaf itself. I wanted to make quick work of its preparation, so I decided to make a yeasted batter bread. Batter breads are notoriously easy to make and this loaf, which is perfect for novice bakers, was no exception. In a bit more than 2 hours, I had a lovely herb bread whose fragrance was easily a match for that of the madrone being burned in our neighbor's wood stove. The bread was lovely, but the next time I make it, I plan to cut the amount of dill and onion in half. I found the amount suggested by the recipe developer to be a bit overpowering, and if the soup I made was not so mild in flavor, the bread would have been too much. If you are looking for an easy bread to add to your kitchen arsenal, do give this one a try, but give some thought to cutting back on the amount of onion and dill that you use. Here is how this very simple bread is made.

Chicken Soup with Orzo, Lemon and Dill

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From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is a great pantry soup for spring and summer meals. It is light and easy to prepare, though I did come across a problem the first time I made it. When raw chicken is poached or boiled it creates an unpleasant scum that rises to the surface of the liquid in which it cooks. The problem can be avoided by blanching or pre-cooking the chicken until it loses its pink color. I did not do that and as a result my first effort had more than a bit of scum in it. Second time around, I cooked the chicken along with the vegetables before the stock was added and had a relatively clear soup to show for my efforts. Third time through, I used a rotisserie chicken and had a lovely, scum free soup in no time at all. I've obviously become a proponent of rotisserie chicken for use in this soup. The combination of flavors made experimenting with this recipe worthwhile and I know you will enjoy the final results. There is nothing here not to like and the soup is truly easy to make. The recipe, which I'm featuring as it was originally written, comes from Bon Appetit magazine. My riff, substitutes 12 ounces of rotisserie chicken for the thigh meat, so I also do away with the 15 minutes required to cook the raw chicken and simply warm it through. The finished soup tastes a bit like avgolemono, but it is easier to prepare. Here is how it is made.

Chicken Soup with Orzo, Lemon and Dill...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Bon Appetit

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium leek, white and pale-green parts only, halved lengthwise, sliced crosswise 1/2-inch thick
1 celery stalk, sliced crosswise 1/2-inch thick
12 ounces skinless, boneless chicken thighs
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup orzo
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
Lemon halves (for serving)

Directions:
1) Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add leek and celery and cook, stirring often, until vegetables are soft, 5-8 minutes. Add chicken and broth and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate. Let cool, then shred chicken into bite-size pieces.
2) Meanwhile, return broth to a boil. Add orzo and cook until al dente, about 8 to 10 minutes.
3) Remove pot from heat. Stir in chicken and dill. Serve each bowl with a lemon half to provide additional flavor.








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Cucumber and Sour Cream Salad

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Cucumbers and peppers of all types come to market with a vengeance at this time of year. While there are scores of recipes for peppers, it's harder to find new and interesting ways to prepare cucumbers. I make the usual relish and pickles, and, of course, add them to fish and chicken salads, but it is hard to find truly new ways to use cucumbers. I tend to fall back on the recipes of my childhood and use them with only slight changes to accommodate more modern tastes and better ingredients. The home I grew up in was in a multi-cultural neighborhood and we had Swedish neighbors to our right and German neighbors to our left. I've spoken before with great fondness of Mrs. P and Hannie. They were an important part of my childhood and my love affair with food began in their kitchens. Each kitchen had its own version of cucumber salad and both were delicious. One was vinegar based and the other relied on sour cream. They both, however, shared a preparation technique that guaranteed an outstanding salad. They would salt their cucumbers and let them sit for several hours before adding them to salads. The salting drew moisture from the cucumbers and assured they would be crisp. Once rinsed, they were patted dry and covered with sour cream or vinegar. The result was always a crackly crisp salad that even Lucullus would enjoy. Years ago, I stumbled on a recipe for a cucumber and sour cream salad in House and Garden magazine. It has become a fixture in my kitchen at this time of year. It really is simple to make and I think you'll enjoy it. Here's the recipe.

Cucumber and Sour Cream Salad...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by House and Garden Magazine

Ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 scant tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped chives or a grating of onion
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, head and fronds
1 teaspoon celery seed
2 firm fresh cucumbers

Directions:
1) Dissolve salt and sugar in vinegar, add the sour cream and stir smooth. You may like more or less vinegar, salt or sugar, but don't make dressing too sweet. Add the chives, dill and celery seed.
2) Slice unpared cucumbers paper-thin and combine with dressing. Chill for 1 hour or more. Sour cream cucumbers improve in taste as they stand and flavor of cucumbers seeps into dressing. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.







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You might also enjoy these recipes:
Bread and Butter Pickles - Kirsten's Kitchen
Braised Cucumbers with Dill - The Mom Chef
Corn and Cucumber Salad - Chef Tom Cooks
Pickled Cucumbers - Almond Corner
Friday Favorites: Ten Favorite Cucumber Salads - Kalyn's Kitchen

Scandinavian Shrimp Salad

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite... This lovely salad is inspired by those that are served in Scandinavia during the summer months. I classify it as a summer salad because it uses fresh dill heads and they are a seasonal ingredient. The heads, seen to the left, are more strongly flavored than the feathery fronds you can always find in your grocer's produce aisle. They are used primarily for pickle making. They have a wonderful fragrance that is as easily identifiable as that of tarragon or cilantro. The salad defines simplicity, both in its use of ingredients, and the effort required to make it. Cooked shrimp, from the fish market, can be used to make it if you are running short of time. I tend to use less mustard in this dish than many others do. I like dill to be the dominant background flavor in this salad and it already has to compete with the strong flavors of the cornichons and capers. A little mustard, here, will go a long, long way. We are talking shrimp, not hot dogs. I like to serve the salad as a topper for open faced sandwiches. It can, of course, also be served on a bed of lettuce if you would prefer. I know those of you who try this salad will love it. The shrimp and cucumbers give it lovely texture and it is truly a gift from the sea. Here's the recipe.

Scandinavian Shrimp Salad...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by Bon Appetit

Ingredients:
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon water or stock
1/4 cup fresh dill heads, chopped
1 to 3 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 pound medium-size shrimp, peeled, deveined and cooked
1 cup sliced English cucumbers, halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into thin slices
1/3 cup cornichons (gherkins), sliced
1 tablespoon capers, drained and rinsed

Directions:
Thin mayonnaise with water or stock. Add dill, Dijon mustard to taste and lemon juice; whisk to combine. Add shrimp, cucumber, cornichons and capers; toss to coat. Season generously with salt and pepper. Yield: 4 servings.









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Chilled Calamari Salad with Lemon and Parsley - Gina's Skinny Recipes
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Debo's Seafood Salad - Christine's Pantry
Tequilla Lime Crab Salad - Hugging the Coast
Crab Salpicon - The Winter Guest

Refrigerator Dill Pickles

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Ten years ago, if asked if I put by pickles, my answer was a resounding, "No." Twenty years ago, it was a terse and less polite, "Get real." My response thirty yeas ago is best kept to myself. My failure to get with the program wasn't based on laziness, I've just never cared for preserved pickles. I thought they were salty and limp, and found their color just plain unappetizing. I wasn't a complete snob about them. I did love the brined, unprocessed dills that could occasionally be found in be found in barrels in some markets and delicatessens. I just never took the time to find out how they were made. Shortly after we moved to this area, I began to experiment with refrigerated pickles for certain Thai and Vietnamese dishes, and in the process learned I could make our favorite pickles in much the say way. I first mastered a refrigerator version of bread and butter pickles because my family loved to have them on hamburgers. I worked on garlic dills for several years but couldn't get the flavors right. I was about to give up and admit defeat when I found a recipe by Bobby Flay and decided to try one last time. I'm so glad I did. These are great pickles and they require no special equipment to make. They can be eaten the day after they are made and keep for about two weeks in the refrigerator. My only caution is to make sure you have enough room to store them for that length of time. I hope those of you who are fond of pickles will try these. You won't be sorry. Here's the recipe.

Refrigerator Dill Pickles...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Bobby Flay

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups distilled white vinegar
1/4 to 1/3 cup granulated sugar
4 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
3/4 teaspoon dill seeds
2 cups hot water
2 pounds kirby cucumbers, sliced 1/4-inch thick
3/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh dill
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

Directions:
1) Combine vinegar, sugar, salt, mustard seeds, coriander seeds and dill seeds in a heatproof bowl. Add hot water and stir until sugar dissolves and liquid is clear. Cool to room temperature.
2) Place cucumbers, garlic and dill in a large bowl. Toss to combine. Pour brine over all and turn to coat cucumbers. Cover them with a plate to weigh them down and keep them covered in brine. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight, stirring once or twice. Transfer to an airtight container and store for up to two weeks. Yield: 1 quart.

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Italian Giardiniera - Luna Cafe
Dill and Garlic Freezer Pickles - The Other Side of Fifty
Bread and Butter Pickles - Simply Recipes
Pickled Cucumber and Shallots - Indo-Chine Kitchen
Calico Pickled Salad - Drick's Rambling Cafe
Favorite Kosher Dills - Never Enough Thyme
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Swedish West Coast Salad

There was a time when villages did raise children. I lived in one on the south side of Chicago and the arteries that fed 83rd Street were lined with the homes of my other "moms" - Jewish, German, Swedish, Italian and Irish women - who helped my parents raise me. They would discipline, teach and bandage, then, cruel fate, drag you home for yet another round of reckoning. Housing shortages kept our neighborhood intact until the mid 50's, so I had an orchestra seat - front row center - for viewing families, traditions, and cuisine, in many hues, as I grew up. Today I made a quick trip to the mall. They are set for Christmas - only Santa Claus is missing. Stan Freeburg's parody Green Chri$tma$ - "we wish you a Merry Christmas and please buy our beer" - started running through my mind and I couldn't shake it. As a distraction, I started thinking about Christmas traditions on 83rd Street and the open house given by one of our neighbors - my Swedish "mom". It was there I first sampled gravlaux and West Coast Salad. Recipes for gravlaux abound, but a recipe for the salad was more difficult to find. I stumbled on one by Beatrice Ojakangas in Scandinavian Feasts. Her recipe uses lobster, shrimp, crabmeat, mussels and caviar; it's absolutely delicious, but prohibitively expensive. My version captures the spirit and freshness of the salad but is more affordable. This is a light, uptown supper. Enjoy!

Swedish West Coast Salad

Ingredients:
Dill Dressing:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 drop dill oil or 6 tablespoons fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Salad:
1-1/2 to 2 pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 pound white mushrooms, sliced
1 English cucumber, cut in 1/2-inch dice
1/4 cup pimentos, drained
3 hard boiled eggs, cut into wedges
1/2 cup frozen petite peas, thawed
Garnish: Boston lettuce leaves, fresh dill or parsley

Directions:
1) Combine oil, vinegar, dill oil or fresh dill, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk until blended. Set aside.
2) Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add shrimp and cook for 3 minutes, or until shrimp curl and turn pink. Drain. Toss with dill salad dressing. Chill for at least 1 hour.
3) Add mushrooms, cucumber, pimentos, eggs and peas to shrimp. Toss lightly. Line a platter with lettuce leaves. With a slotted spoon, transfer salad to platter. Garnish with fresh dill or parsley. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

Cook's Note: I use dill oil rather than fresh dill. This is an essential oil that allows you to control the flavor's intensity. Fresh dill is not always available in my area. The oil, which I also use for canning, is available at farm stands or can be ordered through online grocers. I have included a link for you.