A large portion of my menu inspiration comes from the season. I love to cook what is fresh or fitting for certain times of the year. In the summer, I love to use fresh vegetables such as corn, peppers, and tomatoes, and fresh fruit for all types of dishes from appetizers to main courses to desserts to cocktails. This is an example of what I consider to be a perfect summer dinner menu...White Grape Gazpacho, Citrus Jalapeño Salmon over Creamy Maque Choux, and S'mores Coffee Icebox Cake.
On a hot summer night, nothing beats a cold soup. Gazpacho has so many variations but is most commonly tomato based. I wanted to make something unique and different so instead of a tomato/vegetable based gazpacho, I made White Grape Gazpacho. It is a little bit sweet, a little bit savory, silky smooth, and insanely refreshing. Not to mention it looks gorgeous in my new black soup bowls!
I started by lightly toasting one half cup of almonds and two tablespoons of pine nuts. I added them to a blender with two smashed cloves of garlic, two and a half cups of white grapes, one cup of white grape juice, one half cup of water, and two slices of white bread, crusts removed and cubed. Once fully blended, I poured into a bowl through a fine mesh strainer to remove any bits of solids, and then I covered and refrigerated for a few hours. Before serving, I whipped one cup of heavy cream to soft peaks and gently folded it into the gazpacho until silky smooth and fully combined. I added some lemon juice and then garnished with a few red grapes, slivered almonds, and fresh chives.
For the Citrus Jalapeño Salmon, I began by arranging slices of orange, lemon, and lime on a foil lined baking sheet.
I placed the salmon on the citrus, seasoned with salt and pepper, and poured over a mixture consisting of one quarter cup each of freshly squeezed orange and lime juice, the zest of one lime, two tablespoons of honey, two minced cloves of garlic, and one minced jalapeño pepper. I removed the seeds and membrane so that it would not be overly spicy.
I baked the salmon at 400 degrees for thirty minutes, basting with the juices every ten minutes. In the meantime, I started on the Maque Choux, which is a creamy corn dish often made with bacon or ham. My version is suitable for vegetarians or pescatarians. I brushed six shucked ears of corn with extra virgin olive oil and grilled until slightly charred and cooked. (You could also boil them.) I then removed the kernels into a bowl with one diced orange bell pepper and one sweet onion.
I melted two tablespoons of butter with two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and added all of the vegetables along with salt, pepper, and a tablespoon of smoked paprika, which is the perfect substitute if you do not want to use bacon or ham. Once the peppers and onions had softened, I added one can of drained diced tomatoes and cooked for several minutes.
The final ingredient was one half cup of heavy cream. I let it cook for several minutes until creamy and thickened.
Summer on a plate and as delicious as it is beautiful.
The S'mores Coffee Icebox Cake is decadent yet easy. It is layers of graham crackers, chocolate ganache (one half cup of scalded heavy cream poured over one cup of semisweet chocolate chips and stirred until glossy), marshmallow cream (one and a half cups of heavy beaten to stiff peaks and then combined with one cup of marshmallow fluff and one teaspoon of vanilla extract), store-bought coffee ice cream (softened on the counter until spreadable), mini marshmallows, and chocolate chips. You can see the individual steps in the video below but just remember that it needs four hours in the freezer, if not longer.
As I said, this is a menu I would cook and eat any day of the year! If you try any or all of these recipes, I bet you will feel the same!
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