#COOKING WITH CLORIS--MYSTERY AUTHOR JUDY ALTER WHIPS UP A WEDDING MURDER AND SALADE NICOISE

Judy Alter is the author of three previous series—the Kelly O’Connell Mysteries, Blue Plate Café Mysteries, and Oak Grove Mysteries. Irene in Danger is the second in her new Irene in Chicago Culinary Mysteries, Learn more about Judy and her books at her website. judyalter.com 

A wedding in jeopardy and Salade Niçoise 

 

Irene Foxglove is back in Chicago, Henny and Patrick are getting married in a week, there’s cocaine floating around, and someone wants to kill the diva chef. Once again, Irene brings murder and mayhem to those around her.

 

Henny spent a year as gofer for “Madame,” helped solve her husband’s murder and save her kidnapped daughter before Irene scooted off to the safety of France. Patrick thinks it charming of Irene to return for their wedding, but Henny believes, deep in her soul, that Irene will ruin the biggest day of her life, upstage the wedding couple, and perhaps force them to postpone the whole thing. Little does she know how right her instincts are.

 

Madame wants to cater the wedding. Henny has contracted with the head chef at the Palmer House Hotel for the small wedding dinner she wants. Desperate to distract Irene, she suggests a bridesmaids’ luncheon with Salade Niçoise, overlooking the fact that there are to be no bridesmaids. She’ll worry about that later.

 

Salade Niçoise

Salade Niçoise is a composed salad built around tuna—in France, undoubtedly fresh tuna, but a high-quality, canned variety is perfectly acceptable. Henny likes to do it with canned albacore in olive oil. 

 

Olives, green or ripe, are traditional, but Henny omits them because olives are on the short list of things she just doesn’t eat, along with bell peppers. If you like them, you may want to add strips, preferably of red peppers. Anchovies are a truly French contribution to the salad, and if you like them, they add a wonderful zing. Julia Child added an anchovy filet, twisted, on each hard-boiled egg quarter and scattered capers and chopped parsley on the finished salad. 

 

The thing about this main-dish salad is you can create it to your taste. Choose the vegetables you prefer, but with an eye to color and appearance. Suggestions include tiny baby potatoes (peeled, boiled, and cut in quarters, if necessary), haricot vert (those tiny French green beans), thinly sliced small red onion or green onions, parboiled baby carrots, artichoke hearts quartered, cherry tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs. Sometimes Henny adds tender, young asparagus spears if in season. She believes in simplicity—too many vegetables spoil the presentation.

 

Pour a little dressing over the potatoes when they are warm—they’ll absorb it better. Each vegetable and the tuna should be seasoned with a little dressing before becoming part of the arrangement. Lay out the vegetables and tuna in an attractive pattern, either on a platter or individual plates, on a bed of lettuce. Some cooks group ingredients; others prefer a more casual arrangement. Pour any remaining dressing over. If you need another batch of dressing, make it. You don’t want soup, but you don’t want a dry salad.

 

Vinaigrette is the traditional dressing for Salade Niçoise. Here’s the one Henny frequently uses (enough for two individual salads):

 

1/4 c. olive oil

2 tbsp. red wine vinegar

2 tbsp. lemon juice

1 clove garlic, pressed

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

 

And for the wedding dinner? Passed hors d’oeuvres, pear and Brie salad, Lobster Thermidor, and chocolate mousse cake.

 

Irene in Danger

An Irene in Chicago Culinary Mystery, Book 2

 

Irene Foxglove is back in Chicago, Henny and Patrick are getting married in a week, there’s cocaine floating around, and someone wants to kill the diva chef. With one week until her wedding, Henny James is convinced Irene’s arrival from France will ruin the biggest day of her life. One week to save Irene from the trouble she brings with her and save the wedding. 

 

Recipes included.

 

Buy links:

paperback 

ebook 

#COOKING WITH CLORIS--PANZANELLA SALAD

Panzanella, sometimes called panmolle, is a Tuscan chopped salad that includes stale bread soaked in olive oil and toasted. It's a perfect meal for a hot summer day. I’ve added mozzarella and salami for a traditional Italian antipasto twist. Buon appetito!

Panzanella

Serves 4 as a meal or 6-8 as an appetizer

Ingredients:

1 stale baguette, cut into bite-size cubes

1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup rice vinegar

2 tablespoons Swedish dill mustard

2 cups fresh broccoli florets

1 teaspoon salt

1 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half or quartered (depending on size)

1 cucumber, diced

1/4 lb. salami, diced

1 cup fresh perlini mozzarella

Preheat over to 375 degrees F. Toss bread cubes with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Place on cookie sheet. Back 15 minutes or until golden brown, turning once.

While bread cubes are baking, blanch broccoli. To blanch, bring pot of water to boil, add salt and florets. Boil for 1-1/2 minutes. While broccoli is boiling, fill bowl with water and ice cubes. Drain broccoli and place in ice water to stop cooking process and cool. Drain cooled broccoli and set aside.

Place vegetables, bread cubes, salami, and mozzarella in large bowl.

Whisk together remaining oil, vinegar, and mustard. Pour into bowl, and toss ingredients to coat. Let stand 30 minutes before serving.

#COOKING WITH CLORIS--SKINNY CHICKEN SALAD

I once worked for a man who could devour a cup of mayonnaise in one sitting. He’d order a bowl of it with his lunch and dip potato chips in it. Oh the calories! Oh the cholesterol! Oh the clogged arteries! Most people love mayonnaise, but let’s face it, mayonnaise doesn’t love us back.

So what do you do to bind together all those summer salads we’re so fond of? Greek yogurt to the rescue! It works as a mayo substitute in pasta salad, tuna salad, seafood salad, potato salad, and chicken salad. Today I’m using it in chicken salad. Trust me, you won’t miss the mayo.

Note: The recipe calls for a rotisserie chicken, which can be purchased at any supermarket. However, you can also use pre-cooked chicken breasts, thighs, or tenders or leftover chicken you cooked yourself.

Skinny Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sundried tomatoes

1 rotisserie chicken

5.3 oz. container plain Greek yogurt

1 nectarine

1 cucumber

1/2 teaspoon dried dill

1/4 cup sliced almonds

Cut sundried tomatoes into small pieces and place in bowl of water to dehydrate.

Remove skin and bones from chicken. Dice chicken into bite-size pieces. Add yogurt and mix until chicken is evenly coated.

Dice nectarine and cucumber. Add to chicken. Mix in dried dill and almonds.

Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

COOKING WITH CLORIS--CHOP SALAD

Chop Salad

Summertime is salad time. When it’s hot, no one likes to heat up the kitchen, and sometimes (more often than not here in New Jersey in August when it’s not only hot but humid,) it’s even too uncomfortable outside to stand over the grill.

We’ve featured many scrumptious salad recipes over the past few years here at Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers, but my favorite salad is a Chop Salad. The secret to a Chop Salad is cutting all the ingredients into very small pieces. That way the flavors all meld together. With each mouthful you don’t taste lettuce or tomato or cucumber but a unique mélange.

You can make a chop salad from any salad ingredients you have on hand. There’s no one right way and no wrong ways. The salad pictured is made up of some of my favorites: romaine lettuce, zucchini, cucumber, tomatoes, avocado, and goat cheese drizzled with a Champaign vinagrette. Sometimes I add in a handful of dried cranberries and slivered roasted almonds.

Be creative. Choose your own favorite veggies, fruit, cheese, and dressing, and chop away!

ANASTASIA TAKES OVER COOKING WITH CLORIS FOR THE DAY

Sometimes necessity is the mother of invention, especially when you’re sorely in need of a trip to the supermarket. The other day I found myself alone for dinner after a long day at work. I was too hot and tired to cook and not up to tackling the rush hour supermarket lines. So I grabbed the assorted dregs from the fridge and wound up with a rather tasty meal. Cloris was quite proud of me. She’s always telling me to keep an open mind when it comes to salads. Here’s what I came up with. -- AP

ANASTASIA’S REFRIGERATOR ODDS & ENDS SALAD
(serves 1, multiply ingredients for more)

Ingredients:

1 cup baby spinach

1 hardboiled egg, sliced

1 small ripe avocado, cut into chunks

1 slice extra sharp cheddar cheese, torn into bite size pieces

1/2 cup blueberries

2 teaspoons Italian vinaigrette (or whatever salad dressing you have on hand)

Plate the spinach. Arrange the egg slices around the spinach. Add the avocado, cheese, and blueberries. Sprinkle dressing over salad.

Serve with croutons or crackers if you can find any in the pantry.

The beauty of this salad is that you can make all sorts of substitutions and still have a great meal. No spinach? Use lettuce. No blueberries? Use sliced strawberries, chopped apple, or dried fruit. No avocado? Add a can of artichoke hearts. No cheddar? Use any other cheese. So what kinds of odds & ends salads have you made? Post a comment for a chance to win a book from our Book Club Friday guest author. -- AP

COOKING WITH CLORIS -- WATERMELON & GOAT CHEESE SALAD

Food editor Cloris McWerther is back today with a salad recipe that will really keep you cool. -- AP

WATERMELON AND GOAT CHEESE SALAD

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon lime juice
4 cups seedless watermelon, rind removed and cut into chunks
1 seedless cucumber, sliced thin
3 cups mixed greens
3 oz. crumbled goat cheese
1/4 cup slivered almonds

In a small bowl whisk together olive oil, wine vinegar, and lime juice. Add watermelon, cucumber, and mixed greens to the bowl and toss. Divide into four portions. Top each with crumbled goat cheese and sprinkle on almonds.

Hmm…I’ll bet you could add some cooked shrimp or chicken to this recipe and make it a meal instead of a side dish. What do you think, readers? -- AP