London Broil with Twice Baked Potatoes and Baked Avocados

The London Broil and the Twice Baked Potato have been here before(we did the mushroom caps on the grill right along with the meat). The new item here is the baked avocado. Our daughter-in-law Mina served it at our son Greg's graduation party so we thought we'd try it. Start by frying one strip of bacon. In the same pan, saute 1/4C diced onion and a couple diced mushrooms until the onions are tender. Drain all three well. The original recipe called for removing the avocado from its skin and dicing it but we wanted to preserve the skin for the presentation so it was scooped out using a melon baller. Mix the avocado, the bacon mixture and 1T fresh lemon juice in a baking dish with 1/4C shredded chedder cheese and bake at 350 for 15 min. This is for the meat from one avocado. Put the mix back in the skin, garnish with a cherry tomato and serve. Very tasty and very rich.

Moroccan Lamb Stew - Adapted from Epicurious

This is one of those mid-east recipes that we love. Spices like cinnamon, cloves, ginger and allspice tend to remind us of "sweet" dishes (the infamous "Cinnabun"). But they have a place in savory dishes as will. So, start by making a mix of 1/2t salt, 1/4t black pepper, 1/4t ground cinnamon and 1/8t ground allspice. Mix the spices well and then add 1-1/2 lb. lamb stew meat. Toss to coat. Brown the meat in 2T olive oil, remove the meat and add 1C diced onion, 2 cloves minced garlic and 1T minced fresh ginger. When the onions have softened add 1/2C red wine and 1/2C water and deglaze the pan. Then return the meat to the pan and place in a 275 degree oven for about 2 hrs or until the meat is fork tender. Add one large orange, peeled and sectioned, 2T orange zest and 2t honey. Heat through and serve with couscous, rice, or, as we did with saffron pasta purchased at our farmers market. We had a tomato and cucumber salad, bread and a dry red wine with the stew.

Pasta in Cream Sauce with Prosciutto Mushrooms and Asparagus - Adapted from Bon Appetit

This is a nice recipe you can literally make in the time it takes to cook the pasta. We used fettuccine but use your favorite. The recipe calls for fresh peas but we didn't have any so we left them out. While you heat the water, dice 4 oz. each of mushrooms, prosiutto and asparagus. In addition, grate 1/4C fresh Parmesan cheese and chop 3T chive batons for garnish. When you put the pasta in the water to cook, add the other ingredients to a saute pan along with 2T butter. Cook until the mushrooms are tender being careful not to overcook the asparagus. Add 1C heavy cream and reduce by 1/3. Right at the end, add several cherry tomatoes. Drain the pasta and add to the pan with the sauce, tossing to coat. Top with the chive batons and the grated cheese. Delicious and rich dish.

Trout Stuffed with Fiddlehead Ferns - From Jamie Oliver

We found some fresh fiddle-heads (the small sprouts of a fern) at our farmers market. They, like ramps, are a spring crop not available here after late spring. Saute about 4 oz. of them in 3T butter until they are barely tender. Season with salt and pepper and mix them with 1/2C bread crumbs, 1T fresh lemon juice and 1t tarragon. Season the trout inside and out with salt and pepper to taste. Rub the inside and skin of the trout with butter and dust with flour. Stuff the fiddlehead mixture into the trout and bake in a 400 degree oven for about 15 min; until the fish is flaky. The potatoes are the Smashed Redskins which have appeared many times before. We served the fish with a chilled dry white wine. This is a wonderful dish that shows off the delicate flavor of both the trout and the nuttiness of the fiddleheads.

Marinated Chicken Tenders with Grilled Asparagus and Baked Potato

Here's a quick easy dinner involving a simple marinade and the grill. We happened to have chicken breast but you could use your favorite pieces. Make a marinade by whisking together 1/2C olive oil, 3T vinegar, 1T Dijon mustard, 1t thyme, 1/4t cayenne pepper and 1 clove of minced garlic. Place the chicken in the marinade for 2-3 hrs before cooking. Cook the chicken and the asparagus on the grill while heating the leftover marinade to a simmer on the stove. Drizzle the cooked marinade (make sure to cook it since it has been in contact with the raw chicken) over the chicken.

Ramp Pizza with Prosciutto and Mushrooms

Ramps are an early spring crop also called "wild leeks". They have a distinct taste some-where between garlic and onion. That's one pictured on the plate. We put a dozen of them that had been well cleaned into a food processor along with 1/3C olive oil and blended until smooth. Spread the ramp mix on a pizza crust and add your favorite toppings. (We used prosciutto, fresh tomatoes, sauted mushrooms and mozzarella cheese). Things such as pepperoni or spicy sausage would overpower the taste of the ramps but anchovies would be nice.

Tandori Chicken Soup with Lentils and Mushrooms

We wanted a light meal with some of the leftover Tandori chicken below and decided to make soup. We used 1-14 oz. can of chicken stock, one rib of celery, one carrot, one clove of garlic and one onion. Simmer this for about 30 min. along with a piece of the tandori chicken with the skin on to flavor the stock. Let the stock cool and remove the veggies and discard. Skin and dice the chicken. Saute 6 oz. sliced mushrooms in 2T butter and then add to the stock. Add 1/2C raw green lentils and simmer until the lentils are tender but not too soft. Finish the soup with a handful of chopped spinach. A nice light supper...