From the Left Burner: Seasonal Dinners
Early Summer
From the Left Burner: Seasonal Dinners is my series dedicated to showcasing minimal, regional dishes for a three course meal. Each newsletter provides links to quality ingredients and tools, along with tips on planning and budgeting for four people, keeping it under $25 per person. This week was over the $25, coming in around $40 per person (a dinner for two people) however there was a lot of leftovers including cookies and gelato. And there was a lot of eggplant leftover so it ended up in a sauce for gnocchi (see below).
Before getting into the recipes, sharing a round up of a few things I cooked and enjoyed during June so far.
Gnocchi alla norma
This sauce turned out amazing. Here is the link for how I make gnocchi. For the sauce, all I did was mix the leftover eggplant puree (recipe below) with passata, basil leaves, and salt. Simmered for 45 minutes.
Gorgonzola watercress tramezzino
Quick recipe details:
[ ] .25lb gorgonzola piccante
[ ] 3 tbsp olive oil
[ ] watercress
[ ] sandwich bread
[ ] lemon juice
[ ] salt
4 hours before making leave the gorgonzola out on a counter to soften.
Mash the gorgonzola with the olive oil to create a creamy spread.
Toss the watercress in lemon juice and salt
Trim two pieces of sandwich bread of it’s crust and spread the gorgonzola on both pieces.
Place a good amount of watercress in the center of the bottom slice. Place the top slice ontop and press down on the sides so that the center remains puffed up.
I made four sandwiches in total.
Strawberry, butterbean blossom honey, and goat yogurt
This goat yogurt has been on sale at Whole Foods for a bit and I love it. I wish the packaging design was something else.
La Tur: Cow, Goat & Sheep - Caseificio dell'Alta Langa - Piedmont, Italy
I’m waiting on a certain fruit to be ripe to eat this with! Have you had it? Thoughts?
Swordfish
I’ve shared on Instagram in a caption how I prepare swordfish (back in 2022) but the gist of it is make a marinade of olive oil, black pepper, sliced garlic, bay leaves, wild sicilian oregano or rosemary, and salt. In a hot carbon steel pan or stainless steel pan fry each side for 3 mins (for thin steaks like this one). If you’re feeling like swordish and eggplant in a dish together, here is my Caponata recipe, my recipe includes pickled celery. I swear it’s a game changer.
Chinotto
Looking for a refreshing drink this summer, try Chinotto.
On to the recipes, you’ll find a shopping list with prices + links and a cooking schedule.
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