The Small Town Chef

Poached shrimp, garden tomatoes, jalapeños, and sweet mandarins, piled onto crisp, Tajín-seasoned toasted corn tortillas. Some afternoons make you want to pull up another chair and stay awhile. This was one of them. Out-of-town family was over, we were catching up, and the day couldn’t have been better. The garden was still giving me tomatoes and jalapeños, and the afternoon sun had enough warmth to make you forget fall had officially arrived. Summer was clearly keeping a few things on the calendar. It was one of those days when you feel completely at ease. Good company, plenty to talk about, and nowhere else you’d rather be. The conversation wanders into “what if we…” territory, and suddenly a few new possibilities sound pretty good. Naturally, I started thinking about something to eat. With tomatoes and jalapeños ready to go, pico de gallo was an easy starting point. Then came the shrimp, avocado, and mandarins, and things got a little more interesting. Sw...

A bright, make-ahead pasta salad with crisp vegetables, two kinds of olives, fresh herbs, and charred lemon vinaigrette. I first made this orzo salad for a family get-together filled with pasta lovers—Italians, of course. I made what I thought was more than enough. Apparently, I was wrong. By the time I went looking for a little to save for lunch the next day, the bowl was empty. And I made a double batch! That was probably the best endorsement I could have gotten. What makes this orzo salad a little different isn't necessarily the ingredients. Cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, olives, onion, and fresh herbs are all pretty familiar territory. The difference is how I put everything together. Instead of tossing cold pasta with dressing and hoping it eventually picks up some flavor, I dress the orzo while it's still warm. The pasta absorbs that charred lemon vinaigrette as it cools, giving it flavor from the inside rather than simply coating...

Pistachio Pilaf, Roasted Red Pepper Sauce, Blistered Tomato–Olive Relish & Lemon Basil Once again, my sister-in-law showed up with fresh fish from our local farmers market, where she works. Every so often, the fishmonger has some extra fresh seafood at the end of the weekend. Through a bit of good fortune, some of it finds its way into my kitchen. That’s how the tilapia for my Tilapia Piccata with Scampi Rice landed here—and this time, it was about three pounds of beautiful Spanish mackerel fillets with the skin still intact. I instantly went to the Mediterranean. More specifically, the Spanish Mediterranean. Mackerel is a rich, flavorful fish that can stand up to fire, garlic, olives, capers, ripe tomatoes and the sweetness of roasted peppers. I had garden tomatoes ready to use, plenty of Mediterranean staples in the pantry and a bag of pistachios that gave me an idea for the rice. A short time later, voilà—dinner was on the table. The mackerel wen...