Mediterranean Barley Salad with Roasted Eggplant

A hearty salad full of Mediterranean flavor

This salad recipe is one of those that gets passed around from friends to potlucks and back again - a keeper. I first made it to bring to a picnic dinner at my neighbor B's house last Labor Day. I think it went over well; she's made it multiple times since then and is doing her best to spread the love around the neighborhood. She's good at that.

The basic recipe came out of this one from Gourmet.

I omitted the zucchini and olives from the original (I'm not a fan of either) and substituted cherry tomatoes, which lend their own sweet roasty, juices to the tender eggplant and toothsome barley. This is easily made vegetarian-friendly by using vegetable broth or water instead of chicken broth.

Make it once and pass it around...

Mediterranean Barley Salad with Roasted Eggplant
makes 8 side-dish servings

1 1/2 pounds eggplant, diced
4 cups cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup chopped green onion
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/4 cups pearl barley
2 1/2 - 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion, soaked in cold water 10 minutes; drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
6 ounces crumbled feta cheese

Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 425°F.

Toss eggplant with 2 tablespoons oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper on a large shallow (1-inch-deep) baking pan. Repeat with tomatoes on a second pan. Roast vegetables in oven, stirring occasionally and switching position of pans halfway through baking, until eggplant is golden brown and tender and tomatoes are brown and wrinkled, 20 to 25 minutes total.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 3- to 4-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then cook scallion, cumin, coriander, and cayenne, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add barley and cook, stirring until well coated with oil, 2 minutes more. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until all of liquid is absorbed and barley is tender, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 5 minutes. Transfer barley to baking pan with roasted tomatoes and spread to quickly cool, uncovered, about 20 minutes.

Whisk together lemon juice, garlic, sugar, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 3 tablespoons oil in a large bowl. Add barley and tomatoes, eggplant, onion and mint to bowl with dressing and toss until combined well.

Sprinkle cheese over the salad and serve.

Make ahead note: Salad can be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Return to room temperature before serving.



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Comfort Food: Perfect Roast Chicken

Crisp, golden, juicy roast chicken - it's really good

We’re just back from our rear end-numbing road trip to Maine, and as good as it was to get outta town, arriving home feels like work. There’s more laundry and unpacking to do, along with grocery shopping and cleaning the kitchen, since no matter how much I try to clean out the fridge before a vacation, I’m always greeted on my return by some forgotten container of leftovers and yogurt with green hair growing out of it.

A simple meal like roast chicken is so easy and comforting when the cupboard is bare. All you need – besides the chicken of course - are basic seasonings, a hot oven or, if the weather is nice, an outdoor grill.

I don’t know why, but the thought of cooking a whole chicken (yes, with the bones!) can seem daunting to some cooks. For instance, my mother hardly ever served roasted chicken when I was growing up – instead, it was saved for special occasions at a restaurant.

And I know how convenient it’d be to pick up a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, but I have a problem with those; by the time you get it home, the chicken has been stewing under a heat lamp for hours; dried out and overcooked.

I’ve been making a version of this chicken recipe for years now. Sometimes we roast it on the grill, which produces an even better chicken with crisp, golden skin and a delicious smoky aroma. The method is from Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, a cookbook I consider an absolute necessity in the kitchen.

This is also a great way to make use of any leftovers the next day. Make a chicken taco with some shredded chicken, or pile chunks on some crusty bread and make a panini with basil, goat cheese and slow roasted tomatoes.

Perfect Roast Chicken

1 3 1/2 – 4 pound chicken
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 small lemon
Optional seasonings, depending on what you have on hand:
A handful of fresh herbs, such as rosemary, thyme, basil, parsley
One or two garlic cloves



Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Put the chicken in a shallow roasting pan or casserole and pat the skin dry with paper towels.

Mix together the salt and pepper in a small dish; season the chicken on all sides, rubbing over the skin into the cavity.

Poke about a dozen holes in the lemon with a fork or a skewer and place in the cavity. Tuck the herbs and/or garlic in with the lemon, if using, and tie the legs together with a 12-inch-long piece of kitchen twine.

Arrange the chicken breast side down and roast for 30 minutes. Turn the chicken over and roast an additional 30 minutes.

Raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees for 20 minutes, or until the skin is golden and juices run clear from the thigh when pierced with a fork.

Remove from the oven and let rest 10 minutes before slicing or carving. Save the juices that run out and serve with the chicken.

To roast in an outdoor grill, prepare grill for indirect cooking and heat to medium-high. Place chicken breast down directly on the grill rack and cook as described above.



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Garden Fresh: Roasted Red Pepper and Basil Sauce

Roasted and Rustic

I wish I could say that I plucked ripe red bell peppers out of my garden to make this; what I really did was buy a large bag of peppers at Costco. Along with a few cherry tomatoes and homegrown basil, this sauce is a great thing to have on hand for a quick meal, to serve over pasta, grilled shrimp or chicken.

I find the process of roasting peppers therapeutic; something about the way they spit and sizzle while they roast, combined with the pungent smell of charred vegetable says "delicious" to me.

My kids however, walk into the kitchen making unattractive gagging sounds when they smell them.
It must be the same instinct that compels small children to pick bits of unidentified spices out of their hot dogs. They'll come around, someday.

Roasted Red Pepper-Basil Sauce

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 or 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
6 red bell peppers, roasted and peeled *
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper


Warm the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat; add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes, stirring from time to time.

Transfer the garlicky oil to a food processor along with the remaining ingredients and pulse to form a chunky sauce. Taste for seasoning. Serve at room temperature over pasta or as an accompaniment to grilled seafood, meat or poultry.

Keeps up to 4 days, refrigerated.

* To roast bell peppers, place them on a sheet of foil 3 to 4 inches under a preheated broiler element (or put them on your outdoor grill rack, with the grill on medium-high direct heat). Turn them as each side turns dark brown (but not incinerated!). When they're evenly roasted, put them in a large bowl; cover and let them steam about 15 minutes. When cool enough to handle, peel off the skins and discard the stems and seeds.

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Roasted Asparagus with Arugula and Shallot Vinaigrette

Asparagus: It's What's for Dinner

Last week, I had the great opportunity to meet the celebrated food writer Patricia Wells at a private event sponsored by the St. Louis Culinary Society. She was in town promoting her new cookbook, Vegetable Harvest. She talked about her experience writing, testing and photographing all the recipes for the book and her absolute reverence for pure, fresh food came through bright and clear. How many people notice the "beautiful purple striations" in a shallot? I like her even more.

I’ve always been a fan of her simple, rustic cooking. I wore out my copy of Bistro Cooking when I was first teaching myself to cook, and still make a variation of her Sautéed Chicken with Shallots. My other favorites are the five flavored (chocolate, honey, lemon, pistachio and hazelnut) madeleine recipes in her book, Simply French. Luckily, these were two titles I didn’t lose in the flood.

And who could help envying her lifestyle? She lives in Provence in an old restored farmhouse, surrounded by olive trees, vineyards and lush vegetable gardens. No wonder this book inspires me! The recipes are all uncomplicated and full of the Mediterranean flavors I crave.

I went straight home and made this recipe from the book – just add a serving of grilled chicken or salmon and some crusty bread. Call it dinner.

Roasted Asparagus with Arugula and Shallot Vinaigrette

Adapted from Vegetable Harvest by Patricia Wells
Four servings

1 pound asparagus, bottoms trimmed
Shallot Vinaigrette (recipe follows)
Coarse sea salt
6 cups prewashed baby arugula
2 finely chopped green onions
1/4 cup shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (use a vegetable peeler)

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Toss asparagus on a baking sheet with 2 tablespoons of the shallot vinaigrette and season with salt. Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons water over asparagus.
Roast asparagus until slightly brown at the tips and slightly firm, about 12 minutes.
Toss arugula and green onions in a large bowl with remaining vinaigrette. Arrange on a serving platter and top with asparagus. Scatter the cheese over the top.


Shallot Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons minced shallots
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Grated zest of 1 lemon
Pinch salt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Place all ingredients in a small jar with a lid. Cover and shake until creamy and emulsified.
Can be refrigerated up to one day ahead.



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