Adapted from The Grrl Genius Guide to Life: A 12-Step Program on How to Become a Grrl Genius, According to Me! by Cathryn Michon.

Serves Enough

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 (or some) boiled white potatoes
• 2 (or some) boiled red potatoes
• 2 (or some) boiled purple potatoes
• 2 (or some) boiled Yukon gold potatoes
• 2 (or some) boiled sweet potatoes
• 3 hard-boiled eggs
• 1 each red, yellow, purple, green, and orange bell peppers, diced
• 1 red onion, diced
• 1 cup low-fat mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup nonfat yogurt
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons rough-cut Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 tablespoon aged balsamic vinegar
• 1 cup diced parsley
• Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Chop the potatoes and the hard-boiled eggs and put in an enormous bowl with the diced peppers and onion.
2. In a less-enormous bowl mix up all the other ingredients.
3. Dump the less enormous bowl into the more enormous bowl and toss gaily. Salt and pepper to taste.

Note: Delicious if you eat it now, even better tomorrow.

Posted by Angela under Dinner, Engagement Party Food, Picnic, Side Dishes

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups water
• 1 cup dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc
• 2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails removed
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon white-wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons creme fraiche
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh chives
• 2 small Belgian endives
• Thin crackers, for serving

DIRECTIONS:

1. Bring water, wine, 1 teaspoon salt, and the bay leaf to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.
2. Add half the shrimp, and cook until opaque, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer shrimp to a plate, and let cool. Repeat with remaining shrimp. Cut into 1/2-inch pieces.
3. Whisk together lemon juice, vinegar, and remaining 1 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. Pour in oil in a slow, steady stream, whisking until emulsified.
4. Whisk in creme fraiche. Fold in shallot, chives, and shrimp.
5. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (and up to 4 hours).
6. Just before serving, separate endive leaves, and thinly slice crosswise. Fold endive into shrimp mixture. Serve on crackers.

Posted by Angela under Appetizers, Engagement Party Food

Serves 8.

If you plan to serve the chicken later on the same day that you cook it, refrigerate it immediately after it has cooled, then let it come back to room temperature before serving. On the breast pieces, we use toothpicks to secure the skin, which otherwise shrinks considerably in the oven, leaving the meat exposed and prone to drying out. We think the extra effort is justified, but you can omit this step. This recipe halves easily.

INGREDIENTS:

• 5 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces (breasts, thighs, drumsticks, or a mix with breasts cut into 3 pieces or halved if small), trimmed of excess fat and skin
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons sweet paprika
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

DIRECTIONS:

1. Following illustrations below, use sharp knife to make 2 or 3 short slashes in skin of each piece of chicken, taking care not to cut into meat.
2. Combine salt, sugar, and spices in small bowl and mix thoroughly. Coat chicken pieces with spices, gently lifting skin to distribute spice rub underneath but leaving it attached to chicken.
3. Transfer chicken skin side up to wire rack set over rimmed foil-lined baking sheet, lightly tent with foil, and refrigerate 6 to 24 hours.
4. Secure skin of each breast piece with 2 or 3 toothpicks placed near edges of skin.
5. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 425 degrees.
6. Roast chicken until thickest part of smallest piece registers 140 degrees on instant-read thermometer, 15 to 20 minutes.
7. Increase oven temperature to 500 degrees and continue roasting until chicken is browned and crisp and thickest parts of breast pieces register 160 degrees, 5 to 8 minutes longer, removing pieces from oven and transferring to clean wire rack as they finish cooking.
8. Continue to roast thighs and/or drumsticks, if using, until thickest part of meat registers 170 to 175 degrees, about 5 minutes longer.
9. Remove from oven; transfer chicken to rack and let cool completely before refrigerating or serving.

Getting Chicken into Make-Ahead Shape:

When chicken is eaten at room temperature or cooler, a fowl’s usual flaws become magnified. For this recipe, we found that a modicum of extra prep work kept the flavor, texture, and appearance from suffering.

SCORE: Scoring the skin (but not the meat) provided outlets for melting fat, yielding more fully rendered, paper-thin skin.

RUB: Applying a salty spice rub both on the skin and beneath it ensured that neither exterior nor interior came out bland.

CHILL OUT: Air-drying the rubbed parts on a rack in the refrigerator overnight gave the flavors time to penetrate while also drying out the skin.

PIN DOWN: Securing the skin with toothpicks just before roasting kept the skin from shrinking up into an unattractive bundle.

Posted by Angela under Chicken, Dinner, Engagement Party Food, Lunch, Picnic

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 pound (2 cups ) raw penne pasta, cooked and drained
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1 small clove garlic
• 3/4 medium onion, coarsely chopped
• 1 generous cup (5 ounces) shredded good quality, extra-sharp cheddar cheese
• 5 ounces cream cheese, crumbled
• 2/3 cup (3 ounces) shredded Gruyere cheese
• Generous 1/8 teaspoon each hot red pepper flakes, salt, and freshly ground black pepper
• Generous 1/4 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 12 saltines, coarsely crumbled

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter a shallow 1 1/2 quart baking dish, and add cooked macaroni.
2. 2. In a blender or food processor combine egg, milk, and garlic, and process 3 seconds. Add onion, cheeses, peppers, salt, and paprika, and blend 10 seconds. Turn into dish, folding into macaroni. Casserole could be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated up to 24 hours at this point.
3. To bake, bring casserole close to room temperature. Melt butter in a small saucepan. Coat crackers with butter and spread over top of casserole. Bake about 20 to 25 minutes, or until thick yet creamy. If top is not golden, slip under broiler for a minute. Remove from oven, let stand about 5 minutes, and serve.

Posted by Angela under Casserole, Dinner, Engagement Party Food