Midsummer
The magic of Midsummer solstice came last week together with a two-day heat wave that left most of us gasping. It was difficult to imagine those cool dusk filled evenings portrayed in Swedish movies as young and old gather around bonfires to celebrate Midsummer or St. John’s night. The saint’s name came with Christianity to a previously pagan celebration of the arrival and fruitfulness of summer, celebrated with song, dancing, beer, cheese, herring and other savory and sweet special dishes.
It was time to think of dinners with grilled meat, take advantage of early summer fruit and incorporate them in our meals from breakfast to desert time. Pancakes are simple and easy any day and a good pancake mix that requires only a measure of mix plus water becomes so much more, when you incorporate an egg in the batter and stir in bite size peaches before cooking.
Peach pancakes
Measure out 1 cup pancake mix and lightly beat with 1 large egg and water as per package directions, decreasing the water by 2 tblsp. per 1 cup mix. Pit a peach (no need to peel), distribute the dice evenly in the batter and fry 3-to-4-inch pancakes. Serve with or without strawberries and maple syrup or jam. Peach pancakes might only be beaten by fresh Maine blueberries, but for that we will have to wait until late July.
Steak with rice-kimchi fritters
Grill or fry in a very hot cast-iron pan, a salted and peppered 1 inch ribeye steak for 3-4 minutes on a side. Baste with Korean barbeques sauce and cook for an additional 30 seconds to a minute on side, remove to a platter and pour any remaining sauce on top. Allow to rest for 10 minutes and slice on diagonal.
For fritters: beat 1 large egg with 2 tbsp. flour, 1 tsp. baking powder and ½ tsp. salt. Stir in 1 ½ -2 cups cooked rice (preferably day-old leftover). Drain 1 cup kimchi, chop the leaves and stir into the rice mix. Allow to sit for 10 minutes for the flavors to blend and then fry fritters in 1 tbsp. olive oil and 1 tbsp. butter for 4 minutes to the side. Serve with dipping sauce: ¼ cup soy sauce plus 1 tbsp. white vinegar.
Serve steak with fritters, some greens and enjoy the blending of the flavors.
Each spring and early summer we savor a favorite rhubarb-cherry pie. This recipe has an interesting history since it was inspired by a Maine Public Television program that was not a cooking show. This show featured a series of garden design discussions between a woman Maine gardener and one of the curators of the Kew British Royal Gardens. Somewhere between white and night fragrant gardens the lady from Maine mentioned that she had just baked a rhubarb-cherry pie, since rhubarb was plentiful in her garden. It sounded intriguing and with a bit of second guessing I came up with my own recipe. Rhubarb need a bit of taming in a pie and many cooks accomplish this with strawberries. Unfortunately, my husband is allergic to strawberries, so discovering a combination with dried cherries saved the day.
Rhubarb-cherry pie
Wash rhubarb and cut stalks in ¾ inch lengths to make 3 and ½ cups. Roll out a ready-made pie crust for the supermarket deli case and fit in a 9-inch pie plate. Toss 1 ½ cups sugar with 3 tbsp. cornstarch and spread 1/3 over the bottom of the pastry. In a large bowl toss the rhubarb, ½ cup dried cherries with the remaining sugar mix and spread evenly in the pan. Grate 1 tsp. lemon zest over the surface and dot with 1 tblsp. butter. Cover the pie with the second crust, crimp the sides and cut some vents on top. Lightly baste the top with cream and sprinkle with nutmeg. Bake in a 450-degree preheated oven for 15 minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue baking for another 20 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
(I. Winicov Harrington lives in coastal Maine and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day…”and “Uncharted Journey from Riga”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)
