Guest Post: A Taste of the Mediterranean

Mr. DD&D here, the Mrs. has the week off. I cooked a light meal which I thought was appropriate for a hot summer night. The theme is Mediterranean cuisine which I chose because I love the flavors and simple but delicious food of the Mediterranean (the climate, beach, mountains, and wine aren't bad either!) Enjoy . . .

Drink...

Negroni

The Negroni is a classic cocktail and great apéritif. This drink is believed to have been invented in 1919 in Florence, and it's still around because it's damn good. Here's the recipe:
Ingredients:

• 1 oz. Campari
• 1 oz. Sweet Vermouth
• 1 oz. Gin
• Ice
• Twist of Lemon

Directions:

1. Place ice in shaker, pour liquids into shaker, shake contents vigorously, strain into a cocktail glass. 
2. Garnish with a twist of lemon. 

 Alternatively, place ice into rocks glass, pour in liquids, and stir well before garnishing with the lemon twist. It is very important to keep equal proportions with the booze, this isn't an "eyeball it" drink. Note: I like a squeeze of lemon juice in mine, but this isn't part of the traditional recipe.
For the uninitiated, Campari is a bright-red Italian liqueur which is very bitter and has a unique taste, with orange being the dominant flavor. The ingredients on this list might seem like an odd pairing, but it works because the sweetness of the vermouth offsets the bittness of the Campari. The gin adds a nice floral/herbiness and contributes to the dryness of the drink, which stimulates the appetite. 

If cocktails aren't your thing, a glass of rosé from the Côtes de Provence would pair perfectly with our meal. 

Dinner...

Soupe au Pistou 
recipe from: Alice Waters, Chez Panisse: Vegetables

Soupe au pistou is a summer vegetable soup from the Provence region of France. What makes it special is the addition of a dollop of pistou, the French version of pesto. The major difference between the two is that pistou doesn't contain pine nuts, unlike traditional pesto. Once you eat the soup, the pistou infuses every bite with deliciousness. Take advantage of the summer harvest!

Ingredients:
(serves 6)

• 1 pound (1 cup shelled) fresh beans (e.g. Cannellini)
• 1 onion
• Bouquet garni: Thyme, parsley stems, cracked peppercorns, bay leaf
• 1 pound green beans (haricot verts)
• 2 green zucchini
• 2 yellow summer squash
• 2 tomatoes
• Salt and pepper
• 1/4 pound orzo, conchiglie, or orrechiette pasta
• 1 baguette 

Pistou

• 6 cloves garlic
• 2 cups basil leaves
• Reggiano Parmesan cheese
• Extra-virgin olive oil

Directions:

1. Shell the beans and cook them for about 30 minutes in 2 quarts salted water with the onion, cut in quarters, and the bouquet garni. 
2. While the beans are cooking, cut the green beans, zucchini, and yellow squash into chunks roughly the size of the tip of your finger, so each spoonful of soup will have a variety of different vegetables. 
3. Peel, seed, and chop the tomatoes. Strain any juice from the seeds through a sieve into the bean broth. 
4. When the shell beans are tender, drain them, reserving the liquid.
5. Remove the bouquet garni and the onion quarters and discard. 
6. Bring the bean broth back to a broil and lower the heat. Season with salt. 
7. Add the green beans to the broth, and when it has returned to a simmer again, add the zucchini and yellow squash. When the broth returns to a simmer again, add the shell beans and diced tomatoes and let it all cook together gently for 20 minutes. Add the pasta after 10 minutes. The broth should be busy with vegetables, but add some more liquid if they get too crowded. 
8. To make the pistou, pound the garlic cloves to a purée in a mortar, add all the basil leaves, roughly chopped, and keep pounding and working until you obtain a paste. Add a small handful of grated Parmesan and thin out with some olive oil. [Note: I made this with a food processor because I lack a mortar and pestle. It worked fine.] 
9. When the pasta is cooked, taste the soup and adjust the seasoning. Let the soup sit for an hour and reheat it before serving. Bring the pistou to the table in its mortar (or a bowl). Serve the soup with a generous spoonful of pistou in each bowl and pass a bowl with more grated Parmesan. Serve with a baguette.

Dessert...

Fresh figs and goat cheese

I thought this dessert was a perfect end to this meal for a few reasons. First, it uses Mediterranean ingredients (figs, goat cheese, honey). Second, it is simple like the other course—the flavors of the ingredients speak for themselves. Third, fresh figs are in season now, so why not take advantage? Finally, it combines the cheese course and the sweets course into one dish! We liked it.

Ingredients:

• Fresh figs
• Goat cheese
• Honey
• Cracked black pepper (optional)

Directions:
This is about as simple as it gets. 

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. 
2. While the oven is pre-heating, wash the figs and then slice them in an "x pattern," making sure to cut only 3/4 of the way through the figs. 
3. Add a dollop to goat cheese into each fig, and cook in the oven for 10–12 minutes. 
4. After cooking, drizzle figs with honey, add freshly-cracked black pepper (optional), and serve.

Note: the pepper can make this more of an appetizer than a dessert, so you may wish to skip the pepper. It is tasty either way.