Swordfish with Parsley-Shallot Salad

Prep time: 40 minutes, plus 1 hour for marinating

Cooking time: 12 minutes

Makes 6 servings

Fish

• About ¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons capers
• 2 tablespoons caper juice (from the jar)
• 1½ teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh herbs, such as parsley, oregano and/or basil
• Tiny pinch of sugar
• Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
• 6 swordfish steaks, ½ to ¾ inch thick, about 5 ounces each
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Salad

• 3 cups loosely packed parsley leaves
• 1 shallot, thinly sliced, rinsed and patted dry
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil

1. To marinate the fish: Stir ½ cup of the olive oil and all the remaining ingredients except the fish in a large roasting pan. Add the fish, and marinate, turning a few times, for 1 hour at room temperature (or up to 4 hours in the refrigerator; bring to room temperature before cooking). Remove the fish from the marinade and scrape off stuck-on solids, and return them to the pan. Reserve the -marinade—it will become your sauce—and pat the fish dry with paper towels.

2. Put 2 large heavy skillets over medium-high heat, and pour 1 tablespoon oil into each. When the oil is hot, slide 3 pieces of fish into each pan. Cook for 3 minutes, then turn over, and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, adding a little more oil if necessary. Cook until the fish is just opaque at the center but still juicy. Transfer to a serving platter. Wipe out the oil in one of the skillets, put it over medium heat, and pour in the marinade. Cook just until hot.

3.To make the salad: Toss the parsley and shallot together, season with salt and pepper, and dress with the lemon juice and olive oil. Put a puff of salad on top of each swordfish steak, and pass the sauce at the table.

Served with: Oven-Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

Prep time: 12 minutes

Baking time: 2 to 3 hours

Serves 6

• 1½ pints cherry or grape tomatoes
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ teaspoon salt, preferably fleur de sel or fine sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
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Center a rack in the oven, and preheat to 225°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut the tomatoes in half crosswise, and put them cut-side down on the baking sheet. Drizzle them with a little olive oil (about 1 tablespoon; you just want them to have a sheen), and sprinkle them with
the salt and pepper. Scatter the thymeover the tomatoes. Roast for about 3 hours, or until they’re wrinkled and a little dry looking (if you press themgently, you’ll see that they still have some juice, which is just what youwant). If you’re not using the tomatoes immediately, you can pack them in a jar, cover them with olive oil, and serve them at room temperature.

Onions Carbonara*

Prep time: 32 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Makes 6 servings

• 2 pounds onions, halved, thinly sliced and separated into half rings
• 5 strips bacon
• ½ cup cream, heavy or light
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 to 3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
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1. Use a steamer or a large pot with a steaming basket; bring the water to a simmer. Add the onions, cover, and let them steam for 6 minutes, or until they are just al dente. Removethe basket from the pot. (You can do this up to 3 hours before serving. Let the onions cool, then cover them lightly.)

2.Lay the bacon strips in a cold skillet, place the skillet over medium heat, and cook, turning occasionally, until the bacon is crisp on both sides. Drain, then coarsely chop the strips. (You can do this ahead as well.)

3. Just before you’re ready to serve, whisk ¼ cup of the cream and the egg yolk together in a small bowl. Place a skillet large enough to hold all the ingredients over medium-low heat, and add the butter. When it has melted, add the bacon, and pour in the remaining¼ cup cream. Warm it for just
30 seconds, then scrape in the steamed onions, season with the salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until the onions are heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, and stir in the reserved cream-yolk mixture as well as the grated Parmesan. Serve immediately.

*Recipe from Around My French Table, by Dorie Greenspan (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010).

Marie-Helene's Apple Cake*

Prep time: 25 minutes

Baking time: 50 minutes

Makes 8 servings

• ¾ cup all-purpose flour
• ¾ teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 4 large apples (preferably 4 different kinds)
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• ¾ cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons dark rum
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• Whipped heavy cream, lightly sweetened, or ice cream (optional)
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1. Center a rack in the oven, and preheat to 350°. Generously butter an 8-inch springform pan, and put on a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.

2. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a small bowl. Peel and core the apples, and cut them into 1- to 2-inch chunks. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with a whisk until they’re foamy. Pour in the sugar, and whisk for a minute or so to blend. Whisk in the rum and vanilla. Whisk in half the flour mixture, and when it is incorporated, add half the melted butter, followed by the rest of the flour and the remaining butter, mixing gently after each addition so that you have a smooth, rather thick batter. Switch to a rubber spatula, and fold in the apples, turning the fruit so that it’s coated with batter. Scrape the mix into the pan, and even it out a bit.

3. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until the top of the cake is golden brown and a knife inserted deep into the center comes out clean; the cake may pull away from the sides of the pan. Transfer to a cooling rack, and let rest for 5 minutes. Carefully run a bluntknife around the edges of the cake, and remove the sides of the pan. (Open the springform slowly, and make sure there aren’t any apples stuck to it.) Allow the cake to cool until it is just slightly warm or at room temperature. If you want to remove the cake from the bottom of the springform pan, wait until the cake is almost cooled, then run a long spatula between the cake and the pan, cover the top of the cake with a piece of parchment or wax paper, and invert it onto a rack. Carefully remove the bottom of the pan, and turn the cake over onto a serving dish.

4. The cake can be served warm or at room temperature, with or without a little softly whipped, barely sweetened heavy cream or ice cream. (The cake can be kept for 2 days at room temperature; press plastic wrap or wax paper against the cut surfaces.)

*Recipe from Around My French Table, by Dorie Greenspan (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010).

Want MORE? Check out Ann Hood's essay about a romantic trip to Argentina.

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