|
 Carol
White, who lives in Napa Valley, is a cookbook editor; formerly,
she was a food editor for one of Canada's most popular lifestyle
magazines. As well, she produced a weekly recipe column for
Canada's largest newspaper, The Toronto Star. She's passionate
about cooking and has evolved a style of cuisine that is rich
in flavor, relatively low in fat; it relies on the freshest,
best-quality ingredients available. Above all, Carol's dishes
are casual and simple — the quintessential wine-country
fare.
- Braised Beef Brisket
There are as many recipes for beef brisket as there are cooks who
make it, but this is one of my favorites. I usually start preparing this
dish about 3 to 5 days ahead of the time I plan on serving it. Get your
brisket from a good meat market. Some butchers always have briskets
available, others get them sporadically and you may need to special
order your brisket.
- Cindy Pawlcyn’s Campfire Pie
One of Napa Valley’s culinary giants, Cindy Pawlcyn has been cooking
delectable American fare with worldly sophistication since she opened
Mustards Grill in Yountville 20 years ago. Last year, Cindy opened
Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen in St. Helena, where the menu also
features distinctively American-style cuisine, but many of the dishes
are inspired by favorites from the 50s and 60s.
- Garden Vegetable and Bean Soup with Pistou
This version of the classic French soupe au pistou is one of my all-time
favorite summer dishes. “Pistou” is the French version of the Italian pesto. In
this dish, it’s used as a condiment and stirred into the soup just before you
take that first spoonful.
- Summer Tomato & Bread Soup with Basil
Make this delicious, rich-flavored soup when you have an excess of ripe tomatoes on hand. If you're lucky enough to have prolific tomato plants in the garden, this is one of the best things you can do with an abundant harvest. You can make this from all the same variety of tomatoes, such as Roma or Early Girl, or use anything and everything you have on hand.
- Sautéed Swiss Chard With Garlic
Swiss chard is one of my favorite side dishes. A member of the beet family,
chard is commonly available in both white and red-ribbed varieties. For
gardeners, there’s even a rainbow variety in vibrant shades of yellow, red
and green that brightens up any kitchen garden.
- Linguine With Pesto and Green Beans
In summer, one of my greatest joys is preparing meals that rely
almost entirely on produce from the garden. Of these, many of my
favorite menus start with pesto.
- Sautéed Baby Zucchini with Shaved Parmigiano
I must confess that I’ve only recently come to appreciate the charms of
summer squash. In the past, I thought zucchini and its cousins were a
lackluster group that only assumed the personality of their closest
companions. But after growing several varieties in my garden (including the
lovely yellow sunburst squash, a French variety of green zucchini, and the
pale green ronde de nice), I’ve had an abundance of summer squash to cook
and experiment with and have started to understand just why they’re so
popular.
- Roasted Potatoes with Sage
I always have a few sage plants in the garden as I love the look of
sage and I use it in many different dishes. It’s easy to grow and
doesn’t require any special soil; just keep it well drained and make
sure it gets plenty of sun. There are many varieties of sage, all of
which look attractive in the garden (e.g., purple-leaf, pineapple sage,
Holt’s mammoth with its extra-large leaves), but my favorite is the
common kitchen or garden sage. It’s the one that has the most
intense and true sage flavor.
- Grilled Lamb with Rosemary, Garlic and Balsamic Vinegar
One of the great joys of living in Napa Valley is that many of my favorite herbs
grow year round. For much of the year, I can walk out to the garden and harvest
a mixed bouquet whenever the mood strikes. Such luxury! Rosemary is
especially prolific and some of the small plants I planted when I first moved here
six years ago are now about waist height and have encroached on everything
that was formerly in their path.
- Sautéed Spinach
with Grated Lemon Zest
I like to prepare a few side dishes that can be made ahead
of time and one or two that I can cook just before serving.
The trick to these last-minute side dishes is to get all
the prep done earlier in the day so that you can do the
final steps without getting frazzled!
- Fat-Free Potato
Salad
No one will believe that this is a fat-free dish. It’s
loaded with flavor
and tastes like the real thing that is made with mayo.
- Linguine
with Tomato Sauce
This is one of my all-time-favorite pasta dishes and it’s
shockingly simple to make. You can use spaghetti or any
ribbon pasta, but for some reason, I’m partial to linguine.
Of course, the tastier and riper the tomatoes, the better
the sauce. In winter, I often buy Roma tomatoes when they
look good and let them ripen for a few days. Then I make
this dish and dream about summer and my vegetable garden.
- Tuscan Beans
with Sage and Garlic
Of all the dishes I prepare, this is the single most requested
recipe. And the good news is that it's a snap to make. Although
you can start with any type of dried white beans, I prefer
navy beans. I like the flavor, plus they don't require any
presoaking! I strongly recommend that you use a very fragrant,
flavor-rich olive oil as a good oil adds great flavor to
this dish. Serve with meat, fish, poultry or vegetarian
dishes.
- Mixed
Salad Greens with Blue Cheese
In summer, I grow a variety of salad greens and fill a basket
with assorted leaves in the late afternoon, when the temperature
starts to cool. But you can also buy superb salad mixes
at your local farmers’ market, where there are usually
numerous excellent assortments, most of which are organic.
As well, many grocery stores have good produce sections
and often carry organic salad mixes.
- Country Chickpea
Soup with Fennel and Pecorino Romano
There are many reasons why I love this dish and why I make
it as often as I do. The first, of course, is that it's
delicious. The second is that it's one of the quickest and
easiest dishes in my repertoire. And last, but not least,
it's relatively healthy and very low in fat.
- Boiled New
Potatoes with Fresh herbs
Everyone in my family loves potatoes - although we do have
varying opinions on what constitutes the perfect potato
dish. For me, this is unequivocally my favorite potato dish
and I serve it often. I do, however, vary the herb mix.
For those occasions when I don't have fresh herbs on hand,
I simply use finely chopped lemon zest and coarsely ground
pepper. Or if you only have a few sprigs of parsley in the
fridge, this works well too.
- Braised
Whole Leeks
Leeks, the aristocrat of the onion family, are far more
delicate in flavor than their ubiquitous cousins (onions,
garlic, chives, scallions). They add great flavor to soups,
stews and pasta dishes - but they're also delicious braised
whole and served alongside roast chicken, grilled fish or
beef dishes. I like to serve them on an oval platter, with
the leeks lined up in single file and drizzled with the
thickened juices remaining in the pan. Make this with amontillado
sherry, which is medium-sweet. Anything dryer than that
will not produce the same delectable results.
- Fettuccine
with Caramelized Radicchio, Lemon Juice and Pecorino Romano
Cheese
This delicious dish is quick and easy to make. If you don’t
have lemon on hand, you can substitute balsamic vinegar.
As well, you can grate the cheese yourself and serve it
in a bowl or pass around a large wedge of cheese with a
hand grater and let your guests grate their own over the
pasta. Serve with a mixed green salad and crusty bread.
- Oven-Broiled
Salmon Fillets With Thyme and Lemon Zest
This delicious salmon dish is ridiculously quick and easy
to make. For best results, buy your salmon the same day
you intend to cook it.
- Wine-Country
Beef Daube
Beef daube is a classic French beef stew made with wine,
vegetables
and herbs and slowly braised until the beef is meltingly
tender and
the stewpot is tantalizingly fragrant!
- Fettuccine
with Leeks, Carrots & Thyme
On nights when we need a break from meat and heavy protein
dinners, I often make this delicious pasta dish. As well,
I only make
this when I have rich-flavored chicken stock on hand, because
good
stock is essential to this dish.
- Sunday
Roast Chicken
This is one of the most popular dishes in our home (I often
serve it
to company, but it also makes frequent appearances on Sunday,
when family comes to visit, hence the name).
- Roasted
Red Onions
This is one of my all-time-favorite side dishes. Every time
I serve it,
guests ask for the recipe. Even friends who think they don’t
like
onions fall in love with this dish.
- Pasta e
Fagioli
This traditional Italian pasta and bean soup is so hearty
that I usually serve it as a main dish at dinner.
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