Table For Two
Table For Two-at home with Holly Healy of Simply Gourmet
As your big day approaches and the weather warms up, refresh your palate - and recharge your romance - with a home-cooked feast for two. Minimal time in the kitchen pays off in big spring flavors, best enjoyed in the open air.
Let's face it, planning a wedding is no picnic. All the more reason, then, to make time for a few pit stops along the way - opportunities for the two of you relax, reconnect, and refuel. A home-cooked dinner by candlelight? Sounds great! But as we emerge from winter and the days grow milder, why not take it outside instead?
Preparing meals to be enjoyed outside is nothing new for caterer Holly Healy, who often serves summer guests on the flagstone patio of her family's luxurious "camp" in the High Peaks of the Adirondacks, in addition to keeping busy with summer weddings throughout the region. For this more intimate meal, she keeps the menu light and seasonal - with a cool gazpacho made of vegetables that are roasted first to bring out their full flavor, and garlicky marinated shrimp served "Adirondack style" on birch skewers.
Just add a bowl of fresh fruit, a jar full of flowers, and some pillows to sit on, and you have all the makings for a movie-ready romantic afternoon, with you as the star.
Holly Healy owned an advertising agency in Syracuse, New York, for 15 years before going into the food business and eventually starting Simply Gourmet with her daughter, Phoebe, and husband, Mickey. In addition to catering, Simply Gourmet sells fresh sandwiches, breads, and cookies, and has been recognized by the New York Times as one of the Five Best Places to Eat in Lake Placid. The family's 86-year old High Peaks compound, called the Crownies (crow-knees), offers summer accommodations in five cabins with magnificent mountain views.
A savory spring menu
Roasted Vegetable Gazpacho
8 - 10 plum tomatoes, diced
3 large bell peppers (red, yellow, and orange), diced
1 medium-size red onion, diced
1 medium zucchini, diced
1 medium yellow squash, diced
6 cloves garlic, roughly diced
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 cups tomato juice
1 cucumber, diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
3 tablespoons wine vinegar
Cayenne (optional)
Fresh parsley or cilantro
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Toss diced vegetables with the olive oil, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper. Reserve half the vegetables, and place the other half on parchment paper on a rimmed baking sheet and roast until soft and slightly charred, about 50 minutes. Puree half of the roasted vegetables, with any pan juices, in a food processor until smooth. Add 2 cups tomato juice, process, and transfer mixture to a large bowl, combining the puree with the remaining roasted vegetables. Add the cucumber and celery and the reserved, uncooked vegetables.
Mix in remaining 1 cup tomato juice and the wine vinegar, and season with salt, pepper, and optional cayenne. Refrigerate until chilled, and garnish with parsley or cilantro to serve.
ADK Birch-Skewered Shrimp
6 cloves garlic (3 whole, 3 minced)
6 tablespoons olive oil
Juice of 1/2 lemon
11/2 teaspoons smoked
Spanish paprika
1/4 teaspoon crushed red
pepper flakes
1/2 pound large wild shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup white wine
Sea salt
1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley
Wooden skewers and small birch twigs
In a large plastic bag, combine minced garlic, 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, lemon juice, paprika, pepper flakes, and shrimp. Let marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes. In a skillet large enough to hold the skewers, heat the remaining oil over medium heat. Add whole garlic cloves and heat until they sizzle. Remove pan from heat and allow to cool slightly. Reheat pan and follow the same process twice more, not letting the garlic burn. Reheat pan with oil and garlic over medium heat and add the shrimp, skewered. Saute 1 - 2 minutes until slightly pink; turn and cook another 1 - 2 minutes. Remove shrimp from pan and re-skewer them on small birch twigs. Add white wine to pan, deglaze for 2 minutes, and pour sauce over skewers.
Serve warm or cold.
