Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express Part 11

SUMMER.

FALL.

WINTER.

SPRING.

A thermos of chilled Charred Tomato Bisque Eggplant, Kalamata, Goat Cheese, and Dried Tomato Sandwich A thermos of Mixed Vegetable Soup Minted Pea and Prosciutto Sandwich Tuna Tabouleh

White Bean and Salmon Sandwich Kettle-fried potato chips Pita bread, olives, and feta cheese Zucchini and Garlic Fusilli with Pistachios (served cold or at room temperature)

Macerated Strawberries with Mascarpone

Candied Citrus Rinds

Peach Lemon "Cheesecake"

Pound Cake with Mascarpone and Marmalade

HOLIDAY BLOWOUT.

SUMMER.

FALL.

WINTER.

SPRING.

Melon Soup with Pancetta Gruyere Apple Grilled Cheese (cut into triangles) Wild Mushroom Crostini Tuna and Bean Salad (served with crackers and olives) Avocado Crab Salad with Mixed Herb Salad

Shrimp Bisque

Cream of Turnip Soup

Cla.s.sic Caesar Salad

Pasta with Bacon and Breadcrumbs

Grilled Steaks with Rosemary Plums Seared Scallops with Almonds

Spring Lamb Baked potatoes with b.u.t.ter Fried Endive with b.u.t.ter and Lemon Sauce Turkey Cutlets with Walnuts and Sage (and pureed apples) Cheesy Semolina with Asparagus

Chocolate Mousse Apricot Cream Upside-Down Pie

Caramel Fondue Warm Milk Toast

WEEKEND BRUNCH.

SUMMER.

FALL.

WINTER.

SPRING.

Mexican Dry-Corn Salad Endive and Warm Pear Salad with Stilton Spinach Salad with Feta and Nutmeg Chilled Cuc.u.mber and Dill Soup Migas

Sour cream and a.s.sorted salsas Mediterranean Poached Eggs Bacon, Eggs, and Grits Hangtown Fry

b.u.t.tered rye toast

Biscuits with b.u.t.ter and honey

Blackberries with Champagne and Tarragon Pumpkin Creme Brulee

Rose Water Whipped Cream with Honeydew

Orange Fool

OVEN TEMPERATURE EQUIVALENCIES.

DESCRIPTION.

FAHRENHEIT.

CELSIUS.

Cool 200.

90.

Very slow 250.

120.

Slow 300325 150160 Moderately slow 325350 160180 Moderate 350375 180190 Moderately hot 375400 190200 Hot 400450 200230 Very hot 450500 230260

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.

Sometime in early summer 2007 I had a conversation with Pete Wells, the Times Times's Dining editor, which resulted in my writing "101 Summer Express Meals." Neither of us precisely remembers whose idea this was; as is often the case, it was a product of a good discussion, and I certainly won't take full credit for it.

The idea was to produce short, simple, inspiring ideas that would take ten minutes or less to make. Though the ten-minute rule proved difficult to maintain, the story was among the most popular in the paper that year, and remains among the most e-mailed of all time.

I won't take full credit for that, either. For the original article, I asked for ideas from anyone who would give them. This group included Dining colleagues Pat Gurosky, Nick Fox, Trish Hall, Julia Moskin, Pete of course, and Nicki Kalish, who also designed the paper's layout of the original story.

Nor was the idea of building on the concept to make a book mine; credit for that goes to my longtime agent and friend Angela Miller and my editor at Simon & Schuster, Sydny Miner. Others at Simon and Schuster I'd like to thank are David Rosenthal, Mich.e.l.le Rorke, Alexis Welby and Jessica Abell, Mara Lurie, Michael Accordino, and Linda Dingler.

My colleagues Kerri Conan and Suzanne Lenzer worked hard on Kitchen Express, Kitchen Express, and they both know the depth of my grat.i.tude. Stacey Ornstein helped with original research. and they both know the depth of my grat.i.tude. Stacey Ornstein helped with original research.

And Kelly Doe not only tweaked the design but lent moral support.

Mark Bittman New York, Spring 2009

Also by Mark Bittman