Add color and new flavors to your daily menu with Thailand: The Cookbook (Phaidon Press, May 2014) by Jean-Pierre Gabriel, photographer and food writer.

On author and project:

"Jean-Pierre Gabriel has spent over three years visiting every region of Thailand to collate and photograph this unique collection of recipes from authentic Thai cooks. During his travels Jean-Pierre has visited Thai homes, markets and restaurants to sample delicacies that vary from simple street food to elaborate palace cuisine and bring them together in this unique volume." 

The book offers "500 recipes ranging from simple snacks and drinks to curries, stir-fries, and elaborate desserts". Thailand: The Cookbook also includes essays on history of Thai Food and regional differences.

Here's a first taste:

Green Papaya Salad

Adapted from THAILAND: THE COOKBOOK by Jean-Pierre Gabriel

Origin: Northeast

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 5 minutes

Serves: 2

INGREDIENTS

 3 bird’s eye chiles
 5 cloves garlic
 1 yard-long bean, cut into 1½ - inch/4 - cm lengths
 2 tomatoes, cut into small pieces
 1 tablespoon jaggery, palm sugar, or soft light brown sugar
 1 tablespoon roasted peanuts
 1 tablespoon dried shrimp
 1 tablespoon lime juice
 2 limes, cut into wedges
 1 tablespoon fish sauce
 ⅔ cup (4 oz./120 g) julienned green papaya
 Grilled Chicken (see p. 276)

INSTRUCTIONS

Pound the chiles and garlic together in a mortar with a pestle, then add the beans and lightly crush. Add the tomato, sugar, roasted peanuts, dried shrimp, lime juice, lime wedges, and fish sauce to the mortar and gently mix together unto the sugar has dissolves. Add the papaya and mix together. Serve either on its own or with grilled chicken.

While many articles describe Jean-Pierre Gabriel as a French author he seems to hail from Belgium and have studied agronomy before a career in food writing and photography.

(* Recipe reproduced with permission from Thailand: the Cookbook by Jean-Pierre Gabriel- published by Phaidon Press, May 2014)

We served you breakfast recipe for meat eaters with Italian sausage and mushroom breakfast casserole from The B.T.C. Old-Fashioned Grocery Cookbook, Recipes and Stories from a Southern Revival (Clarkson Potter, March 18, 2014) by Alexe Van Beuren and Dixie Grimes of The B.T.C Old Fashioned Grocery Store in Water Valley (Mississippi).

How about a Bag your Lunch recipe today?

Can use cans...

Vetra’s three-bean salad

Serves 6

2 (14.5-ounce) cans green beans, rinsed and drained
1 (14.5-ounce) can wax beans, rinsed and drained
1 (12-ounce) can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced (1/2 cup)
1 small red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and thinly sliced (1/2 cup)
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

In a large bowl, combine all of the beans, the onion, bell pepper, vinegar, sugar, oil, and cloves. Stir well and refrigerate for 24 hours to allow the flavors to develop.

Serve at room temperature. The salad will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 days.

(* Reprinted from The B.T.C. Old-Fashioned Grocery Cookbook. Copyright © 2014 by Alexe van Beuren. Photographs copyright © 2014 by Ed Anderson. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, a division of Random House LLC.) 

Between Christmas and New Year's feasts there is room for simple fare like this recipe from One Good Dish, 'the pleasures of a simple meal' (Artisan Books, October 2013) by David Tanis.

Warm French Lentil Salad

Serves 4 to 6

In cold weather, there’s something completely pleasurable about a warm, savory French lentil salad. And when I say French, I don’t just mean in the French manner (though this salad is)—you really need to use French lentils. They keep their shape when cooked, and their firm, nutty texture holds up to the acid in an assertive dressing. Ordinary brown supermarket lentils are fine for soup, but for a good lentil salad, you want those beautiful little imported gray-green lentilles du Puy. They cook in about 30 minutes.
Dress the warm lentils with the garlicky mustard vinaigrette, add thick slices of smoked pork belly and boiled fingerling potatoes, and sprinkle with lots of chopped scallions and parsley. A magnificent meal. 

¾ pound smoked pork belly or good-quality slab bacon, 1½ to 2 inches thick
1 large onion, halved and each half stuck with a clove
4 thyme branches
1 small carrot, peeled
1 cup small green French lentils, picked over and rinsed
1 small bay leaf
Salt and pepper
1 pound fingerling or other small potatoes, rinsed

for the vinaigrette
1 large shallot, finely diced
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 garlic cloves, smashed to a paste with a little salt
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
¼ cup fruity olive oil
2 teaspoons capers, rinsed and roughly chopped
2 tablespoons chopped cornichons or other sour gherkins
½ cup chopped parsley, plus 1 tablespoon for garnish
¼ cup chopped scallions, plus 1 tablespoon for garnish

1. Put the pork belly in a small pot with 1 of the onion halves, 2 of the thyme branches, and the carrot. Add water to cover, bring to a simmer, and cook until the meat is tender, about 45 minutes. Turn off the heat and keep warm in the liquid.

2. Meanwhile, put the lentils in a saucepan and add the other onion half, the 2 remaining thyme branches, and the bay leaf. Add 4 cups water and a little salt, bring to a simmer, and cook gently until the lentils are firm-tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Drain (discard the onion, thyme, and bay leaf) and keep warm.

3. Cook the potatoes in their skins in well-salted boiling water until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and keep warm.

4. To make the vinaigrette, macerate the shallot in the red wine vinegar in a small bowl for 5 minutes.
5. Add the garlic, a pinch each of salt and pepper, and the mustard to the shallot, then whisk in the olive oil to make a thick dressing. Stir in the chopped capers and cornichons. Just before serving, stir in the ½ cup parsley and ¼ cup scallions.

6. To serve, dress the lentils with half the vinaigrette, then transfer to a platter or serving bowl. Slice the pork belly (or bacon) crosswise into ¼-inch slices (save the broth for soup) and arrange over the lentils. Cut the potatoes lengthwise in half and arrange cut side up around the pork. Spoon the remaining vinaigrette over the sliced meat and potatoes and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon each scallions and parsley.

Note: This vinaigrette is also great with boiled or roasted beef, hot or cold, as well as with boiled or steamed vegetables, like leeks. 

“Excerpted from One Good Dish by David Tanis (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2013. Photographs by Gentl & Hyers."

Put some sweet and spicy Thai in your fruit salad offerings this holiday season with this recipe from Pok Pok, Food and Stories from the Streets, Homes, and Roadside Restaurants of Thailand (Ten Speed Press, Fall 2013) by Andy Ricker of Pok Pok restaurant with J.J. Goode.

Som Tam Phonlamai,Thai Fruit Salad 

Just one of many examples of som tam that has nothing to do with green papaya (I do like to add some for this rendition, but you could certainly leave it out) and almost everything to do with the method of preparation: made in a clay mortar, the salad requires the same gentle pounding that aims to bruise but not smash the main ingredients, allowing some of the sweet-tart dressing to pervade. Use any fruit you want, even if it’s just one or two kinds. Be sure to choose fruit that strikes a good balance between sweetness and tartness. If the fruit is very sweet, you’ll want to scale back on the sugar and perhaps bump up the lime juice. 

Flavor Profile: Sweet, spicy, tart, slightly salty

Try It With: Plaa Neung Si Ew (Steamed whole fish with soy sauce), page 79, or Kai Yaang (Whole roasted young chicken), page 135, and coconut rice (page 193). 

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT

A papaya shredder (or mandoline or large knife)

A Thai clay mortar

A wooden pestle 

Serves 2 to 6 as part of a meal; you can double the recipe in a large clay mortar 

1 generous tablespoon medium-size dried shrimp, rinsed and patted dry

1 ounce palm sugar

1/4 teaspoon water

1 small lime (preferably a Key lime), halved through the stem

3 grams fresh Thai chiles (about 2), preferably red

1 tablespoon lime juice (preferably from Key limes or spiked with a small squeeze of Meyer lemon juice)

1 tablespoon Thai fish sauce

1 ounce peeled, shredded green papaya (about 1/2 cup, lightly packed)

14 grams peeled carrot, cut into long (about 3-inch), thin (about 1/8-inch) strips (about   1/4 cup, lightly packed)

8 ounces mixed crunchy, sweet, and tart fruit (such apple, pear, pineapple, green mango, and persimmon), any inedible skin peeled, cut into irregular 1-inch chunks

8 to 10 grapes, halved

2 ounces cherry tomatoes (about 4), halved, or quartered if very large

2 generous tablespoons coarsely chopped unsalted roasted peanuts 

DRY-FRY THE SHRIMP AND SOFTEN THE PALM SUGAR

Heat a small dry pan or wok over medium heat, add the dried shrimp, and cook, stirring frequently, until they’re dry all the way through and slightly crispy, about 5 minutes. Set them aside in a small bowl to cool. They’ll keep covered at room temperature for up to 1 week. 

Put the palm sugar in a small microwavable bowl, sprinkle on the 1/4 teaspoon of water, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and microwave on low just until the sugar has softened (not liquefied), 10 to 30 seconds. Pound the mixture in a mortar (or mash it in the bowl) until you have a smooth paste. Covered, it will keep soft for up to 2 days. 

MAKE THE SALAD

Cut one of the lime halves lengthwise into thirds, then cut the thirds in half crosswise. Set aside 2 of the pieces (reserve the remaining lime for another purpose). 

Combine the chiles and 1 heaping teaspoon (or less if the fruit is very sweet) of the softened palm sugar in a large clay mortar and pound just until you have a chunky sludge with medium pieces of chile, 5 to 10 seconds. 

Add the 2 lime wedges and pound very lightly and briefly, just to release the juice, then add the shrimp and pound lightly just to release their flavor (don’t smash or pulverize them). 

Add the lime juice, fish sauce, papaya, and carrot. The next step is easy but subtle. You want to use the pestle to barely bruise the papaya (lightly pounding at a slight angle, not directly up-and-down) for about 10 seconds, while simultaneously using a large spoon to scoop up from the bottom of the mortar, essentially tossing the papaya, palm sugar mixture, and the other ingredients as you pound. Do not smash the papaya. It should remain crisp. 

Add the fruit, including the grapes, and pound the same way you did the papaya, barely bruising the fruit and definitely not smashing it. 

Add the tomatoes and pound lightly, just to release the juice. Taste the salad and if necessary, season with additional lime juice and fish sauce to achieve a salad that’s, in descending order of prominence, sweet from the fruit, spicy, sour, and a little salty. 

Finally, add the peanuts and mix well with the spoon. Transfer to a plate, liquid and all, in a low mound, and serve. 

(* Reprinted with permission from Pok Pok by Andy Ricker with J.J. Goode, copyright © 2013. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House, Inc, Photography: Austin Bush © 2013)

A leading band often has an opening act.

A main dish calls for accompaniments.

Find the right side in Choosing Sides (Andrews McMeel- September 10, 2013) by Crumbs on My Keyboard Tara Mataraza Desmond...

If you are thinking about lunch tomorrow over dinner, here's a healthy and colorful suggestion.

Persimmon, Pomegranate, and Pistachio Salad

Serves 4 to 6

Sweet, ripe, and vibrant orange persimmons are a soft, satiny bed for a colorful tangle of greens adorned with shiny ruby pomegranate and peridot-hued pistachio bits. Fennel’s earthy anise notes weave through all the flavors, which are perfect accompaniments to the most popular tastes and textures on a holiday buffet.

2 medium ripe Fuyu persimmons
1 small pomegranate
½ cup shelled roasted and salted pistachios, chopped
1 small fennel bulb, very thinly sliced or finely shaved on a mandoline
6 packed cups (about 6 ounces) mixed greens or arugula

Use a sharp paring knife to cut the skins off the persimmons and then slice the fruit into very thin rounds (if you have a mandoline, use it set at smaller than ⅛ inch). Line a large platter with the slices. Cut the pomegranate into quarters and tap out the arils, or juicy, edible seeds, from within. You’ll have to do some work with your fingers to separate the arils from the peel and white membranes, which you can
discard. Toss the pomegranate seeds, pistachios, and fennel with the greens and pile the mixture on top of the persimmons. Drizzle with the vinaigrette of your choice and serve.

Alongside:

Herb-crusted Roasted Turkey Breast
Maple Mustard Baked Ham
Garlic-studed Crown Roast of Pork
Seared Scallops with Brown Butter
Roasted Halibut with Olive Oil and Thyme

(* Recipe from 'Choosing Sides, From Holidays to Every Day, 130 Delicious Recipes to Make the Meal' by Tara Mataraza Desmond- Andrews McMeel, September 10- Photography by Ben Pieper- all rights reserved)

After sharing recipes for a few years, I thought it was time to find a way to allow visitors to the site to narrow their search.

We started today with 15 categories listed with their respective links in right column of 'Serge the Concierge' after mother category Recipes.

The 15 categories (listed in alphabetical order using model Recipes: Appetizers) are Appetizers, Baking, Chicken, Chocolate, Cocktails, Fish and Seafood, Gluten Free, Ice Cream and Sorbet, Lamb, Non Alcoholic Drinks, Pork, Salads, Soups, Vegan and last Vegetarian.

Some recipes like Chilled Tofu with Crunchy Baby Sardines are referenced in 2 (or more) groups for Tofu with Sardines both under Appetizers and Fish and Seafood.

So far about 40 to 50 recipes have been updated to reflect this friendlier way.

We will add the rest as quickly as we can and hope to be done by September 1st, 2013.

Let us know how you like the change.

(* Illustration is photo from Panelle, Sicilian Fritters, Gluten Free recipe from The Country Cooking of Italy by Colman Andrews- Chronicle Books, Fall 2011- reproduced with permission of the publisher- all rights reserved- Photography by Hirsheimer and Hamilton)

A Breton cake, Kouign Amann, was my first pick from Flour, Too: Indispensable Recipes for the Cafe's Most Loved Sweets & Savories (Chronicle Books, June 2013) by Joanne Chang from Flour Bakery in Boston.

Today, vegetarian salad is served.

Farmers' Market Salad

During the summer when the local farmers’ markets are in full swing, our chefs reach out to area farmers to take advantage of the natural bounty of the season. We have a brief but amazing growing season here in the Northeast, with irresistible produce making an appearance for just a few short months. Chef Corey created this delightfully fresh and simple salad from a mismatched box of produce that arrived with our regular vegetable order one day. He wanted to highlight the crispy, crunchy vegetables with a light, tangy classic dressing. This makes a terrific salad for a light lunch or brunch; it is beautiful and simple to put together. Feel free to vary the vegetables to suit what is in season near you and what appeals to your taste. To turn this salad into a heartier meal, crumble some blue cheese and/or some crispy bacon slices over the top and serve with crusty bread.

Serves 4 as a main course or 6 to 8 as a first course

Buttermilk-Chive Dressing
1/2 cup/120 ml nonfat buttermilk
1/4 cup/60 ml sour cream or creme fraiche
2 tbsp good-quality mayonnaise
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup/15 g minced fresh chives
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
4 large eggs
8 oz/225 g baby carrots, peeled and trimmed to leave
1 in/2.5 cm of stem
1 lb/455 g English peas, shucked
8 oz/225 g green beans, trimmed and halved crosswise
8 oz/225 g small Red Bliss potatoes, unpeeled and quartered
8 cups/170 g loosely packed mixed organic lettuces
One 6-oz/170-g bag radishes, trimmed and quartered lengthwise
1 pt/300 g cherry tomatoes

Special equipment: rimmed baking sheet, sieve

1. To make the dressing: In a small bowl, mix together the buttermilk, sour cream, mayonnaise, lemon juice, chives, salt, and pepper until well blended. The dressing can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

2. Place the eggs in a small saucepan, add cold water to cover, and bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as the water begins to boil, turn off the heat, cover the pan, and let the eggs sit for 15 minutes, or until cool enough to handle. Remove the eggs from the water. Working with one egg at a time, softly and gently crack each eggshell all around and carefully peel it off while holding the egg under running cool water. Pat the eggs dry, halve lengthwise, and set aside.

3. In a large saucepan, bring 3 qt/2.8 L lightly salted water to a boil over high heat. While waiting for the water to boil, fill a large bowl about half full with ice and then add cold water just to cover the ice. Line the baking sheet with paper towels.

4. Drop the carrots into the boiling water and boil for 3 to 4 minutes. Using the sieve, remove the carrots from the water and plunge them, sieve and all, into the ice bath. Remove the carrots from the ice water, drain, and dump them out onto the prepared baking sheet. This process, called “shocking,” will halt the cooking so the vegetables retain their bright color and fresh crunch.

5. Bring the water back to a boil and repeat with the peas, leaving them in the boiling water for about 30 seconds, and then with the green beans, leaving them in the boiling water for 2 to 3 minutes, before shocking each of them, in turn, in the ice water and transferring them to the baking sheet. Replenish the ice bath as needed with more ice to keep it ice-cold.

6. Bring the water back to a boil and add the potatoes. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, or until you can pierce them easily with a fork. Shock the potatoes in the ice water, scoop them out, and then dump them onto the baking sheet with the other vegetables.

7. Decoratively arrange the lettuce, radishes, tomatoes, eggs, potatoes, carrots, peas, and green beans in four shallow salad bowls. Serve the dressing on the side.

(* Recipe from Flour, Too: Indispensable Recipes for the Cafe's Most Loved Sweets & Savories - published by Chronicle Books, June 2013- by Joanne Chang, reproduced with permission, all rights reserved...photos by Michael Harlan Turkell)

No pork, no problem with this recipe from Smoke and Pickles, Recipes and Stories from a New Southern Kitchen (Artisan Books, Spring 2013) by Brooklyn born, Louisville based chef Edward Lee of 610 Magnolia ...

Salad of Curried Lamb Prosciutto
With dried Apricots, Pine Nuts, Fennel, and Tarragon Vinaigrette

Fennel is a nice foil for salty curried lamb. Here the fennel adds brightness to the salad, while the apricots lend a layer of sweetness. But you can be creative with the mix: Try it with fresh figs, washed-rind cheeses from Alsace, or pickled watermelon rind. And enjoy the salad with a crisp Pinot Blanc.

Feeds 4

Vinaigrette
3 tablespoons fresh tarragon leaves, finely minced
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large fennel bulb, stalks removed
½ teaspoon kosher salt
8 to 10 slices Curried Lamb Prosciutto (page 36)
4 dried apricots, sliced very thin
¼ cup toasted pine nuts

1. To make the vinaigrette: Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together until emulsified. (The vinaigrette can be made ahead and stored in a glass jar in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.)

2. To make the salad: Using a mandoline, shred the fennel as fine as possible. Transfer to a large bowl, add the salt, and toss gently. Allow to wilt at room temperature for 15 minutes.

3. Toss the wilted fennel with enough of the vinaigrette to just moisten.

4. Arrange the lamb slices on a plate. Layer the fennel on top and scatter the apricots and pine nuts over it. Drizzle with the remaining vinaigrette.

( Excerpted from Smoke and Pickles by Edward Lee (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2013. Photographs by Grant Cornett.)

After serving us a whole book on salads, Mindy Fox turns her attention to what's in a bird with The Perfectly Roasted Chicken (Kyle Books, June 2013, paperback edition).

She's not breaking the salad spell completely as salads (with chicken) have their place in the book.

CURRIED CHICKEN SALAD with GOLDEN RAISINS, LIME, and HONEY 

Raisins, lime, and honey create a sweet-tangy chutney flavor that plays nicely with the curry in this Indian-inspired salad. Whether under a tree in the park or around the table in cooler months, I love to serve this dish picnic-style, with good crackers and little gourmet bites from a cheese shop or olive bar. It’s also tasty stuffed into a whole-wheat pita, or rolled up in crisp lettuce leaves.

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped

1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger

1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic

1 tablespoon curry powder

11/2 teaspoons fine sea salt

1 teaspoon ground cumin

4 cups small shreds roast chicken*

41/2 tablespoons mayonnaise

31/2 tablespoons plain yogurt

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

2 teaspoons mild floral honey,

like orange blossom

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon golden raisins

1 box good-quality crackers

Gourmet bites (see Box) 

*From 1 (31/2- to 4-pound) bird 

Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, ginger, and garlic, and reduce the heat to low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the curry, salt, and cumin; stir to combine and cook 1 minute more. Add the chicken and stir to combine.

Transfer to a large bowl and let cool for a few minutes, then add the mayonnaise, yogurt, lime juice, and honey; stir to thoroughly combine.

Stir in the raisins. Serve with the crackers and gourmet bites.

A simple hunt for gourmet bites 

Good cheese shops and supermarket olive bars are filled with treasures (sold by the pound or jarred) that can be quickly partnered with a simple chicken salad to create an impressive picnic spread. Look for crackers studded with dried olives or flavorful seeds, like fennel or caraway; stuffed grape leaves; roasted red peppers or sweet-hot peppadews; your favorite olives; and a mix of sweet or spicy pickled okra, green beans, carrots, and beets, and a few cornichons, or kosher dills.

(* Recipe from 'The Perfectly Roasted Chicken' by Mindy Fox, published by Kyle Books, June 2013- photography by Ellen Silverman)

After Orange Scented Apple Bunuelos, a quick dessert to serve to friends from Spanish Flavors (Kyle Books, US publication January 2013) by Jose Pizarro, time for salad inspiration.

Roasted red pepper and anchovy salad on roasted garlic toasts 

The red peppers in Spain are outstanding and there is almost nothing better than peppers roasted in a proper wood-fired oven, a service that during my childhood was provided by the village baker. I’ll always remember the aroma that filled the house when my mother returned from the baker’s bearing a large tray of these wonderful vegetables. The combination of sweet roasted red peppers and salty anchovies is always a winner. This can be served as a tapas, as the larger Basquestyle pintxos or even as a light lunch with a dressed green salad and a poached egg. If you’re in a hurry, instead of roasting the red peppers, use a jar/can of Piquillo peppers, which are already roasted and skinned, and have a great smoky flavor. 

Serves 4

2 large heads of garlic, unpeeled, plus

1 fat clove, finely chopped

4 large thyme sprigs

11/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

4 large red bell peppers

2 tablespoons sherry vinegar

8 small slices of rustic white bread,

about 1/2-inch thick

16 good-quality anchovy fillets in olive oil,

drained

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Remove the outer papery skin from each head of garlic and take a thin slice off the top of each one to expose the cloves.

Tear off a large square of foil, place the heads of garlic in the center, add 2 of the thyme sprigs, drizzle each head with 1 teaspoon of the olive oil, and sprinkle with a little salt. Wrap securely in the foil, place in a small roasting pan along with the peppers, and roast on the top shelf of the oven for 20–30 minutes, turning the peppers once or twice until the skins have blackened in places. Remove the peppers from the pan, drop them into a plastic bag and leave until cool enough to handle. Return the garlic parcels to the oven and roast for another 35 minutes, or until the cloves feel very soft when pressed.

Meanwhile, slit open the peppers, working over a bowl so that you catch all the juices, and remove and discard the stalks, seeds and skin. Tear the flesh into 1/2-inch-wide strips, and add to the bowl of juices with the chopped garlic clove, vinegar, the remaining thyme leaves, and the rest of the olive oil. Stir well together.

Remove the garlic from the oven and set the parcel aside. Toast the slices of bread. (I like to put mine on the bars of a preheated cast-iron ridged griddle long enough to give the bread a slightly smoky taste, then finish it off in the toaster.) Unwrap the roasted garlic, squeeze some of the purée from each clove and spread it onto the toast while both are still hot.

Sprinkle with a few sea salt flakes and some black pepper. Season the pepper strips with a little salt to taste and spoon onto the garlic toast. Garnish each slice with the anchovy fillets, drizzle over some of the pepper juices, and serve while the toast is still crisp. 

(* Recipe from Jose Pizarro's Spanish Flavors-Published in US by Kyle Books, January 2013- Photos by Emma Lee)