With apologies to Monsieur Renoir. Our party is not quite as elegant as his.
Memorial Day is the kickoff of summer. Some folks might be considering sneaking out of work on Friday to enjoy a full-fledged four-day weekend. The extra day will give them time to prepare for inaugural seasonal events: parades, tea parties, pool openings, boat launches, sunset cruises, picnics at the beach and back yard cook outs.
Since we are very busy ourselves in the Spy Food Friday Test Kitchens we will practice the art of the listicle: a list of ideas and recipes from which you may cherry pick. We will indulge in fried chicken, potato salad (the recipe was in last week’s column), Caprese salad, lemonade, and brownies. You’ll be able to stuff all this hardy, traditional American fare into a basket, a paper sack or a Yeti to take to your Memorial Day event.
If you are lucky enough to have an invitation to go boating this weekend, it is only polite to bring along a picnic basket of deelightful taste treats. Mr. Friday and I practiced making what will soon be his signature Buttermilk Fried Chicken last weekend. (We even posted a preview on the Spy’s Facebook pages!) It was deelish, as one would expect, although it was an oily mess to clean up. Start early in the day, before the kitchen begins to heat up.
Mr. Friday’s Buttermilk Fried Chicken
1 quart buttermilk
3 1/2 pound chicken parts (bone-in, skin-on; if using boneless breasts, you’ll only need half that weight)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
Peanut oil, for frying
Serves four
Pour buttermilk into a large bowl and add the chicken. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
Combine flour, paprika, cayenne, garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a shallow dish. Dredge chicken pieces in the flour. Pour the peanut oil into a heavy cast-iron skillet. Heat the oil over medium-high heat and then reduce heat to medium and then add the chicken pieces, just a few at a time. It is important not to crowd the chicken, and to keep the temperature of the oil consistent. Fry each piece for 10-12 minutes, turning occasionally, until it is crispy and golden. Mr. Friday kept checking with a meat thermometer because he is so precise – the ideal, fully cooked temp was 165°F. Drain the chicken on paper towels, and serve. I would add copious amounts of Lawry’s seasoning salt which is like manna from heaven, but you might not.
This is one of our favorite warm weather dishes, and having friends who just spent some time eating and Instagramming their way through Italy, I think it should be part of every Memorial Day picnic. You can’t see the Caprese Salad in my illo – but I promise you it is off to the side, just out of the frame.
Caprese Salad – for which you don’t really need accurate measurements. Eyeball what you have in the fridge.
1 cup grape tomatoes
1/2 cup small mozzarella balls
3 to 4 fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1 generous pinch Maldon salt
Arrange the basil, tomatoes, and mozzarella on a plate or in a Tupperware container and drizzle the olive oil dressing over the top. Add salt and pepper as desired. Apply sunscreen and adjust your hat. Instagram. Ah, Tuscany.
Lemonade
Our charming friends at Food52 have the answer for every lemonade question that might be plaguing you – and variations on every theme, so you can make deelish lemonade anyplace, anytime, and with the ingredients you have on hand without ever needing a recipe. I am sticking to the old tried and true lemonade this weekend – no lavender blossoms at my lemonade stand!
https://food52.com/blog/11108-how-to-make-any-type-of-lemonade-without-a-recipe
And once again, in case your attention has flagged, here is the Spy Secret Family Recipe for Brownies. This time it comes to us via Katharine Hepburn and Epicurious, by way of the back of the Baker’s Secret Chocolate package.
https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/katharine-hepburns-brownies-106559
You are all set to have fun in the sun as you spend your Memorial Day enjoying the freedoms that are uniquely American.
“Guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism.”
-George Washington
And here is a link to the real Luncheon of the Boating Party: https://www.phillipscollection.org/collection/boating-party
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