Food: Summer Picnic Recipes from the Orchestra

Blanket, Food, Lawn, Picnic!

Summertime — and Blossomtime! — off ers perfect moments for enjoying a picnic outdoors with friends and famiiy, at home or on the green expanse of the Blossom Lawn. We talked to several Cleveland Orchestra musicians, asking them to share favorite picnic recipes with you. Mix and match with your own tried and true picnic winners! And send us photos of your picnics along with your own favorite recipes! Send your email to: aangel@clevelandorchestra.com

PHOTO BY ROGER MASTROIANNI

APPETIZER — Jeanne Preucil Rose violin

PICNICS

Peppy Pretzels

My mom kept mentioning some yummy pretzels she started making and then sent me the recipe.

I thought, ‘how good can it be?’

But eventually I decided to try it, and it was a big hit!

INGREDIENTS

½ cup vegetable oil 1 Tbsp. lemon pepper seasoning 1 Tbsp. dried dill 1 tsp. garlic powder ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper (use more or less, to your taste) 15 oz. pretzels (I like the small pretzel-shaped ones, but nuggets work, too)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Combine oil and spices in a large bowl. Add pretzels and toss to coat. Marinate for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Spread on a parchment-lined and rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes in the 250º F oven, stirring a few times. Cool completely and enjoy! These can be addicting!

SALAD/MAIN — Yun-Ting Lee violin Stetson Chopped Salad

with optional salmon (or chicken)

ADAPTED FROM COWBOY CIAO RESTAURANT

INGREDIENTS

Salad: 1 cup cooked Israeli (“pearl”) couscous ½ cup diced Roma tomatoes ½ cup sweet corn (available as freeze-dried) (or freshly cut off cooked ears, or thawed from frozen) 1 cup chopped arugula ½ cup grated Asiago cheese ¼ cup dried currants ¼ cup toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds) Optional: 2 oz. smoked salmon or chicken, diced

Dressing: ¼ cup basil pesto ½ cup mayo 1 shallot, roughly cut up ½ cup buttermilk juice of half a lemon garlic to taste salt & pepper to taste (use more or less of the dressing, to fi t your taste)

DIRECTIONS

Part of the fun of this salad is the dramatic way it comes together. Cook the Israeli couscous according to the directions on the box, then cool. Once the couscous is cooled, arrange the salad ingredients in separate rows on a large platter. Put all the dressing ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Show off your plated rows. Then, just before serving, pour dressing over the chopped salad and mix together. Delicious and colorful!

I’ve loved this salad ever since having it at the now-closed restaurant Cowboy Ciao in Scottsdale, Arizona.

I was so happy to fi nd the recipe online and have been making it for friends ever since!

PHOTO BY AMANDA ANGEL 17

MAIN — Jessica Sindell flute Pan-Seared Salmon

with citrus mango arugula salad

INGREDIENTS

2 limes, plus more for serving 2 salmon fi llets, skinless (6-8 oz. each) 2 tsp. olive oil 1 mango (or 2, if you really like mangoes) 3-4 oz, arugula (approx.) salt and pepper to taste

We aren’t bigtime chefs at home, but this super simple recipe has been a quick and healthy go-to for us — especially on busier days when putting dinner on the table feels impossible.

It works great to prepare and carry to a picnic, too!

DIRECTIONS

Cut both limes in quarters. Squeeze the juice from two lime wedges over each salmon fi llet. You will use one full lime for the two fi llets. Season the salmon fi llets with salt and pepper on both sides, and then allow them to rest for approximately 5 to 10 minutes. In the meantime, peel and slice one mango. Toss the mango slices with freshly washed arugula in a bowl. Drizzle the tossed salad with at least two more lime wedges and season the salad with salt and pepper before tossing again. Once the salmon has rested for at least 5 minutes, heat 2 teaspoons of olive oil in a medium-sized pan over mediumhigh heat until the pan is hot. Place the salmon in the heated pan. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side, or until desired done-ness. You may need to leave the salmon on the heat longer, depending on its thickness. Serve the cooked salmon with your simple mango-andarugula salad immediately. Or to enjoy later at a picnic, allow the salmon to rest at room temperature in a separate container before transporting it and the chilled salad to your destination.

DESSERT — Martha Baldwin cello Victoria Sponge Cake

INGREDIENTS

A traditional Victoria Sponge calls for equal weights of four ingredients: eggs, butter, sugar, and self-rising fl our. If you have a kitchen scale, weigh the eggs fi rst and then use equal weights of the other three ingredients.

Approximate measurements: Victoria Sponge Cake is a traditional British tea cake that can be enjoyed as easily at breakfast or mid-afternoon with a cup of coff ee — or as dessert at a Blossom picnic.

It is simple enough that even my daughter has been baking it on her own from a young age. You can’t go wrong with a cake that requires no measuring tools beyond a kitchen scale, can be mixed in one bowl, and can be eaten morning, noon, and night!

3 large eggs (approx. 6 oz) approx. 1 ½ sticks unsalted butter * approx. ¾ cup caster sugar ** approx. 1 1⁄3 cups self-rising fl our a pinch of salt approx. 2 Tbsp. milk

plus jam for fi lling between layers *** powdered sugar to ice the caketop

* Caster sugar is great here, but granulated sugar is fi ne to use, too. Just add an extra tablespoon in addition to the ¾ cup.

** If you can fi nd a European-style butter, with its higher butterfat content, you won’t regret it.

*** Raspberry or strawberry jam are traditionally used as fi lling, but other jams, particularly tart ones such as apricot or sour cherry, can be substituted.

PHOTO BY AMANDA ANGEL

DIRECTIONS

Pre-heat oven to 350º F. While the oven is warming, prepare two round 8-inch cake tins or springform pans (8”), fi rst with butter, making sure to grease the bottom and sides, and then line the bottoms with parchment paper. In a mixer, cream butter for 5 minutes, then add sugar and cream together until soft and light. Lightly beat eggs in a separate bowl and then gradually add to butter/sugar mixture. Mix the fl our and sugar together, then fold in one-third at a time. Next, add enough milk to the batter (approximately 2 tablespoons) so that it easily drops from a spoon. Spread equal amounts of batter into each pan and bake at 350º F for 30-35 minutes until a tester comes out clean. Cool on a baking rack until room temp. Stack cakes with a layer of jam in between and dust top with icing (powdered) sugar.