Radicchio Salad with an Orange Vinaigrette

Whatever you’re cooking for Thanksgiving classics, this salad’s refreshing combination of bitter and sweet makes for a light and tasty side.

For the dressing, whisk together half a cup of olive oil with a quarter cup each of fresh orange juice and red wine vinegar, a tablespoon of honey, a teaspoon of Dijon, some minced shallot and chopped parsley. Salt and pepper to taste.

You can go a lot of different directions with the greens, but start with radicchio. From there you could simply toss in some endive and watercress, or radishes and spinach for something less bitter, or maybe even some fennel.

To make it even more special, try adding toasted pistachios or walnuts, or a bit of gouda or pecorino cheese. Whatever you decide, wait until just before serving to toss everything together with the dressing.

Most importantly, have a fantastic Thanksgiving!

Swordfish with Capers, Parsley, and Anchovies

With lots of prep going on for Thanksgiving, dinner on Wednesday night needs to be about simplicity and ease…not to mention something on the lighter side. These baked swordfish steaks check all those boxes.

Preheat your oven to 425, then grease a roasting pan using a paper towel and some olive oil. Spread out your swordfish steaks on the bottom of the pan and generously salt and pepper.

In a small bowl, combine equal amounts of finely chopped capers and parsley, along with a few minced anchovies…you can also use anchovy paste to save time. Mix well with enough olive oil so it will spread easily, then spoon it evenly over the swordfish.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the fish is cooked through. Remove from the roasting pan immediately so it doesn’t get overcooked. Serve with a wedge of lemon.

Crispy Oven Baked Wings

With the dark, damp, days of November upon us, it’s time to hunker down for some football. Unless you’re a Giants or Jets fan that is…very sad.

No need to fuss with deep frying or outdoor barbequing, with a flavorful dry rub, you can get them plenty crispy in the oven. Preheat the oven to 450 then heat your heaviest and largest frying pan on a medium burner to get it good and hot.

Using your hands, toss and massage the wings in a large bowl with a little bit of vegetable oil, and enough dry rub to cover each wing well. For the rub I start with a teaspoon of salt, two of sugar, then a combination of whatever is around; cumin, chili powder, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, almost anything goes.

Turn your exhaust fan on high, then slide the wings into the hot pan. After a minute stir them around, flipping as many as possible. Give it another minute, then using pot holders, put the pan in the hot oven for approximately 30 minutes.

They’re ready to go as is, or with your favorite dipping sauce.

Chimichurri

It sounds fancy, but it isn’t, just a little Cuisinart magic….and it makes whatever you put it on come alive.

Put a large handful of parsley, or half and half parsley and cilantro, in your Cuisinart along with three chopped garlic cloves, a quarter teaspoon each of salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes, a couple big splashes of red wine vinegar, and a teaspoon of oregano, if you have it.

Slowly pour up to a quarter cup of olive oil into the Cuisinart while it’s running until you’ve achieved a smooth runny consistency. You really want the vinegar to stand out, so don’t be shy about adding a bit more, salt and red pepper flakes too.

Easy, right! And your chicken, beef, pork, fish, broccoli, or potatoes will never be the same.