52 Quick, Stylish Dinners from Martha Stewart

Sometime around the early 90s, I bought Martha Stewart's Quick Cook, a collection of menus for meals to make that worked for week nights as well as for company. I've cooked my way through that book at least three times, and some recipes, such as Thyme -Sauteed Pork Chops with Apple Slices, Sea Scallops Sauteed with Scallions, Mahagony Fried Chicken, Oranges in Red Wine, and especially Old Fashioned Bottom-Crust Apple Pie, are part of my regular repertoire. In MARTHA STEWART'S DINNER AT HOME: 52 Quick Meals to Cook for Family & Friends (Clarkson Potter/Publishers; ISBN: 978-0-307-39645-7), Martha returns to the idea of great meals, easily prepared and this collection is a winner.

Martha's game plan is simple. Help solve the "what to have for dinner" question by offering 52 all new seasonally arranged menus, or one complete meal to try for every week of the year. That means interesting recipes using a broader range of easily available ingredients we're using these days such as pancetta, Greek yogurt, Vidalia onions, phyllo dough, wonton wrappers, cardamom and blood oranges. Each menu is handsomely photographed with appealing plates of great looking food, such as Braised Chicken Marsala with Sage Polenta, Summer Squash and Olive Phyllo Tart, Pasta Shards with Fresh Herbs topped with Poached Eggs with Brown Butter, Salmon with Creamy Leeks, Grilled Steak with Blue Cheese Potatoes, Grilled Spiced Lamb Chops, and Quail with Figs and Pine Nuts. Broiled Black-Pepper Tofu with a Soy-Lemon Dipping Sauce makes for an excellent introduction to this popular Asian ingredient.

The book has many interesting side dishes, including Quinoa, Pea, and Mint Salad, Haricots Verts with Tapendade, Couscous with Golden Raisins, Spinach and Grilled-Corn Salad, Fennel, Red Onion and Parsley Salad, Porcini and Parsley Farro, Orange and Endive Salad, Warm Lentils with Spinach, and Grated Potato Cake.

MARTHA STEWART'S DINNER AT HOME offers lots of fun and interesting desserts such as Vanilla-Poached Rhubarb, Coffee Ice Cream Affogato, Apricot-Almond Ice Cream Sandwiches, Bread and Butter Pudding with Strawberries, Blackberry-Red Wine Gelatin, Caramelized Persimmons, and Rice Pudding with Candied Kumquats.

Each menu features a convenient "Preparation Schedule," and the headers for each menu offer truly practical advice that help insure success. The back of the book offers some useful basics and a few stocks. And each of the starters, "mains," sides and desserts is listed by season, making quick reference for decision making. The combination of simple and sophisticated, familiar and new, and all elegantly understated is vintage Martha Stewart. I never tire of adding a good new cookbook that offers me a combination of the familiar some challenge. These are recipes you can get on the table during a busy week or linger over the weekend when our thoughts turn to relaxation and entertaining. This new book from Martha easily makes the cut.

Braised Chicken Marsala

Serves 4

4 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (about 1. pounds)

4 chicken drumsticks (about 1 pound)

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 red onions, peeled and quartered through the stem

2 plum tomatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces

6 sprigs thyme

¼ cup Marsala (sweet Italian fortified wine)

1 ¼ cups chicken stock, homemade (see page 260) or low-sodium store-bought

Sage Polenta

Preheat oven to 400°F. Rinse chicken, pat dry with paper towels, and season both sides with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large, high-sided sauté pan over medium-high.

Working in batches, brown chicken on both sides, turning once, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer chicken to a platter; tent loosely with parchment paper, then foil, to keep warm.

After all chicken is browned, pour off excess fat.

Add onions, tomatoes, and thyme to the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 4 minutes.

Pour in Marsala; cook until reduced by half, about 5 minutes.

Return chicken to pan and pour in stock; bring to a simmer. Transfer to oven; cook until chicken is cooked through and tender, about 35 minutes. Transfer chicken to a platter, and cover to keep warm.

Skim off excess fat from liquid in pan; simmer liquid over medium-high until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. To serve, divide polenta among shallow bowls and arrange chicken on top; spoon pan sauce over each.

Sage Polenta

If the polenta is ready before the rest of the meal, keep it in the pan and press parchment or waxed paper directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming; partially covering the pan with the lid will also work. Stir well before serving. Serves 4

5 cups water, plus more as needed

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

1 cup coarse Italian polenta

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

Bring the water to a boil in a large saucepan over high heat, then add 2 teaspoons salt. Whisking constantly, add polenta in a slow, steady stream and return to a boil.

Reduce heat to a very low simmer. Cover partially; cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture is creamy and starting to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 40 minutes, adding sage in last 5 minutes. If polenta is too thick to stir, add more water (up to ½ cup), a little at a time, and continue cooking, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat. Stir in butter, and season with pepper and more salt, as desired. Serve hot.

Vanilla-Poached Rhubarb

Fromage blanc, a fresh cheese made from cow’s milk, has a mild, tangy taste and a creamy texture. It can be found at specialty food stores and cheese shops. If you cannot find it, simply double the amount of heavy cream and proceed, beating with the sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form, then chill.

Serves 4

For rhubarb

1 cup dry white wine

1∕3 cup water

1∕3 cup sugar

½ vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped

½ pound rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (about 2 cups)

For cream

½ cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons sugar

½ vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped

4 ounces fromage blanc (½ cup)

Poach rhubarb: Bring the wine, water, sugar, and vanilla bean seeds to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Continue boiling 6 minutes, then add the rhubarb and reduce heat to a simmer; cook until rhubarb is just turning tender, about 2 minutes, tilting pan occasionally to coat the pieces with the poaching liquid.

Remove from heat, and let cool completely.

Whip cream: With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, whisk the cream, sugar, and vanilla-bean seeds until medium-stiff peaks form. Add fromage blanc, and beat

1 minute more, or until mixture is still fluffy but will hold its shape. Transfer to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate 30 minutes, just until chilled.

To serve, spoon the cream mixture into small serving dishes. Using a slotted spoon, top each with some rhubarb, then drizzle with syrup.

5 cups water, plus more as needed

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

1 cup coarse Italian polenta

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

Bring the water to a boil in a large saucepan over high heat, then add 2 teaspoons salt. Whisking constantly, add polenta in a slow, steady stream and return to a boil.

Reduce heat to a very low simmer. Cover partially; cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture is creamy and starting to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 40 minutes, adding sage in last 5 minutes. If polenta is too thick to stir, add more water (up to ½ cup), a little at a time, and continue cooking, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat. Stir in butter, and season with pepper and more salt, as desired. Serve hot.

Reprinted from the book Martha Stewart’s Dinner at Home by Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. Copyright (c) 2009 by Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. Photographs copyright (c) 2009 by Kate Sears. Published by Clarkson Potter, a division of Random House, Inc.