Michael Psilakis, chef and owner of New York restaurants FishTag and Kefi, shared a few things with us in PAEOI #3 including a recipe for a salad he likes to make for himself when he gets home from a long day. He also treated us to an incredible dinner at FishTag which included a Sea Urchin Crudo in Ocean Water and a grilled Branzino stuffed with head cheese and served with King Oyster mushrooms and broccolini. We weren’t able to include his recipe in the magazine, so please enjoy it here. I’ve made it many times already and it’s great.

Warm Feta with Tomato, Olive, and Pepper Salad

This super-easy and fast dish is a play on Saganaki—a typical tavern dish that melts cheese by grilling, broiling, or pan-frying. You could grill a large plank of feta and top it with this salad, but since this is a meze, I don’t want anyone to have to use a fork. Serves 10 to 12 as a meze.

1 small Spanish or sweet onion
Kosher salt and cracked black pepper
9 caperberries, halved lengthwise
2 tablespoons capers
9 cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
9 cracked green olives, pitted and torn
9 Kalamata olives, pitted and torn
1 small red onion, roughly chopped
2 fire-roasted red bell peppers, home-roasted or from a jar, roughly chopped
9 Greek sardines or white anchovies (optional but seriously recommended)
9 small, picked sprigs dill
9 small, picked sprigs parsley
9 leaves basil
1/3 to 1/2 cup Red Wine-Black Pepper Vinaigrette*, or 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon dry Greek oregano
12 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
3 warmed or toasted pita breads, cut into wedges

1. Brush the onion slices with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  On a hot grill pan or in a cast-iron skillet, grill until tender and slightly char-marked.  Separate into rings.

2. In a large bowl, combine the grilled onion, caperberries, capers, tomatoes, olives, red onion, roasted peppers, anchovies, dill, parsley and basil.  Drizzle with the vinaigrette, season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with oregano, and toss until evenly coated.

3. Scatter the feta evenly over the base of an ovenproof baking dish or gratin.  In a microwave for 30 seconds, or under a broiler for 3 minutes, warm the feta until slightly softened.  Top with the salad and serve with the pita wedges.

*Red Wine Black Pepper Vinaigrette

1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 small grilled onion
6 leaves basil
1 teaspoon picked thyme
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
6 small garlic cloves, smashed
2 shallots, thickly sliced
2 tablespoons dry Greek oregano
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon coarsely cracked black pepper
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

In a food processor, combine the vinegar, grilled onion, basil, thyme, mustard, garlic, shallots, oregano, salt, and pepper. With the motor running, drizzle in the olive oil until smooth. Add salt and pepper if desired.

You can buy issue #3 to read the rest of Michael’s story as well as the current issue, subscriptions and t-shirts all here at the PAEOI store!

This drink recipe didn’t fit into our picnic section but we love it and want you to have it. It has a definite Summer feeling so if you are from a chilly place, take it with you on your tropical vacation or do what we do and when the Winter gets you down, turn the heat up, get a sun lamp and have a Miami-themed dinner party. Recipe by Amanda Zug-Moore and David Moyer, a.k.a. Violet Temper.

Basil Peach Fuzz Punch 

I 750 ml bottle gin
4 peaches
8 cups Earl Grey tea
1 bottle of Sparkles (Cava, Prosecco or Champers if you’re fancy)
1 cup Basil Simple Syrup: 1.5 cups water, 1.5 cups sugar, 1 cup packed, picked & washed basil

1. Infuse the gin with the peaches. Slice up the peaches (not too thin not too thick) and drop in a nice sized glass container with a lid then pour the gin over top and let sit. If the peaches are quite ripe this could take only a couple of hours but best to let sit at least over night. The longer they sit the peachier your gin gets

2. Make the basil simple syrup. Bring water, sugar, and basil to boil in a small pot. Once its boiling drop the heat and let simmer for a bit until your syrup turns slightly green, the longer it simmers the more basily your syrup. Remove basil from syrup and let cool.

3. Boil yourself up some Earl Grey. You wanna make this a bit stronger than a normal cup of tea, use more tea bags don’t infuse longer than recommended because that can make the tea too tannic and bitter. Let cool.

4. Add earl grey and basil simple syrup to the gin and peaches. Stir.

5. Fill an iced tea glass up with ice and then fill just over two thirds with the punch and top it with your sparkles.

6. To garnish add a slice or two of peach from the punch and a basil leaf or two.

Drink up! Pick up a copy of issue #4 here for more picnic recipes, cookout photographs and more.

Hello, eggs. I’d like to begin my new career as a blogger here by giving you a selection of treats that did not make it into our last couple of issues.

These four images are from our Philadelphia 4th of July Block Party story in Put A Egg On It #4 (out now):