arts&life

dining in

Party Time!

Aimed toward the

future, graduations

focus on possibilities

and aspirations.

And food!

Annabel Cohen

Food Columnist

124

May 25 • 2017

T

howing a party for your
grad can be as easy as
A-B-C. Once you’ve set
your date, size, venue and guest
list, you can move on to the fun
stuff — the menu!
One of the more often-asked
questions is what and how
much to serve. If your event is
an open house from, say, 2-5
p.m., you may choose to serve
desserts and munchies. Piles of
cookies and brownies, fresh-cut
fruit and perhaps some frozen
treats served from a cooler are
an easy idea. For those who
don’t prefer sweets, add baskets
or bowls of chips, pretzels and
nuts.
Although there’s no rule of
thumb when it comes to how
many guests are coming and
how much food to buy, know
that if your party is on a busy
“graduation party day,” people
may just stop in and eat very
little, so don’t think you need
full servings for each guest. I
know I’m generous with por-
tion sizes, so I usually cook for
about 75 percent of the guests
attending.

jn

GRILLED VEGETABLE
SANDWICHES WITH
PESTO MAYO

1 medium eggplant, unpeeled
and sliced lengthwise into
¼-inch slices
3 zucchini, halved lengthwise
2 red pepper, halved length-
wise
4 large carrots, halved
lengthwise
3 Tbsp. plus 1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 large Spanish or other mild
onion, sliced into rings
2 Tbsp. sugar
¼ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup pesto (homemade or
jarred)
1 large baguette or16 slices
good-quality grainy bread

Preheat grill. Lightly brush
eggplant slices, zucchini, red
pepper and carrots with up
to 3 Tbsp. olive oil and grill,
turning once or twice, until
softened and cooked through.
Sprinkle with balsamic vin-
egar and set aside to cool. Cut
into smaller pieces to use for
the sandwiches.

In a large skillet, heat
remaining 1 Tbsp. olive oil
over medium high heat. Add
onion slices and sauté, break-
ing up the slices into rings,
until softened, about 3 min-
utes. Add sugar and continue
to cook until the onions are
golden. Let cool.
Make Pesto Mayo: Combine
mayonnaise with pesto and
stir until smooth.
Cut the baguette into 8
diagonal pieces and halve
each piece horizontally.
Spread some Pesto Mayo
on the bread. Or, if using
sliced bread, spread some
of the mayo over 8 slices of
the bread. Divide vegetables
among the slices and top
with remaining bread slices.
Wrap well in plastic wrap.
Slice sandwiches into halves
just before serving. You may
also pack all the ingredients
separately and build your own
sandwiches. Makes 8 full serv-
ings/16 half servings.

CHICKEN CAESAR
PITA SANDWICHES

For a kosher version of this
sandwich, leave out the
cheese.
Dressing:
¼ cup mayonnaise (regular
or low-fat)
2-4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
Juice from 1 lemon
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 anchovy fillets, drained,

optional
¼ cup freshly grated
Parmesan cheese
Chicken:
1½ pounds boneless, skinless
chicken breasts
Olive oil for brushing on
chicken
Salt and pepper to taste
Pitas:
8 Pocket pitas
½ pound very thin-sliced
Provolone cheese
12 cups clean, dried and torn
Romaine lettuce
½ cup freshly grated
Parmesan cheese
Freshly ground pepper to
taste

Make dressing: Combine
dressing ingredients in the
bowl of a food processor and
process until smooth. Chill
until ready to use.
Brush chicken breasts with
oil and season chicken with
salt and pepper. Heat grill
to high heat and grill the
chicken on both sides until
just cooked through. Remove
from grill, cool, chill and slice
the chicken into ⅓-inch thin
strips.
Toss half the dressing with
Romaine lettuce leaves and
remaining Parmesan cheese
to coat them completely. Add
more dressing as needed to
taste.
Cut the pitas in half and
open the “pockets.” Stuff them
with salad and chicken. Makes
8 whole/16 half sandwiches.