Cook and refrigerate the seafood up to one day in advance. Prepare the dressing, slice the fennel, tear the lettuce, and refrigerate separately. Assemble just before serving.
Combine wine and mussels in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until mussels open; discard any unopened shells. Remove mussels from pan with a slotted spoon, reserving liquid. Remove meat from mussels, and discard shells. Place mussels in a large bowl. Line a sieve with dampened cheesecloth, allowing cheesecloth to extend over edge of sieve. Drain cooking liquid through sieve over a bowl, reserving liquid; discard cheesecloth.
Return liquid to pan; bring to a boil. Add shrimp and squid to pan; cook for 4 minutes or until done, stirring occasionally. Remove shrimp and squid with a slotted spoon; discard liquid. Add shrimp and squid to mussels.
Combine 1/4 cup lemon juice and next 6 ingredients (through garlic) in a bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Drizzle lemon juice mixture over shrimp mixture, tossing to coat.
Combine lettuce and fennel in a large bowl. Add remaining 4 teaspoons lemon juice to fennel mixture, and toss to coat. Arrange fennel mixture on a platter; top with shrimp mixture.
Cooking Light AUGUST 2006
If you want to cook the pasta ahead, toss it with the olive oil, and refrigerate for up to two days. Cook the shrimp up to a day ahead, and add it to the pasta. Combine the tomatoes, juice, olives, and spices early on the morning of the party. Leave this mixture out at room temperature so the flavors will meld. Toss everything together just before guests arrive.
Prepare grill.
Sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon salt over shrimp. Place shrimp on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 2 minutes on each side or until done. Cool completely. Combine shrimp, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, tomatoes, and next 5 ingredients (through garlic) in a large bowl.
Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain well; cool. Add pasta, arugula, and oil to shrimp mixture; toss gently. Sprinkle with cheese.
Wine note: The arugula's light peppery bite, the tomatoes' acidity, and the brininess of the niçoise olives all call for a simple, crisp, bone-dry white wine that will act as a between-bite refresher. Italy is full of such wines. For one that's packed with personality, you can try Terruzi e Puthod's Terre di Tufo 2005, a vernaccia-chardonnay blend from Tuscany (about $24). -Karen MacNeil
Cooking Light AUGUST 2006
Make the pepper salad, omitting the basil so it doesn't darken and wilt, up to two days in advance. Add basil right before serving.
To prepare chicken, combine the first 7 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add chicken; seal. Marinate in the refrigerator 8 hours or overnight, turning bag occasionally. Add 3 tablespoons juice to chicken mixture; shake well. Marinate in refrigerator 20 minutes.
Prepare grill.
Remove chicken from bag; discard marinade. Sprinkle chicken evenly with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper. Place chicken on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 6 minutes on each side or until done. Cool slightly; cut chicken crosswise into thin slices. Set aside.
To prepare peppers, cut bell peppers in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membranes. Place pepper halves, skin sides up, on a work surface; flatten with hand. Grill, skin sides down, 15 minutes or until blackened. Place in a zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand 10 minutes. Peel and cut into strips. Combine peppers, basil, and remaining ingredients in a bowl. Arrange pepper mixture on a platter; top with chicken.
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Use high-quality tuna, such as Bonito del Norte from Spain. Prepare and chill the salad up to a day ahead. Bring it to room temperature before serving.
Prepare grill.
Cut bell peppers in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membranes. Place pepper halves, skin sides up, on a work surface; flatten with hand. Place pepper halves, skin sides down, on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill for 10 minutes or until blackened. Place in a zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand for 10 minutes. Peel and coarsely chop.
Place eggplant on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 3 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Cool slightly, and coarsely chop eggplant.
Combine peppers, eggplant, rice, and remaining ingredients, stirring to flake tuna with a fork.
Cooking Light AUGUST 2006
Green beans work just as well as asparagus if the latter are no longer in season. Steam and refrigerate the asparagus a day ahead; arrange on a platter with the other ingredients a couple of hours before dinner.
Snap off tough ends of asparagus. Steam asparagus, covered, 4 minutes or until crisp-tender. Plunge asparagus into ice water; drain. Place asparagus on a large platter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Drizzle with oil.
Combine parsley and the remaining ingredients. Sprinkle over asparagus, tossing gently.
Cooking Light AUGUST 2006
Ripe figs are the secret to this simple yet refined salad. It's best made just before serving.
Photo by: Lee Harrelson
Place figs in a bowl; drizzle with oil. Sprinkle figs with pepper; toss gently. Place fig mixture in the center of a platter; top with cheese and mint. Top with prosciutto.
Cooking Light AUGUST 2006
Golden or ruby beets work well in this summer salad. Roast the beets up to four days before serving, and combine with the other ingredients up to two hours before it goes to the table.
Photo by: Lee Harrelson
Preheat oven to 450°.
Leave root and 1 inch of stem on beets; scrub with a brush. Place beets in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish; add 1/2 cup water to dish. Cover and bake at 450° for 40 minutes or until tender. Drain and rinse with cold water. Drain; cool. Trim off beet roots; rub off skins. Slice each beet into 8 wedges.
Combine beets, onion, and remaining ingredients in a bowl, stirring gently.
Cooking Light AUGUST 2006
A simple marinade of shallots, balsamic vinegar, and fresh tarragon makes the most of summer tomatoes. Try a variety of heirloom tomatoes in this dish for their different colors and flavors.
Side dishes don't get any easier than this one. All you need to do is slice up the tomatoes and drizzle with a mixture of olive oil, vinegar, and tarragon.
Prepare this one hour before you eat, and serve it at room temperature.
Photo by: Photo: Lee Harrelson; Styling: Melanie J. Clarke
Combine first 4 ingredients in a bowl, stirring well. Arrange tomatoes on a platter. Sprinkle tomatoes evenly with salt and pepper; drizzle with shallot mixture.
Cooking Light AUGUST 2006
These crunchy, light cookies are a specialty of Prato, a city in Tuscany, where they are called cantucci. They are typically served with a glass of vin santo, a sweet dessert wine, at meal's end. The biscotti keep in airtight tins for up to a week.
Photo by: Lee Harrelson
Preheat oven to 375°.
Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Place almonds in a food processor; pulse 10 times. Stir nuts into flour mixture.
Combine eggs and extract, stirring well with a whisk. Add egg mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until blended (dough will be crumbly). Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead lightly 7 or 8 times. Divide dough into 2 equal portions. Shape each portion into a 6-inch-long roll. Place the rolls 6 inches apart on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray, and pat to 1-inch thickness. Bake at 375° for 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool for 5 minutes on a wire rack.
Cut each roll crosswise into 12 (1/2-inch) slices. Stand slices upright on baking sheet. Bake 14 minutes (the cookies will be slightly soft in the center but will harden as they cool). Remove from baking sheet, and cool completely on a wire rack.
Cooking Light AUGUST 2006
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Make-Ahead Summer Buffet Menu
