Recipes: Chicken Drumsticks With Ginger and Garlic, Pimento Deviled Eggs

Serves 6.

Note: Figure 2 to 3 drumsticks per person — and bring a damp cloth or wet wipes for cleanup. These are messy. Find sesame oil and hoisin sauce in supermarkets, on the shelf with Asian specialties. Prefer wings? Easy to adapt to them. From "Come One, Come All: Easy Entertaining With Seasonal Menus," by Lee Svitak Dean.

• About 3 lb. chicken drumsticks

• 1/4 c. sesame oil (see Note)

• 8 to 10 garlic cloves, chopped

• 4 nickel-sized slices of fresh ginger root, cut in half (or 1 tsp. ground ginger)

• 1/2 tsp. black pepper

• 1/2 c. teriyaki sauce

• 1/2 c. soy sauce

• 1 c. water

• 1 tbsp. Chinese hoisin sauce, optional (see Note and read recipe through to see if you need the ingredient)

Directions

In a medium bowl, mix together the sesame oil, garlic, ginger, pepper, sugar, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce and 1 cup water; add to the pot. Return all the drumsticks to the pot, and toss to coat in the liquid.

Cook, uncovered, over medium-high heat for 20 to 25 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through, stirring often. Remove chicken and set aside. (If you are not using hoisin sauce, chicken is done at this point; also remove and discard ginger slices.)

To serve at room temperature later or to transport elsewhere in a covered container: No need to add hoisin sauce, as it will get gloppy. Keep drumsticks refrigerated until shortly before serving. The chicken also can be reheated.

To serve for immediate meal: Add hoisin sauce to sauce in the pot and cook on high heat for 10 minutes, until sauce starts to thicken. Stir often to prevent burning. Add chicken and cook an additional 5 minutes, coating chicken with sauce. Remove slices of ginger and discard.

Variation: If you prefer to grill or broil the chicken, first marinate it overnight with the same ingredients, but do not add the water. Include the hoisin sauce, if available. The chicken gets much less of a garlic-ginger flavor when it's marinated this way, but it is extremely moist and tender.

From "Come One, Come All: Easy Entertaining With Seasonal Menus," by Lee Svitak Dean.

• Orange juice for ice cubes

• 8 c. water

• 8 bags black tea

• 12 or more fresh mint leaves, divided

• 1 orange, cut in slices

• 1 lemon, cut in slices

Directions

Pour orange juice into an ice-cube tray and freeze to make ice cubes.

To prepare tea, bring 8 cups water to a boil. Pour over tea bags and 6 mint leaves in a pitcher or other container. (For sweetened tea, add sugar to taste at this point and stir to dissolve.)

To serve tea, pour into a pitcher or insulated jug and add orange-juice ice cubes, 6 mint leaves and fruit slices. Or serve individually in tall glasses, with a mint leaf, orange-juice cubes, and slices of both lemon and orange.

If the tea becomes cloudy when it is refrigerated, add a small amount of boiling water to clear it up. Cloudiness can occur if the tea is not completely cool when refrigerated.

Variation: To make sun tea, combine tea and water in a clear jar or pitcher and let sit in the refrigerator for several hours. (Yes, it's possible to keep the tea in the sun, hence the name "sun tea," but if it's really hot and the container isn't that clean, well, the food-safety drill kicks in here.)

Makes 12.

Note: From "Deviled Eggs," by Debbie Moose.

• 1/4 c. finely shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

• 1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. drained and chopped pimentos

• 2 tbsp. mayonnaise

• 2 tsp. Dijon mustard

• 2 tsp. chopped Vidalia or other sweet onion

• Salt and black pepper to taste

• Chopped pimentos, for garnish

Directions

Combine the thoroughly mashed yolks with the Cheddar, pimentos, mayonnaise, mustard, onion and garlic. Taste, then season with salt and pepper.

Fill whites evenly with the mixture and garnish each egg half with chopped pimentos.

Serves 6.

Note: To toast sesame seeds, warm them in a dry saucepan over low heat for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until they lightly brown and become fragrant. Adapted from a recipe by chef Alex Roberts of Brasa Rotisserie in Minneapolis. From "Come One, Come All: Easy Entertaining With Seasonal Menus," by Lee Svitak Dean.

• 1 tbsp. coarsely chopped shallots or onion

• 1/4 c. fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)

• 1 tsp. sugar

• 1 serrano chile, seeded and coarsely chopped, if desired

• 1/3 c. grapeseed oil (or other neutral oil)

• 1/3 c. sour cream, at room temperature

• 1/2 head green cabbage (or a 10-oz. bag of finely shredded cabbage)

• 1/4 c. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

• 1/4 c. chopped fresh mint leaves

• Salt and pepper

• Sesame seeds, toasted (see Note)

Directions

To make vinaigrette: Mix shallots with lime juice, sugar and salt. Let stand for 10 to 15 minutes. In a blender, purée shallot mixture with chile, oil and sour cream until smooth; set aside.