Much like her husband’s iconic all-American fashions, Ricky Lauren’s entertaining philosophy effortlessly dovetails with the relaxed mood of a Hamptons summer.
“It’s very casual, very easy,” Lauren tells The Post. “It’s summertime — a time to get away from serious work if you can, a chance to enjoy nature and be revivified.”
Her new lifestyle book, “The Hamptons: Food, Family and History,” is a personal account of the years she and her family have spent out east, as well as the meals they’ve shared.
“[It’s about] my learning how to be a mom, and how to be someone who knows how to cook and someone who takes care of the nutrition and the health of the children — they’re growing up throughout all of these stories.”
Since the early ’70s, she and Ralph have called the East End home, hopping from house to house as their needs evolved with the birth of their children: sons Andrew and David and daughter Dylan.
There was the converted red barn in Southampton; a modern A-frame and then a glass box in Amagansett; a shingled saltbox in East Hampton; and, finally, since the late ’80s, “a Japanese-inspired [house] built by one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s disciples, the architect Antonin Raymond” in Montauk. (“It seems that the only shaped house we missed was a revolving sphere,” she jokes in the book.)
“As [the children] got older, we loved the idea of the casualness and the reclusiveness and the excitement of the beach — of moving farther out — so we did,” Lauren says of their eventual move to Montauk, where a typical weekend involves trips to the beach and various sports, from bike riding to running to tennis.
“We’re not always together every second,” she says. “But for the most part, we do have a lot of meals together, and we really look forward to them.”
The collection of recipes in her book is a reflection of her family table, which she’s refined over the years to emphasize simplicity and nutrition. Here, she shares some of her favorites, as well as the stories behind them.
(Courtesy of Ann Stratton)
(Courtesy of Ann Stratton)
Dylan’s Sunshine Salad with Mango Dressing
“When Dylan was a little girl, she wanted to try something in the kitchen. She said, ‘Mommy, I’m going to make you a big surprise.’ Her baby sitter was there, and they concocted this, and it was great. We developed it more and more over the years. I still call it Dylan’s Sunshine Salad. The way it’s put on a big round platter, it’s like the rays of the sun. The ingredients are generally more of the red-yellow type colors. It’s very sweet. It’s also a delicious salad, really easy to prepare and a good way to use up leftover roast chicken.”
For the salad:
1 head green-leaf lettuce, leaves separated and washed
1 head red-leaf lettuce, leaves separated and washed
1 chicken breast, roasted and cooled
1 mango, peeled, pitted and sliced
1 papaya, peeled, seeded and sliced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1 cup roasted macadamia nuts
½ cup sliced water chestnuts, drained
1 cup raisins
Arrange the lettuce leaves around a large serving platter. Remove the skin from the chicken and cut the meat off the bones; slice the chicken very thinly. Arrange the chicken, mango, papaya, peppers, nuts, water chestnuts and raisins “like the rays of the sun” around the platter.
Drizzle with the dressing and serve.
For the dressing:
1 ¾ lbs mangos, peeled, pitted and chopped
¼ cup cider vinegar
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp curry powder
½ cup sunflower oil
½ tsp honey
Purée the mangos, vinegar, mustard and curry powder together in a blender or food processor. Transfer to a bowl and whisk in the oil and honey.
Serves four
Ditch Plains Clambake
“A casual clambake is a lot of fun. I try to add a little entertaining flair to make it special. Maybe it’s the colors of the napkins. Or maybe the flatware is special instead of throwaway — but you have to be careful not to lose it! It’s an event, it’s exciting. I try to throw one at least once a season, more often if I can. Serve with wine — not in a paper cup! — and beer straight out of the bottle.”
6 russet potatoes, scrubbed
1/4 to 1/3 cup olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
6 medium cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup dry white wine
2 cups clam juice
1 bunch fresh basil, chopped
1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
2 leeks, thinly sliced and washed
2 tbsp chopped fresh ginger
1 tsp saffron threads
1 tsp red pepper flakes
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 (1 ¾-pound) lobsters
1 lb king-crab or snow-crab legs
1 to 2 dozen littleneck clams, scrubbed
1 lb mussels, scrubbed
8 oz large shrimp, shelled and deveined
8 oz sea scallops
1 lb cod fillets
2 lemons, sliced
Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
Bake the potatoes until tender, about one hour.
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat and sauté the onion and garlic until golden brown.
Add the wine and bring to a boil. Add the clam juice, basil, parsley, leeks, ginger, saffron, red pepper flakes and salt and pepper to taste.
Add enough water — approximately 4 quarts — to cover the seafood when it’s added. Bring to a boil. Drop in the lobsters and crab legs and boil for about 10 minutes.
Drop in the clams, mussels, shrimp, scallops and cod. Cook for another 10 minutes. Remove the pot from heat and serve immediately, accompanied by sliced lemons, baked potatoes and garlic bread.
Serves six
Nana’s Rum-Laced Brownies
“My husband and children love these. My mother would make them on special occasions, and we would wait for those occasions, and then we would save them to the next occasion if we could! They were so precious to us and so delicious. When we would eat them the chocolate would get all over our teeth, and we’d be smiling and laughing. Ralph wanted to sell them in the store, but she was modest and shy. She said, ‘I’ll make them just for you.’ ”
For the brownies:
1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter
6 oz unsweetened chocolate
3 cups granulated sugar
6 eggs
3 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1 ½ cups chopped walnuts
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease and flour a 9-by-13-inch pan. Melt the butter, chocolate and sugar in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Beat the eggs with the vanilla. Sift together the flour, baking power and salt. Mix all the ingredients together and stir in walnuts. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Allow to cool before frosting.
For the glaze
6 tbsp (3/4 stick) salted butter
4 oz unsweetened chocolate
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
rum or brandy to taste
walnut halves
Melt the butter and chocolate. Mix in all the other ingredients except the walnuts, then spread the frosting evenly on the cooled brownies. Cut into squares and decorate with the walnut halves. Refrigerate for one hour.
Makes 12 brownies
Recipes adapted from “The Hamptons” by Ricky Lauren, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Copyright © 2012.