Selective Palate

My Favorite wine guy is back. He sent me a great write up on a wonderful Merlot that I wanted to share with you all. I hope you enjoy!~~~~

I’m not the biggest fan of Merlot, and no, it has nothing to do with the movie “Sideways”. I simply don’t find it to be as interesting or consistent as most of my favorite wines. There are, however, always exceptions and sometimes you just crave Merlot. What better way to fill that craving than with a bottle of Pride Mountain Merlot and what better thing to pair with a big strapping Merlot than a Porterhouse steak? I don’t think there exists a better example of perfection in simplicity.

Pride Merlot comes from mountain top vineyards that span the Napa / Sonoma border and is made from high altitude fruit, fruit which has to work hard to ripen and results in more depth and acidity in the grapes. From esteemed wine maker Bob Foley, Pride wines are well respected for their ability to retain balance in the face of extreme richness and intensity . They are not cheap but sometimes you do get what you pay for and this bottle was worth every penny.

Pride Mountain Vineyards, Merlot 2005

My notes:
A luminescent, black cherry color. Rich aromas rise from the glass, first of plum, licorice and vanilla but then an underlying hint of forest floor which adds an inviting complexity to the bouquet. A rich, brooding and palate coating wine that tastes of raisins and black currant jam with a seductive cinnamon, chocolate finish that goes on and on. Chewy yet easy drinking and surprisingly refreshing. This is not a wine for the timid, this is decadence in a bottle.

~Eric

Spring seems to have finally gotten to Vermont however this being Vermont that could change within the next hour! The weather forcast however, is calling for an absolutely beautiful weekend and what better way to kick off the season than with a picnic! Ok, how about just picnic food? As I was telling you yesterday I will be catering a small bridal luncheon in June and I have been diligently testing recipes. The weather being as it is I decided to test out 2 different chicken salad recipes and let friends taste test them for me. Before I tell you the winner I should tell you the different recipes…

First up, a recipe including dijon mustard, sliced almonds and red onions. I roasted the chicken on the bone for both recipes after which for this recipe I cut up the chicken in quite small pieces and the red onion and celery were cut in a very small dice. The dressing was mayo, dijon, tarragon, and lemon juice. This salad was great it had a nice bite to it and fit and stayed on the bread very nice. However I think for a wedding day red onion may be a no go and to be honest the tarragon was a little strong in this recipe. Next up, I took the same chicken roasted on the bone and cut into bigger bite size pieces mixed it with toasted sliced almonds, green grapes, celery and a dressing made of lemon juice, mayo, and less tarragon. Over all this salad was fantastic. The taste of the grapes and the almonds really made the salad pop and the use of tarragon was more of an accent here and worked great. However, the size of everything was too big and would not stay on the bread. End result, the salad chosen for the luncheon is the second salad with the grapes with a few tweaks made to the prep of the chicken and grapes. If it were not for the whole wedding thing I would make the second salad with the addition of the red onions and of course the smaller pieces!

Recipe:

Ingredient:
4 Split chicken breasts on the bone with skin roasted with just salt, pepper and olive oil
1/2 cup good mayo
1 1/2 Tbsp. chopped tarragon
2 stalks diced celery
1 cup green grapes depending on size either 1/2′d or 1/4′d
1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds
the juice of 1/2 a lemon

When the chicken is cool remove the meat leaving the skin and bone and cut in 1/2 inch pieces or smaller. Add the rest of the ingredient and season with salt & pepper. Stir, let sit for at least an hour for the flavors to meld and enjoy.

So I have some pretty big news that I have neglected to tell you all. While innocently working I got recruited to cater a small bridal luncheon. It’s nothing too big, maybe 10 people, but I am kind of psyched! So after meeting with the bride and her mother we came up with a nice menu and since then I have been recipe testing. This morning I went to town on 1 of the small sandwiches I will be offing; an open face Caprese sandwich on crusty ciabatta bread.

Recipe:

Ingredients:
1 Lg Fresh Tomato
4 oz Fresh Mozzarella
10 Leaves Fresh Basil
1 Loaf Fresh Ciabatta
Pesto – see recipe below

This is a very simple sandwich so the ingredients are key, make sure you look for quality in all your ingredients, it really makes a difference. First the prep. Pluck off 10 of the nicest basil leaves; I like them on the larger side. Slice your tomatoes and mozzarella about 1/4 inch thick and mix up your pesto (below). Assembly is easy. Slice your loaf in about 5 equal pieces and then slice them in half to create 2 bottoms. Spread your pesto in a thin layer on the bread then top with 1 slice of cheese , 1 slice tomato and 1 basil leaf. Top each sandwich with a light sprinkle of sea salt and drizzle of good quality olive oil. That’s it but boy is it good.

Pesto:

Ingredients:

1 Lg Bunch Fresh Basil Leaves
1/4 Cup Good Olive Oil
1/4 Cup Pine Nuts (toasted)
1 Inch Cube of Parmesan Cheese
1/2 Clove Garlic (you can use more depending on taste, since this is going to be for a bridal lunch I went easy on the garlic but feel free to punch it up!)
Salt & Pepper

In a blender/food processor combine all but the oil. With the machine running drizzle in the oil until it all comes together in a nice paste. I like mine with a little texture and bright green color. To aid the green along I throw in a small bit of fresh baby spinach. It adds a a bright green color and it helps freshen and brighten the flavor but without tasting “spinachie”. And that’s it a perfect pesto every time! Great for the sandwiches or pasta or even a nice dip!

I know, I know where have I been? It s a long story but I am back now with a new game for you. I was having a case of the dinner blues and just could not think of what to make. I was surfing the web and nothing was inspiring me, so I commissioned M to help. I told him to surf randomly through Tastespotting.com and find something that seemed interesting and no matter what it was; providing it was not dessert, I would make it for dinner and then post about it. I thought it would be fun to try out some of my fellows foodies creations or finds, plus it would solve the whats for dinner question. Leave it to M to settle on a spicy burger! The Bloody Mary Burger by Culinary Cory. These were mini burgers but I wanted something more substancial so I modified them for a normal burger.

Here is what I did:

1 lb ground beef, I used a 90/10
2 Tbsp Ketchup
1 Tbsp Tabasco (we like spice so I uped the amount from 1 tsp.)
1 1/2 tsp. Worchestershire sauce
2 tsp. Horseradish
1/2 small yellow onion, minced
1 tsp. celery salt
1/4 cup bread crumbs

Mix it all together and make 4 patties. Grill up until desired doneness, I like my burger medium-medium rare. I topped these with pepper jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, red onion and a cucumber, avocado salsa.

The Salsa was super easy, 1 whole english cucumber, sliced in half , seeds scooped out and large dice, 1 diced ripe avocado, and 2 scallions sliced. The dressing is the zest and juice of 1 lime, a splash of red wine vinegar, 1 T honey, 1 T olive oil, a handful of chopped cilantro and salt and pepper to taste. Whisk everything together and stir in to the cucumber, avocado and scallion mixture. Serve chilled! It was perfect on the burger as is and for chips later with some hot sauce!Next time I will mince up some jalapeno and through it in.

It was a perfect spring day that day so I became inspired to do picnic sides but updated.

Healthy Potato Salad -Courtesy of Martha Stewart which I really enjoyed. I served it room temperature and it was a perfect side to the burgers. I also served up a healthy slaw of crisp tart apples, fennel and carrots; this too courtesy of Martha Stewart and her Real Simple Team! This was made with yogurt and celery seeds and I thought it would be a great compliment to Bloody Mary Burgers. To be honest this was not my favorite. I thought it was a little heavy on the celery seeds. But M liked it enough. I think I liked the idea alot and will most likely try this again with some tweaking.

Well over all this was fun. I like playing the Tastespotting game! Thank you Culinary Cory for a great recipe and tasty burgers!

So now that Easter is over like most everyone I have a tone of hard boiled eggs and leftover ham. To be honest I am kind of sick of egg salad and ham sandwiches. So I thought what else can I do? Now I am sure there are a tone of more creative ways to use up my eggs and my ham, many I will find all week long while going though other blogs; but for me all I could think of was deviled eggs with ham. I mean its simple, yummy and good for breakfast, lunch or a snack. 1 night we even had them for dinner! And as you may have guessed at this point I am just about over it, but I still have more eggs!

I know almost everyone has a recipe for deviled eggs, but they are all as varied as the people making them so I thought I would give my take on the classic with the inclusion of leftover Easter ham!

First, you start off with your Easter egg and diced up ham. (Get it, Green Eggs and Ham! I know I’m cheesy)

Here’s the rest of what you will need:

Mayo ( the real thing!)
horseradish
Mustard, yellow (I tried using spicy brown because I love that with ham, but it was way too over powering in the eggs)
dash or 2 of Worcestershire sauce
Parsley
salt & pepper

Cut your eggs in half and pop the yolks ito a bowl. Now mix in everything else. I know I did not give any measurements here, this is completely by taste and texture. For 4 (whole) yolks I use a heaping spoonful of mayo, regular spoonful of horseradish, a good quirt of mustard & dash of Worcestershire sauce. I know not very helpful but your mixture should be thick, kind of like a pudding, and not runny at all. I also like my mixture to be very smooth, so before I add any of the ingredients to the yolks, I mash them with a fork and beat in the rest with a whisk. At the end fold in the diced ham and parsley, leaving some for garnish.

I mound up the filling inside the eggs. Its the best part and as M says if you don’t you will have some leftover and you don’t want that.

Enjoy these whenever you like. I think they are a nice twist on a classic. But don’t stop at the ham, deviled eggs are a great vehicle to put just about anything in! Switch out the worcestershire sauce for hot sauce, illiminate the mustard, ham and horseradich, add avocado, diced tomato, and some minced jalapeno and you have deviled mexi eggs with a kick! Or add diced olives and oragano for an Italian twist. You can do anything let your imagination go wild.

On a side I wanted to tell you what leftover ham I am using. As you may know I live in Vermont and not too far away is a little place called Dankin Farm. They are well known for their maple syrup and smoked hams. For Easter I picked up a maple smoked and glazed boneless spiral ham. I am usually adverse to spiral hams, they tend to be full of water and maple glazes are usually too sweet for me. But this ham was great. It was smokey and not your traditional sweet glazed ham. It was a big hit and to be honest there was not a ton of leftovers. Not only that what was left was divied up! If you get a chance I highly recomend this ham. It is not like any you will have had before!

The other morning I was having a client to the house and when I have anyone over I have to feed them. This time I was very short on time so I had to work with what I had on hand and what was quick. I found this recipe a few days earlier and it was perfect! However I have to admit I made a couple changes, 1 by accident but it worked out great!

Recipe

1 1/2 cups flour total, equal parts white and whole wheat, sifted
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 egg
1 cup milk
1/4 cup butter flavored vegetable shortening, melted (its what I had on hand, regular shortening or butter would work)
1 1/2 cup chopped apples (two large apples)

Topping

1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour total, equal parts white and whole wheat
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 400 degree and grease liberally with butter an 8 x 8 pan, set aside. Now sifte together all dry ingedients in a large bowl, set aside. Now mix all the wet ingredients in a seperate small bowl. Add the wet to the dry and mix thoroughly. Then add in the apples and stir to combine. Pour everthing into the greased pan.

Make the topping by blending everything together with your fingers or use a pasty blender. I don’t own a pastry blender but my fingers worked fine and quick. (I also used my hands to mix the batter! I was in a rush and they work the best).

Sprinkle the topping over the batter and bake for about 25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

Now here are the differances; the original recipe called for only 1/2 cup milk. When I was mixing it I noticed that it was a little too dry for me, very dry to be honest so I added another 1/2 cup of milk and it had a more doughy consistency. Also, I was in such a rush I forgot to add the 1/2 cup sugar to the cake batter! I did not realize this until after it came out of the oven. On the fly, while the cake was still hot I drizzled some light Agave nectar I had on hand all over the cake, about 1/4 – 1/3 cup. This soaked in while it was still hot, added to the moisture of the cake and left a wonderfully sweet but not too sweet taste.

Over all it was a hit and I was able to put it together in under 10 minutes! Plus its a recipe that can stand a mistake or 2! Thank you REC(ession)IPES for the recipe.

So as you may recall yesterday’s dinner was an oldy but goodie. Today I decided to take those leftovers and shake it up a bit. Though I loved dinner I wanted something a little differant and a little more portable for lunch. Sushi came immediately to mind! I made a few different things for M, myself and my buddy April.

Maki Roll

sushi rice (cooked and seasoned)
nori
thin sliced steak (cooked)
2 asparagus spears (cooked)
blue cheese spread (mix together 2 parts blue cheese crumbles with 1 part mayo)
black sesame seeds

Place nori shinny side down on your bamboo mat that has been wrapped in plastic wrap. Grab about a handful of the rice and place in center of the nori. For the full maki you may need another small handful depending on your “handful”. I used 2. Spread the rice across the nori to all the edges. The rice should be only about 1/4 inch thick and you should see the nori through the rice. Sprinkle on black sesame seeds and pat into the rice. Flip the whole sheet so that the nori is facing up. Spread on a thin layer of the blue cheese spread top with some of the steak and 2 asparagus spears. Roll up using your mat as a guide. Becareful not to roll up the mat or the plastic wrap. As you roll gentelly apply pressure seal the roll. Slice into 8 even pieces. Keeping your knife damp and clean will help to cut even pieces. For better rolling technique check out Incredible Sushi for great guides and tutorials!

Caterpillar (type) Maki Roll

sushi rice (cooked and seasoned)
nori
thin sliced steak (cooked)
4 asparagus spears (cooked)
blue cheese spread
Unagi Sauce

Just as before spread the rice across the entire sheet of nori but instead of patting in any seeds leave plain. Flip sheet and fill with blue cheese sprea and all 4 pieces of asparagus. Roll maki. Lay strips of steak across the top of the roll and using your mat to press them down firmly but gentelly. Brush tops with warm unagi sauce. Slice the roll inbetween the steak slices. There should be around eight.

Lastly I had extra rice so I made some Inari.

Inari

sushi rice (cooked and seasoned)
black sesame seeds
green onions
fried tofu skins (you can find these in asian secialty store of the lovely internet)

Mix the grean onions in with the rice, you can add some extra rice seasoning if you like it a little sweeter. Carefully split the tofu skin to reviel the pocket inside. Make a small ball with the rice and stuff inside the pocket. Top the rice with the black sesame seeds and more green onions if you like. Easy and yummy! I served this with a small side of wakameme salad. The great thing about Inari is that you can put all kinds of things in the rice mixure.

So like I have said before Vermont’s weather is a little shall we say unexpected. A few days ago it was a nice springy and last night it was cold and snowy. I needed stick your ribs kind of fare so I went with a classic meat and potatoes. It was real simple, seasoned and broiled NY Strips topped with a blue cheese butter, quick fried asparagus with lemon and some of the best mashed potatoes I have had in a while.

I knew I was making the steak, I was craving some red meat so that was a done deal. The blue cheese butter that I topped them with was simply that, blue cheese and butter mixed together. For the veggie I went with asparagus. This couldn’t be easier either I just heated up a pan with olive oil until it was almost smoking and added the asparagus. Just as they were almost done I squeezed on some lemon juice, lemon zest, salt & pepper and I called it a day. The potatoes however were a different story. I knew I wanted them but I just didn’t know if I wanted baked, mashed, or roasted so I asked M and he gave me his standard answer of “Yes”. So I got to thinking why not all of the above!

Recipe:

4 russet potatoes
1 bulb of garlic
olive oil
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 stick butter
handful of chives
handful of parsley
salt & pepper

Start by pre heating your oven to 400. Scrub potatoes and poke with holes all over, wrap in aluminum foil and place in the oven for 1 hour. Now cut the very top off the garlic bulb and rest in aluminum foil drizzle with the olive oil and season with salt & pepper. Roast for about 25 minutes. When all is ready CAREFULLY unwrap the potatoes and plop them in a bowl along with the individual unwrapped cloves of roasted garlic. You should be able to just push the clove right out of the skin. You can also add part of the butter in pats. Begin mashing together. Then add the sour cream, buttermilk, and remainder of the butter. Continue to mash together. At the end throw in the chives, parsley and salt & pepper and stir in to combined.

These mashed potatoes are so yummy. They are thick and chunky with the skins which I love and a TON of flavor. Not your typical mashed potatoes!

So spring keep popping in and out around here. One day its beautiful, sunny, and warm the next we have snow. The joys of living in Vermont! So through all this I read through all my other food bloggy buddies and they are seeing spring time favorites in the grocery store or better their gardens and farmers markets while am stuck here still living on gourds! So the other evening I was walking around our local co-op and spotted some fresh green beans. Of course I plopped them in my cart without a second glance. When I arrived home and unpacked I took one look at the green beans and decided I wanted a spring time salad. What better way to get the essence of spring than in a fresh salad!

So I began rummaging around my fridge to see what goodies I had to make this. First thing I spotted was leftover buttermilk I needed to use up and a bunch of fresh herbs that were not gonna last much longer. And that is when I decided on a nice herb ranch dressing to top a fresh salad of green beans, romaine, red onion and tomato!

Recipe:

1/4 cup sour cream (I used lite)
1 Tbsp. mayo (cannot bring myself to use low fat on this!)
A heft handful of whatever fresh herbs, you have on hand, chopped fine. I used dill, sage, thyme, and tarragon.
Salt & Pepper to taste
Squeeze lemon juice
1/2 cup or so of buttermilk (I used low fat)

Chop the herbs nice and fine you don’t want anything too big to over power the taste and they should be uniform in size. You can use some dried herbs here but use 2/3s less than you would fresh, and don’t use all dried herbs. Now whisk together the herbs, sour cream, mayo, lemon juice and slat and pepper. Once combined drizzled in the buttermilk as you would olive oil until you have the desired consistency. I used approximately 1/2 cup. I was looking for something a little thinner to drizzle over my greens but not over whelm them.

To make the salad I chopped everything in nice bite size pieces and for the green beans I blanched them in boiling water for about 2 minutes and dropping in an ice bath. They turned this beautiful bright green while still remaining really crisp. Everything that spring veggies should be!

Well just recently I went out a bought myself a very nice large granite mortar and pastel. I had been wanting one for quite sometime but had not found any I particularly liked. So when I found this 1 and it was only $40 plus a 20% off coupon, I ripped it right off the shelf. This was not the best move however as I nearly dropped it and put a hole in the store floor; IT WAS HEAVY to put it lightly.

As soon as I got it home I washed it and placed it ever so gently on my counter to dry. All day (ok only for about a few minutes before I caved) it kept calling to me “use me, use me”. But how I asked? Then I spotted the nice ripe avocados just laying in a bowl coincidentally right next to it. I’ll make guacamole! I love guacamole, it has to be 1 of my favorite go to dips, sandwich spreads, finger foods, anything really! But I had just made guac only a couple of days ago and I wanted something a little more interesting. That’s when it came to me, Asian Guacamole! I know it sounds odd and I won’t lie it is odd but in a good kind of way.

Recipe:

2-3 ripe avocados
1/2 tsp. minced fresh ginger
1/2 tsp. minced fresh garlic
1 Tbsp. lime juice
1 tsp. rice wine vinegar or lemon juice
2-3 tsp. wasabi paste
1/2 tsp. sriracha sauce or sambol olek
1-2 tbsp. sliced green onions
1-2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro and/or flat leaf parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Combine the ginger and garlic in the bottom of the mortar and work it with the pastel until a smooth paste forms. Add the lime juice, vinegar, wasabi and sriracha and combine. Then scoop out the meat of the avocados right in the same bowl. Work with pastel until all ingredients are combines and a chunky paste has formed. Stir in the green onions, cilantro and salt and pepper to finish. Serve right in the bowl.

I served this with regular tortilla chips, but you could also serve it with fried wonton chips for that added asian flare!

~Enjoy