Saturday, July 31, 2010
Redcurrant Jelly with Rosé and Piment D'Espelette
This jelly is a sweet addition to a cheese board or goes well with a grainy bread and creamy butter.
Redcurrant Jelly with Rosé and Piment D'Espelette
1 1/4 redcurrants, rinsed and stems removed
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup rosé wine or water
2 teaspoons piment d'espelette*
*cayenne pepper or another pepper may be substituted, but reduce amounts according to their hotness.
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the redcurrants, sugar and rosé (or water). Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a gentle boil. Continue cooking for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cook until the mixture starts to set and thicken. Test by putting a spoonful on a chilled plate, it should be slightly thick. The jelly will thicken more as it cools, but will not be firm. Remove from the stove and put the mixture through a food mill or sieve to remove the seeds. Stir the piment d'espelette into the strained mixture.
Pour into 2 sterilized 4 ounce jars or 1-8 ounce jar.
Makes 1 cup.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
A Rosé Wine Tasting
"What is Rosé wine? Simply put, it is a pink wine. However, nothing in the wine world is truly simple. Although rosé literally translates to “pink,” the colors range from off-white to deep strawberry. Often the color depends on the type of grapes that are used as well as the method of production.
Rosé wines can range from very sweet like a white zinfandel to bone dry such as the rosés found in the Cotes-de-Provence. Most wine drinkers agree that the drier rosés exhibit more complexity and structure. Blush wines like white zinfandel and white merlot tend to be sweeter and one-dimensional. However, all the styles fare well with a wide variety of foods and are great with barbeque and Asian-style cuisine.
Although any red skin wine grape can create a pink colored wine, the most common grapes used to produce rosé are:
Grenache
Mouverdre
Cinsault
Syrah
Pinot Noir
Zinfandel
There are three methods of production:
Skin contact is the most common method. Red grapes are crushed with the skins, but the juice only remains in contact with the skins for about 48 hours (more or less). Then the skins are discarded as the juice ferments.
Saignée (bleeding of the vats) is when a winemaker releases juice from the wine vat (tank used after the crush) to give red wine a darker color. The lighter (pinker) juice that is removed is then fermented separately from the darker (redder) juice.
Blending is the method you have seen at a party. It is where white wine and red wine are mixed together. Although it can make for some interesting blends at home, winemakers discourage its use. Professionally, the rare time it is used is to make a sparkling rosé."
I often refer to Lisa with wine questions and I have learned a lot through her articles. So now it was time to try a few of these beautiful pink wines. My next door neighbor came over for a tasting last month on a warm summer evening. The wines looked like pink jewels in the setting sun. The wine accompanied by fresh goat cheese drizzled with basil olive oil, crusty French bread and red, ripe cherries transported us to the South of France where days are hot and slow. We first opened a Bordeaux rosé which was dry and if not complex, it was pleasant and refreshing. I had gotten an organic wine from Spain that was interestingly described as having a hint of strawberry. We agreed that the strawberry flavor was too much in the front and maybe would be good for a dessert wine. The Grenache and the Fronton were very dry with hints of berry. As with any wine tasting, the nuances in flavor are more pronounced when they are tasted side by side. We decided rosé is the perfect summer wine and that we we loved them all ♥ Á santé!
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Not Just Plain Vanilla
Vanilla Ice Cream
(adapted from, "The Perfect Scoop" by David Lebovitz)
1 cup (250 ml) whole milk
3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
2 cups (500 ml) heavy cream
pinch of salt
1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
5 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Heat the milk, salt, and sugar in a saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the milk with a paring knife, then add the bean pod to the milk. Cover, remove from heat, and infuse for one hour.
To make the ice cream, set up an ice bath by placing a 2-quart (2l) bowl in a larger bowl partially filled with ice and water. Set a strainer over the top of the smaller bowl and pour the cream into the bowl.
In a separate bowl, stir together the egg yolks. Rewarm the milk then gradually pour some of the milk into the yolks, whisking constantly as you pour. Scrape the warmed yolks and milk back into the saucepan.
Cook over low heat, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom with a heat-resistant spatula, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula.
Strain the custard into the heavy cream. Stir over the ice until cool, add the vanilla extract, then refrigerate to chill thoroughly. Preferably overnight.
Remove the vanilla bean and freeze the custard in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Note: Used vanilla beans can be rinsed and dried, then stored in a bin of sugar. That sugar can be used for baking and, of course, for future ice cream making.
Classic Hot Fudge Sauce
(Adapted from, "The Perfect Scoop" by David Lebovitz)
3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy cream
1/4 cup (60 g) packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup (25 g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/2 cup (125 ml) light corn syrup
6 ounces (170 g) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 tablespoon (15 g) salted butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix the cream, brown sugar, cocoa powder, and corn syrup in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook, stirring frequently, for 30 seconds.
Remove from heat and add the chocolate and butter, stirring until melted and smooth. Stir in the vanilla. Serve warm.
Storage: This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Rewarm it gently in a microwave or by stirring in a saucepan over very low heat.
Diane's note: I substituted half and half for the heavy cream to reduce the fat content and was very happy with the results.
Cherries in a Red Wine Syrup
(Adapted from David Lebovitz.com)
Makes 2 cups (500g)
1 pound (450g) fresh cherries, stemmed and pitted
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (130g) sugar
1 1/4 cups (310ml) red wine
2 teaspoons corn starch or potato starch
2 tablespoons red wine or 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
optional: 1/2 tablespoon kirsch liqueur
1. Put the cherries and sugar in a large, wide saucepan.
2. Mix one tablespoon of the red wine with the corn or potato starch in a small bowl until it's dissolved and set aside.
3. Add the rest of the wine and the vinegar to the saucepan. Bring the heat up to a boil, then reduce the heat so it's at a low boil and cook, stirring frequently, for about 12 minutes, until the cherries are completely wilted and softened through.
4. During the last moments of cooking, stir in the starch slurry and let the mixture boil the additional minute or so, to thicken the juices.
5. Turn off the heat and stir in the almond extract and kirsch, if using.
Storage: The cherries will keep up to one week in the refrigerator. They can be frozen for up to six months.
Monday, July 12, 2010
B-z-z-z....Honey Harvesting at Cabot Farm
Read about Rich and his bees here.
If you would like a jar of Rich's award winning honey, please email him directly at:
airmangirard@gmail[dot]com
The prices are:
$5 for an 8oz. jar
$10 for a 1 pound jar
$20 for a 2 pound jar
Recipes using honey on 2 Stews:
Baked Brie with Sweetened Almonds and Honey
Lavender Honey Grilled Chicken
Cherry Almond Lowfat Granola
Thanks to the Graphics Fairy for the bee clip art.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Ralph, An American in Paris
173, boulevard St. Germain, 75006 Paris
01 44 77 76 00