A creation by Stefan Leis: Salsify with Bread Cream, Goat Cheese Snow, Raspberry Reduction with Edible Moss and Sprouts.

The picture from this recipe looks so bizarre it's hard to believe that it's edible. You'd think we just scooped up a piece dirt outside from "Elfen Land" and photographed it. It's hard to believe this dish is edible, super tasty, and vegetarian. Stefan's methods are half mad-food-scientist, half genius. The bread cream with a Thermomixer. The raspberries spent six hours in a "Verdampfer".  And the salsify was prepared with calcium oxide. 

Hmmmm... How do you make this at home?

The main flavor components of this dish are: salsify, raspberry, goat cheese, dark bread, sprouts. Okay, now that the flavor elements in this dish are identifiable, we can make a recipe that can be prepared easily in an average home kitchen, like mine.  

But first things first, the cocktail: A gin cocktail with rose petals. Think this cocktail is for sissies? Well, think again, it takes a guy who is darn sure of himself to come up with an unusual concoction like this one. This creation of gin and rose petals is a sensory experience. Not a fan of gin? Maybe you haven't tried the right cocktail, yet.

A Rosey Gin Cocktail

50ml gin

50ml rose syrup (recipe follows)

50ml soda water

Splash of Rose flower water

Ice

Stir together the gin, rose syrup and rose water in a cocktail shaker. Pour over ice in a short glass and add soda. Super easy.

Rose Petal Syrup

250 ml water

225 g sugar


3.5 g fresh, organic or pesticide-free rose petals
   

1 tbsp lemon juice

Over medium to low heat, combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan constantly stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Add the rose petals and simmer for five minutes, and add the lemon juice. Let everything steep together for an hour and pour the syrup through a strainer. Let the syrup cool completely before using. Now was that so hard?


Salsify

900g fresh salsify

1  lemon

3tbsp  olive oil

1tbsp  raspberry vinegar

1tsp  dijon mustard

3tbsp  fresh parsley, chopped

1/2tbsp fresh thyme

150g  crumbled goat cheese

1pkg  alfalfa sprouts

This scary looking white root vegetable looks like a long skinny parsnip covered in dirt. Some people call it the “oyster vegetable” although I think that it has more of an artichoke flavor. Just peel the skin away, like you would a carrot, and rinse it a bit to get the extra sand off. Salsify brown quickly when exposed to air, so if you aren’t cooking them immediately, place the salsify in a dish of water with a little bit of lemon juice. Toss the salsify in a bit of olive oil and season with salt and pepper and roast at 200° for about twenty minutes it in an oven proof dish. Combine the vinegar and mustard and slowly pour in the olive oil while whisking. Add the herbs and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the dressing over the salsify and sprinkle with goat cheese. And serve with the bread pudding. Garnish with the sprouts.

For the Bread Pudding

4 large eggs


400ml  heavy cream

1tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 leek, chopped

250g Roggenmischbrot (or other dark bread), cubed

olive oil

salt and pepper


Here is a straightforward recipe for a savory bread pudding. Whisk eggs and cream in large bowl. Toss the bread with the egg mixture and leek and layer it evenly in an oven proof dish that has been coated with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Let stand for about thirty minutes before putting it in the oven. Bake at 175° for about 45 minutes to one hour.

Now set yourself down, relax, enjoy your meal and raise your glass to Stefan Leis. He prefers it that way.

The ‘Seasoned Players' and Winekiki

Words cannot describe how proud we were to receive the INTERNETWORLD Business Shop-Award 2017 at the festive gala at hosted by the Bayerischer Hof in Munich.

The award is annually presented to the best online shops in the German-speaking world. That’s Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, y’all! The prize is given by INTERNETWORLD Business - the leading trade journal for e-commerce. So of course, WE ARE FLOORED!

There were 248 shops that entered the competition. Among the 21 finalists were genuine "big players" like Douglas, Rewe, Zalando… and US!

A Huge Honor

The prize is an honor for my team and our fine, little online wine boutique. When I started winekiki, I wanted to change the way wine is presented on the internet. No one else can show how wine tastes, as we do with our colorfully designed aroma profiles.

Receiving this award really says something about our work, and to be included at the same gala with the other big name online shops –well, if that is not a compliment, then I don’t know what is :)

The shop award is a clear sign that we are on the right track - and I hope you agree. There is always more to do, change, and innovate.

We are just getting started!!

XO KIKI

First get a piece of paper and a glass of wine. Sounds good already, right?

Hold your wine at a 40 * angle so you are looking through the wine over the paper. Be careful not to spill, you want to look cool.

A Moment of Clarity:

Can you see through the wine? Is it cloudy our clear?

A wine that is cloudy could indicate that the wine is either unfiltered, flawed, or aged. 

Filtering wine takes out the little nasties (like microbes or yeasts) that might decide later to have a party in your bottle, ruining the wine. Filtering also clarifies the wine by removing sediment and making it more visually appealing.  Not all wines are filtered. There are also winemakers who don't filter at all, believing that a wine looses its character when it is filtered. 

Like unfiltered wine, flawed wine can also have a cloudy appearance. It was either poorly produced or improperly stored. So how do you know if a wine is flawed or just unfiltered? Flawed wine will have a bad smell like moldy wet cardboard or burnt rubber. If you think your wine might be flawed, give it a smell. You will know immediately. Trust me. 

Okay, so your cloudy wine smells fine? Maybe you have an aged wine. As wine ages, these little things called tannins fall out of the wine creating a hazy appearance. What is a tannin? It is a substance that naturally exists in the skins, seeds, and stems of grapes. When you drink a wine with tannin, your mouth will be dry. Think: really strong black coffee. Got it? Where were we? Yes, so the tannins have fallen out of the wine creating a hazy appearance. What's left is a matured wine that has other nuances that have developed over time. Lucky you!

Show Me Some Color:

The color of the wine also has lots of clues about the age of the wine. Do you have a red wine that is dark purple? Or is it a brighter garnet color? Is it a pale white wine with a tinge of green? Or is it a darker straw yellow color? The color can tell you about the wine's age. Normally, white wines turn darker and red wines become lighter with age. 

Another visual hint is called the rim variation. What, pray-tell, is rim variation, you ask? It is the change in color from the center of the wine to the rim of the glass. You can use rim variation to predict the age of a wine. Hold your wine over your piece of paper, and tilt the glass at an angle so you are able to look through the wine. If your wine is young, the color of the wine will not have much of a change in the rim variation. Conversely, if your wine has some age, the color change from the center of the wine to the rim of the glass will be more noticeable. See? Kinda cool, right?

Through Thick and Thin:

The next trick in analyzing wine is viscosity. Viscosity is the consistency of the wine. Is the wine thick or thin?  Take your glass of wine and give it a swirl. A gentle swirl, because spilling it just makes you look uncool. The drips running down the inside of theglass are called "tears" or "legs". Tears can give you a hint to where the wine could have been produced and its alcohol content. If the tears run slowly, then the wine has a higher viscosity. A wine with a higher viscosity is an indicator of a warmer growing climate and higher alcohol/sugar content. A wine with tears that roll quickly down the inside of the glass is a clue that the wine is from a cooler growing climate and has a lower alcohol/sugar content. 

Who knew you could learn so much about a wine by sight alone? Pretty cool, eh? Next up: Only the nose knows.

Now go on, drink your wine. You've been looking at it long enough!

He decided to stop making certified Beaujolais because his wines were found to be atypical for the region by the French government. Atypical, but better. Then when he decided to start producing Biodynamic wine (before it was cool) he made his standards higher than the those required for certification by Demeter. Meet the man whose wine is more biodynamic than Rudolph Steiner.

A LITTLE Q&A WITH BERNARD VALLETTE

Q

How long have you been producing wine?

A

 "I am the son, grand-son and great grand-son of winemakers . I was born grew up on the family farm. So I was immediately immersed in the agricultural and wine atmosphere. When I wanted to pursue an winemaking, there was not enough room in the my area . So I waited until my mother retired to become winemaker in 1985."

Q

When did you decided to start doing the biodynamic wine?

A

"I started practicing Biodynamic winemaking, officially, in 2000."

Q

How has your philosophy on biodynamic winemaking evolved since you started doing biodynamic wine?

A

"The philosophy remains the same. The overall vision changes and evolves over time. Winemaking is different each year and each vintage is unique. We must be present, attentive , responsive if needed, with precise gestures. Above all, we must have in our relationship with the vine a respectful attitude. Honesty preserves the balance throughout the season. The winery will become a place of birth, and will choose the character of the wine during fermentation, the right direction for our greatest happiness."

Q

When winekiki started importing your wine, you were producing five different wines. Things have changed a bit since then. Can you tell me a bit about your new projects?

A

"We do not choose our desires, they make themselves known. When I first started producing wine, I developed the "Quatre Saisons". The following year, I made the "Vin Nouveau" and the "Cuvée Centenaire".  Meanwhile, I planted "Chardonnay". I vinified still wine and sparkling wine. Then there were the "Rosés". I made a still wine first, then later the sparkling wine "Neé Buleusse", which is a great success. More recently, I have acquired these Georgian jars made out of terracotta that allow me to produce a new natural wine. In 2015 I launched a wine called "White Night". It is a blanc de noir which is made from the Gamay grape, and in the future I would like to make a "blanc de blancs". Last year, I planted four new white grape varieties: Muscat Ottonel, Auxerrois, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris. This year I planted a plot of Roussanne. In total, there will be 7 different grape varieties, and like the seven notes of music, we will have wine infinity."

9 EVERYDAY QUESTIONS FOR BERNARD VALLETTE

What's your favorite pizza?

If you could drink any wine from any vintage, except your own, what would you drink?

What is your favorite song?

How did you celebrate your last birthday? 

If you couldn’t make wine, what would you do instead?

If you could travel anywhere for a vacation what place would you visit? 

What is the funniest thing that you have ever seen? 

 If you could invite any five people, living or dead, to a dinner party who would you invite? 

What is your favorite movie?

This recipe is not so complicated to make, but if your time is limited or you just don't feel like cooking, you can buy a cake bottom from your favorite bakery and use a prepackaged vanilla custard to make things easier and faster.

Serves 4

Ingredients for the topping

Ingredients and method for the cake bottom

Mix butter and sugar in a large bowl until combined. Scrape the tiny (and sticky) seeds from the vanilla bean and add it to the butter and sugar mixture. Add the baking powder to the flour. Alternate adding the flour, a few spoonfuls at a time, with the addition of each egg mixing well each time before adding more. Add milk and mix until combined.

Line your cake form with baking paper and grease with butter to keep your cake from sticking to the pan.

Pour the batter into your cake form and bake for about 25 minutes at 180° or until the cake is springy to the touch and a cake tester (or butter knife) comes out clean. Leave the cake in the cake form on a wire rack for about 15 minutes before flipping it out and leaving to cool. 

Ingredients and method for the pastry cream

In a medium bowl whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and salt.

Heat the milk in a nonreactive saucepan just enough so that it is super hot but not bubbling. Add the butter, vanilla bean and half of the sugar/cornstarch mixture to the hot milk and whisk until dissolved.

Mix the egg yolks with the remaining sugar separately.

Temper the eggs and sugar by adding several tablespoons of the hot milk to the sugar. Be sure to stir constantly so your eggs don't cook.

Now pour the eggs into the hot milk, again stirring constantly. Continue to cook until it comes to a simmer. Simmer for about a minute. Remove from heat and take out the vanilla bean.

Strain the pastry cream through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Cover the pastry cream with plastic wrap and press it directly onto the surface of the pastry cream to prevent a skin from forming on top.

Refrigerate until ready for use.

Assembly

Melt the apricot jelly in a saucepan or microwave. Spread the pastry cream over the cake in a thin even layer. Top with the fruit and brush with the melted jelly to make a glaze.

Not so bad, eh? Now it's time to celebrate!

It's that time again. Summer? Yes, but I 'm talking about something else. Europa-Meisterschaft, 2016 to be exact. All you need is a flatscreen bigger than Bayern and your best besties. Oh, and a delicious nosh nosh with a super cocktail.

First things first, the cocktail. I propose a variation of the red wine cocktail, Tinto de Verano. 

"Tinto de Verano" translated into English means "red wine of summer," and is served in the hot months throughout Spain. It is traditionally prepared by mixing young Spanish red wine (like a "Joven" Tempranillo) with a lemon soda-pop ("Gaseosa"), but less sweet and more citrusy.

I tried this nifty wine cocktail for the first time on a recent trip to Aranda del Duero, at the urging of my pals Antonio and Olga Diez and Marie Keary. I was skeptical at first, but I found the drink to be cool and refreshing on a hot day. It is simple to prepare, and it is low in alcohol. BONUS!

If you don't have any young Spanish red wine sitting around, you can easily substitute another young red wine like Spätburgunder, Frühburgunder, or a Beaujolais for your cocktail. 

Tinto de Verano

-      4oz young red wine

-      1oz sprite

-      2oz bitter lemon

-      lots of ice

Mix the wine, sprite, and bitter lemon together. Serve over ice. You can vary the amounts depending on your taste. That's it!

Now all you need is a nice nosh to match your cocktail, so fire up the BBQ. Here are some grill tips and three outstanding sauces for the ultimate Europa-Meisterschaft Bratwurst!

For the grill

-   Nürnberg Rostbratwürste

-   Stadtwurst

-   Tofu Sausages (yes, I love the vegans, too)

Let's take a moment to reflect on a few fundamental rules that will make you a grill master in no time flat.

FROM REFRIGERATOR TO GRILL IS A NO-NO!

Bring your sausage to room temperature first before cooking. This rule can be applied to all meat and not just for grilling.  Allowing your delicious bratwurst to come to room temperature before slapping it on the hot grill will prevent the outside from burning or drying out while you are waiting for the inside to finish cooking.  The result? A juicy, delicious, and evenly cooked bratwurst.

EASY ON THE HEAT, COWBOY!

Temperature is important. The secret to controlling the temperature of your bratwurst is by grilling over medium-low heat. Scooch the hot charcoal to one side of your BBQ and grill the sausages over indirect heat on the other side. Don't try to sear the outside, or your lovely bratwurst will be burnt. Burnt is not a flavor people!

BROWN IS THE NEW BLACK

The goal is to have delicious, golden brown bratwurst. Don't let the flames flare up and turn your bratwurst into a black stick. Keep a vigil eye on your sausage booty. Thou shall not walk away from your BBQ. This is not only a sausage violation but also a potential safety issue. Don't wanna be calling Fireman Sam on game day because you burnt your block down.

So now that you have some pointers for a successful BBQ session let's talk sauce.

Three sauces, to be exact in the color of the German flag. How's that for some German national pride?

For the Sauces

Red Velvet BBQ Sauce

Combine all ingredients and simmer for twenty minutes.

Ginger Hoisin 

 Blitz all ingredients in a food processor and chill until ready to serve.

Pineapple Curry

Blitz all ingredients in a food processor and chill until ready to serve.

So now you have the makings of a great party, and you should be ready to cheer Germany on to victory. 

Pass the chips!

I chose the Naveran Brut Vintage Cava for this recipe because the richness and smokiness of the fish complement the citrus notes in the Cava.

Serves 2-4

Ingredients for the pickled onions

Method for the pickled onions

Heat the vinegar, sugar, and clove over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. If it is too acidic, just add a little more water or sugar. Pour the liquid over the onions in a heatproof bowl. It’s probably a good idea to avoid Tupperware or plastic containers.  

Let the onions steep for five to ten minutes. Drain off the excess liquid and season with salt and pepper and toss with olive oil. Say ‘hello’ to your new favorite condiment! You can store this in a refrigerator for two weeks… maybe even a little longer. 

Ingredients for the Trout

Method for the Trout

Combine cream, Dijon mustard, lemon zest, dill, and thyme. Gently toss together with the flaked trout and a drizzle of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and refrigerate until needed. 

Serve on crostini, toast, or crackers and top with pickled onions. See? That was pretty fast wasn’t it? I bet your Cava isn’t even cold enough yet!

* You need hot smoked trout as opposed to a cured trout. Otherwise your fish won’t have the right texture for ‘flaking.’

A few days ago I felt bored and restless. I went for a bikeride and picked flowers. The sun was shining and the air was full of tension. I found myself before a dark forest and continued along until I noticed a huge bonfire welcoming the month of May. There were people in colorful clothing dancing around the bonfire. Their hair was adorned with flowers. Overcome with emotion and excitement, I laid my bike down and began dancing with them. 

Suddenly the sky was dark and the wind began to blow. I left the group and continued until I found myself under a large chestnut tree.The tree was very old and wise and had seen more storms and lightning strikes than the god Zeus. The clouds turned into huge mountains and the sky was moving. It became darker and began to rain hard.

Then the rain stoped just as quickly as it had begun. The sky opend up. The setting sun was peaking through the dark horizon and there was fog rolling through the valley. I sank to my knees and observed the landscpae before me. 

I opened my backpack and took out a bottle of Cava and popped off the cork. As I sipped it I began thinking about the smell of white flowers. I was fascinated by its finesse and intensity. 

The sky overhead began to rumble and the bonfire that I left behind became louder. From a distance the people looked like flowers dancing around fire. I returned to the group and gave the vagabonds the rest of my Cava. 

The Cava gave me an appetite. So I returned home. At home I only found bread, cornichons, carrots, horseraddish root and peal onions. I still had a chilled open bottle of Cava left over. I wondered what I could add to it to make it different. In my cuppoard was a bottle of edelflower syrup from the year before.

I had a taste for gin and in the past I used to experiment a lot with it. I still had some leftover and decided to mix the following drink: 

-       6 cl Cava Brut Vintage Naveran

-       2 cl Holunderblütensirup

-       3 cl Gin

I sat on my couch, sipped the cocktail and looked out my window. I thankfully watched the sunset in the stormy sky. I reflected on my experiences from the day and decided to prepare something to eat. I created this edible painting:

Ingredients

-       400 g Sourdough Bread ( reserve one slice )

-       1 jar cornichons

-       4 kg carrots

-       50 g horseradish root

-       1 jar pearl onions

-       50 g Kalamata olives

-       150 ml olive oil

-       100 ml crème fraîche

-       salt, pepper, and honey

Method

Dehydrate and reduce the carrots in food dehydrator to 150 ml.  Add 10g of powdered calcium to the carrots and pour into a silikon freezer form and freeze for two hours. Once frozen immerge the frozen carrot drops in a lactate algee bath, and rinse with carrot juice.

Dry out the sour dough bread and make bread crumbs. Add enough water to the bread crumbs so the mixture is creamy and mix it in a mixer for thirty minutes. It will smell like freshly baked bread in the kitchen. Take the reserved piece of bread and toast it long enough so the it is dried out enough to crumble. 

Peel the horseraddish and grate it fine with a microplane. Mix the horseraddish with the 50 ml crème fraîche and season with salt and pepper. 

Remove the pits from the olives and purree fine. 

Purée the cornichons and season it with honey, salt, and 50 ml crème fraîche. 

Assembly

For the stormy landscape: Put the bread creme on a cutting board. Paint the cornichon creme over the bread creme. Place the pearl onions and crumble the toasted bread on top.

The night sky: Dab the olive purree on the board with a spunge to form the night sky.

The sunset: Take carrot juice and one carrot drop for the sun. 

The fog: Dab the horsereddish cream with a smal spunge for the horizon.

Addendum: This edible painting is based on a real piece of art work. But attention, it is made of oil paint, and in consequence not edible!

I also like this dish because it is not expensive, traditional, and TASTY!! It's more of a cold weather dish, but once I cooked it August on a “cooler” day because I had a taste for it.

I should probably mention that this isn't my recipe either. Nope. It comes from the great chef, Anthony Bourdain. I would also like to mention that if no one was around, I would just eat it straight from the dish with the big serving spoon. 

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

Preheat the oven to 175°C. Place the potatoes in the pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Cook for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are easily pierced with the knife. Remove from the heat, drain, and let sit until they are cool enough to touch.

Cut the potatoes into small dices and set aside. In a sauté pan add the bacon and cook until browned. Take out the bacon. Cook the onion in the bacon fat until it is golden brown.

Next, add the potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Add the bacon back into the pan. Pour half of the ingredients into a baking dish and top with half of the cheese. Repeat with the rest of the potatoes and the cheese. Bake in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, or until bubbly.

Meanwhile send a text message to Anthony Bourdain and ask him to pick up some Savoie wine. If he doesn't respond, you can make yourself feel better by eating the Tartiflette straight out the pan with the big serving spoon. I won't judge you.  Just be careful not to burn your mouth on the cheese ;)

So here is my rendition of an asparagus flammkuchen that I topped with a dry-cured Black Forest ham…. Because one should take full advantage of eating delicious cured meats whenever possible. 

The saltiness of the ham needs a fresh, crisp wine to balance it out. So I chose a wine from the Mosel region in Germany by Sybille Kuntz. This light wine has apple, citrus, and floral aromas and is made of Riesling. This unoaked wine is perfect for asparagus, which can be tricky to pair sometimes.

This unoaked wine is perfect for asparagus, which can be tricky to pair sometimes.

Ingredients

Serves 4

For the toppings:

For the dough:

Method

Mix the flour, oil, water, and salt in a bowl. The dough should not be sticky. I used baby green asparagus in this recipe, but you can use what ever you like. If the asparagus is small and thin, it will cook pretty fast, so make sure you don't have small thin pieces mixed with bigger thicker pieces or the smaller ones will be overcooked.

Blanche the asparagus in salted water just long enough so that the asparagus is slightly cooked, about two minutes.

Mix crème fraîche and garlic together and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Roll dough onto oiled baking paper and top with crème Fraiche mixture. Top with the asparagus and bake at 180 degrees Celsius with convection (200 degrees Celsius, without convection) until lightly browned around the edges. Top with the ham and sprinkle with radishes.

I have a great cocktail to help you usher in the warm weather. Think: blood orange meets Lillet meets Rosé wine. Possibly better than Batman Meets Superman.

To accompany this classy drink I whipped up some Gougeres. Think: fancy swiss cheese puffs... and try not to think about the crazy antics surrounding the US presidential election. 

First things first, the cocktail....

Mix the cold Lillet Blanc and the Rosé wine in a large wine glass. Rub the twist around the rim of the glass. Drop the twist into the glass. Add soda water and garnish with blood orange slice.

For your fancy cheese puffs….

In a medium saucepan, combine the water with the butter, salt, and milk over medium-high heat.  Remove from heat.

Add flour, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until the flour is well incorporated. Stir constantly, until mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan. You should have a smooth dough mass.

Add eggs, one at a time, stirring constantly after each addition. Mix in cheese and chives.

Transfer dough to a pastry bag fitted with a round tip and pipe 2 1/2  cm puffs. Brush each puff with egg wash and bake until golden, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Enjoy, and Happy Spring!

Ingredients

Serves 8

Method

Combine the mustard, lemon juice, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, garlic, and shallot in a large dish. Thoroughly coat the steak with the marinade. Chill and marinate for at least three hours.

Heat olive oil in a sautée pan over medium high heat. Season the flank steak with salt and pepper. Sear each side of the meat for several minutes. Transfer to a 200°C oven and continue to cook until your desired doneness is reached.

The steak’s internal temperature for doneness is as follows:

50°C for rare, 60°C for medium rare, 65°C for medium, and so on…

Now that wasn’t hard at all was it?

Enjoy!

I paired the Vega Demara Joven with this version of Pisto Manchego because I find that food and wine from the same region can be quite complimentary, and I think that you will agree. 

Ingredients

Serves 4

 Method

In a large saucepan cook the onions and the bell pepper in the oil over low heat until the softened. Add the garlic, and cook everything a few minutes longer. Add the tomatoes, zucchini, parsley, chorizo, and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the sherry vinegar, and stir gently. Top with Manchego cheese.

Serve with crostini or bread. This also makes a perfect accompaniment to fish or grilled fish, and in Spain, it is often served by itself with a fried egg on top.

Ingredients

Serves 4

Lamb rack:

Potatoe pea mash:

Method

First things first, open the wine and let it breathe a bit.

Season rack of lamb well on all sides with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a sauté pan over high heat. When the oil is super hot, add the rack of lamb and brown, about 3 minutes. Set aside on a plate.

Combine the mustard and garlic with thyme, rosemary, and one tablespoon each of the parsley and mint.  Spread the mustard mixture evenly all over the lamb.

In a bowl, combine the breadcrumbs and the leftover parsley and mint. Coat the lamb with the breadcrumb mixture.

Place the lamb on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil and bake at 190 °C convection for 10 to 15 minutes for medium-rare. Allow the lamb to sit for at least 5-10 minutes before slicing. Otherwise, the wonderful juices will run all over the place.

Cook the potatoes in salted water. How salty should the water be? It should taste like the ocean. Next, add the peas approximately two minutes before the potatoes are done cooking. Drain off the water and smash the potatoes, peas, butter, and crème fraîche with a potato masher until you have a lovely green color. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve to your besties and basque in the compliments. 

Ingredients

Serves 4

For the pork:

For the potatoes:

For the Padrón peppers:

Method

Season the pork tenderloin with salt and pepper and rub thoroughly with spice rub. Totally easy. Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan and brown the tenderloin on all sides. Next, place the pork in a 190°C oven until the pork reaches an internal temperature of 80°C. Let the tenderloins rest several minutes before slicing or else the delicious juices will run everywhere and your lovely pork will dry.

Toss the potatoes with olive oil, herbs de Provence, and salt and pepper and roast on a sheet pan in a 190°C oven for 20 minutes.


Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add half of the peppers. If you add too many, you will overcrowd the pan and the peppers will steam instead of searing as they should. Shake the pan occasionally until the skins blister and the pepper has softened, about 4 minutes. Repeat with the remaining peppers. Add salt before serving.

Now enjoy your Angel de Larrainzar!

Background Music: Volare by Gypsy Kings

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

In a large pot heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallot and mushrooms, sauté until thoroughly cooked, but not browned. Remove the mushrooms from the pan and add the butter and the rice constantly stirring so that each grain of rice is coated with butter. Add the wine to the rice and a large ladle of stock and continue to cook, constantly stirring until the liquid is absorbed into the rice. Keep adding the stock using the same method until the rice is al dente and creamy. Fold in the mushrooms, thyme, and parmesan cheese.

All done! Eat it NOW, NOW,  NOW!! 

Then comes the phenomena of the magic hand. For some reason, when my husband assembles the pizza, it somehow looks better and tastes better. There is no scientific reason to explain this occurrence, which is why I call it the magic hand phenomena.

So with this magic pizza, we need a wine that is easy to drink with some tannin (but not too much) and a nice amount of fruit, like the Martín Berdugo Joven. It is a young red made from the Tempranillo grape and because of it’s youth it has a lot of fruit but it is also low in tannins. Perfect for pizza.

Ingredients

Serves 4

For the dough:

For the sauce:

Method

For the dough:

Pour 3/4 cup warm water into small bowl and crumble the yeast into the water.  The water should measure between 40-45°C for the yeast, if the water is too hot you will kill the yeast, too cold and your dough won’t proof. 

In a large bowl, mix the flour and salt. Make a well in the middle of the flour and add the yeast mixture and a two tablespoons of olive oil.  Begin mixing the flour and the water together with your hands. If the dough becomes too dry, add some cold water, a little at a time.

Keep kneading the dough with until you have a large ball. Cover and let it stand in a warm place for one hour. While you are waiting for your pizza dough, you can start the sauce.

For the sauce:

Add a tablespoon of olive oil to a saucepan and sauté onions over medium heat for about two minutes. Add the anchovies and cook about a minute longer. Add the garlic and cook for about another minute. Now add the passata, the herbs de Provence and season with salt and pepper. 

After the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and knead for about 10 minutes. Transfer the dough to a piece of lightly floured parchment paper and roll it out into the desired shape. You should have enough for four smaller pizzas or one giant monster pizza….. Depending on how big your oven is. Spread the sauce over the dough and top with your favourite pizza toppings and of course, mozzarella cheese.

Here is a list of toppings that are popular in my house, but by all means don’t stick just to this list. Be creative and have fun. Enjoy the wine.

Toppings                       

Pepperoni

Mushrooms

Onions

Sausage

Bacon                           

Fresh Mozzarella cheese

Olives

Green peppers

Red peppers

Spinach

Tomatoes

Artichoke hearts

Bake the pizza at 200°c with convection until warm, golden, and bubbly. About 15-20 minutes. 

So, first things first, chill your wine. 

Serves 4

Hummus:

Drain the chickpeas, reserving the liquid and set aside. In the bowl of a food processor, add the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, a teaspoon of salt, cayenne pepper and 50 ml of the liquid from the chickpeas. Blitz on medium speed until everything is combined. Add the chickpeas and blitz again on medium speed while slowly drizzling in the olive oil. Season again with salt, if desired.   That’s all!

Olive Hummus:

Drain the chickpeas, reserving the liquid and set aside. In the bowl of a food processor, add the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, cayenne pepper and 50 ml of the liquid from the chickpeas. Blitz on medium speed until everything is combined. Add the chickpeas and blitz again on medium speed while slowly drizzling in the olive oil. Add the olives and blitz again until combined. I never use salt in this version of the recipe because usually the olives are salty enough….

Sundried Tomato Hummus:

Drain the chickpeas, reserving the liquid and set aside. In the bowl of a food processor, add the sun-dried tomatoes, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, a teaspoon of salt, cayenne pepper and 50 ml of the liquid from the chickpeas. Blitz on medium speed until everything is combined. Add the chickpeas and blitz again on medium speed while slowly drizzling in the olive oil. Season with salt, if desired. Not bad, eh?

Now all you have to do is slice some fresh vegetables or bread and you have yourself a nice little nibble to go with your rosé. And it’s totally easy! You can even prepare it a day or two ahead of time.

Ingredients

Serves 4…. Oh, and mixed greens with a light vinaigrette rounds out the meal.

For dough:

Mix the flour, oil, water, and salt in a bowl. The dough should not be sticky.

Toppings

Traditional Topping:

Lightly sauté the speck in a pan. Mix crème fraîche and garlic together and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Roll dough onto oiled baking paper and top with crème fraîche, speck, and red onion. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius with convection (200 degrees Celsius, without convection) until lightly browned around the edges.

Pesto and Mozzarella:

Roll dough onto oiled baking paper and top with pesto, mozzarella, mushrooms and tomatoes. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius with convection (200 degrees Celsius, without convection) until lightly browned around the edges.

Smoked Salmon:

Mix crème fraîche and garlic together and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Roll dough onto oiled baking paper and top with crème fraîche. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius with convection (200 degrees Celsius, without convection) until lightly browned around the edges.

Remove from oven and top with smoked salmon and dill.

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius.

Whisk eggs, milk, and nutmeg together in a medium sized bowl. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Dip the bread into the milk and egg mixture, be sure to let the bread soak up some of the liquid.

Place the bread into a hot skillet and fry until golden, then flip the bread over and brown the other side. Place half of the bread on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and top with tomato grated cheese. Bake until cheese is bubbly.

“Art is autobiographical; the pearl is the oyster's autobiography.”


Federico Fellini

It’s one of those gray days in January. Cold. Dark. Rainy. Depressing. There is something lovely about that first sentence, though. The word January. Do you see it? It’s the letter “r.” A month with the letter “r” in the spelling means one thing: Oysters are in season! 

Mmmm-mm! Nothing like a little Champagne and oysters to cheer one up on a dreary day. Don’t let buying or chucking oysters intimidate you from treating yourself to this delectable treat.

Here is just the crash course you need to put you on the road to oyster and Champagne blissfulness. Now chill some Champagne!!

Tips for purchasing oysters 

• Each bag or crate of oysters has harvest date printed on the tag. Ask to see the tag and check the harvest date. If it is possible to handpick the oysters, try to select the ones that are heavier.

• Check to make sure your oysters are alive. Don’t accept oysters that are open or that have broken shells.

• Store oysters in the refrigerator and cover them with a damp towel.

Special Equipment

• Oyster knife (Totally not expensive, you can usually pick one up where you purchase the oysters.)

• A thick kitchen towel (Don’t use grandma’s linen, hand embroidered with the family crest. Take the grungiest one you can find.)

• An extra towel for cleaning your oyster knife.

Method 

• Wrap the grungy towel around one hand to protect it and hold the oyster firmly.

• Place the tip of the oyster knife at the hinge of the oyster and twist the knife while prying it into the oyster to hinge it open.

• Slide the knife over the top of the inside of the oyster shell.

• Slice through the muscle that holds the oyster to the shell to loosen the meat.

That’s it!!

Accoutrements

• Lemon wedges….

• Mignonette Sauce:

            Mix the following together and drizzle over the oysters.

            120 ml  red wine vinegar (or sherry vinegar, or champagne vinegar)

             2 tbsp   minced shallot

                          black pepper

• Ginger Lime Sauce:

            Mix the following together and drizzle over the oysters.

            120 ml    rice wine vinegar

            2 tbsp     lime juice

            2 tsp      fresh ginger, minced

                            black pepper

• Beyoncé Sauce:

            Got a hot sauce in your bag? Swag.

Background Music:  Almost Blue by Chet Baker

The fresh flavor of the peas pairs perfectly with the bright freshness of the Walter Buchegger Rosé, Pinot & Co . The mild flavor of barlauch with the roasted pine nuts marries perfectly with the Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Zweigelt grapes that are used to make this crisp Rosé.

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

Heat the water in a pot and add the frozen peas, scallions, salt and let everything simmer together for just over five minutes. Add the mint and cook for one minute longer and add the pesto. Blitz everything with a hand blender and serve immediately with toasted pine nuts.

That’s it! You’re all done…. Hard to believe, right?

Well, it just so happens that Wild Boar pairs amazingly well with red wine. So one could theoretically argue that by preparing this dish, one is exercising good healthy living habits.  At least, that’s what I tell myself to justify eating this dish. Okay, enough of that.

Since this recipe calls for a great red wine, I have paired it with a signature wine from Martín Berdugo. The vintage 2009 MB is a sophisticated Tempranillo that pair perfectly with this dish.... I get hungry (and thirsty) just thinking about it. 

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

The boar in the picture that you see above looks like a piece of filet, right? It’s actually Boar shoulder without the bone. I rolled it and tied it with some string. Not bad, eh? It’s totally easy. Ask your butcher to remove the bone for you, to make things easier.

For the boar:

Mix a little olive oil with the garlic and rub it all over the boar. Season the boar with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the herbs on one side of the meat so that when you roll the meat into a log form, the herbs are on the inside. Tie the boar together with kitchen string at intervals large enough so that a piece of string is in the center of each portion.

Slowly roast it in the oven at 80°C for three hours. Remove from the oven and let it rest for ten minutes. Slice the boar into portions so that the string is still in the center of each piece.

Heat olive oil in a pan over high heat and sear the boar portions on all sides. Remove the string before serving.

For the cranberry chutney:

In a saucepan combine pomegranate juice, honey, fresh cranberries, juice of one orange, cinnamon stick, ginger and a pinch of salt. Simmer for thirty minutes. You will have extra which you can freeze if you like.

For the Knödel:

Okay, this part is super easy. Mix the knödel with three tablespoons of the pesto. Form into balls and cook in simmering salty water until the they float. Easy, right?

I decided to pair this recipe with a 2009 Brut Nature Cava, Vendrell Olivella by Mas Goma. The Cava has a nice lingering acidity and a sturdy structure that pairs well with this rustic Spanish dish. I made a vegan version (because, why not?) with roasted vegetables, but if you prefer to add seafood or meat, knock yourself out!  Oh, and it is often prepared in a special earthenware dish called a Cazuela, but I didn’t have one, so I used a paella pan.

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

In a large paella pan, sauté onions in olive oil until translucent. Add minced garlic and cook over medium-low heat for a few minutes. Add chickpeas, oregano, the sweet and smoked paprika, a pinch of salt and cook for about 10 minutes more. Add the wine to deglaze the pan.

Meanwhile, slather the carrots, eggplant, Padrón peppers, and tomatoes with olive oil and place the vegetables in a single layer on a baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper. Spread the pasta on a separate baking sheet in a single layer. Roast at 200° for about ten minutes. Toast the pasta in the oven until golden brown. Watch the pasta, it should be a bit browned, but you don’t want it to burn! 

Mix the tomatoes and water together and season with pepper and enough salt so that it tastes like the sea. Put half of the pasta and half of the Padrón peppers, carrots, and eggplant in the pan.  Add half of the tomato and water broth.  Gently fold everything together until all ingredients are well combined. Layer the rest of the pasta, the remaining roasted vegetables, and the rest of the tomato and water broth. Let everything simmer until the pasta is tender.

Garnish with the roasted tomatoes.

Background Music: Take Five by Dave Brubeck

Raclette is a fabulous cheese and a traditional meal that originated in Switzerland. Technically one only needs five ingredients to eat Raclette as a meal: Raclette, cornichons, pickled pearl onions, boiled potatoes, and fresh ground black pepper. No wait! I forgot the wine! Okay, six ingredients. Personally,

I like my Raclette with a nice Savoie, like Domaine De la Chancelière Chignin Savoie. Why? It has a nice zippy acidity that cuts through the richness of the cheese and a fruitiness that is also complimentary.

For me, this is a perfect meal (best enjoyed while wearing pajama pants).

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

Special equipment: a Raclette grill   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raclette#Dish

Each guest gets four potatoes and 200 grams of cheese. Place a slice of cheese in your coupelles (the tiny tray) and melt it under the burner of the grill and pour it over your potato. Now add a bit of black pepper, and enjoy. Sip a bit of you nicely chilled Savoie and maybe try a cornichon….Yes, in that order. Be careful not to burn your mouth on the hot cheese. 

I should probably mention that the above recipe is the traditional amount for four people assuming that you would be serving additional salads as side dishes or maybe some type of charcuterie. But really, I could probably eat that whole portion for four people myself and then ask for more. So use it as a guide.

Many people also like to grill things like shrimp, meat, or vegetables on top of the grill. I have even seen people put ground sausage in the coupelles where the cheese usually goes. But heck, if that’s what you like, then do it. Here are some additional accoutrements for your fabulous raclette dinner…..

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

Preheat your oven to 200°C. In a large pot, bring three quarts of water to a boil. Add enough salt to the water, so that it tastes like the sea. Cook the pasta for about four minutes, add the leeks and cook one minute longer.

While the pasta is cooking beat the eggs in a large bowl and fold in crème frâiche, garlic, thyme, and goat cheese. Mix until all the ingredients are well incorporated and season with salt and pepper. Drain pasta and leeks into a colander.

Combine pasta with the goat cheese mixture and pour into a baking dish that has been greased with olive oil. Top with bread crumb, drizzle with olive oil and bake for 30-40 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Garnish with chopped parsley.

Background Music: 100% by Sonic Youth

If you want to make a vegan version try substituting sweet potato, chick peas, or a firm tofu. I also like it because it's a one pot meal; okay a two pot meal, with the rice.

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

For the rice:

Wash rice under cold running water until water runs clear. Soak rice in water for about fifteen minutes. Dry the rice in a colander for ten minutes. Bring 900 ml of water to a boil, add rice and cover with a tightly fitting lid. Reduce to low heat, and cook for fifteen minutes.

Let the rice stand for 15 minutes with the lid on. Fluff with a fork before serving.

For the stew:

Heat oil in a large, heavy pot over medium heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Sauté all the spices with the chiles, onion, garlic, and ginger, stirring constantly, so you don't burn anything. After about 15 minutes, or when the onions are cooked, add the lime juice, coconut milk, and the chicken. Simmer for about 30 minutes, and serve over rice.

Yum! Yum!

Background Music: Tiger Phone Card by Dengue Fever 

Every time I make this I wonder why I don't make it more often because it's super easy. The hardest part of making this dish is peeling the garlic, which isn't hard at all.

Oh, and don't let the garlic scare you! The sharpness of the garlic mellows out during the cooking process. I swear!

Ingredients

Serves 2

Method

Season lamb with salt and pepper. In a large, wide pan brown the lamb shoulder on all sides in olive oil over medium high heat.  Remove the lamb and add the garlic and the tomato purée. Cook gently for a few minutes and sprinkle in the flour. Whisk in the stock until everything is well combined.

Return the lamb to the pan and cover with a tightly fitting lid. I covered the pan with tin foil and then placed the lid on top to make sure it had a really tight fit. Simmer at a very low temperature until the meat is cooked. Check the pan from time to time and add more stock if the sauce is getting dry, or salt and pepper, if necessary.

This pairs great with seasoned roasted potatoes (which you could just add to your pan to cook with the lamb if it is big enough!) or whipped polenta with fresh herbs.

But if you are lazy, like me, just serve it with a nice salad and some good crusty bread to mop up the sauce.

Background Music: Seven Nation Army by The Whit Stripes

The people that I was traveling with were also very special. I was with my exporter friend, Mara Calvo from Glop’s Vinateria. Father and son Cava producers, Joan Manel Vendrell Ferret and Joan Vendrell Olivella were also sitting at the table along with wine maker, and very fast Audi, driver, Josep Serra. I felt like I was sitting with Indie Spanish wine royalty.

El Molís des Avis, famous for its raw Tuna, is nestled near a bay in Tarragona. It used to be an old oil mill. Here the five of us talked, and laughed, and enjoyed unforgettable courses, of Tuna, Mussels, and Sepia.

We drank Josep Serra’s 2013 Aucala white, and Vendrell Olivella Brut Cava throughout the meal. It is a moment that I could never recreate, but if I were to try it would taste something like this...

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

I listed Tuna in this recipe, but you could also use sushi grade salmon, and it would still be fantastic!!

You really want to mince the green onion and ginger so the delicate texture of the tuna stays in the foreground. Mix first five ingredients. Totally easy, right?

Add Tuna and chill until ready to serve. Garnish with sesame seeds.  Spoon onto rice crackers and sip some wine...

Background Music: Under the Milkeyway by The Church

The recipe isn’t hard to make, but you need a couple of days ahead of time for some light preparation… And some room in your refrigerator. If you have a small refrigerator and no room to spare, making this in the cold winter months is better because you can store the turkey outside (be sure the temperature is under 38°F/ 3°C but not so you end up with a freezing your magnificent turkey). 

Ingredients

Serves 6

*You will need one large plastic bag or a whole bunch of cling wrap and some kitchen string.

Method

Rinse your turkey and pat dry with a clean towel. Place the turkey in a large roasting pan and season the inside of the bird with kosher salt. Rub the entire outside of the turkey with the remaining kosher salt. Place the turkey in a plastic bag or completely wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for 12 to 48 hours.

Several hours before cooking, rinse the turkey under cold water to wash off the salt. Thoroughly dry the bird with a towel. Let the turkey sit out at room temperature for four to six hours (look away, health inspector, look away!)Now would be a good time to chill your fantastic Cava, if you haven’t already.

Rub it with 150 grams of butter and season it inside and out with sea salt, Herbs de Provence, and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wings under the bird to prevent burning. Place the sage, shallots, and clementines inside the cavity of the bird and roast it in a preheated 220°C oven for about 30 minutes. Take the turkey out of the oven and reduce the heat to 175.° Add the water and the wine to the roasting pan and continue to cook, baste with melted butter every 20-30 minutes. Roast until the turkey reaches an internal temperature of 70°C.

Let your friend rest for 15-20 minutes before serving.

Background Music: The Suburbs the Subrubs by Arcade Fire

And what pairs well with your lovely brunch? Bernard Vallette Née Buleuse, of course! It is 100% Gamay and pairs wonderfully with the smoky bacon in the quiche. Sure you could serve some other traditional sparkling wine, or even Champagne, but this pink sparkling beauty is an unusual find and guaranteed to please.

Oh, and did I mention that it is Biodynamic? An entirely enjoyable and completely fun sparkler!

Ingredients

Serves 4

For the Quiche:

 For the Dough:

Method

Combine flour, yeast, salt, and sugar. The yeast will make the crust flakier, a trick I learned from my mother in law. Add the butter and mix everything together until mixture resembles coarse meal. DON'T OVERMIX THE DOUGH!! You can save time by pulsing everything together in a food processor, if you have one. Slowly add the ice water and combine until dough is crumbly but holds together when you squeeze it with your fingers.

Form your dough into a 2cm thick disk and wrap it tightly in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.

Before baking, roll out dough on a floured work surface to appropriate size. Usually, the size should be slightly larger than your pie or tart form. Wrap the dough around your rolling pin and carefully unroll it onto your pie plate or tart dish. Gently fit it into the bottom and up sides. Trim the overhanging dough away. Refrigerate for at least an hour.

Prick the bottom of the dough with a fork and line with parchment paper and dried beans. Bake in a 200°C oven for about 20 minutes. Remove the paper along with the dried beans and continue baking for about 10 minutes longer.

Brown the bacon in a pan over medium heat until it's crispy and drain off the excess grease. Whisk eggs, cream, salt, pepper and spices in a medium bowl. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the bottom of the tart shell and pour the egg mixture over the top of the cheese. Scatter the bacon strips on top and bake until slightly firm and light golden brown.

Let the quiche rest for thirty minutes before serving.


Background Music: The Suburbs Half Light I by Arcade Fire

The next time he came by I placed a bottle of 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blend by Thörle before him, but I removed the label. I think you can pretty much guess what happened next. He loved it, and I loved telling him it was German.

So this next pairing is a straight forward recipe for a pan seared duck breast with red cabbage. I like making sauces but here I decided not to make one. I love the sweet and sour red cabbage so much that I just sort of eat it together with the duck…. Like if the cabbage were a delicious chutney. And then there is the marvelous wine, to wash it all down of course. So for me, no sauce necessary. Don’t tell the French!

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

Red cabbage:

Place a large heavy-bottom saucepan or casserole over medium-low heat, and add oil. When oil is hot, add onion and salt. Sauté gently until onion is (translucent)softened but not colored.

Add cabbage to pan on top of onion. Sprinkle sugar over cabbage; add wine, orange juice and allspice. Add the apples. Cover, and let mixture steam until cabbage is wilted, about 10 minutes.

Gently stir to mix all ingredients; cover and reduce heat to its lowest possible setting. Cook about 2 hours, and adjust salt and allspice as desired. Serve hot, or allow to cool to room temperature and refrigerate overnight if you are preparing a day ahead. It tastes better the next day.

For the Duck:

Pat the duck breast dry with paper towels. With a super sharp knife, carve a Crosshatch pattern in the skin, without piercing the meat. 

Put the scored duck breast skin side down in a cold, dry sautée pan. Place the pan over medium-high heat. You want as much fat to render out as possible, so start with a cold pan.

Season the exposed side of the duck breast in the pan with salt and pepper. Let the duck cook until it pulls away easily from the pan without resistance. Most of the cooking time will take place with the skin side down. Oh, and it will splatter like mad but don’t cover the pan or you will trap in moisture and steam your duck, which can leave you with rubbery, overcooked meat. Just accept that the fact that there will be a bit of clean up afterward.

Flip the duck breast over and lightly sprinkle the skin with salt immediately. The salt will dissolve into the skin. It will be perfectly seasoned and totally yummy. Promise!

You can serve the duck and red cabbage with roasted potatoes, klösse (German potato dumplings)…. Or what ever tickles your fancy. As mentioned, I normally don’t make a sauce for this dish but if you prefer to make a pan sauce, knock yourself out.

I like my duck breast medium rare (internal temperature 136 °C / 58 °F). So how long should you cook your duck breast? You can use a meat thermometer to measure the internal temperature of the duck breast. For cooking times and temperatures, check out the charts times below: 

Background Music: Fairytale of New York by The Pogues

                                 and Kirsty MacColl

You can make the dough and the filling ahead of time, which makes things easier when you’ve invited friends over and you'd rather socialize than fiddle in the kitchen. I think you can even freeze these ahead of time (before baking) for a last minute meal or snack, although I have never done this. I like empanadas so much that I want to eat them immediately! ;)

Ingredients

Serves 4

For the filling:

For the dough:

Method

For the dough:

Mix the flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder in a large bowl and mix thoroughly with a whisk and add the cubes of cold butter. Combine the butter and flour mixture with your fingers until it looks kind of like a rough corn meal. Combine the egg, wine and vinegar together and drizzle over the the top of your flour and butter mix. Kneed everything together until it the dough begins to hold together. Form the dough into two disk shapes, wrap in cellophane and chill for at least an hour and up to overnight. Roll each disk into a circle that is about 1/4 centimeter thick. Chill again you are ready to assemble your empanadas.

For the filling:

Heat the stock in a medium sauce pan and bring to a very low simmer. Salt the chicken stock so that it tastes vaguely salty. Add the bay leaf, dried oregano, dried thyme and the chicken. Slowly simmer for about 15-20 minutes until the chicken is cooked thoroughly and let the chicken rest in the stock for an additional five minutes. When the chicken is cool enough to handle with your hands, shred the chicken into small pieces and set aside.

Heat olive oil in a pan and sauté the onion and peppers for two minutes. Add garlic and the remaining dried spices, olives, raisins and cook for another minute or two before adding the chicken and a few tablespoons from its stock. Simmer for a few more minutes, adding more stock (if needed) to keep everything moist but not soupy. Sprinkle in the cilantro and season with salt and pepper.  

To assemble, spoon half of the filling on half of the dough leaving an inch border around the sides. Mix egg yolk with 50 ml of water to make an egg wash. Brush the egg wash onto the border of the dough.

Fold the “empty” side of the dough over the filling and crimp together with a fork. Brush the remaining egg wash over the top and bake at 200*C for about 35 minutes. If the empanada begins to brown too quickly, cover it with foil. Cut into slices and enjoy!

Everyone will swear your Mamita helped you!

Yum! Yum! Mussels! Mussels are usually at their best from September through April, or in months containing the letter “r.” Mussels are great because they aren't difficult to make, and they can be prepared rather quickly. I paired this mussel dish with a mouthwatering Cava because I thought it would be fun to change things up a bit from the traditional Mussel and white wine pairing…. And if you decide to serve a side of crispy French fries and the bubbles in the Cava are an excellent texture combination.

Ingredients

Serves 4 **

Method

Rinse your mussels under cold water and remove the all their beards. Discard any bad mussels that are cracked, broken or open.

Heat olive oil in a large, heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat and saute leeks for a few minutes.

Add tomato paste and stir well to incorporate it with the leeks so you don’t have a big lump of it sitting in your pan. Add garlic and cook a minute or two longer.

Add tomatoes, mussels and Cava, and black pepper cover with a tightly fighting lid and continue to steam the mussels for about two minutes. Remove lid and stir to incorporate ingredients. Turn heat to high, cover again and steam for one or two minutes longer.

When your mussels have opened, they are ready to eat. It usually goes quicker than you think, so be careful not to overcook them. Discard any mussels that have not opened. They may not be fresh.

**Most people recommend 500 grams of mussels per person as a reasonable portion. Personally, I can eat close to a kilo by myself, but I need a nap afterwards.

***Mussels are inherently salty, so I almost never add salt.

Background Music: Vonal Declosion By Stereolab

Something else the tastes good with Paella? Cava! I made a seafood Paella and paired it with a Rimarts Brut Nature Reserva. There are some pleasant citrusy notes in this beauty that make a perfect match to the seafood in the Paella. What’s more? The higher acidity in this Cava complements the richness of this Valencian seafood dish.

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

Clean the mussels and remove the beards, if necessary. Place the mussels in a pan filled with just enough water to cover the bottom. Cover the mussels and cook over high heat until their shells open. Immediately remove from the heat, and drain off any liquid from the pan. You can use this later for the Paella.

Peel the shrimp, if you prefer to serve them without the shells.

In the Paella pan over medium heat 1 tbsp olive oil and Sautee the garlic and bay leaf for two minutes. Don’t burn the garlic. Add the white wine, scraping up any bits that have stuck to the bottom of the pan.

Add the tomatoes, the reserved cooking liquid from the mussels, and the fish stock and bring to a boil. Stir in the spices and add the rice. Cook over high heat for 15 minutes.

Reduce the heat to medium, add the shrimp, cuttlefish, roasted pepper, and peas and cook 10 minutes longer. Lower the heat and cook 10 minutes longer, if needed. 

Add the mussels and allow the paella to rest for a few minutes before serving.

Garnish with lemon wedges. Don’t forget the Cava! (And eat the leftovers for breakfast, if there are any!)

I love them, but they aren't always easy to find and they are not cheap! So if you can't find any, or you don't want to fork out the extra €€, you could easily substitute shrimp or monkfish. Traditionally romesco is a nut and red pepper-based sauce originated from Tarragona, Catalonia, in Northeastern Spain which is the same region that this cava is produced.

Both the cava and the romesco sauce pair perfectly with fish, so why not bring them together in a recipe?

Ingredients:

Serves 4

Method: 

For the sauce:

You can make the romesco sauce the day before to make things easier. Just put it in a container and store it in the refrigerator. Slice garlic horizontally exposing the cloves and place in a baking dish with tomatoes. Slather the garlic and tomatoes with two tablespoons of olive oil and bake for about 45 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. Toast nuts in a pan over medium heat. The nuts will toast fast and can burn easily. So don't walk away to go answer your phone or they might burn. If they burn even a little, throw them out and start again, or your sauce will also taste burnt. When the garlic is soft, take the dish out of the oven and let the garlic and the tomatoes cool a bit so they are easy to handle. Squeeze the garlic cloves out if it's paper shell and into the bowl of a food processor. Peel the skin off of the tomato, remove the seeds and add the tomato to the bowl with the garlic. Next add the nuts, bread, vinegar, olive oil, paprika and red pepper. Purée until smooth and season with salt and pepper to taste. You can warm it up a bit in a pan before you serve it.

For the scallops:

Did you chill your cava? Good, now onto the scallops. First, remove the side-muscle from each scallop. This is the little tag of muscle tissue on the side of the scallop that holds it to the shell. Pat the scallop dry and season lightly with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot enough add the scallops flat side down. You will know when the pan is hot enough if the first scallop sizzles when it touches the pan. If it doesn't sizzle, wait a bit longer. Don't overcrowd the pan and leave about two centimeters between each scallop. Work in batches if you have to. Flip each scallop over when it removes easily from the bottom of the pan. If it sticks, wait a few minutes longer. When the second side is seared enough, remove it from the pan.

Serve over greens tossed with a bit of olive oil and a few dollops of romesco sauce immediately. Now! Now! Now!

As for the wine, I find that the dried berry notes, balanced acidity, and touches of cedar in the 2009 Octonia, pair really well with the cognac and the earthy truffles. The rich sauce is so good that I could just eat it with a spoon like a decadent soup. Oh, and one last wine tip….. Winemaker, Josep Serra definitely recommends decanting the wine before serving.

Ingredients

Serves 2

Entrecôte:

Smashed Herb Potatoes:

Method

This requires a small amount of multitasking. Don't be afraid, you can do it!  Season the steaks with salt and pepper on both sides and set aside. Place a pot of water large enough to cook the potatoes over high heat and bring to a boil. Cook the potatoes until you can easily pierce them with a fork.

While the potatoes are cooking, heat a large sauté pan until it is quivering hot. Try not to use a pan with a nonstick surface. The steaks will sear better in a traditional metal pan because the food has more contact to the surface of the pan. Pans with the nonstick surfaces can also become toxic if they are exposed to high heat. Toxic poison steak, anyone? No! Now where were we? Oh yes, searing the entrecôte. You can test to see if the pan is hot enough by adding a drop of water to the pan. If the water drop “dances” it's ready. Add a tablespoon of olive oil to the pan, wait 10 seconds and add the steaks. Cook for about three minutes per side. Remove the steaks from the pan. You can keep the entrecôte warm by tenting it with foil.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the shallot. Cook for one minute, and add the garlic and cook a minute longer. Return the heat to high and add the cognac and the stock. Simmer over medium high heat until 1/3 of the liquid is left in the pan. While the stock is simmering drain the water off of cooked potatoes and return them to their pot.  Season with salt and pepper and smash with a vegetable masher or a large spoon. Mix in cream, then the butter and the herbs. Okay, back to the sauce. When the sauce is reduced to a third add the cream and cook for one minute longer. Turn off the heat and whisk in the butter. Now add the truffles and you're done! 

PS It's okay to lick the plate, as long as the person you are dining with isn't your boss!

However, as I don't have any experience with pig face, I paired this lovely wine with a different tapas that has ingredients that are readily available.  This tapas can be made any time of year and it doesn't have a million ingredients.

The Altùn Albiker matches well with the Manchego and Roncol cheeses used in this simple dish. Add some crusty bread and chorizo and you have turned your tapas into a nice little meal.

And if you should ever find yourself in Spain, try the Careta.

Ingredients

Serves 4

For the vinaigrette:

Method

Make the vinaigrette first because the peppers should be cooked and served immediately. You don't want to be whisking everything together while your lovely peppers get cold.

Vinaigrette:

Whisk together mustard, sherry vinegar, and garlic.  Slowly drizzle the olive oil into the vinegar while whisking briskly to combine. Season with salt and pepper.  You can store it in the refrigerator.

Peppers:

Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a sauce pan over medium heat and cook shallot until translucent. Whisk in three tablespoons of flour and then the heavy cream. Add the cheese, chopped thyme, and some black pepper while stirring constantly until you have a thick paste.

Let the cheese cool a bit and spoon it into peppers. Season lightly with salt and pepper and dredge in flour. Heat olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat and cook peppers for about two minutes on each side.

Drizzle a little vinaigrette over the peppers and serve.

This Chardonnay's creaminess and perfect balance between fruit and acidity pairs so well with the lovely Gyoza…..

Ingredients

Serves 4

For the dipping sauce:

Method

Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, tofu, and garlic, and simmer for 8-10 minutes. If there is still liquid left in the pan, carefully drain it out. Add the cabbage and ginger and cook another 2 minutes. Stir in the tamari, sesame oil, black pepper, green onion and remove from heat. Taste and add salt, if necessary. Sprinkle in the cornstarch and mix well.

While the filling is cooling mix the soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sesame oil in a dish and set aside.

Next assemble a wrapping station with a small bowl of water, a place for the filling, the wrappers, and a clean work surface. Keep the wrappers covered with a damp cloth so they won't dry out.

To assemble, place a small amount of filling in the center of the wrapper. Brush the top edge of the wrappers with water and pleat the edges to crimp closed. To cook, heat  1 tbsp of vegetable oil in a skillet over high heat. Add 8-10 dumplings (don’t overcrowd the pan) and brown on bottom side. This should take two to three minutes. Add 100ml water and reduce heat to medium. Cover pan and let potstickers cook another 3 minutes. Remove the lid from the pan and if any water remains, continue cooking until water has evaporated.

Serve with dipping sauce.

Background Music: Sheila Take A Bow by The Smiths

Well, friends, this is not your usual banana and bubble gum Beaujolais. No, it is something else. It is an elegant Gamay that has a distinct terroir (which means it tastes like the soil where it is from). I don't want to say that it drinks like a Burgundy, either. If I did, think Mr Vallette would throw his shoe at me.

PS:  A little birdy told me that he, too, likes to serve this dish with his wine;)

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

Preheat oven to 150 degrees Celsius. Drizzle bread with olive oil, and bake until golden.

Season beef with salt and pepper.  Heat oil in a Dutch oven and brown the meat carefully in rounds. Don't dump it all in at once, or you will have a mess of ugly grey meat. You want the meat nice and brown on the outside. You don't want to cook it all the way through. Set aside each batch until you are finished. Add the butter and sauté the onions, carrots, and mushrooms for three to four minutes. Add the garlic and shallots and cook for two minutes longer. Add the flour, and put the meat back into the pan with the thyme and bay leaves. Pour in the stock and wine. Bring everything to a boil, cover and place into the preheated oven for about two hours.

Serve over the toasted French bread. And watch out for flying shoes!

Background Music: All My Friends (LCD Soundsystem Cover) by Franz Ferdinand

I was so mesmerized by the flavors of each dish, especially the Tuna sashimi, that I wanted to create another pairing with raw fish for the Vendrell Olivella Brut Cava which we were sipping with each course. This time I chose Salmon.  

I like this type of recipe because it is uncomplicated and sophisticated. Just like the Vendrell Olivella Brut Cava.

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

First, chill the Cava.

Make sure to really mince the shallot and ginger so the delicate texture of the salmon stays in the foreground. Mix first five ingredients in a bowl. Now was that hard? No.

Now add the salmon and chill until ready to serve. Top each piece of cucumber with a spoonful of salmon. Garnish with sesame seeds. Good, right? Especially with the Cava.

Background Music: Birthday by Bjork

Oh, you can prepare the vegetables the day before to make it easier.

Ingredients

Serves 4

For the topping:

 For the dough:

Method

Topping:

Preheat your oven to 175° Celsius.  Slather the vegetables with olive oil and place on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Roast the vegetables for 2 hours. Remove from the oven and let cool. Peel the skins off of the eggplant and remove the membranes and seeds from the peppers. Slice the vegetables into 2cm slices. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle generously with olive oil.

Dough:

Place the water, sugar and yeast in a small bowl and let it sit for a few minutes to allow the yeast to bloom (you will see bubbles forming when this happens).

Put the flour in a large bowl and make a well in the middle and add the yeast mixture and olive oil. Sprinkle the salt around the outside edges of the flour. Adding the salt to the yeast mixture could “kill” your yeast and your wonderful coca dough won't proof (rise). Mix with a wooden spoon, or with your (clean!) hand until the dough comes together. If it seems too dry add a little water but be careful not to add too much too soon or you will have a wet sticky mess.  Knead for several minutes, until you can form it into a smooth ball. Coat the dough with olive oil so it doesn't get dry. Let it rise for at least an hour at room temperature.

Preheat your oven to 200 °C. To assemble the coca divide the dough into four equal parts and roll the dough into an oval shape on sheet pan lined with baking paper. Spread the filling on each each piece in a stripe or zigzag pattern. How ever you like. Drizzle with additional olive oil and bake, until the dough is lightly browned, about 10 minutes.

Pop the Cava, if you haven't already!!

Background Music: Wonderwall vom Oasis

This wonderful dish is layered with flavor that  matches perfectly with this robust tempranillo’s layers of plumb, spice, and dark coffee palate. And the two together are truly a Beautiful Thing….

Ingredients

Serves 8

For the short ribs:

 For the polenta:

Method

Preheat oven to 350°. Season short ribs with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high. Working in 2 rounds, brown short ribs on all sides.  If you try to add all the meat at once, it will not brown properly, and will not have the right texture afterwards. Transfer browned short ribs to a plate.

Add onions, carrots, and celery to pot and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until onions are browned. This should take several minutes. Add flour and tomato paste and cook for another 3 minutes. Stir in wine, then add short ribs back to the pot.  Simmer over medium heat until the wine is reduced by half, about 25 minutes. Place cinnamon stick and cloves in a filter paper, or cheese cloth, and add to the pot, along with garlic. Stir in stock. Increase the heat until it comes to a boil, cover, and transfer to oven. Cook until short ribs are tender. Start checking them after two hours. Transfer short ribs to a platter. Check sauce for seasoning. Serve in shallow bowls over polenta with sauce spooned over.

Be sure to open the wine ahead of time to allow it to breathe.

For the polenta:

You can quickly prepare this while the short ribs are in the oven. In a medium sized sauce pan, bring the water to a boil. Add salt so that the water tastes like the sea. Slowly whisk in polenta. Add butter and fold in herbs. Voilá!

I picked this Rioja because of its many layers of bright, fresh red fruit which compliments the earthiness of this dish…. Marring everything wonderfully together.

Ingredients

Serves 4

Method

Open your Rioja to let it breathe a bit.

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy bottom saucepan. Add the chopped onion, peppers and crushed garlic. Cook over low heat until the onion is a bit translucent. Add the diced ham, chorizo, paprika and diced potatoes, stirring to coat the potatoes completely. Cover with chicken stock and cook gently for 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are just cooked.

Season with salt and pepper and serve.