Category: Meatless

Rhône Blend White Wines are a Dream to Pair with Foods

Fried Goat Cheese, Butter Lettuce Cups, Green Apple, Almonds, Sweet Meyer Lemon Cream

Fried Goat Cheese
Butter Lettuce, Green Apple, Almond, Borage
Sweet Meyer Lemon Cream with Cardamom

paired with

Le Cigar Blanc 2012
Bonny Doon Vineyard
Arroyo Seco, Monterey County, California

for

Grocery Outlet’s
Spring Wine Sale

Rhône Blend white wines are a dream to pair with foods. Who can resist the tempting flavors of peaches, apricots, ripe pears, sweet spices and honey, or the seductive aromas of honeysuckle and tropical fruits? White wines from France’s Rhône tend to have these characteristics. Grenache Blanc, Roussanne, Marsanne, Viognier, and to a lesser extent Picpoul Blanc – are the dominant varietals in the region. Many of the wines tend toward a creaminess that is rich but not heavy, with a refreshing acidity, and a pleasing minerality and nuttiness.

California Winemaker Randall Graham of Bonny Doon Vineyards has been a tireless champion of the grapes of the Rhône for decades. It is difficult to resist his stylish wines as well as his quirky sense of humor. This wine, Le Cigare Blanc (The White Cigar) is named after his flagship, Le Cigar Volant (The Flying Cigar), so-called in honor of the cigar-shaped flying saucer banned by decree of the village council of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It’s a true story,  in 1954 the mayor and the council voted to ban alien craft from the airspace of their hamlet in order to protect their precious crops.

The 2012 vintage of Le Cigar Blanc is made of 48% Grenache Blanc, 44% Roussanne, and 8% Picpoul Blanc. The Grenache Blanc adds notes of green apple and lemon-lime citrus. The Roussanne brings honeyed notes with a rich mouthfeel and nutty aromas. These characteristics are highlighted and elevated by this salad’s rich goat cheese, sweet/tart meyer lemon cream with a hint of warm cardamom spice, allumettes of green apple, and lightly toasted almonds. Soft butter lettuce, creamy cheese with a toasty panko breadcrumb crust, and crisp Granny Smiths add contrasting textures.

This goat cheese salad and Rhône blend make a quite dreamy pair.

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Crispy Shaved Brussels Sprouts Flatbread Pizza

Crispy Shaved Brussels Sprouts Flatbread with Bleu Cheese, Dried Cranberries, Balsamic Syrup

Crispy Shaved Brussels Sprouts Flatbread Pizza
Bleu Cheese, Dried Cranberries, Balsamic Syrup

Keep flatbread on hand and you will never be without a crowd-pleasing appetizer. Flatbread pizza is fast and easy to prepare, and it can be topped with any type of cheese and an unlimited creative combination of items from the pantry or the fridge. Today’s fusion of flavors and textures was especially harmonious.

Brussels sprouts are roasted until the edges get crispy and caramelized. Flatbread with covered with a layer of mozzarella, topped with Brussels sprouts and bleu cheese then baked until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Dried cranberries add a layer of sweetness with a pop of color. An artful drizzle of balsamic syrup also brings sweet and subtly sour notes.  Crispy shaved Brussels sprouts flatbread pizza joins my “flatbread pizza collection” along with the Croatian Sausage Flatbread Pizza and Potato Arugula Flatbread Pizza. There will definitely be more to come.

Brussels Sprouts Flatbread Pizza Recipe

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Flatbread Pizza: Potato, Arugula, Sour Cream, Chives, Olive, Truffle, Lemon

Flatbread Pizza: Potato, Arugula, Sour Cream, Chives, Olive, Truffle, Lemon
Lavash Flatbread Pizza
Potato, Arugula, Sour Cream, Chives,
Kalamata Olive, Truffle Oil, Black Truffle Salt, Lemon

Sometimes this uprooted Chicago girl wants to serve a skinny pizza. We really do still adore our deep dish pizzas – especially Lou Malnati’s. But I also grew up enjoying Candlelite pizza, fondly remembering my parents’ love of the super-thin crust at the hip joint that was walking distance from our home on the Far North Side – a neighborhood tavern where the graphics on the old-fashioned neon sign now read “Cool Served Here.”

Fast forward many decades – while my lavash flatbread pizza recipe isn’t Candlelite-style per se – it is ultra-thin with a cracker-y crust. Still faintly reminiscent of the Chicago thin-crust pizza of yesteryear, even though back then the topping never included potato, arugula, kalamata olives…or truffle salt.

Lavash Flatbread Pizza Recipe

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Red Lentil Spaghetti (gluten-free) with Cauliflower Rosa Sauce (vegan)

Red Lentil Spaghetti (gluten-free) with Cauliflower Rosa Sauce (vegan)

Red Lentil Spaghetti with Cauliflower Rosa Sauce
Blistered Tomatoes, Arugula
#GlutenFreeVegan

This is THE pasta dish for everyone. Not only is it wholesome and delicious – it is gluten-free, vegan, high protein, high fiber, lower carb, clean, fresh and fabulous. My friends at Explore Cuisine are introducing a spaghetti made of red lentils. This spaghetti has a texture similar to traditional spaghetti. And it pairs wonderfully with my vegan Cauliflower Rosa sauce. Parma Rosa is a pasta sauce typically made with tomatoes, cream, and Parmesan. Here, I substitute cauliflower and olive oil for the cream and cheese, and roast the tomatoes in the oven with garlic for a deeper flavor. The result is a lower-cholesterol sauce that is full of vegetable nutrition and is super-satisfying. For everyone.

Red Lentil Spaghetti with Cauliflower Rosa Sauce and Arugula Recipe

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Two Potato Latke Recipes – You Decide!

Spiralized Potato Latkes, Sautéed Apples with Wildflower Honey, Sour Cream

 Spiralized Potato Latkes, Sautéed Apples with Wildflower Honey, Sour Cream

We eat foods fried in olive oil to commemorate the ancient miracle that occurred in the second century BCE. A jug of olive oil, which held enough oil to last for one day, burned for eight when the Holy Temple in Jerusalem was rededicated.

Hanukkah doesn’t start ’til sundown tonight and we’ve already cooked two batches of latkes – our beloved potato pancakes fried in olive oil.

In the first recipe we used a food processor to grate potato and shallot. Ingredients include earthy parsnip, sweet fruity red bell pepper, and fresh bright herbaceous parsley. I joke about the curious red and green color combination in these latkes. But the flavor profile really is spot-on. Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas!

The second latke recipe employs the new-fangled “spiralizer” to cut long skinny strands of potato, making for a lovely light and lacy pancake. Originally, I thought of the spiralizer as a gimmicky kitchen gadget, but I now find it to be quite useful. And fun. These spiralized latkes are for the purist – simply delicious fried potato served with sour cream. And for a sweet textural counterbalance, my sautéed fresh apples with wildflower honey stand in for the traditional applesauce.

Both recipes are winners in our book. You decide.

Two Potato Latke Recipes

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