The Hunt For Really Inexpensive White Wine

I always love a good wine bargain. Clearly sometimes you get what you pay for, but I've been able to find some quite good red wines for under $7.00, the Liquor Depot in Oneonta often has really good red wine specials for $3.99 and $4.99 of wines that the distributor wants to move and once the cases are purchased that's the end. PJ's Wine and Liquor store on 204th and Broadway in Inwood (the mecca as far as I'm concerned) has TONS of great red wine bargains (many from Spain and Argentina). However I'm usually hard pressed to find a decent white wine for under $10.00. I like generally like full white wines and they have to be dry, and trust me it's really hard to find a good white wine. Sure there are specials at my favorite shops for $4 and $6 dollars, but the entire bottle of white ends up in a stew or a marinade because it's generally not pleasing at all to my palate.

Yesterday my mom and I went to the Liquor Depot, and she found this $4.99 bottle of Italian white wine Trevini Primo that is 85% Chardonnay grape and 15% Pinot Grigio. So I snidely told her that we will add this to our "cooking wine" collection, because the last $5 purchase of white wine was a usual disaster. We chilled the wine and took a taste and were blown away! No this isn't a Cakebread Chardonnay by any means, but it's a totally drinkable white, even drinkable as a sipping wine without food. This wine is really good, actually for the price it's great. So today I purchased the last case and a half, and lucky me, the distributor was in the store at the time and he said that he had two more cases that he was going to deliver on Thursday and that was it...too bad for other shoppers who might like this wine because I've already purchased the other two cases!

Hot For Hot Pepper Jelly

Last year a guest who stayed at our Bed and Breakfast Catskill Maison gave me a jar of hot pepper jam. It was incredible, hot and spicy and tangy and sweet all in one bite. It's pepper season at the farms so I decided to give it a go and try my own version of hot pepper jelly. I went to Shaul Farm today and got a huge red pepper and some red jalapenos and made the below recipe. It seems to be tasty and I hope that the jelly sets. I really want to perfect this recipe because I want it to be a condiment on the cheese plate that customers can order at the wine bar next year.

Hot Red Pepper Jelly – makes Four 8 oz jars

1 really large very ripe sweet red bell pepper or 2 medium sized seeded and coarsely cut to put into food processor

3 or 4 red jalapenos seeded

1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

Process all peppers and add into a pot with 2 cups of sugar, a ½ cup of cider vinegar, a teaspoon of salt, 1 lemon and ½ cup of sweet cherry juice. Bring to a boil and then take off the heat and add 1 ½ packets of pectin. Return to heat and bring to rolling boil for 1 minute, then reduce to simmer, skim the foam and simmer for 5 minutes. Then put the liquid in 8 oz mason jars and close lid.

Can as usual in boiling water to the time appropriate for your altitude.

Newport Mansions Food and Wine Festival

My birthday is in a month, and for the past 5 years I've made it a ritual to do something "wine related" for my birthday. I've gone wine tasting in the Finger Lakes, the Niagara Wine Region in Canada, and this year am heading to the Newport Mansions Wine and Food Festival. This festival is taking place the weekend of my birthday (Sept 24th thru 26th), there will be a grand tasting of over 100 wineries and samples from some of New England's hottest restaurants (and I love seafood)...So very exciting and it's my first time going to this particular festival. To make it even better one of my favorite chefs Chris Cosentino who really believes in sustainable local produce and the humane treatment of meat (something that I preach about regularly on this blog) of Incanto restaurant, an offal hotspot in San Francisco where I had one of the best 5 meals of my entire life, (and considering that I love food and am always trying restaurants that's an achievement) and Boccalone and the Boccalone Salumeria which has some incredible cured pork and since pork is my favorite thing in the entire world you can imagine how much I love this meat, will be there doing a cooking demo and signing his cookbook! Newport is a beautiful village with some of the best seafood that NE has to offer, I'm looking forward to a weekend of steamers, lobster and lots and lots of wine!!!!

Its Corn Season

As most who read my blog are aware, I'm very passionate about cooking and eating what is in season whenever possible. Right now is corn season and corn is something that once you eat it locally from the farm you will never eat that frozen cob again! We get our corn from RSK Farm in Prattsville, Bob and Sandy (owners of RSK) have the very best corn, it's so incredibly sweet and crunchy and perfect...however this weekend when I got corn there was a small worm at the top of the ear. So being the city kid I am, I promptly informed Bob and Sandy that the corn (and a few other ears that I peeled back and saw worms) was bad and wormy. So Bob sarcastically told me that there was an instrument invented about ten thousand years ago called a knife, and to cut the very top that the worm was beginning to eat. He then told me that I had choices, either to have him spray the corn until it glowed to avoid the worms or to deal with a harmless worm (because that's what happens in nature) every now and then and get good non pesticide filled corn. I clearly opted for the worm and flicked it off my corn LOL! That's the difference with local corn and knowing your farmer. In the grocery store, that so called perfect produce that we get isn't so perfect...farmers have to subject the fruits and vegetables to some not so environmentally friendly practices for those perfect peaches! Worms aren't so bad after all, and boy am I getting an education!

So, it's been corn season since mid July and I've eaten corn about twice a week now for over a month...but corn season will end in about 3 weeks so I'm getting my fill now, because once it's over it's over. There is but so much grilled corn on the cob that anyone can eat, so at some point in the summer I have to get a little innovative (not that anything is wrong with a simple grilled corn on the cob with or without a compound butter). But tonight it was cold and rainy so I wasn't about to freeze my butt off grilling corn, so I cut the corn off the cobs (best way to do it is to get a kitchen towel and place the cob upright on the towel and cut down the side of the cob, the kernels fall off and don't end up rolling off the counter). My mother and I sauteed the corn in compound butter made up of roasted garlic, fennel, onion powder, paprika, salt and pepper added some scallops, lobster and smoked salmon to the corn, sauteed it in wine and lime juice and sprinkled basil on top and had an incredible meal! We ate it with some Rose and 6 grain bread and it was delicious. There are so many options for corn, I only wish it was fresh in December.

Round 2 Recipes

My mother is the queen of the round 2 recipe. She is the most innovative leftover user in the world, and takes "waste not, want not" to a whole new level! Nothing was ever thrown out of her fridge when I was a child, and I mean NOTHING. She is the original recycler and I'm not talking about reheating last night's meatloaf and putting in between 2 slices of bread and calling it lunch; I mean completely different meals out of what was left over from dinner a couple of nights before. When I was a kid, I used to think it was a whole new meal! Want to get my mom pissed off? Come over to our house and waste food. She's so good at creating a second dish out of a leftover that she has even rubbed off on me; I turned tzatziki sauce into a topping for fish tacos by adding a little of it into fresh shredded cabbage, and then turned those leftovers into coleslaw.

My mother swears that she learned these tricks from her grandmother...I personally think that she has Great-Grandma beat hands down!

Late last week I made a roasted chicken that was coated in pesto. It was easy and delicious because the pesto was utilized in place of herbs that I usually use when roasting chicken. After the meal we had a ½ chicken left and I stuck it in the fridge assuming that I would cut it up and put it over salad for lunch. Last night, I walked in to a very pleasant surprise. My mother took the ½ chicken off the bone and transformed it into an incredible Caribbean/Indian/Moroccan chicken and rice dish that was to die for. She really emptied the spice rack on this one! It was sweet, spicy, salty, crunchy, sour, nutty and soft at the same time…it appealed to all senses and touched every inch of the palate. What an incredible use of leftover chicken. If you like food that is well-seasoned and spiced, you have to try this dish. I promise you will not be disappointed… and it’s a great dish for a crowd too. I couldn't even believe it was a leftover. I'm learning that with a little creativity I can make two to three dishes out of an original dish. On a regular basis, it makes cooking that much more exciting.

The next time you have leftover roasted chicken please try this recipe. Most of the ingredients are probably right in your cupboard!

Ingredients:

• Left over roasted chicken taken off the bone
• Slivered almonds
• Chick peas
• Dried apricots - sliced
• Green onion (scallions) – thinly sliced
• 7 cloves of garlic
• 2 cups of short grain brown rice (you can use white but there are major health benefits of using brown)
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Ground Cardamom
• Ground Allspice
• Ground Cinnamon
• Smoked Paprika
• Black Pepper
• Coriander
• Garam Masala
• Ground Ginger
• Tumeric
• Ground Cumin
• Ground Cloves
• Salt

Mix all spices together, and add 3 tablespoons of olive oil to make a paste. Take half of the paste and coat all chicken. Put chicken in the refrigerator and let marinate for at least an hour.

Add 4 cups of water to 2 cups of brown rice. Bring to a boil and then lower flame to make the water a simmer. After 15 minutes add the green onions, and cook until tender. When the rice is finished put to the side.

When rice is finished, take chicken out and bring the chicken to room temperature

Take a tablespoon of butter and olive oil and heat in a large saucepan. Add chickpeas and almond and apricots and sauté. Add chicken to this mixture and brown slightly on all sides. Add the rice and add the rest of the spice mixture. Let simmer for 15 minutes and then add additional almonds and green onions on top as a garnish and serve.

Obsession with Okra

I know, the title of this blog post might perplex many readers, especially those who think of okra as a nasty slimy vegetable that they wouldn't eat if it were the last food on earth. But yes, despite the fact that I used to be one of those people who found okra to be on the "absolutely not to eat EVER!" list, I'm now completely obsessed with it.

My Grandfather who is from South Carolina has tried to get me to give okra a try for the past couple of years, convinced that since my taste buds have matured considerably I would like it. But I didn't trust it, I couldn't get the reminder of my fierce negative reaction to being forced to eat it as a child at holiday dinners. So I made the "nasty face" and told him that there wasn't a snowballs chance in hell that I was going to try okra. And then I went back to South Carolina this spring after a 10 year hiatus.

So here begins the obsession. When I went to Charleston South Carolina for a family visit/vacation I had fresh pickled okra and fresh okra rice and fresh okra, tomato and corn stew that wasn't slimy at all, but quite crunchy and tasty. This wasn't the okra that I remembered as a little girl being forced to eat at holidays. My Grandfather sat in the background as I devoured plate after plate of okra while watching me with a hint of a smug "I told you so" smile. I absolutely loved this stuff and couldn't get enough of it. But in New York, the okra in Wegmans was okay but kind of slimy and not perfect. I then thought it was an illusion, I really must not like okra that much after all, because it doesn't taste like the vegetable that I devoured in South Carolina.

Then last week I went to Eger Bros Farm and low and behold there were baskets of okra. I purchased a basket and made sauteed okra with bacon and onions. It was absolutely AMAZING!, crunchy and fresh and tasty and wonderful, just like the okra I had in Charleston. I went back today and am going to make okra and tomato stew for dinner, and have put a bunch in pickling juice because I'm pickling them for the winter time when it isn't so fresh anymore.

Farm fresh okra is really wonderful. If you are able to try it, I promise that you will no longer think of okra as a nasty slimy vegetable on the "never to eat" list again!
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For those of you who aren't convinced try the below recipe:

(serves 4)
1 lb of okra no longer than 4 inches long (any longer and the okra is tough and stringy) - cut okra lengthwise on a bias diagonal (you should have 2 or 3 pieces cut okra per pod)
4-5 strips of thick cut bacon
1/2 onion
a few dashes of hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Saute the bacon in a cast iron or heavy frying pan for 2 minutes until it begins to render fat, then add the onions and saute until just translucent. Then add your okra and hot and saute for about 5 minutes on medium high heat, add the hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce and saute for 2-3 more minutes until a little browned. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Jerk Shrimp - Some Like It Really Hot

I have a huge affinity for spicy food; really spicy food, the kind that makes tears run down my face and my nose run and my ears ring. I make my own hot sauces from chili peppers at Shaul Farm that range from pure heat and fire, to a little milder but really flavorful. I also make my own Jerk marinade.

Jerk seasoning, which originated in Jamaica, comes as either a dry rub or a marinade, and the best kind is always homemade. I put about 6 scotch bonnet (habanero) peppers per cup of Jerk marinade, so needless to say my marinade is a$$ kicking hot! We are in the process of designing the menu for our much anticipated Wine Bar, and we plan to put jerk shrimp on the menu so I decided to try it for myself and my mother last night. I marinaded my shrimp for 3 hours in the jerk marinade (but didn't marinate my mother's), and then skewered and grilled the shrimp. I basted my shrimp with the marinade on each side, and basted my mother's on one side.

We made a basil and watermelon salad to go with the shrimp, because the sweet cool of the watermelon and basil would be a good pairing to offset the heat of the shrimp, and we are considering doing the same paring at the Wine Bar.

The shrimp were incredibly hot, but very flavorful. My mother who loved the flavor commented that if it was any hotter she wouldn't be able to enjoy it (Punk! to think I only basted hers on one side)...but she made a good point because when cooking for others I've learned that everyone's tolerance for spice is not the same therefore I'm going to make a new marinade that is less "potent" in the upcoming weeks. I will definitely have this dish at the Wine Bar!

Can she bake a Cherry Pie? Why yes she can!

In early July it's cherry picking season at Bohringer farm up here in the Catskills. This year we picked 35 pounds of cherries because we incorporate cherries into our breakfasts at Catskill Maison Bed and Breakfast. Though 35 lbs of raw cherries shrink to about 10 lbs of cooked cherries, it's still too many cherries to store at the B&B so I decided to make jam and jelly and cherry sauce (a blog on that later)...but my father kept hinting (okay so his hints are the equivalent of knocking you over the head with a brick to get your attention) at wanting a cherry pie.

So one Saturday evening a couple of weeks ago, he came home from golfing, and to his surprise his request was answered. A piping hot, fresh out of the oven cherry pie was on the counter in our kitchen.

Cherries extract a lot of water, so it's best to cook them down before adding them to the base of a pie because you will get very runny and watery pie even if you add cornstarch or flour. Some recipes call for tapioca flour, but the pearls are hard and rubbery so not my favorite and it's an extra step to grind them down.

You can make crust from scratch or buy the prepared crust in the freezer section of the grocery store. Blind bake your bottom pie crust in the pie pan with pie weights on the crust (or some beans on parchment paper) for 10-15 minutes before you add the filling because if you don't the bottom crust will get soggy.

Put your cherries in a pot and cook for about 7 minutes and drain all of the liquid (or keep the liquid to make jelly or sauce in the future like I do). Then add sugar to taste (maybe a cup or so), a tsp of nutmeg, 1/2 tsp of ginger and a pinch of clove. Finally add 2 tablespoons of flour and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Combine all ingredients and pour into your par baked pie shell. Cover with the second crust but don't forget to make holes in the crust so steam can escape. Then bake for 50-55 minutes (until crust is golden) at 350 degrees F.

Let pie cool slightly and serve with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream.

Neighbors Feeding Neighbors

We don't come from a large family, and on any given day my mother and I usually only have my father and grandfather to cook for...but we are of Southern descent so often our dishes can feed way more than 4 people. We also bake, and if only the four of us finished each goodie we created, lets just say instead of blogging about new and innovative recipes I would be blogging my Jenny Craig shipments. My mom is really big on "it takes a village" and "extended family" and I have "Aunts" who are not remotely blood related to me. Therefore it's not a surprise that when we cook, we want to share our cooking with those in our "family". Some of our neighbors are like family to us, and if we bake a cake, make a macaroni and cheese or make a pot of oxtails we often give some of our food to our neighbors. Annette who lives next door (who I've mentioned in other blogs) has a son named Joe who lives across the street. I've known Joe since he was 2 years old, and he is a great friend our general contractor for the Wine bar that we are constructing at Catskill Maison, and an incredible cook and bigtime "foodie" (though I'm not sure he realizes that he is). Joe is from Italian descent, and he makes "gravy" (for those of us non Italian's that's code for "red sauce") almost every Sunday. We often bake cakes or make food and give to Annette and Joe, and Joe makes gravy on Sunday and I'm the lucky recipient! A couple of weeks ago I made an incredible Zuppa de Pesce over angel hair with his sauce and my family raved about it.

Last night I received a special treat, and I'm so incredibly touched. Joe made Zucchini Parmigiana from the zucchini in his garden, and he and his beautiful family came over with red sauce in a container AND the zucchini parm and pasta!!!!! OMG that zucchini parm was AWESOME! And though we were in the middle of preparing our own dinner it didn't stop me from having a sample. I had a taste for eggplant parmigiana and said to myself that if I was lucky enough to snag some of Joes special sauce on Sunday I might make an eggplant parm because eggplant is available at Barber Farm and Shaul Farm this weekend. I (the self proclaimed foodie) never thought about making zucchini into parmigiana, and I think that zucchini might actually be better. It's sweet and not bitter like black eggplant is if you don't remove the tough outer skin, and more easily accessible than the white and purple eggplant that we often try to find at the farm to cook with. Joe breaded it, pan fried it, added mozzarella, and ricotta and his magical sauce and baked it and created a wonder, Brilliant!

This zucchini parm is so good that I really don't want to share...hmmm, I hope my dad isn't reading this blog post!

Joe thank you thank you thank you for all that you do...

I see a lasagna in our future to be shared with all of our neighbors! An excuse to go to one of my favorite shopping haunts, Arthur Avenue Little Italy in the Bronx for ingredients!

Farmstand Quality

I had a serious taste for string beans today...not just any string beans but the string beans from RSK farm. Not all string beans are created equal, not even from the farm stands...just like not all potatoes or salad or corn etc. are created equal. Some farm stands are ones that mass produce bushels and bushels of vegetables which are of good quality but not the best. Other farm stands such as RSK which is a tiny farm stand that hand picks everything, plant the best quality vegetables of heirloom variety, which might cost a little more, but the flavor is so superior that it's more than worth it.

There is really a difference when a farm is very small, the level of care and attention to detail comes through in the end product. The string beans at RSK are almost as thin as haricot verts and extremely crisp and tasty. The heirloom grape tomatoes really taste like candy, and the potatoes are so incredibly creamy that I will do a blog on those another day. When you go to the farm stands don't be afraid to taste the vegetables in their raw state. If they are a song on your palate raw then the flavor will only intensify when it's cooked.

Beer Can Chicken - AKA a Chicken That's Been Violated

I just picked up another fresh chicken from Horton Hill Farm yesterday and as I've stated over and over again, there is nothing like the taste of a fresh, never frozen free range/free roaming chicken. Last month we had a 4th of July BBQ for our family, it was wonderful, great weather, great friends and family and great food! I decided to make chicken for the "masses" at the BBQ, and didn't want to compromise the integrity of the taste of the chicken because it was a fresh chicken nor did I want to have to "babysit" the chicken on the grill because I wanted to have some fun. One of the most fool proof ways to have super moist chicken on the grill without having to worry about babysitting it, is to stick a beer can in the chicken's butt...literally. Standing a chicken on a 3/4 full can of beer and placing it upright on the direct heat (but making sure the chicken itself doesn't touch the grill and only the beer can touches it) creates a super crispy but not burned skin and an extremely moist chicken. I lather the chicken with olive oil, and then rub in a spice mixture of choice, and then add herbs and garlic into the beer can (for aromatics) and shove that can into the cavity of the chicken and put it on the grill for about 1 and a half hours for a 4lb chicken (until the instant read thermometer reads 163 degrees in the thigh). Remove the beer can and tent the chicken with aluminum foil for 7-10 to let the chicken rest minutes as it will carryover cook and the juices will redistribute, and then carve. Delicious!

Just as a note you can also remove the beer from the can and add 3/4 can of wine as well for a different taste. I'm also going to test this recipe with a can of coca cola.