Copious Culinary Carnival—Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving feast + 2006 Davis Family Vineyards Pinot Noir: 4/5

My friend Lisa’s roommates Therese and Agnus are known for there Thanksgiving spread, cooking a turkey, ham and rolls. Each guest attending is asked to bring an appetizer or a side dish to accompany the meal, and this year, as Michael and I were invited, we were were given the task of green bean casserole.

Now I had never made green bean casserole before, but I knew the basic recipe—green beans, cream of mushroom soup, and french fried onion strings. Jumping online, I found some recipes that were simply those ingredients, but that wasn’t anything special. Then, like a stick of butter on a piece of bread, I found it.

Paula Deen’s Green Bean Casserole. With five stars and over 200 reviews, I knew it was going to be a hit. I scrolled down, only to see the first ingredient, butter. Even though the butter was only used to cook the onions in, which isn’t all that bad, it wouldn’t be a Paula Deen recipe without some butter.

What I liked about this recipe, as in some others, is Paula called for fresh green beans, sliced by hand. Although it took a while to slice all of those green beans, the added freshness trumped recipes that use frozen, ten fold.

Since the oven was most likely going to be in use at Lisa’s house, I ingeniously modified the recipe so it would be transportable and stay warm. When it came time to mix the beans with the mushrooms, onion, and cream of mushroom soup, I just popped it in my crock pot’s removable porcelain basin, and put that in the oven, instead of a casserole dish. After the 20 minutes in the oven at 350, I just put the basin in the heating element and topped it with cheese. When we got to Lisa’s all I had to do was put the casserole on warm, and it would be ready whenever dinner was.

The spread at Lisa’s was breathtaking. For appetizers, a cheese and bacon ball, flat bread onion pizza, bacon covered water chestnuts, stuffed mini sweet peppers, fried rice balls, stuffed mushrooms, and artichoke dip, lined the wooden buffet flanking the beautiful white linen covered table, set for 20. Through the living room, adjacent to the dining area, a wooden bar held over 20 bottles of just red wine, while a basket on the floor filled with ice held 10 more white. And let me just tell you, when Michael and I were leaving, the collection had been reduced to a number that could be counted on both hands.

When dinner was getting ready to be served I perused the bottles to see what varietals were in the collection. For white there was a bottle of Proscecco and Sauvignon Blanc already open, and I thought both would have accompanied the appetizers better than the main feast. For reds, there was a bottle of Zinfandel and two bottles of Pinot Noir.

Now for poultry, I would usually think white, but with a meal like Thanksgiving, there are obviously going to be some heavier flavors—stuffing, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, gravy. All of which call for something with a bit more body than your usual chardonnay. But for reds, you have to be careful as well, a Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot might over power the delicate flavors of the turkey, leaving you only tasting wine. But a Pinot Noir, usually with a younger fruitier flavor, would be an excellent pair.

Or so I thought.

One of the two Pinot Noirs available was a 2006 Davis Family Vineyards Pinot Noir, which upon researching, I found was a $40 bottle of wine. I would never buy a $40 bottle of wine to pair with Thanksgiving. For me, a $40 bottle of wine should be drank with a meal made specifically for the wine, but that is just me. Anyways, recently on www.winesoaked.com, Sara Kay tasted a range of Malbecs from $8-$24 and explained the differences between the price points. She pointed out that a $24 dollar red might be older, aged in actual oak barrels instead of with oak chips, might contain sediment, and would have stronger flavors.

Bringing the Davis Family Pinot to my nose I was over taken with the strong smell of dill. I’m talking, might as well have plucked a fresh sprig and ground it between my fingers in front of my nose, scent of dill. Never have I smelled such a strong, distinct, flavor from a wine. While most Pinot Noirs have an alcohol content of 13%-13.5%, this was very full bodied at 14.1% alcohol per volume. Tasting, there was a strong earthiness, but a clean finish. I was surprised that the tannins weren’t over powering, and the body, while feeling heavier on the palate than other Pinots I have tried, was still lighter than most merlots or cabernets. At the end of my first glass there were remnants of oak barrel, just as Sara had described.

The main spread, followed by 3 different types of pies, included peas, Puerto Rican rice, rolls, a tofurkey, brussels sprouts, ham, corn bread pudding, candied yams, stuffing, my green bean casserole, and of course and entire 20 pound turkey. While the wine was a bit too upfront to pair with the turkey, the earthy flavors were so interesting I didn’t really mind.

Michael’s favorite dish of the evening was the Puerto Rican rice, with bits of olive and mushroom, in a spicy tomato sauce, flavorful enough to stand up to the Pinot. My favorite had to have been the corn bread pudding. With a consistency of super moist corn bread with whole kernels of corn baked in, the flavor was rich and buttery. After a mouth full of the pudding a good swing of wine would cut through the butter left on my palate, leaving me ready for more.

As 9:00 rolled around, Michael and I decided to head out, leaving a warm fire place crackling behind us and laughter rolling up the stairs. I can honestly say I have never tried so many Thanksgiving dishes at one time. With good friends, family, and great food, I am thankful for another perfect pair. Happy Thanksgiving.

Catfish and Cava: a reminiscent recipe

Crispy Catfish and Black Eyed Peas, Bacon and Caramelized Onion Relish with fried Collard Greens and Freixenet Cordon Negro Cava: 5/5

For a week out of every summer, when I was younger, my parents would ship my brother and I out to my grandpa’s. We wouldn’t stay at my grandpa’s house, but instead, down by the Rock River where he parked a camper and pontoon for the summer months.

The highlight of the week would come on Saturday, when my parents would return, for one last meal before we would return to civilization. Like collected trophies, my brother and I would show off the catfish we had captured during our stay, swimming in the pontoon’s live well. Grandpa would grab his gutting knife, collect the fish, and one by one, prepare them for dinner. A large vat of oil would be brought up to temperature and the skinned, gutted, and filleted fish would be dredged in flour and spices and thrown into the grease bath. Everyone would feast like kings, except my mother and I who did not really care for the flavor of Rock River catfish.

I hadn’t had fried catfish for probably a good 10 years, always being reminded of the flavor of dirty river water when presented with the option. But that all changed last night. For the past couple of months Michael has been trying to get me to let him make fried fish. Just a reminder, Michael and I live in a one bedroom, 700 square foot apartment, with windows that only prop open a few inches. So frying fish in the house would permeate every crevasse of our small living space. But craving some southern style food, I finally caved in last night.

I found this recipe online from Emeril. Now I was shocked too. What is a big Italian guy, known for his italian cooking, doing cooking southern food? But looking over the recipe, it was everything Michael wanted: fried catfish, black eyed peas, and collard greens. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/crispy-catfish-black-eyed-peas-bacon-caramelized-onion-relish-fried-collard-greens-recipe/index.html

To round out the meal we also decided to make some corn bread, but not just any corn bread, Paula Deen’s Layered Mexican Corn Bread, with jalapenos, onion, cheese, and creamed corn. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/layered-mexican-cornbread-recipe/index.html

With a little bit of Emeril and a helping of Paula, I set out for my first adventure into frying. Immediately our apartment was filled with the smoky smell of fried bacon, followed by sweet caramelizing onions, and then the catfish. Oh, the catfish, seasoned with Creole spices, and then submerged into a hot tub of oil, sending sizzles and pops of grease into the air. When the corn bread came out of the oven, another layer of sweet onion and melted cheese was added to the nostril party.

Finally came the greens, neither Michael or myself, had ever heard of deep frying collard greens. The traditional preparation is to sautee them with some pork fat and onions, but I was dead set on following the recipe, so I grabbed a handful and moved towards the oil. Have you ever put cold water into hot oil? Well it makes a very loud popping noise, the same happens with the greens. Luckily I had tested a single green earlier, to see if my oil was hot, and I was aware of what was going to happen. So when it came time to fry the greens, I grabbed my splatter screen in one hand, and my fist full of greens in the other, and in one fluid motion, dropped the greens and covered with the screen.

When it came time for plating in tasting, the smell in the kitchen was almost too delicious to bare. I grabbed my fish from the paper towels, scooped some black eyed peas, grabbed my crisp bacon from the microwave, and sprinkled the fried greens onto the plate.

According to Marnie Old, from He Said Beer She Said Wine, fried food goes well with some bubbly. Just like beer, bubbly works to keep the palate clean, and brings out the flavor in heavy and salty foods. I chose a bottle of Freixenet Cordon Negro Cava, which according to the label, would have strong notes of citrus and apple. Upon pouring a glass, my nose was tickled from the effervescence, but immediately overcome with a strong green apple flavor.

As Michael came to the table with the cornbread, we studied each element of the dish, our mouths beginning to salivate. I made a toast with the bubbly, and we each took a sip. With a light body, but a lingering dryness, the Cava had a airiness that would cut through the greasiness of the fish. The fruitiness in the smell, did not carry over into the taste, but instead was replaced with a sweet tart flavor.

Sinking our forks into the fish, the crispy outside broke underneath the weight of our prongs. Tender and succulent, I chewed the fish with a reminiscence of childhood. Each bite was as fresh and new as the first, thanks to the bubbly ability of the Cava. The crispy greens were almost like potato chips, adding that extra crunch needed with such smooth and fatty flavors. The corn bread was a party in my mouth, little flavor pockets of onion and jalapenos with and exaggerated corn flavor. The black eyed peas grounded out the dish with their smoky earthiness.

In a matter of minutes I was looking down to an empty plate and an empty glass. While I chose another piece of corn bread, Michael chose another helping of everything else. Feeling the bubbles rise to my head, I poured another two glasses of Cava and sunk into culinary bliss. Another Perfect Pair.

Paula Deen's Solution for a Dinner Dilemma

Beef Stroganoff + 2007 Big House Red: 5/5

After a long day at work, the last thing anyone wants to do is think of what to make for dinner, go to the grocery store, and then come back to slave over a stove. Well of course there are slow cooker recipes, fast food, or going out to eat, but what if you want something homemade, and you want it now?

My recommendation, pal up with a food network friend. On the website, www.foodnetwork.com, you can spend a couple minutes with your favorite T.V. personality— Rachel Ray, Bobby Flay, or my personal favorite, Paula Deen. In a few short minutes you will be well on your way to a dinner divine.

So after a full day of conference room hall monitoring (sounds glamourous, right?) I turned to my friend Paula for some dinner decisiveness. Her suggestion, Beef Stroganoff. Now when it comes to online recipes, read reviews. If there is something wrong with the recipe, usually some suggestions will pop up, the rating will be poor, or reviewers will use lots of exclamation points. This, !!!!!!! usually = bad.

For my dinner decision, Paula Deen’s Beef Stroganoff had five stars and 127 comments and reviews, http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/beef-stroganoff-recipe/index.html, so I felt pretty confident that Michael and I were in for a treat.

My mom tried making beef stroganoff when I was younger, probably 10 years old. I can remember coming to our golden wheat wooden table to a plate of concrete over noodles. My dog, rubbing his snotty nose across the screen, pacing in an anxious walk, staring at my plate. Fit for a dog, I thought.

“What is this mom?” I asked, grabbing my fork and scrapping through the gray stuff to get to the noodles.

“It’s beef stroganoff, you’ve never had it. You’ll like it.” There was an unsure tone in her voice. She looked around the table at my brother, my dad, and me, seeing our contorted faces and unsure approval.

I can’t really remember if it was good or not, but I remember I didn’t like it. I couldn’t get over the dirty meat sauce, the smell of onions, and the slimy texture of the mushrooms. To this day, the dish hadn’t really ranked high on my list.

Then came Paula. After I sauteed the beef in butter and olive oil and used the drippings for the onions and mushrooms, I was immediately reminded of burgers with caramelized onions and mushrooms. When I added the soups, the smell of simmering beef with creamy mushrooms coated me from head to toe, suddenly stroganoff wasn’t sounding so bad.

To find a wine I did some further research online, www.vinessetoday.com had a couple of suggestions. While beef calls for red wine, cream base sauces crave white. On the other hand, the dish’s complexity calls for a complex wine. Solution? A blend, such as a Syrah-Grenache. Blending wines provides complexity and depth to accompany multiple flavors, in this case, a rich and creamy sauce and fatty beef.

Michael and I stumbled upon an interesting wine called Big House Red, a 2007 blend of Viz Syrah, Tannet, Tempranillo, Petite Sirah, Touriga, Malbec, Aglianico, Nero d’Avola, Mourvédre, Grenache, Petite Verdot, and Montepulciano. If that wasn’t complex enough for the dish, I don’t know what would be.

As I sunk my fork into the first bite, my mouth watered. The grayish-brown sauce, looked much more appetizing than my 10 year old memory. Coating my palate, the rich buttery noodles, tip toed around the bits of beef, onion, and mushrooms, as the sauce provided a glue to hold everything together. The sour cream gave the dish an unexpected zip, while the creamy mushroom soup provided depth, and succulent flavor. A truly complex dish. Would the wine be up for the challenge?

With a strong smell of jam and toasted oak, the nose was upfront and strong. Revealing subtle tannins, a swirl of the wine lightly coated the sides of the glass. After checking the deep magenta color, I let the wine coat my palate. With a lighter body, and higher alcohol concentration, the wine is definitely dangerous. Over all, the wine had a medium body, and didn’t linger long at the finish.

Together, both the stroganoff and the wine provided the perfect balance of tannin, fruit, beef, and cream. With each fork full and swig of the wine, my palate was overcome with a flavor ambush. The saltiness of the dish played well with the acidity of the wine, and the jammy smells of the wine brought out the subtly in the beef.

Luckily for me, I was exhausted, so after just a glass of wine, I was ready for bed, but that didn’t stop Michael and I from having a little more stroganoff. Luckily this wasn’t a repeat of childhood. Now, for me, stroganoff means delicious. Thank you Paula Deen for another perfect pair.