Wines For The Lighter Side of Life
Duck Breasts with Dried Cranberry-Apple Bread Salad
Serves 4
- 4 6 oz. Boneless Duck Breast
- 2 cups Jazz Berry
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cups crustless sweet French bread cubes
- 1 1/2 cups pecans, toasted and chopped
- 1 T chopped flat leaf parsley
- 1 t fresh thyme
- Sea Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 Granny Smith or Baldwin apples, peeled, cored, and diced (2 cups)
- 1 1/2 cup chicken stock
Trim the duck breasts, score the skin, and set aside.
Combine the Jazz Berry wine and cranberries in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Remove from the heat and let sit for 20 minutes, until the berries are plump and moist.
While the berries are sitting, heat the 1/2 cup olive oil, minus 1 T, in a large nonstick saucepan over high heat. Add the bread and toss to coat evenly with the oil. Cook for 5 minutes, until lightly browned on all sides, tossing occasionally to prevent burning. Transfer to a large bowl.
Drain the cranberries over a small saucepan to catch the wine. Set the cranberries aside. Return the wine to a boil over high heat. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until reduced to about a cup.
Add the cranberries, pecans, parsley and thyme to the bowl with the bread. Season the duck with salt and pepper. Heat the 1 T olive oil in a large sauté pan over high heat. Add the duck, skin side down, reduce the heat to medium and cook for 6 to 7 minutes, until golden brown. Turn and cook the other side for 3 to 4 minutes, until firm. Transfer the duck to a plate, drain all but 2 T of the fat from the pan and return to high heat. Add the apples and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until soft and golden brown. Add to the bread mixture.
Return the skillet to high heat and add the stock. Pour any duck juices that collect on the plate into the skillet. Bring to a boil and scrape the sides and bottom with a wooden spoon to loosen any stuck bits of duck or apple. Cook on a rapid simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, until thick. Add to the bread salad and toss to mix well. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Cut the duck breasts into thin slices. Place a spoonful of the bread salad on the center of the plate. Arrange the sliced duck over the bread salad, spoon a small amount of the reduced wine around the plate, and serve. Enjoy with a glass of Jazz Berry.
JAZZ BERRY CHEESE PAIRING
Jazz up your next impromptu summertime get together with a simple Jezebel Cheese Ball. Simple cream cheese is the base for a tangy finish. Blend your favorite farmer's market raspberry or strawberry jam with the same amount of homemade peach preserves, add a touch of dry mustard and as much horseradish as you can enjoy. This zesty combination is a perfect complement to the sweet fruits in Jazz Berry.
Coconut Shrimp
Serves 4
- 2 dozen shrimp (16 to 20 count)
- 9 oz. all-purpose flour
- 4 egg whites
- 5 oz. beer
- Sea Salt
- White Pepper freshly ground
- 12 oz. dried shredded coconut
- vegetable oil and coconut oil for frying
Clean the shrimp, leaving the tails on: devein, and butterfly. Mix the flour and beer in a bowl. In another bowl, whip the egg whites and fold into the batter; season with salt and pepper. Hold a shrimp by the tail, one at a time, and dip in the batter; remove and coat well with the shredded coconut.
Deep fry at 325 until golden brown. Serve hot with a mango-chutney Curry Sauce. Enjoy with a glass of Tango Peach.
Tango Peach CHEESE PAIRING
The complex flavors of peaches are similar to Crème de St. Agur, which is a rich yet smooth blue cheese that is tasty and robust but not overpowering. Together, peach and Crème de St. Agur offer a perfect blend of salty, sweet, juicy and smooth.
Cuban Ropa Vieja
- 1 T extra virgin olive oil
- 2 pounds beef flank steak
- 4 bay leaves
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
- 1 small onion, sliced
- 1 green bell pepper, seeded and sliced into strips
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 T white vinegar
- 1 packet Sazon Goya seasoning
Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Brown the flank steak on each side, about 4 minutes per side.
Transfer beef to a slow cooker. Pour in the beef broth and tomato sauce, then add the onion, bell pepper, garlic, tomato paste, Goya seasoning, olive oil and vinegar. Stir until well blended. Cover, and cook on High for 4 hours, or on Low for up to 10 hours. When ready to serve, shred meat and serve with tortillas or rice.
Enjoy with a glass of Viva Sangria.
Viva Sangria CHEESE PAIRING
Begin your virtual trip to Spain with a 3 cheese plate, don't forget the Iberico ham. Manchego - a firm sheep's milk cheese with a slightly tangy, nutty flavor; Monte Enebro-a soft, lightly acidic and salty pasteurized goat cheese; and Idiazadbal- a pungent raw sheep's milk cheese with a full distinctive flavor with smokey undertones.
Salsa Verde Rockfish
Serves 6
- 6 – 6 oz. Rockfish Filets
- 12 3-inch sprigs of fresh rosemary
Prepare the Rockfish: Preheat the oven to 360 degrees. Cut 4 sheets of parchment paper into 6 12-inch squares on a work surface. Place 2 sprigs of rosemary in the center of each piece of parchment, then place a filet on top of the rosemary sprigs. Drizzle with a little olive oil. Bring the front and back of each piece of parchment together over the center of each fillet. Gently fold together three times, and then fold the ends of the paper under the packets. Place the packets in a heavy duty baking pan and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the fish from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
To serve, unfold the parchment papers and gently slide a spatula under the fillets, lifting each one onto a plate. Spoon several tablespoons of salsa verde on top.
Salsa Verde
- 1 slice inch-thick hearty white bread, about 4 inches by 2 inches
- 1 T red wine vinegar
- 2 anchovy fillets
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 T capers, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup loosely packed flat leaf parsley leaves
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt to taste
Prepare the Salsa Verde:
Slice the crusts off the bread and discard. Place the bread on a small plate and drizzle both sides with the red wine vinegar.
Soak the anchovies in a bowl of cold water for 30 minutes. Remove the bones In a marble mortar, (a mini food processor also works) combine the anchovies, garlic, and capers. Pound the mixture into a paste. Add the bread and parsley and pound to a fine paste. Slowly pour in the olive oil, stirring constantly until all the oil is incorporated. Add salt to taste. Enjoy with a glass of White Sangria.
White Sangria CHEESE PAIRING
Goat cheese packs a deep flavor that is tangy and slightly salty. The natural fruit melon flavors in White Sangria creates a refreshing and juicy sensation on the palette. Together, the goat cheese and melon flavors will contrast to form a powerful flavor and texture contrast that feels both hearty and refreshingly light.
Roast Pork with Blueberry Port Sauce
Serves 4
- 1 (2 1/2 pound) pork shoulder roast
- salt and ground black pepper to taste
- 1 T olive oil, or as needed
- 1 large shallot, halved
- 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
- 2/3 cup port wine
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2 T cold butter, or more to taste
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F
Season roast generously on all sides with salt and black pepper.
Heat olive oil in a large oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. Cook roast in hot oil until browned on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Add shallot, cut-side down, to skillet and place rosemary sprigs on top of roast.
Roast pork in the preheated oven for 45 minutes. Flip pork, place rosemary sprigs back on top of roast, and break up shallots with a spoon. Continue roasting until slightly pink in the center, about 45 minutes more. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 145 degrees F (63 degrees C).
Transfer roast to a platter to rest for 10 minutes. Drizzle any excess fat in the skillet over the top of roast.
Place the same skillet over medium heat. Stir blueberries into skillet and stir until soft, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour port wine into the skillet and bring to a boil while scraping the browned bits of food off of the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.
Stir chicken broth into blueberry mixture, increase heat to medium-high, and cook until liquid is reduced by half, 3 to 4 minutes. Reduce heat to low, stir cold butter into sauce and whisk until completely incorporated. Strain sauce through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl.
Slice pork roast against the grain into thin slices and top with blueberry sauce. Enjoy with a glass of Zinberry.
Zinberry CHEESE PAIRING
Blueberry-baked Brie. Combine 1 cup of crushed blueberries and 2 tablespoons of honey, pour over a wheel of Brie cheese on parchment paper, and bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes until cheese is soft, but not runny. Cut Brie wheel into wedges and serve.
Apple Sausage Sliders
Super Bowl Party Hors d' oeuvres
- 2 lbs of bulk sausage
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- ½ cup milk (any %)
- 1 cup of herbed stuffing mix
- ¼ cup of minced yellow onions
- 1 cup of finely chopped Granny Smith apples
Preheat oven 350 degrees F
Combine all ingredients and mix well. Spread on a lightly greased 9x12 glass baking dish. Bake for 1 hour. Let rest before cutting into squares
and putting on a biscuit spread with apple butter. Enjoy with a glass of Spiced Wassail, gently warmed.
Spiced Wassail CHEESE PAIRING
Everyone loves bacon. Savor the salty delicacy in a new way with this sweet and savory delight. Using dried figs, cut a slice in one side of each fig and stuff a spoonful of Ile de France brie cheese inside. Then wrap each fig in a slice of bacon and set on a tin-foil covered baking sheet. Drizzle some balsamic vinegar over the figs and bake at 350 for about 10 minutes until the bacon is crisp.