Tag: Wine Enthusiast

Kicking Off Cookies & Cocktails Season

Molasses_Spice__Lemon_CookiesThanksgiving is over, #BlackFriday and #CyberMonday have come and gone and it’s time to dive into the annual baking of the holiday cookies.  The parade of visits, people visiting, and parties where you’ll need to bring something has arrived, but who want to bring the expected holiday cookies? Not me. #ThisGirlLovesToEat

Last year Wine Enthusiast published a recipe for molasses cookies that paired perfectly with a cocktail that isn’t my usual glass of red wine, bourbon on the rocks, or old fashioned, the Palmetto.  Not hard to make, no fancy ingredients, and something different. Perfect!

Molasses Cookies With Lemon and Spice

  • 2 cups (10 ounces) all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • ¾ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp ground cloves
  • 12 TBLS unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • ½ cup Sugar in the Raw
  • ¼ cup bootstrap molasses
  • 1 large egg

For Filling

  • 3 TBLS unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 cups (8 ounces) confectioners’ sugar
  • 3 TBLS lemon juice

Whisk flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ground ginger, salt and ground cloves together in bowl. In second bowl, melt and cool ¾ cup butter, and mix with ½ cup sugar, molasses and egg, until combined. Stir flour mixture into molasses mixture. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Spread ½ cup granulated Sugar in the Raw in shallow dish.

Heat oven to 375˚F. Roll dough into ¾-inch balls, then roll in Sugar in the Raw. Place on parchment-lined baking sheets, and press flat. Bake until tops just begin to crack, 8–10 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through. Let cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack. Repeat with remaining dough. Let cookies cool completely.

Make filling and assemble sandwiches

Whisk butter, powdered sugar and lemon juice in bowl until smooth. Spread 1 heaping teaspoon filling over half of cookies, then top with remaining cookies, pressing lightly to adhere. Let filling set for 1 hour before serving. Makes about 42 sandwich cookies.

Palmetto Cocktailpalmetto

In a mixing glass, combine:

  • 1½ ounces aged rum
  • 1½ ounces sweet vermouth
  • 1 dash orange bitters
  • ice

Stir until chilled and strain into a coupe (saucer champagne) glass. Garnish with an orange twist.

Fluffy Peach Cobbler with White Wine Whipped Cream

Peach Cobbler with Maple Cream Sauce

Summer fruit season is at it’s glorious peak and the produce department at my grocery store is overflowing with bins of fresh apricots, nectarines, plums, and luscious ripe peaches!  With this bounty of  rich, sweet fruit available, I love nothing more than to peel a pile and bake a juicy, lip-smacking cobbler.

Few things go as well together as a crisp white wine and stone fruits.  Wine Enthusiast recommends a Picpoul de Pinet from Languedoc-Roussillon, France like: Gerard Bertrand Terroir Picpoul de Pinet 2016.  Total Wine or BevMo should be able to point you in the right direction for a wine that’s similar if they don’t carry this $18 bottle.

Another option is to enter the search term “Picpoul de Pinet” into your google search, hit enter, and then select [Shopping] beneath the search box after your selections come up. Locations where you can buy it will come up.

This recipe for peach cobbler combines the two flavors beautifully and, bonus, it doesn’t need to be baked in the oven, so no heating the house up!

Fluffy Peach Cobbler with White Wine Whipped Cream

  • 10 Ripe Peaches – peeled, pitted & sliced into quarters – It’s OK if they’re a little squishy.picpouldepinet
  • 2 Cups Dry White Wine (like a Picpoul de Pinet)
  • 1/2 Cup Orange Juice
  • 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
  • 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
  • 3 tsp Cornstarch
  • 3 tsp Cold Water
  1. Set your electric Pressure Cooker (like your Instant Pot) to the Brown or Sauté setting.
  2. Combine wine, juice, brown sugar, and cinnamon in Instant Pot then add peaches.
  3. Sauté 3 to 5 minutes, or until softened.
  4. Combine cornstarch and cold water.  Stir into peach mixture in Instant Pot.

Prepare Batter:

  • 4 TBLS Butter Softened
  • 1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
  • 1 Cup Heavy Cream
  • 1/2 Vanilla Bean, Scraped
  • 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
  1. In bowl of stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until completely incorporated.
  2. Add heavy cream and vanilla bean.
  3. Fold in combined flour and baking soda a little at a time until ragged, sticky batter forms.
  4. Place spoonfuls of batter over peaches, but don’t cover top completely.  Push dough balls down into peaches.
  5. Secure lid and close pressure valve. Cook on high pressure for 10 minutes.
  6. When done, let pressure drop naturally for 5–10 minutes. Release remaining pressure, according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Prepare Whipped Topping:

  • 1 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream, Chilled
  • 1 tsp Granulated Sugar
  • 1/2 Vanilla Bean, Scraped
  • 1 tsp White Wine, Chilled
  1. In mixing bowl, whip heavy cream, sugar, vanilla and white wine until light and fluffy.
  2. It should double in volume and clump into whisk. Don’t over whip, or it will turn to butter. Chill in refrigerator until ready to serve.

Wine Enthusiast Magazine has some of the best #CookingWithWine dessert recipes and is my go-to when I’m looking for something new & different to make for dessert!  #ThisGirlLovesToEat

Napalm Spicy Chicken Wings

napalmwings

I usually spend half the day to treat my family to my decadent buffalo chicken macaroni and cheese on Super Bowl Sunday.  This year we aren’t particularly interested in the game, so we won’t be having a crowd over and it’s far to much effort (and way too many high fat/high calorie leftovers) to make for just the two of us.

Don’t get me wrong.  We’ll watch the game, but we don’t have a vested cheering interest in the game and Budweiser has opted for a political ad in place of the usual feel-good puppy and Clydesdale buddy commercial, so we won’t be glued to the TV just mindlessly eating for 5 straight hours (hopefully).

That doesn’t mean we won’t be eating something amazing though. 😉

I came across this recipe for chicken wings that claim to be beyond “inferno” hot in, of all places, the December 2015 issue of  Wine Enthusiast Magazine.  The funniest part of the recipe, as written, is that there is nothing in it to make them “Napalm Hot.”  How hot you make them is based entirely on the heat level of the hot sauce you choose to add to the recipe, so the decision is entirely yours.  In my case, to make them scorchingly hot, I will be searching for a sauce that is based on Ghost Peppers or Habañero Peppers.  They will be far too hot for me to eat, but my husband will be more than happy to burn his face off eating them!

Napalm Spicy Chicken Wings

  • 3 pounds chicken wings, patted dry with paper towels
  • Coarse kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil, plus more to fry
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2–3 tablespoons honey
  • ¼ cup hot sauce
  • 2 limes, zested and juiced, plus lime wedges for serving
DirectionsPlace the chicken wings in a large bowl and season generously with salt and pepper. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.

Preheat an oven to 400˚F. Spread the chicken wings on a rimmed baking sheet in a single layer and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of oil. Place in the oven and roast until the chicken wings are firm but not fully cooked through, about 20 minutes.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Whisk in honey, hot sauce and lime zest, and let simmer for 1 minute. Stir in the lime juice and remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper.

Using a large pot, pour in enough of the vegetable oil to reach 5 inches up the sides. Place over high heat and heat the oil until it registers 375˚F on a deep-fry thermometer.

Working in small batches, fry the wings, turning occasionally, until they are crisp and golden brown, 5–7 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the wings from the oil and drain on a paper towel–lined baking sheet. Put the wings in a large bowl and toss with the hot sauce butter. Transfer to a platter and serve hot with additional lime wedges.

If you use Facebook and are interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to: things like health articles, my favorite recipes, fun drinks, food facts, nutritional information, restaurant reviews, photos and other things that make my mouth water, I have a very active page on Facebook you can visit too: https://www.facebook.com/ThisGirlLovesHerFood

Holiday Gifts For the Cocktail Lover

tistheseasonIt’s the time of year when we all exchange gifts with friends.  If you’re college age to not-yet married or perpetually single and loving it, chances are you and your friends also love getting together for cocktails.

Since we all can likely name our best friends’ go-to drink orders here are a few ideas for inexpensive ways to make sure they can make themselves a “five o’clocker” using the proper tools and vessels to drink them from without breaking the bank.

You can probably figure out gifts for a wine drinker – glasses, a pretty corkscrew, funnychampagne napkins, an aerator, or a decanter.  For a beer drinker there is always the bottle opener, pilsner glass, mason jar glasses, or even (for the guy who hasn’t outgrown college) beer pong supplies/table.

If your gift is going to a margarita or  daiquiri lover:

Is your gift going to a Martini aficionado?

And finally, gifts for lovers of mixed drinks or straight up spirits:

None of the gifts we exchange with friends need to break the bank to show that we care. With a little forethought and a handy 20% coupon for Bed, Bath & Beyond  (you can use 5 per purchase you know) you might even save enough to grab a bottle or two to share with them!

If you’re on Facebook and are interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to: my favorite recipes, drinks, food facts, nutritional information, photos and other things that make my mouth water, I have a page on Facebook you can visit too:  https://www.facebook.com/ThisGirlLovesHerFood