Back in Blanc

If you haven’t yet discovered Oregon Pinot blanc, it’s high time you do. Because, in addition to producing some of the best Pinot noir in the world, Oregon makes a damn fine Pinot blanc as well.

Not to be confused at all with Chardonnay, and especially not with Melon, Pinot blanc is actually a genetic mutation of Pinot noir, and quite possibly more like the Cinderella sister—often forgotten about and left without a date for the Ball. Around the world, Pinot blanc may be blended with other grapes to produce more complex flavors, but Oregon tends to be more purist, letting the lovely and distinctive tropical, spicy and floral notes of this wine shine through.

One of my favorite pairings with Pinot blanc is oysters, but a close second is Pasta al Melone (see recipe below). This sweet, savory and rich meal is perfectly balanced by the dry style of Oregon Pinot blanc. So, with an abundance of both warm summer days and juicy melons in high season, what better time than now to give these both a try? The pasta dish is simple to prepare, but impressive enough to serve to company. Serve it with a seasonal green salad and some crusty bread to soak up the sauce. It's like a fairytale food and wine pairing.

Some favorite wines for you to explore:

Spindrift Cellars 2011 Pinot Blanc ($16) – Honeydew melon and lemon curd entertain your palate while zingy acids liven up your meal.

J. Scott Cellars 2011 Pinot Blanc ($15) – Pear, pineapple and sour apple make your mouth water—lingers long after your last swallow.

Bethel Heights 2011 Estate Grown Pinot Blanc ($18) – An array of citrus, creamy lemon curd, tart green apples, pear and nutmeg cookies. Sweet on the nose, but brilliant and racy acidity in the mouth. It's like the Energizer bunny of wine.

Chehalem 2011 Stoller Vineyards Pinot Blanc ($28) – A more floral and traditional Pinot Blanc. Juicy white peaches, Anjou pear and delicate orange blossoms grace the glass. This wine has it all… great minerality, succlent fruit, rich body and snappy acidity.

The Four Graces 2012 Willamette Valley Pinot Blanc ($24) – Tropical flavors of pineapple, papaya and lychee are perfectly complemented by white tea, ginger and creamy custard.

Elk Cove 2012 Pinot Blanc Willamette Valley  ($19) – Clean and crisp with a focus  on the fruit. Aromas of orange peel, pear and white flowers make this divine when paired with salty and rich foods.

With just over 200 acres planted to Pinot blanc in Oregon, Pinot blanc is not the most common wine from this region. Yet a number of Oregon producers are turning out wines that would make even Price Charming take notice. In addition to those listed above, other wineries producing noteworthy Pinot blanc are Ponzi Vineyards, Foris, WillaKenzie Estate, Rex Hill, Amity, Adelshiem and Left Coast Cellars.

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Pasta al Melone (serves 4-6 people)

4 T butter

1 T vegetable oil

3 cups cantelope diced into ¼ inch cubes

1 cup heavy cream

1 T freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ t tomato paste

Salt and ground pepper to taste

Tonnarelli or pasta of your choice (cooked according to directions)

1. Put butter and oil into sauté pan and turn heat to high. When oil is hot, add melon.
2. Cook melon for about 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently until melon softens but is not entirely broken down, most of the pieces should still be separate.
3. Add cream, lemon juice and tomato paste and cook until reduced by half.
4. Add salt and pepper, stir gently and remove from heat.
5. Pour sauce over prepared pasta and serve immediately.

Aquaman to the Rescue… Cocktail in Hand.

Summer in Portland has come early this year. While most years, June still finds me dressed in my rain jacket and boots, this year I have already shed those garments, trading them in for a sundress and a nice healthy(?) tan. And though I typically don’t have much use for AC in my car, this year I find myself wishing for the refrigerated and re-circulated air to blow me down. Yeah, nothing like black leather in the hot sun with no way of cooling it down other than your own body. Can you say “sticky?" Sit in traffic in a slow moving car for an hour or so and I’m fairly certain you’ll feel something like a rotisserie chicken. When this happens to me, my mind immediately goes to Aquaman. But I’m not talking about being rescued by superheroes, I’m speaking the language of savior cocktails. Do you know of a better language?

Aquaman may have been the most underappreciated Justice League member, who even knows what his superpower was anyway? And, while Aquaman may not have been the coolest or most memorable of superheroes, THE Aquaman is definitely the coolest and most memorable drink you’ll ever come across. It's the king of cocktails. The master of the mixed drink. You might even feel something like a superhero when you drink it (go on, try to communicate with underwater sea-life)… it may not make you swim faster, but at the very least, it will make you forget all about your stifling commute. What more can you really ask for? Come on, did you really think you'd acquire superhuman powers?

The anise and lime flavors of this cocktail are simply perfect for an evening cooling off on your deck, but if you’re thinking dinner, I recommend pairing it with Mexican food. Though Aquavit is traditionally a Scandavian spirit, the sweet and sour components of the cocktail work surprisingly well with salty fish tacos while at the same time rescuing you from the heat of a spicy salsa.

Mix yourself up a tall one, sit back relax, and then let me know how Aquaman saved the world.

AQUAMAN 

Serves 1

Fresh squeezed lime juice

Aquavit (I especially like Krogstad from House Spirits Distillery based in Portland)

Simple Syrup

Ice

1. Add 2 shots each of lime juice, Aquavit and simple syrup into a shaker with ice. 
2. Shake and pour into a superhero serving glass. 
3. Garnish with a twist of lime or a float of mint leaves.
4. Sit back and let your secret identity take shape.

When Life Throws You a Bag of Onions… You Cry, Then Make Lamb Stew and Drink Beaujolais

When you’re single again after years of marriage, navigating your way through the treacherous sea called the "holidays" can be extra challenging. This Thanksgiving, I found myself away from most of my immediate family, waxing nostalgic, yet celebrating new traditions with my grown son Devon and his girlfriend Mindy’s family. I was feeling grateful to even have a holiday table to be sitting at and a special meal to enjoy, and so I truly savored my Thanksgiving lunch and the company I was in. After lunch, my son's girlfriend's family not only lovingly sent me away with leftovers, but also with hazelnuts and walnuts from their orchards and onions and acorn squash that were still coming out of their garden.

After leaving their busy home and arriving at my empty one, this strange combination of both my heart-searing loneliness for the rest of my of family and the swell of joy I felt from the generosity Mindy’s family’s had shown me, moved me to tears. And I didn't just cry, I sobbed deep, chest heaving, tears flowing thick as water from a spout whose spigot I just couldn’t seem to turn off. When I was finally empty, drained, I fell asleep and dreamed of nothing.

I awoke, feeling recharged, as if a spark had been lit deep within the furnace of my body. I looked at the goody bag Mindy’s family had shared with me, and at first I thought I’d do something fun with the nuts, because nuts are always fun (no?), but what struck me instead were the onions. Those dirty, round little brown onions were calling to me, asking me, begging me to cut into their white and juicy flesh.

It didn’t take more than a minute for me to realize what those onions were meant to become. I knew what I wanted to make, what I needed to make, what I was destined to make. The dish that would awaken my senses and warm my soul was none other than a Moroccan Lamb Tagine inspired by Sunset Magazine. My dear friend Pam made this dish for me when I first moved to Portland, and after searching out the recipe for myself and making some modifications, it’s become a standard in my fall/winter line-up.

I cut up the lamb (see video below) and set it aside, but when it was time to slice the onions, just removing the skins was enough to make my eyes instantly well up with tears and begin to stream buckets again. I tried putting on sunglasses and chewing gum (both tricks I’d heard about) all to no avail. I thought my reserves were all dried up, yet somehow, my eyes were pouring out enough tears, I could have drowned a small city by now. And yet I just couldn’t stop myself, and I didn’t want to, I was almost enjoying it… like it was some kind of catharsis. Finally, I'd completed the cleansing task of slicing the most potent onions in the world. Tear session over, I cleaned up my face, washing away the salt from both my eyes and cheeks and then felt a simple calm envelope me.

Like the dream I should have been dreaming the night before, when I got to the best part of the recipe (where you combine all the various spices), I couldn’t help but be swept away to some exotic spice market in the far east, lost in thoughts of how these magical ingredients were so valuable, they were once traded like gold. I imagined people traveling for weeks from the far reaches of the globe to bring these spices back to their homelands… heroes with their new discoveries of unknown flavors. The colors were magnificent, like an old Indian tapestry… earthen browns, deep, mustardy yellows. The smells immediately drew me back in and perked me up, yet they were hypnotic and elicited emotions that washed over me like a cold shower awakening me from my sleep of self-absorbed loneliness.

As the dish cooked and my house was filled with pleasing aromas of home, happiness, memories… the lack of companionship and emptiness began to slip away. What was left in its place was a very hungry belly and a great pot of lamb stew, enough to feed my mind, body and soul for days. I recommend you let this recipe rescue you sometime too. If not from some kind of sadness, then from the dark, cold and dreariness of the season.

Realizing it was not only Thanksgiving time but Beaujolais season as well, I decided to try a bottle of 2011 Georges DuBoeuf Beaujolais Nouveau I had set aside for the holiday weekend with this meal. I think a spicy Syrah, Zinfandel or even a Marsanne would pair nicely (and a Riesling might even be interesting to try), but this wine just seemed to fit the bill. It was casual enough just for me, bold and sweetly fruity, with a bit of spicy oak, a slight suppleness and enough acidity to balance out and play against the spice and heat of the dish. Food and wine pairing isn't rocket science, just have fun with it!

Speaking of having fun with things. Just because I couldn't possibly post about lamb and not include this memorable quote/video:

"What do you mean he don't eat no meat? That's okay, I make lamb." - Aunt Voula

Moroccan Lamb Tagine

Prep and Cook time: Approximately 1½ hours

Serves 6 (or one person for days)

3 pounds of fat-trimmed boned lamb steak, shoulder or other cut suitable for stewing, cut into 1½-inch chunks

2 large onions, peeled, halved and thinly sliced

4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 tablespoon EACH of paprika and cumin

1 teaspoon EACH of ground turmeric, ground cinnamon and minced, fresh ginger

¼-½ teaspoon (depending on heat preference and tolerance) cayenne pepper

¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

2½ cups of chicken stock

12 dried apricots, roughly chopped 
2 big handfuls of baby carrots

1 can (14½ oz) diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons tomato paste

Salt and pepper to taste

Bottle of wine 

Box of couscous prepared as directed 

1.  Pour glass of wine, sip often and refill as needed.

2.  Brown lamb over medium heat.

3.  Add onions and garlic, stirring often until onions begin to get limp (about 5 minutes).

4.  Add spices and stir until fragrant (about 30 seconds).

5.  Take a big whiff. Mmmmmm.

6.  Add broth, apricots, carrots, tomatoes and tomato paste; bring to a boil over high heat. 

7.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally until lamb is tender (about one hour).

8.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve over couscous.

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Other great recipes to try:

Parsnip Soup with Potato Crisps and Bacon 

Port Wine Reduction

Vegan Potato and Mushroom Croquettes

7 Steps to Perfection

Welcome the Harvest Season with Parsnips, Cream and Bacon… Cheers to Vintage 2011

After reading this insightful post from Wind Up Bird Communications about the importance of being oneself, I was truly inspired. I realized that amongst other things, I am still a writer and fancy myself something of a raconteur, and these elements culminate in my blog, and to that I must remain true. So, what better way to revive this sleepy web log, which has been resting for nearly a year, than with an infusion of the 2011 harvest season?

Backstory: I got my foothold in the Oregon wine industry door working for Ponzi Vineyards as their Marketing Communications Manager many moons ago. I can remember the first harvest season I went through while employed there… it was soooo romantic. Heck, for me, just being on the grounds of a working winery was like a storybook story. Daily, I’d watch from my office window, as the timid deer, turkey vultures and quail made their welcomed appearances, wandering by with reckless abandon. With my front row seat, I could literally watch the grapes ripening on the vines as I wrote engaging newsletter copy and designed ads.

When “Crush” began, it was like a whole nother animal. The fruit arrived and the structured frenzy that ensued was like a magnificently choreographed dance. Everyone knew their part and everyone performed like the spotlight was on them… and for all intents and purposes, it was. The forklift driver was under tremendous pressure to lift and deliver tons of grapes to the people on the sorting line, who waited with baited breath like gold-panners ready to sift through the next drop. Everyone worked tangentially, in unison, to get the succulent fruit from the vineyard to the totes and into fermentation bins or the presses as quickly as they could, and this rarely happened in favorable weather conditions. On my way to the fax machine, I'd pass through the main winery building where the harvest crew would be punching down the grapes that were going through their period of cold soak… the fruit still so fresh and sticky sweet as the air became thick with the drone of the fruit flies. I'd make my way passed the cool barrel room, heavy with aromas of oak and age that would stop me in my tracks and force me to inhale their thick and dusky scent, practically making me forget the whole reason I was there in the first place. Oh yeah, the fax.

Trying to get my work done during harvest typically included dodging fruit totes, hoses, fermenter bins, people, trucks, forklifts, muddy boots and vicious yellow jackets… not that I'm complaining. It also included leisurely and satisfying harvest lunches prepared by professional chefs served with world-class wine at a table surrounded by international and interesting people all passionate about the same the thing… it was my first experience to truly live and breathe "Harvest".

In addition to the winery, the Ponzi family owns a restaurant in the heart of Oregon’s wine country called The Dundee Bistro. Back in the day (though I’m not sure if they do this anymore), they used to have the sous chef from their restaurant come up and cook for the hungry (understatement) harvest crew. They generously allowed the regular staff (me) to join in on the elaborate lunches, and since I’m one admittedly and easily wooed by fine food and wine, you know I was smitten. One day, Chef Eddie made us a Parsnip Soup with Bacon Crumbles, which he selected a gorgeous Ponzi Pinot Blanc to pair with. I’d honestly never really met a parsnip I liked prior to that, in fact for years, I'd been picking them out of my mom's homemade chicken soups.Yet here Eddie had fashioned them into a soup which immediately became tops on of my list of favorites. And with the wine, it was sheer perfection; the acidity cut right through both the cream of the soup and salt of the bacon while the tart and floral components in the wine were effortlessly balanced by the sweet and savory qualities of the parsnips. I might have even swooned or drooled… or both.

Eddie somehow pulled off a disappearing act during lunch before I had a chance to pin him down for the recipe, he must have been onto me. When I called him at the restaurant the next day in an effort to obtain cooking instructions for the most fabulous and surprisingly delicious soup I’d ever tasted, I believe he told me he didn’t really have an actual recipe for it, and might have even said that he’d just pulled it out of his ass. Well, it certainly didn’t taste like it came out of his ass, but he clearly wasn't going to be any help. Over the next several months, I experimented with many versions, until I came upon this one from Emeril Lagasse and the Food Network, which seemed to be as close to Eddie’s as I could really recall, though I've added nutmeg to his recipe for added intrigue. The addition of the potato crisps indeed requires a bit more effort, and though not required, truly is worth the trouble. Alternatively, you could serve it with a loaf of bread, make your own boule like my industrious blogger friend Todd at the Portland Charcuterie Project for a seriously yummy treat.

Each year, as the days grow noticeably shorter, the skies begin to darken and the weather starts to turn chilly and less forgiving, I turn to this hearty dinner to warm up with and celebrate the arrival of the fall season. Last weekend, at the Lake Oswego Farmers Market, after I found these prized parnsips and dry-cured Maialino bacon, I realized what time of year it was already and immediately knew what was destined be on my menu in the coming week. So tonight, in honor of  Crush 2011, I’ll be serving up this heart-warming and tummy-satisfying soup (inspired by Chef Eddie and the Ponzis), alongside an excpetional 2010 Willakenzie Pinot Blanc I’ve set aside especially for the occasion. Though I do wish you could join me at my table, you can recreate this meal on your own, with your own bottle of Oregon Pinot Blanc. You could also try it with Oregon Pinot Gris for another delightful pairing, either way I'm certain it will become a favorite of yours as well. I raise my glass of refreshing Pinot Blanc to the entire Oregon wine industry and send wishes of safety, fun and success for Vintage 2011… cheers!

Cream of Parsnip Soup with Potato Crisps and Bacon
By Emeril Lagasse

Ingredients
3 tablespoons butter
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1 teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg

10 cups chicken stock
3 pounds parsnips, peeled and diced
1/4 to 1/2 cup heavy cream
6 ounces raw bacon, chopped
1/2 pound new potatoes, thinly sliced and soaking in cold water
1 tablespoon chopped chives

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Melt the butter in a 6-quart stock pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and celery. Season with salt and pepper. Saute until the vegetables are soft, about 4 minutes. Add the bay leaf, garlic and nutmeg and stir another minute until the spices release their aromatics.
3. Add the stock and parsnips and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, until the parsnips are very soft, about 1 hour.
4. Remove soup from heat and allow to cool a little. Discard bay leaf.
5. Using a hand-held blender, carefully puree soup until smooth. Stir in cream. Season with salt and pepper.
6. In a small saute pan, over medium heat, render bacon until crispy. Remove the bacon, drain on paper towels and reserve bacon fat.
7. Pour bacon fat onto cookie sheet and add the potato slices in one layer (because what isn't better cooked in bacon grease?). Put into the preheated oven and cook until potatoes are crispy and brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer potatoes to paper towel lined plate when done. Season with salt.
8. To serve, ladle the soup into serving bowls. Garnish with the crispy potatoes, bacon and chives.

Eat Wine. Pray Wine. Love Wine.

Though I genuinely loved the book and admit I've not yet seen the movie, here's my homage to Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert.

Eat wine—Okay, I guess when it comes down to it, I don't just like to drink wine, I like to eat it too. Perhaps it’s a cultural thing, ingrained since my early days of eating Manishevitz-laden charoset for Passover each year… and loving it. When I think about it, some of my most favorite recipes of all time are made with wine—slow-cooked sauce bolognese with homemade pappardelle, steamed clams with white wine sauce over linguini, wine-poached pears with cardamom whipped cream, or a concentrated, sweet and savory port-reduction sauce over a fine cut of beef. So, in the spirit of eating wine, here’s a recipe for my favorite reduction.

INGREDIENTS:
10 peeled shallots, cut in half
3 teaspoons of olive oil
sea salt and pepper
2 bay leaves
3 cups Port (or Port-style) wine

DIRECTIONS:
Toss the shallots with the olive oil and seasonings in a large saute pan and roast for about 20 minutes until golden brown. Cover the shallots with the port wine, bring to a boil over medium heat, continue to cook until thickened and reduced by half, about 30 minutes. Strain, cool slightly and serve while warm over practically anything (beef, chicken, pork, potatoes…).

On a side note and possible future tangent, I've been using a fabulous Barnard Griffin Syrah Port. And even though it’s delicious, should they really be calling it Port if it’s from Washington? Just saying.

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Pray Wine—When my parents were moving many years ago, I volunteered to pack up their wine "cellar" closet for them, excited to look through what crazy stuff they’d collected over the years. My folks aren’t collectors by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, my mom (who doesn’t drink) buys wine at Costco if and only if she thinks she’s getting a good deal (it's all about the deal). They also have a tendency to save bottles they’ve received as gifts over the years, and that’s what I was interested in perusing. Most of it was passoverable, especially knowing the conditions under which they’d been cellared, until I came across a little box hidden towards the back of the dark and dusty closet which held a treasure I could not believe… and I promise, it wasn’t a Blue Nun.

I slowly creaked the box open and peered in, much like Charlie Bucket did when he discovered his golden ticket. But I didn't find a golden ticket. Instead, I lay my bulging eyes upon the dazzling golden label of a bottle of 1990 Dom Perignon—one glance was all it took, I immediately knew that little gem would be going home with me. I placed the revered bottle upon its alter in my shrine (“cellar”) for several years. And then I prayed—giving thanks daily—wondering of its promise. One New Year’s Eve, after a sommelier-friend suggested to me that my wine might be peaking, I carefully took Dom off the alter and prepared the bottle for the festive ceremony. On that holy day, we all made our own silent prayers as we released its cork, and much like an old church revival, we worshipped its heavenly body, singing of its glory, long into the night. Hallelujah!

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Love Wine—It’s no secret that I love wine. I’ve sacrificed a great deal in the name of my passion and my commitment to continue down this long and winding road of search and discovery—uncovering something new about wine, myself and my palate at every turn. Wine’s been a part of my life as long as I can remember, first in a religious setting, drinking small amounts at temple and on holidays, then in an early educational one, as I sipped from my father’s glass of house reds and rosés he ordered at the Italian restaurant each Sunday night. Next was my recreational path… [sigh]. Yes, I did include alcohol as part of my weekend schedule of entertainment in high school. But, while my friends were beer bonging from the cheapest keg they could afford, I was the one sipping fruity wine coolers. Years later, when we all got fake IDs and went out to the bars, my friends guzzled pitchers of frosty beer while I proudly ordered white wine spritzers, having graduated from juvenile wine coolers.

Laugh all you want, but Manishevitz, wine coolers and spritzers were like gateway wines for me because it wasn't too long before I was the one confidently ordering bottles of Spanish Tempranillo and Albarino in our local Mediterranean restaurant trying to turn my friends on to real wine, and the rest shall we say is history—or perhaps the future. I guess it boils down to the simple fact that like Elizabeth Gilbert, it’s my complete journey, through the pleasure and the soul searching, which has brought me to this moment where I can both accept and embrace my love of wine that's rooted deep in learning and growing, discovering and enjoying, realizing and appreciating. Until we sip again…

Cheers!

Wine Recipe: 7 Steps to Perfection

Prep Time: Seconds
Cook Time: 30 minutes – all night
Serves: 2 or more

Ingredients:

1 bottle of good wine (whatever that means to you)
2 people (or more, but increase the bottles of wine proportionately)
1 ever-changing conversation
1 compilation of soft music (optional)
1 delicious dinner (optional)
1 roaring fire (optional)

1. Open bottle of wine and pour two (or more) glasses.
2. Mix together moderately with titillating conversation.
3. Add optional music, dinner and/or fire and let simmer until the first glass is empty.
4. Pour second glass of wine.
5. Switch to enticing conversation and continue to cook over low heat until fully engaged (or is that engorged, I can't read my notes).
6. Stir in a generous amount of physical contact.
7. Sprinkle with additional sips (as needed) and serve when hot and ready.

When I made this recipe, it led to a night not soon to be forgotten. I’d love to know how it turns out for you! Have your own recipe to share?

One last thing, if you like this recipe, consider trying this.

Until we sip again…

Cheers!

Passover Wine You Won’t Want to Pass Over

Passover’s here, and in addition to signaling the onset of Spring it also offers a great opportunity to break from tradition. Don’t worry; I’m not talking about giving up the matzoh ball soup. But, if you’ve ever been to a Jewish Seder you might be familiar with Maneshevitz wine and if so, you can probably understand how a break from some customs might be a good thing.

I’m reminded of the many Seders I participated in while growing up, pouring the sweet, thick Manashevitz Concord Grape wine into my youthful body. One of the most significant memories I have of the entire lengthy service was how it was the wine, which got me through it. Even at twelve-years-old, an opportunity to drink (a considerable amount of) wine at the family table was like a carrot dangling before me. What? It’s time to pour the fourth glass? Cool! Jewish holidays kinda ROCK!

While grapes are inherently Kosher, the winemaking process is not. In order for a wine to be Kosher, it must be produced entirely by men (sorry Feminists) and under the supervision of a Rabbi. Kosher for Passover wines additionally made with yeasts not grown on bread and exclude all preservatives.

When I was growing up in the 1970s and 1980s, Kosher wine was not exactly popular and choices were limited. Tradition dictated and custom claimed victory as my family emptied bottles of Maneshevitz year after year. Today, a whole array of Kosher for Passover wines exist so the wine lover no longer has to cringe while sipping something that's labeled wine, but more resembles berry-flavored cough syrup.

This year, don’t let the words 'Kosher for Passover' frighten you. Open your minds and open your glass, I know I will. But rest assured, that customary bottle of Maneshevitz will always have a rightful place at my table, (it makes a mean haroseth) but if it’s poured in a glass, you can be certain I’ll be passing that one to Elijah. So, what wine do you pour at your ceremonial meal? We enjoyed the following tonight (along with a non-Kosher for Passover Oregon Pinot Noir from Oak Knoll—as if I could resist). Until we sip again…

Cheers!

2007 Psagot Edom (Israel): A full bodied Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot blend. The barrels are aged in the Judean Hills winery cave dating back to the era of the second Temple. Cherries, currant and vanilla was abundant with a silky mouth and spicy finish. The earthy notes additionally complimented one of my favorite holiday recipes:


Mom’s Potato and Mushroom Croquettes 
(Vegetarian & Vegan)

1½ lbs of potatoes - peeled and chopped
5 cups of water
1 onion - peeled and diced
¼ lb of mushrooms – diced
1 tsp of vegetable oil
1 tbsp of water
1 cup matzoh meal
salt and pepper to taste
Vegetable oil for frying

1. Boil potatoes in water until tender, then drain and mash.
2. In separate pan, sauté onion and mushrooms in oil and water for three minutes.
3. In large bowl, mix mashed potatoes, onion and mushrooms, matzoh meal and salt and pepper.
4. Form 10 croquettes and fry in oil for eight minutes on each side over medium heat until golden brown. Drain on paper.