Monthly Archives: July 2017

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VistAlba – Red Blend, 2014

  • Basic info: VistAlba Corte B, Red Blend, Argentina – 2014
  • Type: Red
  • Price estimate: $30 (local wine store)
  • Look: dark ruby in color. No legs when chilled slightly, but more legs as it warms.
  • Smell: Cherry and nutmeg
  • Taste: Tart cherry, blackberry, jam. Bob thought this one had an herbal finish and we both agreed that it was a high alcohol wine.
  • Conclusions: This was better than expected, but I might say that because after a glass, everything felt really good. It had a nice tart start, but a cleaner finish. This wine had a lot of body to it, but no bitter notes, which is unusual.
  • Other notes: This was good, but not one that I’m going to seek out. It came in our local wine club, which is why we had it and I’m glad I did. I tend to like lower alcohol wines – I’m not a big fan of wines that I can’t contemplate a second glass of and this was one of those.
  • From the bottle: No bottle notes, but from the wine store, ” Intense ruby red in color with violet hues. Subtle note of rose, pepper, ripe prunes. Tobacco and cinnamon notes appear due to its rest in oil barrels for 12 months. Sweet entrance, full body, velvety tannins and a finish that highlights dark and dense chocolate.” 15% alcohol by volume.

 

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Chevalerie – Cabernet Franc, 2012

  • Basic info: Chevalerie Bourgeois, Cabernet Franc, France – 2012
  • Type: Red
  • Price estimate: $22 (Chamber Street Wines)
  • Look: deep plum color with good legs
  • Smell: blackberry jam and spice (don’t know what kind of spice, just spice)
  • Taste: Slightly thin wine for the color. Stone fruit, blackberry jam. Very smooth back end.
  • Conclusions: I liked this wine. I thought it was very drinkable. It was not my favorite wine ever, but it was good on it’s own or paired with food. Bob didn’t comment much on it, he liked it but wasn’t gaga over it.
  • Other notes: This wine was a bit of a surprise to me. I generally remember Cab Francs as very heavy, very bitter and woody and this wine was none of those things. It had a thin structure and was very smooth. I may have to give Cab Francs another try.
  • From the bottle:  No bottle notes, but from Chamber Street, ” The lovely 2012 Chevalerie shows vivid aromas of berry liqueurs, bitter chocolate, earth and brown spice. The palate is dense and supple with ripe blackberry, cocoa, earth and mineral flavors balanced by cool acidity.” 12.5% alcohol by volume.

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Homemade fries

French fries may be the ultimate comfort food. There is something absolutely wonderful about the salty, crunchy treat that just makes you happy. Try being in a bad mood when eating fresh, good, french fries. Go ahead – it is next to impossible.

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But … yes, I know fried foods are bad for you. Fried foods are full of empty calories and all kinds of still we should not ingest. I don’t care. There is a place for french fries in every life and if there isn’t, there should be.

And they are stupidly simple to make at home. You don’t need a deep fryer (although I can see where that would come in handy) or fancy equipment – you just need patience and a desire for really good french fries.

French Fries

  • 1 medium baking potato
  • 1 medium sweet potato
  • peanut oil (or other high temperature oil) for frying
  • salt

Wash potatoes and dry. Have a bowl of water handy for submerging the potato after slicing them. Depending on the size of the potato, cut into either half or thirds. (you are going to want thin slices of potato) Turn the slice on its side and slice into matchstick slices. If needed, cut the pieces in half so they are thin. (Did I mention that thin is the key??) Let the potato slices soak while you slice both potatoes then drain and dry well. Dry really well – you do not want to add water to hot oil.

Heat oil in a frying pan. You want enough to coat the fries, so you need more than you would for cooking normally, but not so much that it will take forever to heat the pan and the oil. A lot of recipes will tell you to heat the oil to a particular temperature, but I don’t have a reliable thermometer so I go by feel. When I feel heat when holding my hand about three inches from the pan, I go for it.

Cook potato slices in the oil in batches (I needed 4 batches for the two potatoes) for 4-6 minutes, stirring once about half way through. The fries should be beginning to brown, but not burn. Remove from oil and allow to drain on a paper towel or old newspaper. If you want really crispy fries, return them to the pan for about 2 more minutes after all of the raw potatoes have been cooked. They are good without the second cooking, but they are much crisper.

Salt immediately after removing from the oil – wait until the second fry if you are doing two. Enjoy.

Since there is leftover oil, I poured the remaining oil in a small jar and saved it for another day. I strained it through a basic strainer just to get big pieces out, but you may not need to.

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Waffles

Breakfast for dinner? Yes, please. Breakfast for brunch? Yes, please. Breakfast for … well, anything? Absolutely.

I love breakfast foods, although I almost never eat breakfast. The only thing my stomach wants in the morning is coffee, so that is what I do. But I love breakfast foods and waffles are one of my favorites.

There isn’t anything hard about waffles, and these always turn out pretty perfect. The trick is to use actual buttermilk. I’ve tried soy milk with vinegar, but it really isn’t the same. Buttermilk.  I adapted the recipe below from an old Betty Crocker cookbook. You know, the old hardback with the orange cover that everyone’s mother had in the ’70s and ’80? Yep, I have a copy of it and for some things, it still does the trick.

  • Buttermilk Waffles:
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 egg
  • 3 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix all the ingredients together except the flour and stir until well combined. Mix in flour a little at a time until you have a pourable paste consistency. (Think a little thicker than Elmer’s School Glue.) Pour 1/4 of the mixture into hot waffle iron and cook per iron directions. Waffles should be golden and crispy.

Serve with butter and maple syrup.

And just because they are cute …

Tigger was trying to help me study and Arthas tried to help fold laundry. I love my boys, but some days they make things harder than they need to be. Still wouldn’t trade them for anything.