deVine Table

Last quarter, my life as a student at the Northwest Wine Academy led me to the Food and Wine Pairing Varietals II class in which we studied the craft of pairing red wines with food. In this class our instructor, Chef Lenny Rede, challenged us with an assignment he titled Iron Chef:  Malbec.

What made this so challenging? Each team of students was randomly assigned a course to pair with a Malbec. Which Malbec? That’s the thing – we wouldn’t know ahead of time. Pairing a dish to a wine we haven’t yet tasted?  What a great opportunity to see if the food and wine pairing principles we’ve learned along the way will work!

Flavors in Malbec and Why They Matter

Before tackling this assignment, we took into account Chef Lenny’s tips for pairing food with Malbec. First, consider the flavors typically found in Malbec. These may include blackberry, blueberry, cocoa, citrus, black pepper, and a general smokiness. You can match the wine with food by selecting similar or contrasting flavors.

Ingredients That Work with Malbec

Then, select a base ingredient that is likely to partner well with the varietal. Recommended base ingredients to pair with Malbec include beef, lamb, veal, pork, smoked salmon, tuna, chicken, duck or sausage. When preparing these ingredients to pair with Malbec, the best cooking techniques include grilling, roasting, smoking, or barbecuing. (more…)

The Makings of Cheese Fondue

“I heart fondue,” said Vivian as we gathered around the table the night before Valentine’s Day and speared heart shaped cut outs of bread to dip into the fondue pot.  The room filled with laughter at the joke, but seriously who doesn’t love a pot of melted cheese? Plus, it’s easy party fare.

While most people take the dreary weather of winter as an opportunity to complain, I like to look at it as an opportunity to enjoy some warming comfort foods. Melted cheesey goodness is a personal favorite.  The blog Cooking Stuff has a cheese fondue recipe very similar to the one I use.

We’re not traditionalists with regard to what items to dip in it, and usually have a mix of different breads. This time we had a loaf of Tall Grass Bakery’s fougasse, Bakery Nouveau’s whole grain carrot bread, and Upper Crust Bakery’s whole wheat bread cut into heart shapes. A heart shaped cookie cutter easily does the trick, and the leftover bread scraps can be made into bread crumbs.

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Inspired by our recent tour of farmstead cheese makers, and trying to use up the excessive amount of cheese we purchased, I adapted this recipe from the Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites cookbook. It’s quick and easy to put together, and pairs well with wine! Serves 8.

Mac and Cheese Goes Glam

• 2 cups grated cheese (8 ounces) such as Pleasant Valley Dairy Gouda
• 1/2 cup grated onion (approx. 1 small onion)
• 1 16 ounce container Appel Farms low fat quark
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 teaspoons dried mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 pound whole wheat pasta – I use chiocciole, but elbow macaroni or rigatoni are also good choices
• 1/4 cup grated goat cheese Gouda such as that produced by Silver Springs Creamery
• 1/3 cup bread crumbs or crumbled shredded wheat

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Ever wanted a chance to get a behind-the-scenes look into the cheese world?

The American Cheese Society is having its Annual Conference, Cheese-a-Topia, in Seattle August 25- 28, 2010. Volunteers are needed to help show Seattle at its best.

There are many, many jobs to do:  helping with cheese receiving and care, preparing cheese for sessions, data management and working events like the Festival of Cheese at Benaroya Hall and the Opening Reception at the Seattle Aquarium.

Volunteers will be needed 8/17 – 20 and 8/23 – 29.

 For more information, please contact:

 Alison Leber, Volunteer Coordinator for Cheeseapotia 2010, the American Cheese Society Conference

By phone at 206-322-1644 x 12 via e-mail at Alison@flagshipfoundation.org.

Estrella Family Creamery's Valentina

Imagine eating 20 different cheese dishes, each paired with a wine, over the course of 3 hours. For students in the Cheese and Wine Pairing class at Northwest Wine Academy, this is how we spent our last class. Each student’s wine and cheese pairing presented to class is part of that person’s grade.

There were some pretty creative preparations, too. In fact, this was the first time I’ve been served cheesy grits. Even if I had tasted them before, I don’t know that it would have occurred to me to serve them with Semillon. One of the bolder pairings of the evening was a blue cheese fondue. Even though each serving was delivered in a small ramekin, it was full of big flavor, and paired with a big Washington red wine to boot. One of the students even went to the effort of preparing cheese soufflés. As a memorable way to wrap up class, the final pairing of the night was blue cheese ice cream served with a sauternes.  

If this kind of learning experience intrigues you, consider enrolling in Advanced Food and Wine Pairing with Chef Lenny Rede this summer.

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