Thai Chicken with Mushrooms and Basil with Scheid Gewürztraminer

This is one of my favorite recipes and does remind me of Thai dish I used to get at my favorite Thai restaurant in Athens, Georgia. With that said, I honestly can’t say if this is an authentic Thai dish. However, this is what we call it our house. It is a very clean and fresh tasting meal that is also full of flavor and low on fat. It is also very versatile and can easily be adjusted to fit personal tastes. I have made this successfully with shrimp a couple of time, but prefer it with boneless skinless chicken thighs. Of course, you can make it with chicken breasts. I personally am a big fan of using chicken thighs or legs in chicken dishes when I am not marinating the meat for at least 24 hours. The thighs have more flavor, are harder to overcook and cheaper. I also believe that the texture feels more authentic in Asian dishes.

I wrote the recipe to use 1 tbsp of Sriracha, a chili hot sauce. If you do not like things spicy, do not fear. When mixed in with the other ingredients this adds flavor not heat. If you like it spicy, add more. I like things pretty mild, so I add about 1 ½ tbsp. My husband then squirts at least another tablespoon or two over his plate. So, put what you are comfortable with into the sauce and more can be added to taste later. The Sriracha and fish sauce should be readily available in the Asian section of your supermarket. I have never had a hard time finding either. The rice vinegar is sometimes with the vinegars and sometimes with the vinegars. On the off chance, your grocery store doesn’t carry these items, an Asian Market or Whole Foods will have them.

Another way to customize this meal is to add a veggie for more nutrients. My favorite is haricot verts, but I have added regular green beans, snow peas, sugar peas, and broccoli before. I just steam the veggie and stir in at the end. I encourage you to try other veggies and let me know what you think.

WINE: Scheid 2008 Gewürztraminer
http://www.scheidvineyards.com/

I have wanted to write this recipe up for a while as I usually make it twice a month. However, it is one of those dinners that we usually don’t drink wine with. When I first starting drinking wine, I really enjoyed Gewürztraminer, but it had been a while since we’d purchased one. A couple of weeks ago while doing a wine tasting at Scheid, I sampled this bottle and decided I had my wine for this meal. This off-dry Gewürztraminer’s nose is dominated by pear but includes floral and spicy aromas. The pear and nutmeg notes continue on the palate and mingle with the slight sweetness of the .7% residual sugar. The spicier you make this dish the nicer the hints of sugar complement the meal.

RECIPE: Thai Chicken with Mushrooms and Basil

Ingredients:
Servings: 3-4

• 1/2 cup rice vinegar
• 2 tbsp. brown sugar
• 1/2 cup fish sauce
• 1 tb. Sriracha (this is not spicy…add more if you want it spicy or add to individuals plates of food to taste)
• 1 tbsp. peanut oil
• 1 medium onion, cut into slivers
• 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into strips
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp. finely chopped gingerroot
• 2 tbsp. soy sauce
• 4-8 oz shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced ( I usually use a lot but can get fresh shitake mushrooms cheap at our farmers market)
• 1 cup (loosely packed) fresh basil, cut into strips
• OPTIONAL: Haritcort vert, snow peas, green beans broccoli (~6 oz)
• OPTIONAL: steamed jasmine rice or udon noodles

Directions:
1. Heat oil in large skillet (or wok) over medium heat.
2. In a small bowl, mix together sauce: rice vinegar, fish sauce, Sriracha and brown sugar until brown sugar dissolves; set aside.
3. Heat oil in wok and stir-fry onions, garlic and chicken for 2-3 minutes or until onions are becoming translucent.
4. Add soy sauce, ginger, and mushrooms cook until chicken and mushrooms are done.
5. OPTIONAL: Steam vegetables while chicken finishes.
6. Add basil.
7. Add sauce (rice vinegar, brown sugar Sriracha, and fish sauce) mixture to chicken and take off the heat.
8. OPTIONAL: Stir in steamed veggies
9. Serve over steamed jasmine rice or udon noodles.
10. Add more Sriracha if desired.


CAUTION: If you double this recipe, I would be cautious with the soy sauce. Perhaps try 2-3 tbsp and then add more to taste.

Mushroom and Fennel Tortellini, Apple Gorgonzola Salad and Georis Merlot

Today was not the greatest of days. I locked myself out of the house, ran several unsuccessful errands and experienced poor customer service. My patience was very low. Thankfully, I had planned an easy dinner. I first made this about a month ago and must admit this recipe came together somewhat accidentally. Trying to find other uses for the sherry I had bought to make crab bisque, I had found a simple recipe for mushroom tortellini. I also had bought some fennel that I had forgotten about and needed to be cooked. I decided to slice that and include that in the meal. Immediately I noticed the beautiful aromas from the fennel which intensified when I added the thyme. Before stirring in the tortellini, I sampled the sauce and decided that some smoky bacon would complement the earthy flavors. And it did! However, I think my vegetarian friends can happily leave the bacon out. I haven’t tried it but some shredded smoked mozzarella may add some smokiness for those that want to forego the bacon. As I mentioned this meal is easy. I also enjoy how the flavors personify wintertime without the heaviness that can accompany a hearty meat dish. It’s not the most dazzling meal I have ever made, but a yummy Monday night supper.


WINE: 2005 Georis Merlot, Carmel Valley (Monterey)
http://www.georiswine.com/

Wine was not on the original menu for this evening. However, when driving home from my frustrating day, I decided that needed amended. I knew the fennel, mushroom and thyme in the pasta would pair nice with an earthy wine. I chose the Georis 2006 Merlot as most of the Georis wines fit this bill. This smooth Merlot was more fruit forward than I remembered with touches of spice and chocolate. It was probably not the perfect wine to pair, but I believe it played a big role in my being in a much better mood after dinner. Next time I think I will try a Syrah or perhaps I will stumble upon an earthy wine with anise notes. Hmmm, the 2006 Le Mistral (Syrah, Grenache and Alicante Bouschet) with its berries, herbs, and spice would be another fun one to test.


RECIPE: Mushroom and Fennel Tortellini
Servings: 3
Ingredients:
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil, divided (or more to taste)
• 10 oz to 1 lb. mushrooms, mixed crimini, porcini, mushroom, shitake or any of these by themselves

• 1-2 fennel bulbs
• 4 cloves of minced garlic
• OPTIONAL: 3-4 pieces of bacon
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• ½ cup dry sherry
• 1 lb cheese tortellini
• Fresh parmesan, to taste

Directions:
1. Cut mushrooms in half or fourths depending on size.
2. Thinly slice fennel.
3. Start water to boil for tortellini
4. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add mushrooms and fennel.
5. Cut bacon and mince garlic.
6. When mushrooms and fennel are almost tender add bacon, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper. Cook until bacon is done.
7. Add tortellini to boiling water; cook for about 8 minutes or according to package directions.
8. Add ½ cup sherry to mushrooms, fennel etc. Reduce heat and simmer until tortellini is done, or at least five minutes.
9. Drain tortellini and add to a pan.
10. Drizzle 1 tbsp of olive oil over tortellini and mix with mushroom, fennel etc. Simmer for a couple minutes.
11. Plate and top with grated parmesan.

RECIPE: Apple Gorgonzola Salad

This is my all-time favorite salad, copied from one of my favorite restaurants, DePalma’s in Athens, Georgia. Although the wine did improve my mood, my patience has not been completely restored. I suspect that my readers have all made a salad before. I will trust that you can decide the portions that match your preferences and mix them together in a bowl. Of course if you have any questions about this or anything else, I will happily answer them! Tomorrow.

Ingredients:
• Romaine Lettuce
• Red Onion, Chopped
• Capers
• Granny Smith Apple, chopped or sliced
• Walnuts, chopped
• Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
• OPTIONAL: Cooked Bacon, broken into pieces
• Balsamic Vinaigrette

Spinach and Mushroom Enchiladas with Ventana Chardonnay

One of my favorite recipes to make for my vegetarian friends are these Spinach and Mushroom Enchiladas served with Not Refried “Refried” Beans. It is great for company because you can assemble the enchiladas and refrigerate or freeze until ready to bake. The enchiladas are smothered in a creamy cilantro sauce, and are fantastic for vegetarians and omnivores alike. It’s been awhile since I made this recipe so when I invited my non-meat eating friend, Jean, to dinner, I knew it was the perfect opportunity to resurrect it. Unfortunately, I did not know that Jean’s brother, also invited, hates mushrooms. He concealed what I am sure was his vast disappointment at the dinner menu until after he tried the enchiladas. After a couple bites, he revealed his true feelings about the mushroom. I tried to hide my embarrassment at serving such a poor choice to him when he continued that this was the first time he’d ever enjoyed mushrooms. I wondered if he was just being polite. However, several hours and several glasses of wine, beer, moonshine etc. Joe told me again how much he enjoyed dinner and wanted to try to make the enchiladas himself. He also suggested incorporating shrimp into the dish. If you do, Joe, let us know how it turns out.

WINE: 2008 Ventana Chardonnay, Arroyo Seco (Monterey)http://www.ventanawines.com/Ventana_Estate_Wines

A half cup of white wine goes into this recipe. I cannot in good conscience recommend “cooking wine” (though I will often recommend cooking with something cheaper if a large quantity goes into the recipe and you want something special with dinner). Anyway this pairing is easy, drink what you put into the recipe. In this case, Ventana is having an awesome sale on their Chardonnay ($60 a case), so you can put something cheap and yummy into your dish. This Chardonnay is lightly oaked so has a nice creamy mouthfeel balanced with some wonderful tropical fruit flavors. A terrific pairing for the enchiladas. In addition, my husband opened a bottle of Kukkula’s IPO, which is a Cab/Syrah/Zinfandel blend. I only had a sip, but the berry and cola notes paired fine with the dish. If you want to go red with the enchiladas, I do think a Zinfandel would be a good bet.

RECIPE: Spinach and Mushroom Enchiladas
Servings 4 (2 big enchiladas per person)

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small onion, minced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced and divided (or more…I love garlic)
• 1 lb baby bella mushrooms, chopped (or whatever mushrooms you like)
• 1/2 cup white wine, divided
• 1 lb fresh spinach
• 11/2 tsp season salt or season salt, divided
• 8 flour tortillas (you can use corn but may need more, I find corn tortillas are often smaller)
• 2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese, divided
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
• 1 cup sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9’ x 13’ pan.
2. Begin the filling. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat and sauté onions, 2 garlic cloves and mushrooms until onions are translucent and mushrooms are cooked. I cover skillet so mushrooms steam allowing me to use less oil.
3. Remove half of the mushroom, onion, garlic mixture and set aside for the sauce.
4. Add ¼ cup wine and cook for about two more minutes.
5. Add spinach and 1 tsp season salt/salt. Cook and toss spinach in pan until spinach is wilted and liquid has evaporated.
6. At this point, I assemble the enchiladas first as the sauce comes together very quickly. You can warm tortillas in microwave. I however, like to heat them one at time on a flat skillet. This is just a personal preference so I can control how warm each one gets. It is also easy to heat one tortilla while assembling another enchilada.
7. Divide filling into eights. Put one eighth into warm tortilla. Sprinkle with a little cheese, roll and place seam side down in 9” x 13” dish. Repeat eight times. (Adjust as needed if using small corn tortillas).
8. Make the sauce. In a small sauce pan combine chicken broth, wine, ½ tsp salt or seasoned salt, and 1 minced garlic clove.
9. Stir to dissolve before adding sour cream and cilantro. Stir to combine.
10. Add the rest of mushrooms etc. Reduce heat to simmer until sauce just begins to thicken. This will happen pretty quickly. I recommend stirring throughout this process.
11. Pour sauce over enchiladas, top with the rest of shredded cheese and bake 15-20 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and beginning to turn brown.

Not Refried “Refried” Black BeansServings 4-6

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 finely chopped jalapenos (2 if you want it spicier)
• 2 medium finely chopped onions
• 4 minced garlic cloves
• 2 (14 ounce) cans black beans
• 1 can/bottle beer (You can play with different types of beer to see what you like best. My favorites are Dos Equis Amber and Honey Brown. Of course, you want to buy beer that you or, in my case, my husband likes.)
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• Salt, to taste

1. In a medium pan, sauté the onions, jalapenos and garlic over medium heat until soft.
2. Rinse one can of beans, but leave one with juice. Add to pan.
3. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for at least ½ hour up to an hour and a half. If you have time to babysit this, the longer it simmers the better the flavors. You stir in a little beer at a time as it simmers to prevent beans from drying out. How much beer you use will depend on
4. OPTIONAL: You can use a potato masher to mash some or all of the beans if you want a creamier texture.
5. When done stir in 1 tbsp of lime and salt as needed. The beer will add salt, so only salt when beans are finished