Ladies With Bottle

Christmas Sweets and Treats - Marzipan Fruits

2009-11-11T15:54:00.005Z

In Victorian times Marzipan or Marchpane as it was called then was made into a variety of sweets for festive occasions such as Christmas. In high society Marzipan was used to construct ornate sweetmeats sometimes piled high on 3 or 4-tiered stands. Marzipan gets its charcteristic flavour from bitter almonds and there are several trains of thought as to where it originated. One is that it originated in Persia (present day Iran) and that the Crusaders carried it back to their homeland during the Dark Ages where it was made by nuns in France. It became well known as march pane in Europe by the 13th century. During the Renaissance, the kings of France cherished Marzipan and had it baked into small biscuits called masepains.

Marzipan is mentioned in The Book of One Thousand and One Nights and became a specialty of the Baltic Sea region of Germany. In particular, the city of Lübeck has a proud tradition of Marzipan manufacture.

Marzipan fruits are easy to make and you can use the leftover trimmings from the Christmas cake. I thought that making Marzipan Grapes would be rather suitable this year and this is how you go about it:

Marzipan Grapes

Roll the Marzipan into small balls for each cluster. Brush the balls with food colouring and let them dry. Make vine leaves from rolled out Marzipan (use a wooden toothpick to mark out the leaf indentations. Coat the balls with beaten egg white – this helps them stick together - and shape balls into clusters. For each cluster, brush egg white on the end of 2 leaves; attach to back of each cluster, pressing gently to make grapes and leaves adhere to each other. Allow to dry. You can brush your finished grapes with glaze made from a sugar syrup if you want a shiney effect.

Christmas Sweets and Treats – Marrons Glacés and Crémant d'Alsace

2009-11-06T11:53:00.005Z

Marrons Glacés are chestnuts candied in sugar syrup and glazed. Candied chestnuts appeared in the chestnut growing areas North of Italy and South of France shortly after the crusaders brought sugar back with them from the Middle East. The earliest recorded recipes for them were written by the French and Marrons Glacés were a favourite of Louis XIV's Versailles court. The oldest recipe was written in 1667, by Le Sieur François Pierre La Varenne, Chef de cuisine to Nicolas Chalon du Blé, Marquis of Uxelles (not very far from Lyon and a chestnut producing area) in his book Le Parfaict Confiturier.

The difference between a chestnut and a marron has been a subject of discussion - especially at commercial level. Often marron is used to define very large chestnuts or, as in the case of the French, used to classify chestnuts which do not have signs of the pellicle (membrane) which covers the seed in the kernel or which have a low division percentage. After thousands of years of breeding many varieties are also sweeter. These are the material for Marrons Glacés which are three or four times more expensive than the chestnut (châtaigne in French) because they also have a lower yield. In Italy marron means a particular Castanea sativa cultivar of excellent quality. Of oblong shape, with a reddish coloured epicarp (skin) that is shiny with dense, often with raised stripes.

Marrons Glacés

2 lbs chestnuts, shells removed
2 lbs sugar
2 ½ cups water
1 vanilla bean

In a large saucepan, cover chestnuts with water. Bring to a boil. Boil for 8 minutes. Discard liquid. Drain. Using a kitchen towel, rub off the brown inner skins. In a large saucepan, cook sugar, water and vanilla bean over low heat. Stir until sugar dissolves. Simmer 5 minutes. Add chestnuts. Increase heat. Boil for 10 minutes. Remove vanilla bean. Pour syrup and nuts into a large bowl. Let stand 12 hours. Return to pan. Boil for 1 minute. Return to bowl. Let stand 24 hours. Repeat process 3 times until syrup has been absorbed.Preheat oven to 150ºF. Place chestnuts on wire rack. Bake in preheated oven with oven door open 2 hours or until firm. Remove from oven. Cool. Store in a container lined with waxed paper. Will keep for up to 2 weeks.

The sparkling wines of Alsace are a great choice when looking for something special to pair with sweetmeats. The Adam Crémant d'Alsace Chardonnay Extra Brut (£12.49) is a dazzling wine with a fine mousse of creamy bubbles. It has notes of melon, lemon, ripe pear and toast and is crisp and effervescent. It is a medium weighted sparkling wine with a dry, robust finish and although excellent as an aperitif it can accompany rich and sweet dishes. This Crémant d'Alsace comes from the House of Jean-Baptiste Adam, founded in 1614, in the Alsace village of Ammerschwihr. There are few families that can take advantage of 4 centuries of passion for wine and this has been carried through to recent times with bio dynamic policies being practised in the vineyards since 2003.

Enjoy!

Christmas Sweets and Treats – Turkish Delight and Champagne

2009-11-04T18:24:00.006Z

Christmas is approaching and I thought it would be useful to unearth some recipes for traditional sweets and treats. Turkish Delight is made from starch and sugar and is often flavoured with rosewater, mastic (an evergreen shrub of the Pistacio family which is cultivated for its aromatic resin, mainly on the Greek island of Chios), cinnamon, mint or lemon; rosewater gives it a characteristic pale pink colour. Some types contain small nut pieces, usually pistachio, hazelnut or walnuts.

The story behind the origins of Turkish Delight claims that it was invented in the late 1700s, when Ali Muhiddin Haci Bekir, confectioner to the imperial court in Istanbul, was commanded to create a soft sweet by the Sultan. It was named Rahat Lokum which means "comfortable morsel" and is nowadays called simply Lokum. You can still buy Lokum at Ali Muhiddin's shop in Eminönü today, almost 250 years since the intrepid confectioner created his masterpiece for the Sultan.

Lokum originally had honey and molasses as sweeteners, with water and flour as binding agents. The recipe as we know it today, using the new ingredients of sugar and starch, was invented and popularized by the Haci Bekir company during the 19th century.

Turkish Delight

9 cups icing sugar
3 pints water
6 tbsp corn flour

¾ pint cold waterrose water (you can find this in the Health food shop)lemon juicealmond oil
Make a syrup of the icing sugar and 3 pints of water by boiling together in a heavy pan. Mix the corn flour with the ¾ pint of cold water, making sure that the corn flour is completely dissolved. Add the corn flour mix very carefully to the boiling syrup and continue boiling until reduced by about two thirds. The mixture will become very thick and stringy.

Remove from heat. Pour half into another saucepan. Flavour one half with lemon and the other with rose water. Pour into two dishes greased with almond oil. When set turn both onto a board dredged with icing sugar. Use kitchen paper to absorb any excess almond oil which was used to grease the two dishes. Cut Turkish Delight into cubes and roll in icing sugar. Store in a dry place.

Champagne is a great pairing with sweet dishes (think how well it goes down with a slice of wedding cake for example). However it pays to choose what type of Champagne to drink with a sweet as sugary as Turkish Delight. I'd recommend Seconde Collard Blanc de Noirs (£16.13) which is made purely from red grapes as opposed to Blanc de Blanc which is made from white grapes. It is a fruity Champagne with the scents of spices, wheat, fresh flowers, plums, peaches and pears.

The Jack O'Lantern and Tagine of Lamb with Pumpkin

2009-10-30T11:21:00.013Z

The Jack O'Lantern originated from an Irish myth about a man nicknamed "Stingy Jack." According to the story, Stingy Jack invited the Devil to have a drink with him. True to his name, Stingy Jack didn't want to pay for his drink, so he convinced the Devil to turn himself into a coin that Jack could use to buy their drinks. Once the Devil did so, Jack decided to keep the money and put it into his pocket next to a silver cross, which prevented the Devil from changing back into his original form. Jack eventually freed the Devil, under the condition that he would not bother Jack for one year and that, should Jack die, he would not claim his soul.

The next year, Jack again tricked the Devil into climbing into a tree to pick a piece of fruit. While he was up in the tree, Jack carved a sign of the cross into the tree's bark so that the Devil could not come down until the Devil promised Jack not to bother him for ten more years.

Soon after, Jack died. As the legend goes, God would not allow such an unsavoury figure into heaven. The Devil, upset by the trick Jack had played on him and keeping his word not to claim his soul, would not allow Jack into hell. He sent Jack off into the dark night with only a burning coal to light his way. Jack put the coal into a carved out turnip and has been roaming the Earth with it ever since. The Irish began to refer to this ghostly figure as "Jack of the Lantern," and then, simply "Jack O'Lantern."

In Ireland and Scotland, people began to make their own versions of Jack’s lanterns by carving scary faces into turnips, swedes ore mangelwurzels and placing them into windows or near doors to frighten away Stingy Jack and other wandering evil spirits.

Pumpkin is a favourite food of the French with many recipes originating from the 1500s. However I have chosen one that combines the cuisine of the Maghreb (Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria) with France's penchant for pumpkin. Maghreb cuisine is as ensconced in France as spaghetti and pizza are in the United States, This love of North African food commenced with France’s foray into North Africa in 1830. The exodus of the “pieds noirs,” or French residents of Algeria, to France in the early 1960s, when the North African colonies became independent brought with them recipes laced with orange flower water, dried fruits, cilantro, mint, cumin, ginger and other exotic ingredients. In Paris you can find restaurants serving ethnic specialities such as couscous royal, tagines, pastilla and chorba. Maghreb pastry shops are also sprinkled throughout every neighbourhood, their windows piled high with colourful sugar-dusted, nutty sweets, typically enjoyed with mint tea.

Tagine of Lamb with Pumpkin is a traditional North African recipe for a classic tagine recipe of lamb cooked with pumpkin in a tomato, turmeric and onion sauce. A tagine is a type of dish which is named after the special pot in which it is cooked. The traditional tagine pot is formed entirely of a heavy clay which is sometimes painted or glazed. It consists of two parts; a base unit which is flat and circular with low sides, and a large cone or dome-shaped cover that rests inside the base during cooking. Recently, European manufacturers have created tagines with heavy cast iron bottoms that can be fired on a stove top at high heat. Whilst similar to a casserole dish which cooks most efficiently in the oven, the tagine cooks best on the stove top.

Tagine of Lamb with Pumpkin

900g stewing lamb, roughly chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 small onions, coarsely chopped
salt to taste
1 tsp cayenne pepper
4 tbsp olive oil
3 tsp turmeric
9 large tomatoes, blanched, peeled and diced
2 hot red chillies, finely chopped
1 tbsp raisins
450g pumpkin peeled and coarsely chopped
900g green beans, halved
juice of 1 lemon

Combine the meat, garlic, onions, salt, pepper, oil, turmeric, tomatoes and chillies in a tagine. Mix well by stirring then place on the hob. When bubbling add the lid and reduce to a low simmer. Cook for about 45 minutes then add the raisins and cook for a further 15 minutes before adding the pumpkin, green beans and lemon juice then cook for a further 90 minutes until the meat is very tender. Serve on a bed of couscous or saffron rice.

I would recommend C arruades de Lafite (£56 - £145 dependant on the vintage) as a great wine to pair with the tagine. Carruades is the second wine of the First Growth Château Lafite Rothschild and takes its name from the Carruades Plateau - a group of plots adjacent to the château's best vineyards, purchased in 1845 by Château Lafite. The wines of Carruades de Lafite feature characteristics similar to those of the Grand Vin, but with their own personality linked to a higher percentage of Merlot in its composition, and plots of land that are clearly identified as producing Carruades. The wines are fine, deep and intense with notes of ripe black currants and plums, chocolate, black olives and toffee. They are supple, well balanced and aromatic.

Château Grand Puy Lacoste (£48 - £22) is another good choice. The Château was once owned by Raymond Dupin, one of Bordeaux's greatest gourmets. In 1978 Dupin sold the Château to Jean Eugene Borie, owner of Château Ducru Beaucaillou. The Château has been run since then by Jean Eugene's son Xavier. Grand Puy Lacoste has reputation for consistently making big, durable, full bodied Pauillacs which should be in a higher classification. These wines have a wonderful perfume of cinnamon, ripe redcurrants, blackberries,wood and tobacco. They are creamily smooth, age well and represent a top class Pauillac.

I would also choose Château Haut Bages Libéral (£14 - £15). Haut Bages Libéral sits high on top of the Bages plateau with Châteaux Pichon Baron, Lalande, Lynch Bages and Latour at its feet. It is named after the village of Bages and its one time owners the Libéral family in the 18th century. Haut Bages Libéral's wines are a dark crimson with spicy ,raspberry, toasted notes, leather and wild aromas. They have a good balance between tannin and fruit and are full bodied and silky. They can have an almost toffee cream taste and age well.

Finally Le Roc du Chateau Pellebouc (£8.57) would be super. Le Roc du Château Pellebouc comes from the Entre deux Mers, just a few miles away from the Saint Emilion appellation. Château Pellebouc is owned by Pascale and Baudouin Thienpont – members of the famous wine making family who own Le Pin and manage several other top flight châteaux. The wine is a Gold Medal winner and it's a superb wine. It has a deep, intense purple colour, with a scent of red fruits and spicier notes. In the mouth, it is quite powerful in terms of both roundness and balance. It will delight the palates of wine-lovers looking for a heavy, balanced, fruity wine.

Enjoy!

Pumpkins in France

2009-10-29T12:22:00.004Z

France is the home of the Cinderella” Pumpkin - “C. maxima “Rouge Vif D’Etampes” (c 1800) – which has impressive flattened, dark orange-red fruit. The word "pumpkin" appeared in the 17th century shortly before Perrault wrote his tale of Cinderella but originally they were called Pompion in France which seems to have derived from "pepon", the Greek word for “sun ripened”.

Pumpkins have been in cultivation for thousands of years. Nine thousand year old seeds found in caves in north east Mexico indicate that pumpkins originated in Central America. Paleobotanists from the Smithsonian have identified it as the first vegetable cultivated by humans- grown over 10,000 years ago. There is evidence that edible squashes were grown in Africa, India and China from the 6th century AD, but they didn't make it to Europe until the 16th century, when they were brought back from the first journeys to the New World. Exotic and sweet tasting, pumpkins became very fashionable in Europe. They were stuffed with apples and sweet herbs, and then baked. An early incarnation of pumpkin pie was made by frying the flesh with apples and herbs, mixing it with sugar and egg, and then baking it with a crust topping.

The story of pumpkins is not complete, of course, without a mention of their starring rôle in Halloween celebrations. Early Irish immigrants to America found the pumpkin to be superior lantern making material to their traditional swede or beetroot, and the pumpkin has been a defining symbol of Halloween since the 1800s.

All Saints Day, La Toussaint and Chrysanthemums

2009-10-28T10:28:00.008Z

Halloween in France is overshadowed by All Saints Day (November 1st) which is part of a National holiday known as La Toussaint. La Toussaint is a 2 day festival during which the French celebrate two holidays together: All Saints Day, the day for remembering Catholic saints, and All Souls Day (November 2nd), the day for praying for the souls of the deceased.

The day, which is a legal holiday in France, dates back to the 7th century and was derived from a much earlier feast. The first All Saints' Day occurred on May 13, 609 when Pope Boniface IV accepted the Pantheon as a gift from the Emperor Phocas. Boniface dedicated it as the Church of Santa Maria Rotonda in honour of the Blessed Virgin and all martyrs. During Pope Gregory III's reign (731-741), the festival was expanded to include all saints and a chapel in St. Peter's church was dedicated accordingly. Pope Gregory IV officially designated the day in 837.

Many people visit the graves of their loved ones at this time to decorate them with flowers or candles. In Brittany legends speak of evil coming to those who disturb the bones of the dead so children attempt to frighten visitors to graveyards on All Saints Day. The Chrysanthemum is the ‘official’ flower for La Toussaint – which is important for non-French people to know, because it is considered a terrible social 'faux pas' to give chrysanthemums at any time other than La Toussaint.

The Chrysanthemum (from the Greek “khrousos anthemon” – flower of gold) is a symbol of immortality in France, as it resists the frosts and takes little looking after. It is said that the chrysanthemum never flowers before the autumnal equinox (21st September) and their petals are seen as a light of hope in the midst of the autumnal mists and fogs.

In 1789 a French merchant from Marseilles named Pierre Louis Blancard brought three cultivars home from China, only one of these survived and was named Old Purple, the first named cultivar to grow in the western world. Eventually this cultivar reached Kew Gardens and its description was featured in the Botanical Magazine of 1796. In 1827, seed was successfully produced in Europe by a retired French officer, Captain Bernet and as many previous attempts by both English and French gardeners had failed, this date is of great historical importance in the Chrysanthemum world.

Roast Chicken Noodle Soup with Chrysanthemum

3 whole star anise
3 cups water
1/2 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled, sliced into thin rounds
6 cups chicken broth
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp sugar
3 tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 bunches chrysanthemum leaves, bottoms trimmed, upper stems and leaves cut into 2-inch strips
1 pack thin fresh or dried Chinese egg noodles
1 lb freshly roasted chicken (cubed)
1 onion, sliced paper-thin
3 red Thai bird chillis or 1 large red jalapeño chilli, sliced into thin rounds

Stir star anise in heavy large saucepan over medium heat until fragrant. Add 3 cups water and ginger; simmer for 15 minutes. Add broth, soy sauce, and sugar; simmer for 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir oil and garlic in small frying pan over low heat until garlic is crisp and golden. Set garlic oil aside.

Blanch the chrysanthemum leaves in a large pan of boiling salted water until just wilted (about 5 seconds). Using a strainer, transfer greens to colander. Rinse with cold water and drain. Return water in pot to boil. Add noodles and cook until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring often. Drain; transfer to large bowl. Let stand 2 minutes. Mix in 1 tablespoon garlic oil. Using kitchen shears, cut noodles crosswise in several places. Heat chicken in microwave in 10-second intervals at low setting until warmed through. Divide noodles among 4 soup bowls; top each with ¼ of chrysanthemum, chicken, and onion. Ladle 2 cups broth mixture into each bowl. Drizzle with some garlic oil. Serve, passing red chillis separately.

I would recommend a rich wine such as M De Malle (£11.73) to pair with this dish. It's a dry White Graves wine from the vineyards of Château de Malle, owned by the Comtes de Bournazel who have 400 years of wine making experience. It's a beautiful wine: bold, brilliant green tinted gold with hints of white blossoms, exotic fruits, spice and good lemon acidity. It has also been accoladed the Hachette des Vins 2007: Coup de Coeur and is superb value for money.

The Bordeaux Clairet du Chateau de Lisennes (£5.87) is also a great choice. This clairet is one of the best that Bordeaux offers and won the gold medal in Brussels in 2006. The fragrant wine is a deep raspberry pink with violet reflections. The aroma is complex; it has raspberry, peach and spice overtones. It is soft and full, and the fruity taste of blackberries, redcurrants and raspberries explodes in the mouth giving intense round flavours.

Autumn Stews from France – Bouillabaisse

2009-10-23T11:53:00.008+01:00

Bouillabaisse is a traditional Provençal fish stew from the port city of Marseille. It takes its name from the Provençal Occitan word bolhabaissa: bolhir (to boil) and abaissar (to simmer). According to tradition, the origins of the dish date back to the time of the Phoacaeans, an Ancient Greek people who founded Marseille in 600 BC. Then, the population ate a simple fish stew known in Greek as 'kakavia.' Something similar to Bouillabaisse also appears in Roman mythology: it is the soup that Venus fed to Vulcan.

The dish known today as bouillabaisse was created by Marseille fishermen who wanted to make a meal when they returned to port. Rather than using the more expensive fish, they cooked the common rockfish and shellfish that they pulled up with their nets and lines, usually fish that were too bony to serve in restaurants, cooking them in a cauldron of sea water on a wood fire and seasoning them with garlic and fennel. Tomatoes were added to the recipe in the 17th century, after their introduction from America. In the 19th century, as Marseille became more prosperous, restaurants and hotels began to serve bouillabaisse to upper-class patrons. The recipe of bouillabaisse became more refined, with the substitution of fish stock for boiling water, and the addition of saffron.

In Marseille, bouillabaisse is rarely made for fewer than ten persons; the more people who share the meal, and the more different fish that are included, the better the bouillabaisse. An authentic Marseille bouillabaisse must include rascasse (scorpionfish), a bony rockfish which lives in the reefs close to shore. It also usually contains conger eel and gurnard.

The broth is traditionally served with a rouille, a mayonnaise made of olive oil, garlic, saffron and cayenne pepper on grilled slices of bread. In Marseille, the broth is served first in a bowl containing the bread and rouille, with the seafood and vegetables served separately in another bowl or on a platter. Recipes for bouillabaisse vary from family to family in Marseille, and local restaurants dispute which versions are the most authentic. This is a traditional recipe that serves 8 people.

Bouillabaisse

4 lbs red mullet
1 conger eel, in 4 slices
10 small crabs
3 lbs red scorpion fish
3 lbs monkfish
3 lbs red gurnard
3 lbs John Dory
2 lbs tomatoes, cut in 4
4 onions, sliced
2 garlic cloves, mashed
2 tbsp tomato purée
Olive oil
Bouquet of herbs: dill (2 sprigs); laurel (1 leaf); parsley (1 sprig); orange peel (1)
Salt, fresh pepper
2 tsp saffron

In a large pan slowly heat the onions with olive oil and garlic. Add tomatoes and tomato purée, raise the heat. Add 3 litres of water, bouquet of herbs, orange peel, mullet, eel, crabs, salt and pepper. Cook uncovered at moderate heat for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the bouquet of herbs and the orange peel. Add the John Dory and the monkfish. Add saffron. Add red gurnard and scorpion fish. Boil again for 6 minutes.

To serve: remove the large fish and put them on a serving platter. Prepare slices of bread. Pour in the Bouillabaisse over the bread. Traditionally Bouillabaisse is served with Rouille, a type of mayonnaise made with garlic and olive oil.

Concerning food and wine pairing I would choose Château Pape Clement (£50 - £107 a bottle dependant on the vintage) as a great accompaniment for Bouillabaisse. Pape Clement is the oldest wine estate in Bordeaux, harvesting its 700th vintage in 2006. The white wines of Pape Clement are elegant and have a purity of style. They are full bodied with undertones of honey, apricots and melons with a refreshing vibrancy.

I would also recommend Pavillon Blanc du Margaux (£59 - £77). Pavillon Blanc is the rare Third Wine of Château Margaux and is part of an age old tradition at the château. It was sold in the 19th century as 'vin blanc de sauvignon'. The 30 acre vineyard is made up exclusively of Sauvignon white grapes. It is located on a very old plot belonging to the estate and the Sauvignon grapes reach a level of ripeness which rids them of their vegetal characters and brings out floral and fruity notes. Pavillon Blanc is fresh, deep, complex and aromatic with lots of grassy, green pepper notes characteristic of the Sauvignon Blanc grape. It's a yellow gold wine which is elegant and luscious with notes of melon, lemon, honey and hay with a hint of minerals.

You may be surprised but Bordeaux Clairet will also pair well with Bouillabaisse – Clairet du Chateau des Lisennes (£5.87) is one of the best that Bordeaux offers and won the gold medal in Brussels in 2006. Situated near Bordeaux this Chateau is family run and has been in the Soubie family for 4 generations. The fragrant wine is a deep raspberry pink with violet reflections. The aroma is complex; it has raspberry, peach and spice overtones. It is soft and full, and the fruity taste of blackberries, redcurrants and raspberries explodes in the mouth giving intense round flavours.

Enjoy!

Autumn Stews from France – Ratatouille

2009-10-22T10:40:00.008+01:00

Ratatouille has been made famous by the Disney Film about Remy the Rat - it's a traditional French Provençal stewed vegetable dish, originating in Nice and its full name is Ratatouille Niçoise. The word ratatouille comes from the Occitan ratatolha and the French word touiller which means to toss food.

Ratatouille is usually served as a side dish, but also may be served as a meal on its own (accompanied by rice or bread). Tomatoes are a key ingredient, with garlic, onions, courgettes, aubergine, bell peppers, marjoram and basil, or bay leaf and thyme, or a mix of green herbs like herbes de Provence. There is much debate on how to make a traditional ratatouille. One method is to simply sauté all of the vegetables together. Some cooks insist on a layering approach, where the aubergine and the courgettes are sautéed separately, while the tomatoes, onion, garlic and bell peppers are made into a sauce. The ratatouille is then layered in a casserole – aubergine, courgettes, tomato/pepper mixture – then baked in an oven.

If one tries to trace back its origins by examining the availability of the vegetables locally in the Provencale area, we can deduce that the meal Ratatouille cannot be earlier than the 16th century. For example, the aubergine only arrived in France around the 16th century, from India. At that time it was considered to be a poisonous decorative plant!

Ratatouille

olive oil
1 onion
1 clove garlic, or to taste
1 aubergine
1 green, red, yellow or a combination, bell pepper
2 courgettes
6 tomatoes, peeled and seeded
salt and pepper to taste
Herbes de Provence to taste

Put a large casserole on the stove on medium heat. When the casserole is hot, add enough olive oil to just cover the bottom. Cut the courgettes and aubergine into ½ inch slices. Sauté the slices until light brown. Chop the onions and garlic. Cut the green pepper into strips or dice, as preferred. Add the onions and peppers and cook slowly for about 10 minutes until tender but not brown. Stir in the garlic. Peel and seed the tomatoes. Dice them or cut them into quarters, add to the casserole. Five minutes later, check to see if the tomatoes have made enough juice to almost cover the vegetables - if so, perfect. If not, add water as needed (not too much). Add salt, pepper and Herbes de Provence to taste.

Cover the casserole and let simmer on low heat until the vegetables are tender but still intact, 10 to 20 minutes, or to taste. Remove the lid, raise the heat a little and cook uncovered for another 15 minutes, basting frequently until the liquids have mostly evaporated, leaving a small amount of juice and olive oil.

There are a range of wines which will pair well with Ratatouille: Pavillon Rouge de Château Margaux (£25 - £47) is the Second Wine of Château Margaux and is a good choice. It was was first made in 1908 and is full bodied, supple and velvety. The wine is powerful and concentrated yet well balanced. The flavours are of blackcurrant and cherry with a long finish and a creamy mouth feel. It's an opulent wine and resembles Second Growth status.

Château Clerc Milon (£20 - £40) is owned by Baroness Philippine de Rothschild and sits just between the First Growths Château Mouton Rothschild and Château Lafite Rothschild. The wines of Clerc Milon are firm, dense and well structured due to the high percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon used to make them. They have nutty, fruity oak on the nose and palate with hints of cranberry and black currant.

Château du Tertre (£13) would accompany this dish very well indeed and since the year 2000 the château has shown a stunning revival and the château's profile is rising amongst wine connoisseurs. The deep ruby wines are rich in style, creamy and well balanced. They are aromatic and the bouquet is of chocolate, cherries, blackberries, smoke and plums. The oak lends the flavour of vanilla to the wine and sometimes toffee.

Chateau Chadeuil (£4.75) is a wine made with food in mind and has been receiving high praise from the wine press. The wine shows a nice dark ruby colour and reveals beautiful aromas of blackberries with a hint of vanilla. It is medium bodied with dark berry flavours, well balanced tannins with a long smooth finish and at £4.75 is a real bargain.

Enjoy!

Autumn Stews from France – Carbonade

2009-10-21T13:11:00.007+01:00

Carbonade takes its name from the Latin carbo meaning coal and refers to the stew being cooked over coals in times long past. Les Carbonades Flamandes is a traditional Flemish sweet-sour beef and onion stew made with beer, and seasoned with thyme and bay.

The type of beer used is important, here in the UK I tend to use Newcastle Brown Ale and in addition to this and to enhance the sweet-sour flavour, just before serving, it has a small amount of cider or wine vinegar and either brown sugar or red currant jelly stirred in. Carbonade can also refer to beef stews cooked with red wine in the south of France, but is more commonly associated with the Flemish dish.

Les Carbonades Flamandes

4 lbs brisket, cut into 2-inch cubes
1 tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 to 3 tbsp flour
4 tbsp butter
3 large onions, thinly sliced
2 bottles Newcastle Brown Ale
2 or 3 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
1-1/2 tbsp red currant jelly (or brown sugar)
1 tbsp cider or red wine vinegar

Season the beef with the salt and pepper and dredge with the flour. Shake off any excess.
Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large frying pan over high heat, add the beef cubes and sauté until nicely browned on all sides. Transfer to a casserole dish. Add the remaining butter to the frying pan and melt over medium heat. Add the onions and cook stirring occasionally, until browned. Combine the onions with the meat in the casserole dish.
Deglaze the frying pan with the Newcastle Brown and bring to a boil. Pour the beer over the meat. Add the thyme and bay leaves. Simmer, covered, over low heat until the meat is very tender, 1-1/2 to 2 hours. Before serving, stir in the red currant jelly and vinegar; simmer for 5 minutes.

Château Clinet (£24 - £58 a bottle dependant on the vintage) would pair very well with this dish. Clinet is a small estate which has dramatically risen in popularity over the past decade, receiving the highest possible scores from wine critics. The château is located at the highest point of the Pomerol Plateau on the famous Günz gravel terrace and the wines are a radiant dark crimson and are aromatic. The bouquet is of sweet ripe blackcurrants and raspberries, truffles and smokey toast and wood.

Clos René (£20) is another excellent Pomerol that I would recommend. The chateau dates back to 1734, when it was known simply as 'Reney'. Clo s René lies to the west of the major chateaux in Pomerol, just south of the appellation Lalande de Pomerol, in the hamlet of Grand Moulinet. Clos René has belonged to the Lasserre family for 6 generations and today it is run by Pierre Lasserre and his grandson Jean-Marie Garde with Michel Rolland as consulting oenologist. It is not one of the best known Pomerols and as such is reasonably priced wine at superb quality. The wines are rich and complex with notes of coffee, caramel, smoke, violets and black currants.

Mathilde (£11 - £13) would be great with your Carbonade – it the second wine of Château La Fleur Morange and is produced from the same 100 year old vines and terroir as the Grand Vin. Château La Fleur Morange is a boutique wine in Saint-Pey-D'Armens that is receiving high acclaim from wine critics across the globe. Mathilde is made from 100% Merlot and is opulent, well structured and rich. The wine has notes of cherries, blueberries, chocolate, plum and earth.

Finally I would recommend Château Pessan (£12.72) which hails from Graves – often considered to be the birthplace of claret. The château is owned by the Comtes de Bournazel who have 400 years of wine making experience. It is a deliciously velvety wine, deep and dense, perfectly balanced with hints of black fruits, spice, coffee, smoke, eucalyptus, pepper and oak. The wine is a superb buy and is starting to attract attention on the world market.

Autumn Stews from France – Ragout

2009-10-20T12:04:00.009+01:00

Over the centuries, the word ragout (which in 17th-century France meant anything that stimulated appetite) has come to signify a highly seasoned stew. A Ragout can be a stew of any simmered food, be it meat, vegetable, fish or fowl - although in France, the main ingredients are diced into quite small pieces. The Italian equivalent of a ragout is a dense meat sauce known as a ragu, which most of us have sampled on Bolognese-style pastas.

Le Ragoût de Queue de Boeuf (Ragoût of Oxtail with Chestnuts)

1 oxtail, cut up
2 oz goose or pork fat
4 oz carrots, finely chopped
6 oz onion, finely chopped
1 ½ oz flour
1 ¾ pt dry white wine
bouquet garni
salt and pepper
½ lb salted belly pork, cubed
½ lb Toulouse sausage cut into thick slices
1 1lb peeled chestnuts
1 stick celery
croûtons of pain de seigle (rye bread)
2 oz goose or pork fat

Brown the pieces of oxtail in a heavy casserole dish in the goose fat. Add the carrots and onions and when fairly browned sprinkle with the flour, stir well and cook together for a few minutes allowing the mixture to take on some colour. Add the wine little by little stirring to amalgamate the gravy, add the bouquet garni and seasonings and allow the mixture to simmer, covered, over a low heat for 3 hours or so.
Meanwhile fry the pieces of salt pork and sausage very gent;y in their own fat for 20 mins. Cook the chestnuts in lightly salted water with the celery for 20 mins and strain. When the oxtail pieces are cooked put them in a serving dish with the chestnuts, salt pork and sausage. Remove what fat you can from the liquor in which the oxtail has cooked and pour the remaining juice over all. Serve with hot croutons of rye bread fried in goose fat.

Château la Fleur Morange (£30 -£67) would pair very well with this dish. It's a boutique wine in Saint-Pey-D'Armens made by Véronique and Jean-François Julien that is receiving high acclaim from wine critics across the globe. The wines are full bodied and fruit driven, impressively structured and sophisticated. They are a deep dark crimson purple with notes of raspberries, liquorice, blackcurrants, smoke and earth.

Château Sociando Mallet (£17 - £22) is another good choice – it's in the unusual situation of not being a classed growth when it should be. It was never entered into the Classification despite turning out wines of such quality that it out performs many that are produced by its neighbours. The inky purple wines have an unusual capacity for longevity and are one of the longest lived wines made in the Médoc. They are powerful, full bodied, tannic and rich. They are fragrant and have notes of blackberries, raspberries, blossom blueberries and wood.

Château Chasse Spleen (£14) is also a great buy – it's one of the leading Moulis estates and is held in high esteem – being ranked as high as many Third Growths by some critics. The château's name means to “chase the blues away” and hails from a literary background – Lord Byron visited the château in 1822 and was so entranced by the vineyards that he remarked “Quel remède pour chasser le spleen”. It is also thought to have been inspired Baudelaire's poem “Spleen” after he had visited the property. The wines of Chasse Spleen are charming, full bodied, fruit driven and rich. They have good depth and concentration with notes of blackberries, cherries, plums, charcoal, liquorice and violets.

Chateau Les Tonnelles (£7.82) from Fronsac would pair well with the rich flavours of your Ragout - largely ignored until the mid 80's the producers from this area are benefiting from much interest in their rich, full and darkly coloured wines. 100% Merlot this lovely full bodied wine is rich in colour. It has been aged in oak for around 15 months and is smooth in the mouth and full of black fruits.

Autumn Stews from France - Matelote

2009-10-15T12:07:00.008+01:00

Matelote is a French fish stew made with red wine. It takes its name from the old French word for sailor or bunkmate matenot, which has its roots in the Latin matte meaning bed or from the Old Norse word mötunautr, meaning messmate.

The ingredients for Matelote vary all over France: the Alsace version is made with freshwater fish, Riesling wine, and thickened with cream and egg yolks and the Normandy version includes seafood and is flavoured with cider and Calvados. These stews are normally embellished with pearl onions and mushrooms.

The classic Bordeaux version is Matelote d'Anguille (Eel Stew) and uses red wine with mushrooms, onion, leeks, prunes and mushrooms.

Matelote d'Anguille

900g eel, skinned and cut into chunks (about 3cm thick)
3 tbsp brandy
8 prunes, pitted and chopped
4 tbsp oil
2 tbsp butter
1 bottle of red wine
30g butter
1 dessert spoon plain flour
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 large leek, finely chopped
100g button mushrooms, quartered
1 bouquet garni (bayleaf, parsley, chervil, thyme)
salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
watercress, to garnish

Heat the oil and butter in a pan and when foaming add the eel pieces and fry until golden. Add the red wine and the prunes along with the bouquet garni then bring the mixture to a boil. Flame the brandy in a ladle then pour over the boiling liquid. As soon as the flames die down add a lid and reduce to a simmer then cook gently for 25 minutes.

In the meantime, add the remaining oil to a frying pan and use to fry the onion, garlic and leeks until soft (about 6 minutes). Stir in the mushrooms at this point and fry for about 6 minutes more, or until just golden. Take the lid off the pan with the eels then mix the butter and flour into a smooth paste before whisking into the wine stock until smooth. Ad the onion and mushroom mix to the pan. Bring to a boil and cook until the sauce is thickened and smooth. Turn the stew into a warmed dish and garnish with a little watercress.

I would recommend two Rothschild wines from Pauillac to accompany Matelote d'Anguille. The first being the Second Wine of Château Mouton Rothschild: Le Petit Mouton (£43 - £110 dependant on the vintage). Le Petit Mouton is generally made from a selection of wines from the illustrious First growth Mouton Rothschild and is harvested, vinified and bottled with the same painstaking care. Le Petit Mouton has a special family connection as it is the home of Baroness Philippine and is centred right at the heart of the estate. Le Petit Mouton's ruby red wines are deep and concentrated with a nose of cherry jam, liquorice and spice with the toast and vanilla of oak. They are elegant and lush with a palate of peach, caramel and pepper. The wines are rich and well balanced and only a few thousand bottles are produced.

The second Pauillac is Château d'Armailhac (£18) which adjoins Château Pontet Canet to the west and south and Château Mouton Rothschild to the north and east. d'Armailhac dates back to the 1680s and one famous member of the d'Armailhac family – Armand - wrote a learned treatise on vine growing and wine making in the Médoc. He was an instrumental figure in improving quality at d'Armailhac, and across Bordeaux in general. He advocated the use of Cabernet Sauvignon above the other varietals and pushed for modern practices to be implemented. d'Armailhac's wines are full, firm and expressive with aromas of smoky redcurrant, cherries and cranberry. It's a medium bodied wine with a mineral character , is deep ruby in colour – almost purple and develops a blackcurrant, coffee and liquorice flavours with age. It's a classic wine and has much potential.

If you prefer white wine an excellent choice is Domaine De Ricaud Blanc (£5.37) which has the character and the richness to stand up to the strong flavours in this dish. It's produced from the Entre deux Mers region not far away from Cadillac - south east of Bordeaux. The aromas from this slightly pale, golden coloured, slightly pearlante, easy drinking white, are all of ripe soft fruits and summer blossoms. It has complex flavours of juicy apricots and exotic fruits. Bold and long on the palate, balanced and harmonious in the mouth it has well balanced acidity and is incredibly moreish!

I would also recommend the Spanish Brissonnet Rouge (£3.08) which has a very pronounced nose with good ripe fruit. It's a very powerful fruity wine on the front palate and is concentrated with no acidity, its cherry red colour with violet bloom are typical of its youth.

Enjoy!

Autumn Stews from France - Hochepot Flamande

2009-10-14T12:07:00.015+01:00

Hochepot Flamande is a recipe from the north of France where Belgian and Flemish influences are apparent with this traditionally hearty cuisine. It's the northern version of Pot Au Feu and is a "hotch-potch" of mixed meats (pig's ears and tails, breast of beef, oxtail, shoulder of mutton, salt bacon); cooked with local vegetables (carrots, potatoes, leeks, onions, turnips, garlic, celery and beans).

The word Hochepot comes from the old French hottison meaning “to shake”. Each country has its own version: Scots usually add barley and the meat is mutton or beef or sometimes grouse and rabbit and the The Dutch Hutspot uses beef. The English call it Hot Pot and the famous Lancashire Hot Pot contains mutton, sheep's kidneys and, when available, oysters, all covered with a layer of potatoes.

Hochepot

1 kg beef brisket
2 kg beef bones
4 pig's trotters (optional)
4 pig's tails (optional)
500 g salt pork, in one piece
1 lamb shoulder, about 1 kg
300 g calf's liver
300 g small chipolata sausages
4 leeks
3 large onions
½ celery bunch
6 turnips
4 parsnips
½ green cabbage
500 g brussels sprouts
2 large carrots
60 g butter
2 sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
salt and freshly ground pepper

Place the beef bones in a very large pot and add 7 litres of water. Bring to a boil and skim the surface. Add the bay leaves, thyme, celery leaves, green parts of the leek, 1 onion (halved) and a little salt. Let simmer for 3 hours, skimming occasionally. Strain and degrease. You could make this broth the day before. Chop all the other vegetables separately into large pieces (except the cabbage and the Brussels sprouts). Bring the broth back to the boil, add the brisket and cook gently for 30 minutes. Add the pig's trotters tails and cook 30 minutes longer. Skim.

Meanwhile, bring two large pots of water to a boil and blanch the cabbage in one and the Brussels sprouts in the other for two minutes. Drain. Now add to the hochepot the salt pork, onions, parsnips, celery, carrots and cabbage. Return to the boil, skim and cook gently for 30 minutes. Finally, add the Brussels sprouts, turnips, leek and lamb shoulder. Add a little water if necessary and bring back to the boil, skimming again and simmering gently for 30 minutes longer. Remove the meats from the broth, place them on a large platter and keep hot. Cover with a damp cloth and let rest. Taste the hochepot and correct the seasoning with salt and pepper.

Finishing and presentation: Dice the calf's liver and heat 2 frying pans, melt the butter in them and sauté the little sausages and the diced calf's liver separately. Season lightly. Cut up the meats, place some of each kind into large hot soup bowls and ladle some of the hot broth and vegetables into each bowl.

The wines of Château La Lagune (£27 a bottle) in the Haut Medoc will go well with this dish. The vineyards lie on the Ludon crest of fine Mindelian gravel and La Lagune is the only classified growth to be planted on this type of soil. These sands and gravels are similar to the terroir of Graves and the grapes planted at La Lagune have an unusually high percentage of Petit Verdot. Although it is classified as a Third Growth there are many who consider La Lagune's wines to be that of a Second as the quality is so high. The wines of La Lagune are rich and powerful with a rather masculine appeal. They are markedly oaky and have notes of spice, toffee, vanilla and ripe fleshy dark fruits. The wines are velvety smooth and well rounded with great ageing potential.

Those of Château Saint Pierre (£22) are also a good choice. Saint Pierre lies opposite its sister Château Gloria just outside the town of Beychevelle in Saint Julien. The château is one of the most ancient in Médoc and was bought in 1982 by Henri Martin who hailed from a family of coopers who had been barrel making for the châteaux of Bordeaux for more than 3 centuries. Martin became Mayor of Saint Julien, President of the Conseil Interprofessionnel des Vins de Bordeaux, co-founded the Commanderie de Bordeaux and is responsible for reviving the ancient fame of the village. The wines of Saint Pierre are fuller bodied than others from the appellation, fruity and smooth. They have smoky flavours of blackberries, ground coffee, toast, toffee, violets and oak. They are well balanced with firm tannins and good acidity.

From Saint Estephe I would choose Château Meyney (£14) which is founded on an ancient ecclesiastical site – known as the Prieuré des Couleys or sometimes as the Convent des Feuilles – the Château is still sometimes referred to as Prieuré de Meyney. The monks were the first to plant vines there. Meyney has very much been an insider's choice as the wines have a been of persistently high quality throughout the 20th century. The vineyards lie on a series of gravel ridges overlooking the River Gironde and the soil is a mix of iron rich blue clay and sand about 3 metres deep over a limestone bedrock from a depth of about two metres – this is similar to Château Petrus in Pomerol. The wines are deep, dark and concentrated with plenty of ripe blackcurrant fruit and a distinctive aroma of smoke, prunes, truffles, coffee and cherries.

Finally Le Roc Du Chateau Pellebouc (£8.57), just a few miles away from the Saint Emilion appellation is a great wine to pair with Hochepot. Pellebouc is owned by Pascale and Baudouin Thienpont – members of the famous wine making family who own Le Pin and manage several other top flight châteaux. The wine is a Gold Medal winner and it's a superb wine. It has a deep, intense purple colour, with a scent of red fruits and spicier notes. In the mouth, it is quite powerful in terms of both roundness and balance. It's a versatile wine and will accompany both beef and lamb as well as pork and chicken.

Autumn Stews from France - Estouffade

2009-10-07T23:13:00.008+01:00

Estouffade has two meanings in French, one is meat cooked very slowly in very little liquid; braised or casseroled and the other is a brown stock made with veal and beef bones plus pork knuckle. Traditional recipes for Estouffade have deserted the tables as they ask several hours of cooking to be tasty but you can buy preprepared jars of Estouffade in France to quicken things up in the kitchen.

Auguste Escoffier gives a recipe in Le Guide Culinaire for Estouffade which contains marrow bones, beef, poultry carcasses, carrots, turnips, leeks, celery, parsnips and onion and is simmered and skimmed for several hours producing a dark brown liquid which is the basis for many other sauces, soups and stews. It is the basis of Sauce Espagnole and Demi-Glace. Escoffier (1846 – 1935) was a French chef, restaurateur and culinary writer who popularized and updated traditional French cooking methods. He is a legendary figure among chefs and gourmets, and was one of the most important leaders in the development of modern French cuisine.

Estouffade of Beef with Apricots, Almonds, and Raisins

½ lb dried apricots
1 ½ cups boiling water
4 ½ lbs boneless beef shanks
salt and ground pepper
1 tsp cinnamon
½ cup olive oil
2 large onions, finely chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
½ tsp ground cloves
½ cup dry white wine
2 cups canned crushed tomatoes with their liquid
3 ½ cups beef stock or canned broth
2 bay leaves
½ cup raisins
½ cup slivered blanched almonds, for garnish
2 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, for garnish
cooked egg noodles, for serving

Soak the dried apricots in the boiling water until plumped. Drain. In a large bowl, toss the beef cubes with 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper and the cinnamon. In a large pan, heat 4 tablespoons of the olive oil until almost smoking. Add half the beef cubes to the pan and cook over high heat, turning, until will browned on all sides. Transfer the beef to a large plate. Add 1 more tablespoon of the oil and brown the remaining beef.

Add the remaining 3 tablespoons oil to the pan. Add the onions and cook over medium heat until softened, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, and cloves and cook, stirring, until the spices are aromatic. Add the wine and cook until almost all the liquid is evaporated. Stir in the crushed tomatoes with their liquid and the beef stock. Add the apricots to the pan, reserving 8 for garnish. Simmer the sauce.

Purée the sauce in a food processor until smooth. Transfer the purée to a casserole dish. Add the beef and bay leaves and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 1 ¾ hours. Uncover and simmer. Add the raisins and simmer until the meat is very tender and the sauce is thick. Discard the bay leaves and season with salt and pepper.

Autumn Stews from France – Pot au Feu

2009-10-07T13:39:00.004+01:00

Pot au Feu (pot on the fire) is a classic French stew and has been eaten all over France for centuries. In fact it's so deeply French that 19th century folklorist Ernst Auricoste de Lazarque declared, "All people have their soups. France alone possesses le pot au feu." There are many variations – in the Perigord veal is often the base whilst in Quercy the principal meat is beef – sometimes even a stuffed chicken is used. Usually a typical Pot au Feu contains cheaper cuts of beef that need long cooking; oxtail or marrowbone, carrots, turnips, leeks, celery, onions, spices, seasoning and cloves. In the past the Pot au Feu was always left on the fire with new ingredients added as some are used; nowadays houses do not have a permanent fire in cold weather, and the dish is cooked for a specific meal.

The dish is often served with coarse salt and strong Dijon mustard and sometimes also with gherkins and samphire pickled in vinegar. The Pot Au Feu broth can be used as a soup (often enriched with rice, pasta or toasted bread), as a base for sauces, or for cooking vegetables or pasta. In France there are ready-to-use concentrated cubes to make what purports to be pot-au-feu broth when water is added.

Le Pot Au Feu A L'Albigeoise

1 ¾ lb chuck steak
1 ¾ lb shin of veal
4 oz shin of pork
½ lb saucisson sec
½ lb carrots
4 oz turnips
2 sticks celery
5 cloves garlic, quartered
2 onions stuck with 2 cloves, roasted and halved
salt and pepper
bouquet garni
1 wing confit d'oie with fat removed
6 oz white haricot beans
1 small cabbage, cut into 6 pieces

The four kinds of meat should each be in one piece, not cut up before cooking. Put all of these, except the confit into the pot, cover with water and bring gently to the boil, then skim. Roughly chop the vegetables and add them and their seasonings, but not the haricots or the cabbage. Cover and cook slowly for 3 hours. Then add the confit, beans and cabbage and cook all together for another hour.

Autumn Stews from France - Boeuf en Daube

2009-10-06T12:09:00.007+01:00

Daube is Provence’s most famous meat stew. It has crossed the borders of provincial France and is found in other regions, too. The origin of a daube seems to be related to the Italian addobbo (which also gives us the Mexican adobo), meaning “seasoning or dressing”. It is likely that the French incorporated this Italian concept into their cooking sometime before the 17th century. A Daube is made of beef, although in Avignon they make it with lamb, and in Nice it is made without as many spices as the Daube Provençal.

A Daube is traditionally cooked in a stewpot called a daubière and is eaten with la macaronade, flat macaroni cooked with a sauce made from the juices of the Daube, along with some mushrooms and a little white wine. The sauce is reduced and tossed with the pasta along with some parmigiano cheese and a fresh grating of nutmeg.

Although most modern recipes call for red wine, a minority call for white, as do the earliest recorded Daube recipes. Variations also call for olives, prunes, and flavouring with duck fat, vinegar, brandy, lavender, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, juniper berries, or orange peel. For best flavour, it is cooked in several stages, and cooled for a day after each stage to allow the flavours to meld together. In the Camargue and Béarn area of France, bulls killed in bullfighting festivals are often used for Daube.

Boeuf en Daube

1.15kg top rump of beef
30g butter
2 tbsp vegetable oil
225g onions, finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, sliced
450g carrots, peeled and finely sliced
225g salt pork, rinded and cubed
300ml dry white wine
150ml beef stock
1 tsp dried basil
½ tsp dried rosemary1 bay leaf
½ tsp mixed spice
salt and freshly-ground black pepper
6 black olives, pitted

Secure the beef firmly with string then combine the oil and butter in a frying pan. When foaming add the beef and fry quickly to brown on all sides. Drain on kitchen paper then transfer to a large casserole. Fry the vegetables and salt pork in the remaining fat, until golden, then arrange around the beef. Pour in the wine and stock then sprinkle the herbs and seasonings over the top. Bring the mixture to a boil then cover and transfer to an oven pre-heated to 160°C. Cook for about 160 minutes, or until the meat is completely tender. About 30 minutes before the end of the cooking time add the olives to the pan.

When done, remove the meat from the dish, take off the string then slice. Skim off the fat from the juices in the casserole, return the meat to the pan and serve from the casserole itself.

On the subject of wines to go with your Boeuf en Daube I would pick Château Brane Cantenac (£23 - £50) which is a really good buy. The château was originally an estate of high repute named Château Gorce (sometimes known as Gorse) and its wine was considered the equal of Château Margaux in price and was listed as a second growth in pre-1855 classifications. The château was bought by Baron Hector de Branne in 1833 and took his name. Baron Brane was an influential local figure known as "Napoléon of the Vines" and was responsible for the identification of Cabernet Sauvignon as the Médoc's primary grape. The château was so prestigious that Baron Brane sold the land that today is Château Mouton Rothschild (then known as Château Brane Mouton) to help finance the purchase of this estate. With the Baron's total devotion to the vineyard, the wine was estimated to be the finest produced in Cantenac and was unofficially ranked as the “first of the 2ème Crus”.

The wines from Brane Cantenac are admired for their exotic bouquet of spice, sandalwood, mint and an apple character which makes them accessible 5-6 years after bottling. The flavours are of cassis and ripe raspberries and the wines age well.

Another good choice would be Château Sociando Mallet (£25 - £35) which is in the unusual situation of not being a classed growth when it should be. It was never entered into the Classification despite turning out wines of such quality that it out performs many that are produced by its neighbours. Sociando Mallet's inky purple wines have an unusual capacity for longevity and are one of the longest lived wines made in the Médoc. They are powerful, full bodied, tannic and rich. They are fragrant and have notes of blackberries, raspberries, blossom blueberries and wood.

The second wine of Château Léoville Poyferré is Moulin Riche (£10 - £11) and this is another great buy. It was once a 19th century cru bourgeois estate but since the 2003 has been incorporated into the Léoville Poyferré vineyard. In 1932 Moulin Riche was classified as a Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel – the only wine out of the 11 Cru Bourgeois Saint Julien wines to be marked out as such. Moulin Riche wines are concentrated, dense and powerful. They have smoky flavours of spiced black fruits and plum. They have a voluptuous finish, are tannic and age well. The addition of Petit Verdot to the blend of Moulin Riche since 1970 has helped to express the deep backbone of the wine.

On the theme of high quality wines at fair prices I would also point you towards Le Roc du Chateau Pellebouc (£8.57). Château Pellebouc is owned by Pascale and Baudouin Thienpont – members of the famous wine making family who own Le Pin and manage several other top flight châteaux. The wine is a Gold Medal winner and it's a superb wine. It has a deep, intense purple colour, with a scent of red fruits and spicier notes. In the mouth, it is quite powerful in terms of both roundness and balance. It will delight the palates of wine-lovers looking for a heavy, balanced, fruity wine.
Enjoy!

Autumn Stews from France -Bourride

2009-10-05T11:32:00.007+01:00

Bourride is a stew similar to a Bouillabaisse, except that the hallmark of a bourride is aioli (garlic mayonnaise) and was a favourite of the late great Keith Floyd. La Bourride is one of the great classic fish dishes of Provence and there are many, many variations. All sorts of fish can be used: sea bass, sea bream, John Dory, brill, mullet, monkfish, etc. Some restaurants include luxury items like langoustines and lobster.
It is said that when the Greek gods got bored with Olympus they came to Marseilles to eat bourride, this being the only food that was fit for the gods. Don’t be put off by the amount of garlic that goes into it as the soup itself tastes creamy rather than garlicky!

La Bourride

1.5 kg monkfish
1 orange
3 tomatoes
about ½ litre of grapeseed oil
13 garlic cloves
2 large glasses of white wine
2 onions
3 egg yolks
½ tsp saffron
juice of ½ a lemon
sprig of thyme
salt and black pepper

In a large pan bring to the boil the roughly chopped tomatoes and onions, 5 cloves of garlic, the thyme, saffron, orange zest, about 2 tbsp. of the grapeseed oil, one glass of white wine, and 1 litre of water. Simmer for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, pound the remaining garlic to a purée in a pestle and mortar (or liquidise). Blend in 2 egg yolks and add salt and pepper. Gradually beat in the remaining grapeseed oil in a thin stream, using a whisk, until you feel the aioli is thick enough. Add lemon juice to taste and leave on one side.

Cut the skinned and boned fish into chunks and add it to the saucepan. Poach for 15 minutes. Then remove the fish with a draining spoon and keep warm. Sieve the stock and discard the vegetables. Return the stock to the pan and reheat gently. Take about half of the aioli and beat the remaining egg yolk into it. Then slowly pour the warmed stock onto it, stirring constantly. Return this mixture to the pan and heat gently, stirring all the time, until it thickens slightly. Don’t let it boil, or it will curdle. Divide the cooked fish between serving bowls and pour the soup over it. Serve with thin slices of toasted French bread and the remaining aioli.

C lairet du Chateau des Lisennes (£5.87) will pair well with this dish – it comes from a family property of 125 acres located at the "gates" of the city of Bordeaux. The property has been in existence since 1758 and was acquired by the Soubie Family in 1938. Four generations of the Soubie family have been caring for the vineyards and producing wine since then. The Château takes its name from the clay and limestone soils of the vineyards as the old French word for clay is “glise”. The vineyards themselves date back to 13th Century and are planted equally with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

If you prefer white wine with fish Chateau Tour Chapoux (£5.14) would be an excellent choice. This lovely pale yellow, crisp white wine is produced right in the heart of the Entre deux Mers area, located in Saint Antoine du Queyret. Being made predominantly with the Sauvignon Blanc grape it shouts of summer fruits and flowers on the nose and in the mouth it is very expressive with those summer/exotic fruits coming through. It's very aromatic and has a long freshness in its taste.

Autumn Stews from France -Garbure

2009-10-02T09:33:00.008+01:00

Garbure is a thick French soup of bacon with cabbage and other vegetables, usually with cheese and stale bread added. There is some controversy over its name - some say it came from the Spanish garbias, for "stew" and others say it comes from the Basque garbe, for "sheaf" or "bunch". It originated in Gascony in south-west France and was the daily sustenance of Gascon peasantry. It differed from one home to the next and varied with the rhythms of the seasons, the resources of the cook, and with household income.

The basic principle behind this dish is the lengthy simmering of an assortment of vegetables and meats, generally meats preserved en confit. As far as vegetables go, anything is possible. The cabbage may be accompanied by broad beans, fresh or dried, fava beans, mange-tout, potatoes, turnips, peas, onions, carrots, celeriac, kohlrabi, beetroot, lettuce, chestnuts, nettles or borage.
Frequently the meal would end with a traditional chabrot, which is a custom of consuming the liquid left in the bottom of one's bowl after eating the solid contents and then mixing half a glass of red wine in it.

Garbure

8-12 chicken wings
6 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 medium size potato, peeled and chopped
100g smoked bacon, chopped into lardons
100g smoked garlic sausage, chopped
2 fat cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
½ Savoy cabbage, cored and shredded finely
150ml dry white wine
1.5l chicken stock
75g grated gruyère cheese (optional)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oven to 180C, Gas 4. Toss chicken wings in half the olive oil. Place in roasting pan, season and cook for about 20 minutes until brown and tender. Remove and cool. Sauté the onion, potato, bacon, sausage and garlic in the oil with the thyme leaves in a large saucepan for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the cabbage shreds, stirring in well until they wilt, then stir in the wine and cook down until evaporated.Pour in the stock, add seasoning and bring to the boil. Simmer for another 10 to 15 minutes until the cabbage softens. Meanwhile, add the chicken wings to the pot for the last 10 minutes of cooking. Alternatively, add the gruyère before serving so it melts in the heat. Check the seasoning and serve piping hot with chunks of crusty bread.

As for wines to recommend with this dish I would say “think pink!”. Bordeaux Rosé and Clairets pair well with food and Clairet du Chateau des Lisennes (£5.87) is one of the best that Bordeaux offers and won the gold medal in Brussels in 2006. This fragrant wine is a deep raspberry pink with violet reflections. The aroma is complex; it has raspberry, peach and spice overtones. It is soft and full, and the fruity taste of blackberries, redcurrants and raspberries explodes in the mouth giving intense round flavours.

Chateau Lamothe Vincent Rosé (£4.94) is another good choice – it's a fabulous dry, deep, dark pomegranate pink, bursting with fruit and is one of the 3 best Bordeaux Rosés in 2006 TOP VINS, silver medal winner both at the Challenge International du Vin 2006 and Concours des Vins d'Aquitaine 2006. It is made with two grapes - Cabernet Sauvignon which gives tannic backbone and structure. This grape is very aromatic in young wines with heady aromas of blackcurrant. Cabernet Franc is the other grape used and this provides acidity, fragrance and strawberry-like fruit qualities. Once the fruit has hit your taste buds the dryness follows through and the wine is elegant and refreshing.

Autumn Stews from France -Chaudrée

2009-10-01T12:12:00.007+01:00

Chaudrée is a fish stew from the Charentes and Poitou region of France. The name of the stew comes from the French word chaudière which was a large 3-legged heavy iron cooking pot used by fishermen. Chaudrée is very similar to the English Chowder and Chaudrée was once as important on the Atlantic coast of France as Bouillabaisse along the Mediterranean.

Chaudrée nearly always includes squid, the white body part only and butter, which is added just before serving, and sometimes sole or plaice, conger eel, potatoes, garlic and white wine. The fish and vegetables are frequently eaten as the main course after the broth has been served as a soup. In the past Chaudrée was made by fishermen with fish too small to be sold and there are many versions. Today you can expect to find hake, whiting and pollock used in this dish.

Chaudrée

4 lb of a variety of white fish
1 lb. squid, white body part only, cut into 2-inch wide strips
14 oz. onions, peeled and shredded
8 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 quart dry white wine
1/2 quart water
2 tbsp olive oil
1 stick of butter freshly ground pepper
1 bay leaf

Season the squid strips with pepper. Place them in a large cast iron saucepan over low heat. Stir the squid to draw out all the liquid, then add the onions and garlic cloves. Keep stirring until all the liquid has evaporated. Pour in the oil and sauté the contents until they are golden. Add the wine and water, bring just to a boil and reduce heat and simmer gently. Cut the fish into 2-inch pieces. Starting with the fish that takes the longest to cook, add the fish to the simmering broth one at a time, bringing the broth back up to a boil after each addition. Season with pepper and simmer all the fish for 15 minutes. When the cooking time is up, add the stick of butter and allow it to melt into the soup. Serve with croutons.

I have chosen 3 wines from various areas in Bordeaux to go with the Chaudrée – and at varying prices. At the very top of the scale there is Pavillon Blanc du Margaux - the rare Third Wine of Château Margaux (£65 - £110 a bottle dependant on vintage). It's a fresh and aromatic wine with lots of grassy, green pepper notes characteristic of the Sauvignon Blanc grape. Pavillon Blanc is a yellow gold wine which is elegant and luscious with notes of melon, lemon, honey and hay with a hint of minerals with the depth, power and complexity you would expect from Château Margaux.

Fleur de Luze (£5.62) is a lovely, lively, fresh and fruity white wine from Maison A. de Luze et Fils, who have been pioneers in the wine trade since 1820. It's a clear, crystalline pale gold colour with a very clean citrus, lychee, and mango bouquet. It has a long, fruity after taste which follows through with a slight hint of ripe grapefruit and a refreshingly slight touch of fizz. It's best served well-chilled at around 9°-10 °C.

Finally I'd recommend Montagnac Sauvignon Blanc (£5.37). This is a terrific easy drinking wine made from a single grape variety: Sauvignon Blanc – and is great for first time wine drinkers. It's produced in the Languedoc which has been one of France's up and coming wines for a while now. Montagnac Sauvignon is a pale yellow gold, with an attractive light orange tinge. It has aromas of honey, peach, apple and orange peel with smoky and floral hints. In the mouth it has flavours of zesty lemon, herbs and spice, and a touch of caramel and crystallised fruit. Soft but certainly not creamy, with superb balance and a very decent length.

Autumn Stews from France – Civet

2009-09-25T10:07:00.012+01:00

Civet is a rich and hearty French stew traditionally made with game, thickened with the animal’s own blood and served with small onions. The name is derived from the old French word for onion ‘cive’. You can make a civet of just about anything, given what you've got, as long as you have onions and wine, and something that will hold up to the flavours (and you don't have to use the blood). A simple civet can be made with rabbit, marinated overnight in an aromatic mixture of wine, garlic and peppercorns and Civet de Cuisse de Canard is a popular French stew using duck legs and onions.

In the recipe below the blood has been omitted, but the long cooking time ensures a deliciously succulent stew and the addition of the pigs liver adds the richness and flavour expected.

Civet of Pork

1kg belly pork
1 pigs liver Sliced
Carrots 4
Onions 2
Shallots 2
Thyme (dried 1 teaspoon or 2 fresh sprigs)
Bay leaf
A sprinkle of peppercorns
2 Cloves
Flour - 1 tablespoon
Armagnac – one glass
Red wine 1 litre

Dice the carrots, onions and shallots and fry in a tablespoon of fat in a large heavy based casserole with lid. Cube the belly pork and add, along with the sliced liver to the pan. Fry quickly to seal the meat. Sprinkle with flour and stir. Add the Armagnac (or brandy) and set alight (remembering to stand well back). Once the Armagnac has burnt off the flames will die out and you will be left with deliciously aromatic pork. Add one litre of strong full bodied red wine with the thyme, bay leaf, peppercorns and cloves. Cover and simmer until the meat is tender – usually about 2 hours.

NB If you would like to use fresh blood then add a small cup 20mins before the end of cooking and stir it in well. Alternatively drain off some of the liquid from the meat and add the blood to that, boiling vigorously to reduce and thicken. The remix with the main stew and stir well.

Wines to accompany the Civet of Pork need to be able to stand up to its rich flavours. Pavillon Rouge de Château Margaux would be my first choice. Pavillon Rouge is the Second Wine of Château Margaux and was first made in 1908. The price ranges from £37 - £80 a bottle dependant on the vintage you choose. Pavillon Rouge du Château Margaux comes from a selection of grapes harvested from young vines and the quality of the vintages of Pavillon Rouge is naturally linked to those of the Grand Vin. It now represents 50% of the overall estate production. Its vinification is the same and it, too, is aged in new oak barrels. Pavillon Rouge is bottled 3 to 4 months earlier than Château Margaux and matures faster than Château Margaux itself . It is a full bodied, supple and velvety wine, powerful and concentrated yet well balanced. The flavours are of blackcurrant and cherry with a long finish and a creamy mouth feel. It's an opulent wine and resembles Second Growth status.

Clos Fourtet would also be a grand choice and prices average around £25 a bottle. It sits just outside the entrance to the old town of Saint Emilion and has an ancient history as it was once a Medieval military fort known as Camfourtet (Camp Fourtet) which defended Saint Emilion. The present day château was built by Elie Rulleau in the mid 18th century. It is a beautiful ivy-covered manor house and has some of the most extensive underground cellars in the region. The château was built over limestone quarries and caves which comprise the cellars. Some of the encircling walls of the original fort still exist today and Clos Fourtet is one of the few walled vineyards in the area. The wines of Clos Fourtet are full and concentrated with a creamy texture. They have notes of blueberries and blackcurrant with smoke, dark chocolate, cinnamon and nutmeg. They age well and have firm tannins and are well structured.

Bordeaux Clairet pairs extremely well with pork and Chateau des Lisennes (£5.87) and is one of the best that Bordeaux offers, winning the gold medal in Brussels in 2006. Being a medium to fuller bodied drink des Lisennes will accompany the richness of the Civet really well. It's a fragrant wine and is a deep raspberry pink with violet reflections. The aroma is complex; it has raspberry, peach and spice overtones. It is soft and full, and the fruity taste of blackberries, redcurrants and raspberries explodes in the mouth giving intense round flavours.

Chateau Chadeuil (£4.75) is another excellent choice and is a cracking Merlot-based claret with delicious black-cherry and blackberry fruit, lifted with a hint of mocha. It is a wine that has been produced with good food in mind . It's supple, lithe and incredible value.
Enjoy!

Autumn Stews from France - Cotriade

2009-09-24T17:42:00.010+01:00

Cotriade (Kaoteriad in Breton, kaoter meaning “pot”) is to Brittany what the Bouillabaisse is to Provence. It is a fish stew and was originally made with the seafarer's share of the catch upon the boat's return to port. Each port has its own recipe, with one or more fish given top billing, combined with vegetables selected by the cook or crew, and potatoes being an indispensable ingredient. Unlike bouillabaisse it usually does not contain shellfish. It is traditionally served by ladling it over toasted French bread.

Today La Cotriade has become a well known gastronomic dish, much appreciated and widely renowned. It’s sometimes livened up with curry, saffron or vegetables. However the essential ingredient cannot be ignored : white wine which creates an aroma unique to the Cotriade. It’s also a relatively quick and simple recipe.

Cotriade

1.5 kg various types of fish (mackerel, monkfish)
500 g potatoes
100 g butter
litres of water
3 onions
3 cloves of garlic
parsley, bay leaf and thyme, chopped
1 bunch sorrel, stems removed, chopped
a few slices of farmhouse bread, toasted
salt and pepper

Clean the fish well, gut and cut into pieces, reserving the heads. Boil the water. Peel the potatoes and cut into pieces. Peel and chop the onions, peel the garlic. In a large pan, fry the onion in butter. When golden, add the potatoes and mix well. Pour over the boiling water and then add the garlic, herbs and sorrel. Season.

Boil for approximately 20 minutes. Add the fish pieces and continue to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Taste the stock and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Sieve and pour into a warmed soup dish. Arrange the potatoes and fish in soup plates. Pour over stock and ladle over the toasted bread.

There are a range of wines to suit this fish dish: starting at the top I would choose the rare Third Wine of Chateau Margaux – Pavillon Blanc du Margaux. It's price range is £65 - £90 a bottle depending on the vintage. Not many First Growths make a white wine but Pavillon Blanc is part of an age old tradition at the château. It was sold in the 19th century as 'vin blanc de sauvignon'. The 30 acre vineyard is made up exclusively of Sauvignon white grapes. It is located on a very old plot belonging to the estate and the Sauvignon grapes reach a level of ripeness which rids them of their vegetal characters and brings out floral and fruity notes. Pavillon Blanc is fresh and aromatic with lots of grassy, green pepper notes characteristic of the Sauvignon Blanc grape. It's a yellow gold wine which is elegant and luscious with notes of melon, lemon, honey and hay with a hint of minerals.

My next choice would be the white wine of Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte in Pessac Leognan. The Château lies south of the city of Bordeaux in the commune of Martillac on a gravelly plateau named Laffite and grapes have been grown there as early as 1365. The Château was purchased in the 18th century by Scotsman George Smith, who gave the estate its present name. He also built the manor house and exported his – by now famous – wine to England on his own ships. It was bought in 1990 by former Olympic skiing champion, Daniel Cathiard. Both red and white grape varieties are grown in the vineyard and the white wines are rich, complex and well balanced with aromas of peaches and grilled fruit. The price ranges from £35 - £45 dependant upon the vintage.

Finally I would choose a wine made by the Chainge family in the Entre deux Mers region, not far away from Cadillac. They have been wine makers for several generations and own Chateaux Ballan Larquette and Peynaud. Domaine de Ricaud Blanc (£5.37) gives other more prestigious and expensive white wines a run for their money. The aromas from this pale, golden coloured, slightly pearlante wine are all of ripe soft fruits and summer blossoms. It has complex flavours of juicy apricots and exotic fruits. Bold and long on the palate, balanced and harmonious in the mouth it has well balanced acidity and one glass will simply not be enough!

Autumn Stews from France - Navarin

2009-09-18T10:04:00.010+01:00

The word “stew” comes from the old French word estuier, meaning to enclose. The line between stew and soup is a fine one, but generally a stew's ingredients are cut in larger pieces and retain some of their individual flavours, a stew may have thicker broth, and a stew is more likely to be eaten as a main course than as a starter. The difference between a stew and a casserole is that stews are cooked typically over a fire or a hob and casseroles are done in the oven.

Navarin is a French stew of lamb or mutton with root vegetables and in the Spring time fresh young vegetables are added, making it Navarin Printanier. There is a debate about the origin of the name of the stew – some think it relates to the 1827 Battle of Navarino in the Ionian Sea, in which an Ottoman and Egyptian armada was crushed by a British, Russian, and French force. However Navarin probably refers to the stew's traditional inclusion of turnips - navet, in French – and as mention of the stew Navarin is made in the 17^th century this is the more likely origin.

Navarin

1 kg/2 lb of boneless lamb shoulder
30g/1 oz of butter
2 tbsp olive oil
6 baby onions or shallots
2 cloves of garlic , crushed
4 carrots, cut in half
4 small parsnips, cut in half
6 baby turnips
2 stalks of celery, chopped
10 small potatoes
12 fresh green beans
¼ cup of flour
2 tbsp of tomato paste
2 tbsp of Dijon mustard
2 cups of beef or chicken stock
1 bouquet garni (small bunch of fresh herbs, thyme, parsley and bay leaf)
¼ cup of fresh chopped parsley

Trim the meat, remove any excess fat and cut into small cubes. Heat the butter and oil in a pan and sauté the meat until well browned. Remove, drain and set aside. In the remaining butter sauté the onions until golden. Add the garlic, chopped carrot, parsnip, turnip and celery and sweat for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the flour and then add the tomato purée and mustard. Return the meat to the saucepan and add the potatoes and bouquet garni. Pour the stock over and mix thoroughly. Bring to the boil and simmer covered for 1 hour. Add the green beans and cook for a further 20 to 30 minutes. The meat should be lovely and tender and the sauce thick. Remove and discard the bouquet garni. Sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley and serve with crusty bread.

I would recommend Chateau Clerc Milon from Pauillac as a good wine to pair with your Navarin. Clerc Milon is owned by Baroness Philippine de Rothschild and sits just between the First Growths Château Mouton Rothschild and Château Lafite Rothschild. The château takes its name from the small village of Milon in the north western corner of Pauillac. Clerc comes from Jean Baptiste Clerc who owned the Château in the 19th century. Centuries ago the Château was somewhat of an obscurity despite being in a prime location and having superb terroir. However in 1970, the Baron Philippe de Rothschild purchased the property and began a complete renovation of the vineyards and the cellars.

The wines of Clerc Milon are firm , dense and well structured due to the high percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon used to make them. They have nutty, fruity oak on the nose and palate with hints of cranberry and black currant.

Another Chateau that has been restored and its wines rejuvenated is Chateau Sociando Mallet in the Haut Medoc. Sociando Mallet's vineyards lie in the commune of Saint Seurin de Cadourne on the Left Bank, north of Saint Estèphe. The Château was purchased in 1969 by Jean Gautreau, a négociant from Lesparre, who has opted to remain out of the classification system. When Gautreau bought Sociando Mallet it was a forgotten and derelict property of vastly reduced land. However the terroir is the same band of gravel that runs beneath the vines of Château Latour and Gautreau saw the potential that others had not. The Château has benefited from 4 decades of investment and improvement and the wines have been the insider's choice for top quality wines.

Sociando Mallet's inky purple wines have an unusual capacity for longevity and are one of the longest lived wines made in the Médoc. They are powerful, full bodied, tannic and rich. They are fragrant and have notes of blackberries, raspberries, blossom blueberries and wood.

Next I would choose a Saint Emilion – a wine to look out for is Château La Tour du Pin – that's an insider's tip. It's competitively priced at around £20 a bottle but that will change as it gathers status. La Tour du Pin originated from the estate of Château Figeac in 1876 and was acquired by M. G. Bélivier in 1923, who then transferred it to M. Giraud Lucien in 1972. It was bought by the First Growth Grand Cru Classé A Château Cheval Blanc in 2006. The wine of La Tour du Pin is a deep red with a purplish tint. The bouquet is fresh, complex and intense with a nicely integrated woody touch. The wine has notes of cherries, strawberries, blossom and raspberries. The attack is full and smooth leading into a silky tannic structure with a fresh edge highlighting the fruity quality of the finish.

Another great wine is Chateau Chadeuil (£4.75) which is made on part of an estate that has been famous for centuries. The vineyard is set up high on a south facing plateau and this exceptional position gives the grapes excellent ripeness. The Musset family has been on this estate for several generations. Serge Musset took over in 1966 and the wine making process is carried out by Dominique Hébrard. The result is a wine which has lots of finesse and all the characteristics of a great Bordeaux: well balanced tannins marked by the expressive fruitiness of the terroir.

The Hébrard family's involvement with wine goes all the way back to 1832 when it bought the prestigious Château Cheval Blanc which was sold 165 years later. Dominique is also the wine maker for Chateau Belfont Belcier which is a fabulous St Emilion Grande Cru Classe wine which has recently been upgraded in the Classification system. Chadeuil is a cracking Merlot-based claret with delicious blackcherry and blackberry fruit, lifted with a hint of moch and vanilla. It's supple, lithe and incredible value.

Enjoy!

Autumn Casseroles from France - Baeckeoffe

2009-09-17T23:52:00.012+01:00

Baeckeoffe is a traditional casserole from Alsace and consists of 3 different meats cooked with potatoes, prepared in an earthenware or ceramic casserole dish. It's a little like a Lancashire Hotpot but includes Pork and Beef as well as Lamb which have been marinated overnight in Alsatian white wine and juniper berries. Leeks, thyme, parsley, garlic, carrots and marjoram are other commonly added ingredients for flavour and colour.

Traditionally, the women would prepare this dish on Saturday evening and leave it with the baker to cook in his gradually cooling oven on Sunday while they attended the lengthy Calvinist church services once typical to the culture. The baker would take a "rope" of dough and line the rim of a large, heavy ceramic casserole, then place the lid upon it for an extremely tight seal. This kept the moisture in the container. On the way back from church, the women would pick up their casserole and a loaf of bread.

Another version of the story of the origin of this dish is that women in France would do laundry on Mondays and thus not have time to cook. They would drop the pots off at the baker on Monday morning and do the laundry. When the children returned home from school they would then pick up the pot at the baker and carry it home with them.

To make rich Baeckeoffe you can add pigs trotters or oxtail to the ingredients and if you don't want to make a pastry seal to keep the juices from evaporating you can use a band of foil instead. It's a good idea to do so as it keeps the wine’s vaporous aroma’s from escaping whilst cooking.

Baeckeoffe

1 lb boneless pork shoulder
1 lb shoulder of lamb
1 lb beef brisket
3 lb waxy potatoes, peeled and sliced
2 onions, chopped
2 leeks, trimmed and sliced
4 carrots, chopped

For Marinade:

1 tbsp salt
1 bunch fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 bunch fresh celery leaves, chopped
1 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
½ bottle dry white wine (preferably an Alsatian Riesling)

Cut the meat into bite-sized pieces and put them in a container. Toss with the salt, pepper, herbs, garlic, celery leaves, and parsley. Moisten with the wine. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 400º F. Select a large oven proof casserole with a lid. Grease the bottom and sides with the butter lard. If you are using pig’s trotters or oxtail lay them on the bottom and cover with half the potatoes, onions, leeks, and carrots. Remove the meat from the marinade and add, covering it with the remaining vegetables, ending with the potatoes. Strain the marinade through a sieve and pour the liquid over the contents of the pot. If necessary, add some extra wine or water to bring the liquid barely to the top of the vegetables. Seal the pot with dough or foil and cook for 1 hour. Reduce the heat to 350ºF and continue cooking for 1 ½ hours more. Serve with either Crémant d'Alsace, Riesling or Gewurztraminer.

I often wonder why we don't see more Alsatian wine available here in the UK , it really is an unsung region. The sparkling Crémant d'Alsace gives most other bubblies a serious run for their money. Crémant is the French word for "creaming" - this means that they are made with slightly more than half the pressure of champagne. This doesn’t give them any less sparkle but makes a wine with a fizzy mousse of bubbles and a delicious refreshing tingle on the tongue Today, Crémant d’Alsace is the market leader in at-home sales of AOC sparkling wines in France. It’s an undiscovered gem. Having tasted it I can understand why.

Cremant d'Alsace Joseph Pfister (£9.89) is traditionally made in the Alsace village of Ammerschwihr and is a pale yellow colour with a dense, very fine mousse lasting to the very last sip in the glass. It is very fruity on the nose with definite hints of apricots, lime blossoms and plums. It is light and fresh on the palate and an ideal wine for accompanying an entire meal, from the aperitif to the dessert.

Also from Ammerschwihr is the Cremant d'Alsace Extra Brut Jean Baptiste Adam (£12.49). No less than 14 generations of winemakers have contributed to the tradition and exceptional skills of the Adam estate. The Adam Crémant d'Alsace Chardonnay Extra Brut is a delicate and dazzling wine notes of melon, lemon, ripe pear and toast. It's crisp, effervescent and is a medium weighted sparkling wine with a dry, robust finish.

Mallard and Wine

2009-09-16T00:45:00.006+01:00

The Mallard is the ancestor of all domestic ducks (except the few breeds derived from the unrelated Muscovy Duck) and are thought to be the most abundant duck on Earth. Mallard are in season at the moment and it's a good idea to use up some of the harvest's bounty when cooking them. Elderberries are nodding from the hedgerows and they make a great accompaniment to duck. They are the fruits of the Elderflower which has a long history of medicinal use and was once referred to as “nature's medicine chest.”

The white flowers of the elderberry bush have been used in many things; pressed into tonics, brewed into wines and champagne, lightly battered and fried into fritters, or stirred into muffin or sponge cake mix for a light, sweet flavour. The ripe berries, cleaned and cooked, can be made into many things: extracts, syrups, pies, jams, or used as garnish, dye or flavouring.

There are many reports of elderberries being used in recipes or tonics starting back in the year 43 AD when the Romans invaded Britain and brought with them their recipes, including one for Patina of elderberries. Sailors claimed it cured their arthritis and it was thought that colds were cured and fevers were broken from a spoonful of sweetened elderberry tonic. Elderberries contain potassium and large amounts of vitamin C, and have been proven in quite a few recent studies to shorten the duration of cold and flu symptoms, as well as strengthen the immune system so maybe there was some truth in those ancient remedies.

Roast Mallard with Elderberries

2 mallard ducks
butter for roasting
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
2 sticks of celery, chopped
A few sprigs of thyme
1 tbsp flour
1 glass of red wine
½ tsp redcurrant jelly
cup of chicken stock
80-100g elderberries, removed from their stems

Pre-heat the oven to 230ºC/ gas mark 8. Put vegetables and thyme, brush with a little butter and season with salt and pepper. Cook the birds for 30 minutes, then remove from the roasting tray and leave on a plate to rest and catch the juices.
Add the flour to the roasting tray and stir well on a medium heat for a minute or so. Pour in the red wine and stir well, add the redcurrant jelly and gradually add the chicken stock. Simmer for 10 minutes until the sauce has reduced by half and thickened. Strain the sauce through a fine-meshed sieve into a saucepan, add the elderberries and any juices from the duck, bring back to the boil and remove from the heat. To serve the duck, chop each in half with a heavy kitchen knife and serve them on the bone.

There are two wines that I would choose to go with this meal – from opposite ends of the price spectrum. Le Pin would be lovely with the duck and is one of the most sought after wines in the world. Despite its prestige Le Pin comes from a tiny vineyard and is considered by some to be the predecessor of garage wines. Although wines from the Pomerol appellation are not classified, Le Pin ranks as a First Growth. The wines of Le Pin are rich, lush and exotic which are approachable when young but are best with 7- 10 years of bottle ageing. They have flavours of chocolate, coffee, vanilla, oak, tobacco, and black currant with silky tannins and creamy texture.

Mathilde also comes from a small vineyard and is the second wine of Château La Fleur Morange - a garagiste winery in Saint-Pey-D'Armens that is receiving high acclaim from wine critics across the globe.

Mathilde is named after Jean-Francois and Véronique Julien's daughter and is produced from the same 100 year old vines and terroir as the Grand Vin. The wine is made from 100% Merlot and is opulent, well structured, rich and has notes of cherries, blackberries, chocolate, plum and earth . . . and at a fraction of the price!

Snipe and Wine

2009-09-15T00:07:00.007+01:00

The snipe is a relative of the woodcock and is a small, stocky bird which likes wetlands. Most shoots that have a quantity of rushes within its boundary is certain to have a population present at some time during the shooting season.

They are a notoriously difficult bird to shoot and the snipe gave its name to both the verb 'to snipe', meaning shooting from a hidden place (back in 1773) and the noun 'sniper', meaning sharpshooter (in 1824).

Snipe are excellent eating, tasting halfway between dove and teal and this is a French recipe that is really mouth-watering.

Snipe Almandine

12 snipe split down back
¼ cup flour
salt and pepper
4 tbsp butter
½ cup white table wine
2 tbsp lemon juice
¼ cup blanched, sliced almonds

Dust birds in flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Melt butter in a heavy frying pan and sauté birds until nicely browned. Add wine and lemon juice. Cover and continue cooking slowly for 15-20 minutes. Add almonds and cook for 5-10 minutes longer or until birds are fork tender. (Allow 2 snipe per serving).

There are two superb wines that pair well with game birds - Château Cheval Blanc and Pétrus. Along with Château Ausone, Cheval Blanc is Saint Emilion's only other First Growth. The 100 acre vineyard of Château Cheval Blanc is unusual in that it borders the stony plateau of Pomerol and takes on some of those qualities, it spans the gravel ridge which travels across to Château Figeac and also covers terroir typical of Saint Emilion. The grapes grown are also unusual as they are not the atypical Saint Emilion Merlot dominated vines. They are 57% Cabernet Franc, 40% Merlot and small parcels of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. The wines are mythical in their ageing potential and can last for 50 years or more. Cheval Blanc's wines are opulent, luscious and full of finesse. They are approachable whilst young and have notes of blackcurrant, smoke, raspberry, mocha, cherry and leather. The wines are elegantly structured, well layered and due to their ageing potential should be cellared correctly.

Pétrus is one of the most expensive wines in the world and is one of the most celebrated, receiving top scores from wine critics. Although wines from the Pomerol appellation are not classified, Pétrus ranks as a First Growth. The wines of Pétrus are fabulously rich, deeply intense and powerful with great longevity. They have flavours of preserved fruits: ripe mulberries, black cherries and blackcurrants, vanilla, truffles, minerals, smoke and liquorice.

On the same theme – but not carrying the same price tag – Chateau Puyanche (£5.86) would be a good choice to pair with game birds. As Helen Savage says:

“Another good red Bordeaux that’s so modestly priced it’s hard to see where they make a profit." The Journal

Chateau Puyanche is produced in the historic Côtes de Castillon which is now the most fashionable of all the Bordeaux satellites, located east of Saint Emilion and made by a family owned property since the turn of the century. It is a fabulous source of some tremendous value wines with some of Bordeaux's most talented wine producers setting up shop in the area. Puyanche is dark garnet in colour, has smooth tannins and is a supple and complex wine with the aromas of blackberry and plum compotés, raspberries, leather and spices.

Hare and Wine

2009-09-11T12:39:00.009+01:00

The hare that most of us know in Britain is the European Brown Hare which changes its behaviour in spring, when they start to box (probably the origin of the term mad as a March hare). However it's thought that the Brown Hare was introduced into Britain during Roman times, probably from Asia. Our native hares are the Mountain Hare and Irish Hare. In Winter the Mountain Hare's coat turns white. Mountain Hare bones between 114,000 and 131,000 years old have been found in the Joint Mitnor cave in Devon and in the Thames Valley. Today, the mountain hare is confined to Scotland where it is indigenous and the Isle of Man and the Peak District of Derbyshire where it was re-introduced.

Jugged Hare is an old recipe and is known as Civet de Lièvre in Franc. The recipe calls for a whole hare, cut into pieces, marinated and cooked with red wine and juniper berries in a tall jug that stands in a pan of water. It traditionally is served with the hare's blood (or the blood is added right at the very end of the cooking process) and Port wine. Having a freshly caught, or shot, hare enables one to obtain its blood. A freshly killed hare is prepared for jugging by removing its entrails and then hanging it in a larder by its hind legs, which causes the blood to accumulate in the chest cavity. One method of preserving the blood after draining it from the hare (since the hare itself is usually hung for a week or more) is to mix it with red wine vinegar in order to prevent it coagulating, and then to store it in a freezer.

Not surprisingly in this day and age few people remember the recipe so I thought I ought to include it here. Indeed in In 2006, a survey of 2021 people for the television channel UKTV Food found that only 1.6% of the people aged under 25 recognized Jugged Hare by name. 7 out of 10 of those people stated that they would refuse to eat Jugged Hare if it was served at the house of a friend or a relative. I wonder what they would think of Black Pudding?

Jugged Hare - Adapted from Mrs Beeton's Recipes

1 hare, jointed
2 oz bacon fat
2 onions stuck with 3 cloves
1 stick celery
1 carrot
5 peppercorns
1 tsp allspice
Bouquet Garni
Rind and juice of 1 orange
1½ - 2 pt beef stock
1 tbsp red currant jelly
1 large glass port

Cut the hare into pieces and dredge with flour and fry in bacon fat. Put the beef stock into a casserole dish. Add the hare, onion, celery, carrot, orange juice, lemon and spices. Cover the casserole dish and put it in a slow oven for 3 ½ – 4 hrs. Remove the hare from the sauce and place in a serving dish and keep warm. Add several spoonfuls of the sauce by degrees to the blood. Then pour it back carefully into the pan, together with the port and redcurrant jelly. Pour over the hare and reheat gently taking care not to allow it to boil. The sauce should be smooth and rich.

You have to be careful when choosing wines for such a deliciously rich dish as this and I would recommend Ch ateau La Fleur Morange which comes from a boutique winery in Saint-Pey-D'Armens made by Véronique and Jean-François Julien that is receiving high acclaim from wine critics across the globe. The vineyard is a 4 acre plot of unique soil with the added rarity of having 100 year old vines. The soil is sand and clay layers over limestone and clinker sub soil – the only complex mixture known to exist in Saint Emilion – which Jean-François says contributes to the finesse of the tannins. The wines are full bodied and fruit driven, impressively structured and sophisticated. They are a deep dark crimson purple with notes of raspberries, liquorice, blackcurrants, smoke and earth.

La Conseillante is another good choice as one of the leading Pomerol châteaux. La Conseillante takes its name from an enterprising woman - Catherine Conseillan - a metal dealer based in Libourne. She established the vineyard originally as a share-cropping project, a system in which tenants work the land in return for a proportion of the harvest. By 1756 the project had expanded and the wine was christened La Conseillante. It was at this point that Conseillan took full control of the estate, thus securing its future as one of Pomerol's most important viticultural properties. The wines are very stylish, silky smooth clarets with aromas of violets with hints of coffee and vanilla. They are well balanced and opulent wines with the taste of rich ripe fruits such as cherry, plum and blackcurrant.

If you want to push the boat out then Chateau Pape Clement would be fantastic. It's the one of the oldest wine estates in Bordeaux and is also one of the finest clarets, harvesting its 700th vintage in 2006. The red wines of Pape Clemant are concentrated, elegant and have a purity of style. They have flavours of smoky ripe plum, tobacco, earthy coffee and chocolate.

I would also suggest a wine from Fronsac – Chateau Les Tonnelles (£7.82) as a lovely wine with Jugged Hare. In the 1800s Fronsac was more famous than Saint Emilion and Pomerol and centuries before Charlemagne loved the supple qualities and spicy flavour of Fronsac's wine. Fronsac - along with Canon Fronsac - is one of the up and coming regions of Bordeaux. Fronsac lay forgotten until the mid 1980's and now the producers from this area are benefiting from much interest in their rich, full and darkly coloured wines.

Fronsac wines are essentially hillside wines that have lots of body, character and a wonderful consistency in the mouth. They have notes of raspberries, pepper and spices and age well but can also be enjoyed young. Les Tonnelles is made from 100% Merlot and this grape loves the deep soil and ripens better here than Cabernet Sauvignon. Les Tonnelles is a lovely, full bodied wine which is a dark, warm purple. It has been aged in oak for around 15 months , is smooth and round in the mouth and has flavours full of black fruits. It's a sumptuous wine that is very classy.