Cuisine

Holiday Season Brings Stress for Vegans

2009-11-12T21:46:07+00:00

Around this time every year, media turns its attention towards coping with holiday stress. Vegans, and conversely, families and friends of vegans, have an additional source of stress at holiday get-togethers, a strong division of beliefs and practice about the food that will be served on the Thanksgiving table and the religious and secular holiday tables in December.

Think of the possible stressful encounters: Dinner at Grandma’s, where tradition has been the same menu for decades and a granddaughter arrives explaining that she can no longer eat turkey (or butter, eggs, cheese, honey) as she no longer wants to participate in animal cruelty. This is sacrilegious to Grandma and interpreted as a sign of disrespect. The parents aren’t sure who to support, their daughter, or the grandmother, and they feel caught in the middle. Besides, they aren’t vegan and aren’t sure what to make of this recent change in their daughter.

A college son returns home expecting his favorite foods, only to be shocked that his parents have radically changed and are now keeping a vegan household, and there is something on the menu called Tofurky.

Here’s another potentially awkward vegan situation: a holiday after-work party where the host worries about what to serve as there will be vegans attending.

There are solutions to these dilemmas, mainly involving clear and open communication prior to the event. If you are vegan and have been invited to a holiday dinner or party, let the host know that you are vegan. Offer to share recipes and to bring a main dish. You’ll need to make sure that you will have food to eat, and something more substantial than pickles and olives.

When the turkey is brought to the table, avoid going into a rant about the cruelty of factory farming and how they are slaughtered. Breathe deeply and relax when you are asked for the tenth time to have a slice of turkey, when they joke about killing carrots and worry over your protein intake, or when you are accused of being unpatriotic. Be gracious and let them know you are willing to explain your beliefs, but not at the dinner table, out of respect for your host.

If you are non-vegan and are hosting a holiday dinner where a vegan will be attending, make sure to include items that will work for all guests. By making some simple exchanges, you can accommodate both quite easily. For example, purchase Earth Balance original soy butter and use that on vegetables, instead of butter. Vegenaise (found in the refrigerated organic section at grocery stores) can be used instead of mayonnaise to make traditional pasta or potato salads.

Make one bowl of potato salad without the boiled eggs. You can use plain soy or rice milk, or vegetable broth, to whip the potatoes. Consider serving a Tofurky roast or a Celebration Roast from Field Roast Grain Meat to serve as a main entrée, along with what you would normally serve. (You can always send the leftovers home with your guest.) Add an additional vegan dessert, such as a non-dairy ice cream, which makes preparation easy.

If you are hosting, and you keep a strict vegan household, let friends and family know this, so that they don’t bring a food item that would conflict with your ethics. If they want to bring a dish, give them a recipe to follow.

Although we can get caught up in the trappings and the form of the celebration, the underlying meanings are the essential ingredients. These include setting time aside from the busyness of our lives and spending time with family and friends, being thankful for all that we have, celebrating religious and secular traditions. The essence of the celebration matches with the ethics of veganism—the respect and appreciation for all life, reducing harm to all.

We are fortunate in having a good selection of vegan products in our local grocery and health food stores. You might have to visit a couple of different ones to make your purchases. Tochi Products often have Celebration Roasts, and Cashwise usually carries several Tofurky roasts. Hornbacher’s has a good selection of soy milk, soy butter and tofu. The best non-dairy ice creams can be found at Cashwise (Purely Decadent), Sunmart (Coconut Bliss) and Tochi Products (Temptation’s Cookie Dough). Some products, such as vegan marshmallows (try Dandies) can be ordered online at veganessentials.com. You can purchase wonderful vegan bread and buns at BreadSmith.

There are excellent cook books that will assist with holiday preparation. Colleen Patrick-Goudreau has written two: “The Joy of Vegan Baking” (breads and desserts) and “The Vegan Table” (meals for entertaining and specific holidays including Thanksgiving, Passover, Kwanza, St. Patrick’s Day and different ethnic selections).

Consider joining area vegans and vegetarians at the annual Gentle Thanksgiving family potluck. Check out the details and sign up on the calendar section of http://www.FMVeg.com.

Questions and comments: odinwan@cableone.net

New Choices for the Craft Beer Connoisseur

2009-11-12T05:15:34+00:00

By Jason Hummel
Contributing Writer

JL Beers and the South Moorhead Atomic Coffee have graced the metro with an amazingly diverse list of high-quality craft brew. For the uninitiated, craft beer loosely refers to a brew made with traditional methods—no adjuncts, such as rice or corn, are added to reduce costs or change the characteristics of the beer. Craft brews tend to have a more distinctive taste than mass-consumed beers, which may limit the audience of any one brand. The explosion of microbreweries in the United States and around the world, however, virtually guarantees that an individual can find a variety that appeals to their taste buds.
Atomic Coffee may have the smaller selection of the new establishments, but the choices they’ve made fall in line with a quality-over-quantity approach. Residents of Fargo-Moorhead can finally enjoy a refreshing pint of Surly from the tap, without having to cross the city limits.
The Surly Brewing Company is a relative newcomer to the industry, with beers starting to flow off the line of their Brooklyn Center location towards the end of 2005. The Surly family includes several year-round beers, and one or two seasonal varieties. The most sought-after of these is “Darkness,” the high-alcohol, Russian Stout available in the weeks following Halloween.

Atomic Coffee has blessed us with what could be considered the flagship of Surly’s year-round lineup, Surly Furious, brewed with a blend of four different American hop varieties. Hops are the flower of the vermicular hop plant and are used to give beers their bitterness and aroma. The result is a flavorful crimson brew, with an eye-opening citrus bouquet. The beer starts with a complex caramel taste and finishes with a delicious bitterness from the hop blend, a sensation that stays with you well after the liquid has left your tongue on the way to your stomach. This is one beer that may very well be an acquired taste if you’re coming from the world of Anheuser-Busch.
Atomic rounds off their selection with two fabulous stouts from Bell’s Brewery including a java stout. The perfect accompaniment to the fragrances of a coffee shop, the java stout enhances the inherent coffee flavor of the stout by blending Sumatra and chocolate to make a rich, filling brew. Also available are a Widmer IPA and Lindeman’s Raspberry Framboise, a sweet fruit beer that pairs well with desserts. If you’re looking for a unique beverage without the noise of a pub, Atomic should be at the top of your destination list.

South Moorhead Atomic Coffee:
For the craft beer drinker: Surly Furious
For coffee lovers: Bell’s Java Stout
For desert lovers: Lindeman’s Rasberry Framboise

If a more traditional bar scene is to your liking, or if you’re looking to pair your beverage with a burger and fries, JL Beers fits the bill. With 32 taps, 33 bottle varieties, numerous cans, and even a few “big beer” 750ml varieties. JL Beers has raised the bar for craft beer in downtown Fargo. Here you’ll find everything from a can of Hamm’s to the finest Belgian dubbel.
The entire space and concept is set up to make the beers the focal point. A long bar surrounding an impressive shelf system of bottles, cans and taps makes up almost all the seating in the long, skinny pub. The beer list not only gives you names of the products, but also descriptions of the taste, alcohol content, and even a glossary of general beer categories and terms.
JL Beers brings a new level of convenience to the person looking to enjoy a craft beer from the comfort of their own home. Burgers can be ordered to go, along with bottles or growlers (a half gallon from any of the taps). If you happen to find yourself unable to finish one of JL Beers’ big beers, the staff will happily reseal the bottle so you can take the remainder home.
For those who quiver at the prospect of making one choice among the formable selection of suds, JL Beers also provides beer flights, consisting of five small glasses of different varieties.
JL Beers:
For the craft beer drinker: start on the leftmost tap and work your way right
For the Anheuser-Busch fan: enjoy your old standby or dip your toe into the world of craft beers with something from the New Belgium Brewery.
For non-beer drinkers: Woodchuck Draft Cider or a 750ml of Lindeman’s Rasberry Framboise
For non-alcohol drinkers: Delicious 1919 rootbeer on tap!
For everyone: an egg-burger with seasoned chips
Now get out there and start expanding that palette.

Questions and comments: jason@humjay.com

Gourmet Soups for Charity

2009-11-12T05:05:28+00:00

About two weeks ago I received an email from Linda Coates, Executive Director of the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Orchestra. She was organizing the first “Gourmet Soup Kitchen to benefit Churches United for the Homeless” at the Scheel’s Center at Oak Grove Lutheran School. You know, it’s funny, because you just never know with something like this how things are going to go.

Well, I participated in this and it was a GREAT success! The idea of having a variety of soups and giving the proceeds to a very worthy cause is something that we, as a community here in Fargo love to support. The place was totally full. Of course what made it so much fun was all the different kinds of soup and the people serving them.

I did get the opportunity to taste a few of the soups—I’m so lucky! Father Jim Meyer’s Shrimp Bisque was mouth-watering good. Smooth and creamy of course, with large tasty shrimp, Tom and Georgia Dawson’s White chili with its secret ingredient (cinnamon), which she was sharing with everyone, was a fun surprise! I have never put that in chili successfully.
Hotel Donaldson had a corn and potato bisque and it had a nice balance of flavors.

Linda Coates, a gourmet chef in her own right, made Crème de la Farmer’s Market (vegetarian). What made it even more special, as Linda always does with her food, is that she had Brussels sprout chips made for the soup. Where does she find the time?

So I would love to get the recipes for these soups (hint hint.) I am putting out the call to those listed above to say that the Reader’s readers need these. I really wish I had the time to try them all, but I too was serving. I look forward to this next year and the great company this always brings from both those serving and ingesting.

Last week I asked what Jess was eating, and she wrote me to let me know! I would expect nothing less of her. She even told me her opinion of Brussels sprouts. Let’s just say she is concerned about me and vegetables.

Jess also included a great recipe for me to share with you. She told me that she and her boyfriend tried this simple, easy chicken recipe. She said “Oh my goodness, it is so good.” You can serve it by itself or over egg noodles. They like to put it over egg noodles. It’s very filling. Jess loves it and it’s got a lot of protein in it.
Jess’s Baked Chicken and Cheese

Ingredients:
8 boneless chicken breast halves
8 slices Swiss cheese
1 can Cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup Milk
1/4 cup Sour cream
1 1/2 cups herb stuffing crumbs
1/4 cup Melted butter
Few mushrooms
Green pepper
Parsley

Directions:
Place chicken breasts in a buttered 9x13 inch baking dish. Top each with a slice of cheese. Mix together the soup, milk and sour cream. Pour over chicken and cheese. Top with herb stuffing. Drizzle melted butter over. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 30 minutes, then remove foil and bake another 30 to 40 minutes.
Serves 6 to 8.

I’m still looking for alternative Holiday meals to share with our readers. If you have something, please email me. Don’t be shy now. Oh, and I am looking forward to learning all about an upcoming mushroom dinner to share with you, my readers.
And on a last note I just have to say that after last Saturday night at the Civic, I may just have to start eating Jelly Rolls! What a game! Go Derby Girls!!!

Be safe and eat well. Until next week….

Any questions or concerns email deb@hpr1.com

Cork It or Zork It?

2009-11-11T05:09:38+00:00

Have you ever gone to open up a nice bottle of wine and as you take that first heavenly whiff you notice that rather than hints of citrus or berries, it instead smells like your dog after she came out of the rain? I have to admit, when I was a novice wine drinker there were times when I experienced this and thought maybe my nose and taste buds weren’t yet trained to appreciate the fine nuances of moldy smelling wine. Now I realize that these characteristics are attributed to what is known as “cork taint.”

Luckily there are folks working toward solutions to this stinky problem. Screw caps and synthetic corks to name a few, but recently I was reintroduced to a really cool bottle closure, meant to be sort of a cross between a screw cap and a cork. “Zork corks” are found on wines of a medium to higher quality since they are geared not only towards maintaining a uniform brightness from bottle to bottle but also towards their potential ageability. Don Sebastiani and Sons are currently using these in some of their wines and the ones I tried lately lead me to believe that the creators of the Zork are really onto something.

Different studies suggest that anywhere from 7 to 10 percent of any particular lot of wine may show levels of cork taint, more commonly referred to as being “corked.” This means that in one case of wine at least one bottle out of twelve might smell and taste like your basement. To me, that seems like a lot. To put this phenomenon in everyday terms, “cork taint” is a wine fault involving real cork which occurs after the wine is bottled.

The most common cause is a compound by the name of trichloroanisole (TCA) which reacts with the wine to create a harmless yet potentially undrinkable wine of disagreeable smell and taste. There are varying levels of exposure and the more fine-tuned your wine beak is, the easier it is to detect the flaws. When a wine is slightly corked you may not even realize it, and might just chalk it up as a wine you don’t like. Despite the stigma sometimes associated with sending a wine back or returning it to a store, you should always do so if it truly seems flawed to you. Any quality dining or retail establishment should gladly take it back and/or offer you a new bottle.

Imagine anticipating the uncorking of a coveted bottle of wine, only to discover that the wine is corked! In response to this potential wine tragedy that affects every level of price and quality, different solutions have started to appear over the last few years. Screw caps—often of the Stelvin brand—and synthetic corks provide a couple of options.
Recently though, I was reminded of another interesting alternative, the patented Zork cork. This unique wine closure according to the website has “the convenience of a screw cap, but pops like a cork.” It was specifically designed for midrange quality wines and does not require a corkscrew. It is also made from 100% recyclable material. Basically you pull a tear tab, unwind and remove the “cork.” There is a foil welded between the cap and the plunger which is placed there to insure a long shelf life. The “cork” easily pops back into and effectively seals the bottle if you won’t be finishing it in one sitting.

My latest exposure to these nifty caps came from some wines I brought into my store from The Other Guys Wines by Don Sebastiani and Sons. One line of what they call “bistro wines” is meant to evoke feelings of laid back wine drinking without a lot of fuss. The Hey Mambo brand comes in a white and a red blend, both at right around $11-$12 per bottle with the blend changing from vintage to vintage. The 2007 Sultry Red is a blend of Syrah, Barbera, Zinfandel, Petit Sirah, Malbec and also some Alicante Bouche which may not be the most common varietal but is really fun to say. Being a little on the spicy side, pasta, burgers or pizza are all awesome partners for this seductive red.

On the other hand the Hey Mambo 2007 Swanky White consists of a blend of Viognier, Chenin Blanc, Muscat, Canelli and Sauvignon Blanc. With a floral nose and citrusy undertones, it is quickly becoming one of my Thanksgiving wines of choice since it is fun and will be a great accompaniment to turkey. With a 90 Point Editor’s Choice rating from the Wine Enthusiast, despite the playful nature of the wine, it is nothing to scoff at.

My favorites from TOG Wines are two California Zinfandels from different regions by the name of Plungerhead. The first thing that catches your eye about the Lodi Zinfandel is a kooky little man on the label with a red plunger on his head and a couple of barrels for legs. With further research (okay, the back label), it turns out that the name and the artsy label are a direct reference to the use of the Zork cork. The plunger on the gentleman’s head matches the red Zork cork plugging the bottle. Despite the irreverence of the label, the wine inside is classy yet approachable. Definitely high in alcohol at 14.9% this robust wine is a big boy. The first week we brought these in, a store wine tasting helped sell them out by that Friday evening. This wine retails for around $15.00.

There is also the Plungerhead 2007 Dry Creek Zinfandel coming out of Sonoma’s best Zinfandel growing region. This Zin is even bolder than its brother but still manages to keep its classiness. Super spicy, we recently had this with some grilled buffalo burgers, which proved to be a delectable combination. A little more expensive at $19.00, you can drink this with food or without.

My recent experiences with the Zork cork introduced me to some unique and delicious wines with the added reassurance that the distinctive closure can withstand everything from cork issues to aging. I think that the Zork cork will be popping up and out quite a bit more in the future and it will be interesting to see how this innovative wine trend will withstand the tests of nature and time.

Questions and comments: nness200@hotmail.com

Vegan Food Review: Zhateau Zorbaz

2009-11-05T23:33:09+00:00

On one of those last glorious days of fall, my friend Sheri invited me to a morning of kayaking on and around Big Sand Lake.

We were treated to a clear sky, leaves turning, a variety of fish visible in the clear water below us, and an otter swimming close by, cautious but curious. After a good workout of kayaking and hiking, we turned our attention to a late lunch. Zhateau Zorbaz is close by. I ordered a pizza with some veggies, hold the cheese.

Sheri wondered if the guacamole dip would be okay to share with me. The waitress asked the cook, and he came out to explain that the guacamole dip was vegan, but that the tomato sauce was not—they add cheese in the sauce. He reviewed the menu, noting that there was little that I could eat, as their beans were not vegan.

He graciously offered to make me something.
There are some lessons here. First, don’t assume something is vegan (tomato sauce on pizza, refried beans).

Second, most cooks are very willing to make something that will work, if they have the time and the ingredients. I wish I had gotten his name. He was an excellent example of providing great customer service.

Zhateau Zorbaz has a lovely outdoor eating area. We sat in the sun and I enjoyed a large platter of rice enchiladaz (if they are true to their Zs, they should spell that enzhiladaz) with ranchero sauce, lettuce and tomatoes. Sheri shared the freshly made guacamole dip and it was a nice topper on the enchiladaz. In addition they served complimentary “bottomless” chips and salsa.

It was a very satisfying meal, a pleasant ending to a perfect day.

Zhateau Zorbaz is at 22036 County Hwy 7 near Dorset, Minn. (218) 237-1969, www.zorbaz.com
Questions and comments: odinwan@cableone.net

Learning to Love Veggies

2009-11-04T19:32:42+00:00

Well, I have been thinking a lot lately about how much I dislike peas, carrots and Brussels sprouts. Why, you say? Well, I watched a lot of the Food Network last week. I was sick and had lots of time to do so. It seemed that the theme all week involved those veggies. So by the end of the week I started liking them.
For instance roasted Brussels sprouts, which looked really good. I have found that roasting foods does change the taste to something nutty and smoky. I really like carrots, okay, I like them raw with a dip, but now I am going to admit that if they are the tiny ones steamed and glazed I LOVE them.
So that leaves peas. Now this is another odd thing for me. I can eat them if they are fresh, bright green in a salad. Never ever from a can, just typing that makes me wheezy. The last time I was at Passage to India I had a wonderful tofu and green pea dish. It would be an understatement to say that it was a big surprise.
So what’s my point here? We all have something we won’t eat. I guess I am trying to encourage you to go out of your box with something healthy for you, over the upcoming holidays. I really think I am going to try to find the right dish with Brussels sprouts. Of course I will roast them.
So of course I have a couple of recipes for you. This first one is easy and looked very inviting to me after it was done.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

(courtesy of Barefoot Contessa, Food Network)

- 1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts
- 3 tablespoons good olive oil
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Simple to make and stress-free. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Cut off the brown ends of the Brussels sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves. Mix them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt and pepper.

Pour them onto a sheet pan and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. Shake the pan from time to time to brown the sprouts evenly. Sprinkle with more kosher salt (I like these salty, like French fries), and serve immediately.

Although I could not find a recipe for the tofu and peas, I did find a wonderful recipe for a miso soup that had both the peas and tofu in it, with an added bonus of corn added.

I guess next time I am out at Passage to India, I will ask them how they make it. I am so stuck on miso soup I cannot tell you. In fact I think this is going to be our supper tonight. I have everything for it in my pantry and fridge. Yep, I also have the miso. This is something you can purchase at any Asian market, easy to use and last along time. Remember that you can change this to be all vegetarian using veggie stack and leaving out the fish sauce.

Miso and Corn Soup

(courtesy of Dave Liberman, Food Network)

- 4 shallots, minced
- 2-inch piece ginger, peeled and thickly sliced
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 quart chicken stock
- 4 cups water
- 1/4 cup miso paste
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoons fish sauce
- sugar to taste (about 1 tablespoon)
- 1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
- dash chili flakes
- 5 ounces frozen corn kernels
- 1 package firm tofu
- 2 big handfuls snow peas (or frozen peas if snow peas are too expensive)
-salt

Sweat shallots and ginger in the oil in a large saucepan. Stir in flour and cook until it looks like wet sand. Whisk in stock and water. Add miso paste, soy sauce, fish sauce, sugar, sesame oil and chili flakes. Bring to a simmer and cook 20 minutes. Add corn and tofu and cook 10 minutes longer. Add snow peas or frozen peas and cook until vibrant green. Season, to taste, with salt.
Lastly , the carrots. Here is a recipe that incorporates apple juice, unsweetened. I like that idea. Cutting down on the sugar is always a good thing. It does have honey in it. Again, you could leave that out and make more of a concentrate with the apple juice. At any rate I like that it is not loaded with sugar, but I would still get that sweet flavor. The other thing I would do is grate some fresh orange peel on them—just an idea.

Honey Apple Glazed Carrots

(courtesy of Sara Moulton, Food Network)

- 1 tablespoon butter

- 10 baby carrots

- 2/3 cup unsweetened apple juice
- 1 teaspoon honey
- salt and pepper

Peel the carrots and trim the tops.

Melt butter in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add carrots to the skillet and saute until the carrots begin to brown slightly, about 8 minutes.

Add apple juice and honey and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until carrots are tender and liquid is reduced to glaze, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.
So there you have it. Mix it up and enjoy all those new taste, I’m going to try. I would be very interested to know what my friend Jessica is eating this holiday season, hmm.
I’m looking for alternative Holiday meals to share with our readers if you have something please email me.
Be safe; eat well, until next week.

Any questions or concerns email deb@hpr1.com

Which Wines Pair Nicely With Entrails?

2009-10-29T20:17:04+00:00

As I was contemplating what kinds of cocktails to serve at my Halloween party this weekend, wine was of course a beverage at the top of my list. I wanted to kind of stick with the obvious theme here and was pleasantly surprised by the number of Halloween-friendly wines I was able to come up with. Food and wine pairing should be interesting, given the ghastly and less-than-gourmet nature of some of the foods I plan on serving. I am not so sure I will be able to perfectly complement my “decayed corpse chips with entrails salsa” or the delightful “Chuckie’s upchuck,” but it’s worth a shot.

As with any classy soirée, glassware is key, so I won’t be forgetting to invest in some of those cool gothic style wine glasses from the Halloween store although technically they are plastic.

I first got excited when I remembered a box wine called Killer Juice Cabernet. Although I am usually not a box wine drinker, for parties they are the best and this one is quite a few notches above a Franzia or Almaden. This California Cabernet comes in a 3 Liter box and is equivalent to four 750ML bottles. Not only is this a surprisingly decent Cabernet, but the packaging cuts down on some of the inevitable waste that goes along with having a party. The box retails for around $20.00 so for about $5 per bottle of some not too shabby juice this is a must have for any Halloween party. I will be pairing this Cabernet with my coagulated blood dip.

I’m not thinking of providing too many white wines this weekend because it is getting pretty chilly and I prefer to serve white wines in the summer. Also, for this gathering I like the whole idea of drinking something the color of blood. Due to the name mostly I will, however, be serving a Viognier called Incognito. A simple white mask adorns the front of this bottle which is fitting for a costume party. Even more importantly though, the wine is great.

Viognier (pronounced vee-ohn-YAY) is not the most common white wine varietal but has become much more popular over the last few years. The origin of this French varietal from the Rhone Valley is unknown, as is the time frame in which it appeared in California. One legend about the origin of the name suggests that it draws its name from the Roman word “via Gehennae” meaning “road to hell.” Even though this supposedly alludes to the difficulty of growing this elusive grape, on a more personal level, it may also pertain to the inevitable debauchery of this weekend’s festivities! This is generally a pretty perfumy, high alcohol wine and at around $16 will go great with my marinated mozzarella eyeballs and dried scabs (also known as dried cranberries!).

I will definitely be serving 7 Deadly Zins this weekend, not just because of the name but also because it is a delicious Zinfandel. Sadly I will not be partaking due to the fact that at one point in my life it was so delicious that I was sick for days after WAAAYYY overindulging. At a whopping 14.5% alcohol it is good to watch yourself with this one, advice I wish I had taken myself, long ago. It’s named for the seven different Lodi Zinfandels that are blended together to create this unique wine. The owners of this winery, being good (or bad?) Catholic school kids such as I, felt the name described the wine appropriately. This is a smooth fruit-driven wine with explosions of berries and pepper. Served with my worm burgers, this combination should be quite delectable. Expect to find this wine for around $12- $15 a bottle.

As a special treat I plan on having one or two bottles of Bogle Phantom on hand. This will be by far the yummiest wine of the night. Bogle Phantom only comes out once a year and when it is gone, you have to wait until next year again to get it. This red blend of 49% Petit Sirah, 49% Zinfandel, and 2% Mourvedre is so spicy and delicious, once you try this it’s all over for the other guys, especially the Killer Juice Cabernet in the box. A “bogle” is another name for a goblin, which is again so appropriate for my party!

My sister is attempting a dark chocolate bacon cupcake recipe she found, which may not have a Halloween theme but sounds so incredibly delicious, who even cares? The Phantom should be a heavenly complement to these, that is IF they ever make it to the table and not just into my belly. This wine retails for about $20-$24 a bottle, which is not exactly cheap especially for a party full of drunken people in costume who could probably care less. Maybe just the winner of the costume contest will get to indulge in this one, oh and of course the host and the hostess!

Questions and comments: nness200@hotmail.com

Cooking Goblins

2009-10-28T19:06:01+00:00

So in about 24 hours we will have strange looking young and old walking around ghoulish and full of tricks and treats. I have a pretty good feeling that downtown is really in for a fright! Ah, so what kind of treats can we make to keep those goblins away? Hmm, well in my world, on my street, I believe we will have a variety of all things not good to eat, full of sugar and preservatives; after all what else should we feed monsters?

Once a year, okay three times a year, we seem to want to eat that stuff in massive quantities. I enjoy a nice soft crunchy Babe Ruth every once in awhile and I give myself permission for sure to eat it when I think that a monster may be at my door any minute. What else would be better to eat for my last meal? Oh, you say there are other things that I could find for my taste buds besides massive amounts of sugar?

Well, I did find a recipe for you. First though, I have to say that one thing that just jumps out at me is pumpkins. They are here now from Halloween until Christmas. So, of course we can find some fun eats with them. I found a little history for you on pumpkins, of course online, below. I received an email too from my friend Lew that directed me to a site about pumpkins you might be interested in: www.tinyurl.com/HPRpumpkins.

I also found a very fun and funny Halloween party appetizer made by Paula Dean, information below. I suggest you go to the site and see the picture. It is very fun and oh so scary, Click on Halloween Recipes.

So I also wanted to mention the Day of the Dead Buffet at the Plains. Andrea and Peter would love to scare up a meal just for you. Information about this is also below.
Day of the Dead Buffet Dinner
Plains Art Museum
Nov. 2nd. 6-9 p.m.
call 701.232.3821 ext. 118 for reservations
$25 per person (students 20% off with HPR ad)
http://www.greenmarketcater.com

Pumpkin History

References to pumpkins date back many centuries. The name pumpkin originated from the Greek word for “large melon” which is “pepon.” “Pepon” was nasalized by the French into “pompon.” The English changed “pompon” to “Pumpion.” Shakespeare referred to the “pumpion” in his Merry Wives of Windsor. American colonists changed “pumpion” into “pumpkin.” The “pumpkin” is referred to in The Legend of Sleepy Hollow; Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Eater; and Cinderella.
Native Americans dried strips of pumpkin and wove them into mats. They also roasted long strips of pumpkin on an open fire and ate them. The origin of pumpkin pie occurred when the colonists sliced off the pumpkin top, removed the seeds, and filled the insides with milk, spices and honey. The pumpkin was then baked in hot ashes. Pumpkin is also loaded with an important antioxidant, beta-carotene.
Ok here is a fun recipe:

Cheese Ball Goblin

Credit Paula Dean, http://www.foodnetwork.com

Ingredients:
- 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature, plus 2 (8-ounce) packages whipped cream cheese
- 4 tablespoons butter, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon milk
- 2 cups shredded mixed cheeses, such as cheeses for tacos
- Green food coloring
- 2 large tortilla chips
- 1 whole pepperoncini pepper
- 2 pimiento-stuffed olives
- 1 bell pepper, cut 2 thin strips and 6 small triangles
- 6 pitted green olives
- 20 small carrot sticks
- 3 cups shredded red cabbage
- Toothpicks
- Assorted crackers
- Assorted vegetables

Directions:

Place 2 packages of cream cheese, butter and milk in a mixing bowl, scraping down the sides of the bowl a few times. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth and combined. Add the shredded cheese and mix until well combined. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or up to 24 hours.

Remove the chilled cheese mixture from the refrigerator. Place the mixture on a piece of waxed paper and form the cheese ball into a head-like shape. Place 3 pieces of waxed paper around the edges of a serving plate, leaving open space in the center. Place the cheese in the center of the platter so some of it is right on the platter, but the edges are on the waxed paper. This will ensure that the platter does not get dirty while you make your goblin.

In a medium bowl, stir the remaining softened cream cheese until totally smooth. With a spatula, spread the whipped cream cheese over the head. It’s O.K. if it’s not totally smooth—this will give your goblin spooky skin.

Place a few drops of green food coloring in a small bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of water and mix well. With a pastry brush, paint the tortilla chips with the food coloring until they are the desired color. Set aside to dry for a few minutes.

Once the chips are dry, press them into the sides of the cheese ball to form ears. Skewer the pepperoncini with a toothpick and then attach it to the center of the head to make a nose. Press the pimiento-stuffed olives into the head to form eyes. Use the 2 red bell pepper strips to make eyebrows. Take the pepper triangles and insert them into the holes in the pitted green olives. The green olives will serve as toes, and the red pepper strips will be scary toenails. Once the olives are assembled, press them into the bottom of the head to form the toes.

Press the carrot sticks into the head to form teeth. Leave them sticking out a bit to make scary teeth. It’s O.K. if your carrot sticks are different lengths and thicknesses. Hold the head onto the platter with a spatula and gently pull away the waxed paper. Finally, press the cabbage into the top of the head to make hair. Serve with kers and assorted vegetables.
Until next week, be safe and smart trick or treating. Take care of your friends with your tricks.

Questions and comments: deb@hpr1.com

Pass Me the Pepper Please

2009-10-23T17:14:45+00:00

When I first started eating meat again a year or so back, it was my youngest sister who first introduced me to the scrumptious magic that happens when you pair a big, chewy, peppery shiraz with a big juicy medium rare steak. Although I have since found a ton of different reds that go great with steak, I must say I am still pretty partial to this particular marriage.

I have always been a shiraz and a syrah lover, and to clarify, they are actually one in the same. This varietal is native to the Rhone Valley in France where they call it syrah. Over time, the Australians — and some angry French people — have grown to call their most successful varietal shiraz. In California they use the words interchangeably, although more often you will see it as “syrah.” Then, just to confuse matters there is also a completely different grape, although a child of syrah, called petite sirah. My opinion is that all three (or two?) are wines I love to drink and here are a few of my current favorites.

Often times when people think about Australian shiraz, they think of Yellow Tail or Little Penguin or any of those other “critter wines” I have mentioned in a previous article. I don’t want to go around saying that these wines are terrible because they aren’t. These mass produced, consumer friendly wines, are just not very complex. If you are first dipping your feet into the vast ocean of wine drinking, these wines are very approachable, fruit forward and easy to suck down. If you are looking for something a little more complex and complicated, below are some great examples. Please beware some of these are not for the faint hearted or all that cheap, but once you try a remarkable shiraz it is incredibly hard to go back!
If you are still sort of a beginner but want to expand your horizons, I think a great place to start is with an easily accessible yet really quite delicious shiraz called Layer Cake. Coming out of the McLaren Vale, one of the better shiraz growing regions, this 100 percent Shiraz is dense and delicious with just enough of that signature pepper. Its 91-point rating from the “Wine Spectator” (if you care about these things) isn’t too shabby either, considering it is priced at only around $11-13.

If you are ready to kick it up a notch, Peter Lehmann is the guy to help you do it. This shiraz comes out of the Barossa Valley — Australia’s finest grape growing region — where the grape has flourished since the 1840s. It is a direct descendant from Hermitage in the Rhone Valley. This is an example of how a quality Barossa shiraz should taste. The tannic structure is in perfect balance with the fruit and there is of course that hint of black pepper, especially on the nose.

One last wine I have to mention in this category is the Two Hands Angel’s Share shiraz purely based on how incredible it is. If you ever feel like splurging on a bottle, you will not be sorry. This wine consistently makes it onto the “Wines Spectator” top 100 list, which is not only a great accomplishment but also makes it sometimes hard to come across. This wine comes from Two Hands’ premium wine collection, which takes the best of the grapes from the best of the region with amazing results. Don’t be alarmed by the Stelvin screw cap since more and more premium wines are going in this direction in order to alleviate any chance of flaws due to a bad cork. This wine retails at around $40, so save this one for your best filet.

In a previous article I mentioned my very favorite syrah, the Montes Alpha syrah from Chile. It is definitely good enough to mention again. The Chilean origin of this syrah makes for unique characteristics different from those of California or Australia. The color of garnets, this wine is so large and full bodied that is even more spicy and delicious the second day. This is a superb value at $16 to $20 a bottle. If you are on a budget but still want to experience all of the dark fruit decadence a syrah evokes, try Rosenblum Cuvee syrah. This wine comes from a variety of vineyard sites from around California. Although Rosenblum is known primarily for their great zinfandels, they also make an awesome syrah, and the price is definitely right at around $11 a bottle.

For a long time petite sirah (yes, it is spelled differently) was used primarily as a blending grape in California, where it is mainly grown. It is actually the durif grape which comes from the syrah pollen germinating a peloursin plant. My only point in mentioning this is to say that although there are some similar characteristics due to one of the parents, this is not the same grape as many people assume. This is a much darker, denser, more pronounced wine than a syrah. It is often suggested that these wines should always be decanted. There are a lot more berry notes and a lot more tannins, which will soften as they breathe.

Concannon was the first winery in California to release this wine as a varietal on its own. Although this is a limited production wine you can still usually pick up a bottle for around $11-$12. My current favorite though is The Prodigal’s Son from the Big House Winery in Paso Robles. Not only is the wine itself pretty fantastic, but the website (bighousewines.com), although a little complicated to navigate, is really cool as well. This smoky peppery wine with lots of black fruit and tobacco undertones is 100 percent petite sirah and costs around $13 a bottle.

I have found that this particular style of wine is one people either really like or really don’t. Pepper characteristics in a wine can be a good thing or a bad one depending on who you are talking to. I am obviously on Team Pepper and if you too find yourself in this group, I hope you enjoy the suggestions.

Questions and comments: nness200@hotmail.com

Coffee: This Amazing Bean

2009-10-22T19:03:08+00:00

I could write a lot about coffee. I could tell you how I used to drink it with lots of milk and two tablespoons of sugar and called it coffee, or how I have had the same coffee to drink over a week after I made it, after leaving it in the fridge of course, and had ice coffee with A LOT of ICE, A LOT!!!

Most recently I got around to opening some very tasty vanilla syrup that a friend gave me some time ago. I made one awesome sugar-free latte. Anyway, lots of different thoughts went through my mind. I wondered just what do a few of my friends think about this amazing bean? So thanks to those that responded to my questions. And of course I can never get right to the point!

Recently I went camping, of course in the rain, which I had no problem with at all. I found that I love the dark cloudy days a lot when I am out camping or even at the lake. I am not probably the person you would want around on a very long weekend. I would be wanting a little rain.

Anyway, on this last camping trip, I forgot to bring some of my daily pills I take. So off to Park Rapids to get them. Of course I could not just walk in and get them. They had to be ordered, and of course there would be THAT wait to get them. What do you do when you have an hour to kill?

Well, personally, I like to go eat. Thing was, though, I had already eaten (something that would not usually matter), so the next best thing this early in the morning was COFFEE!

It just so happened that Mike and I had just been up in this area a week earlier with our friends Kate and Will: our now-annual trip to walk, ride bike and of course reward ourselves with, what else, food. Anyway I have to tell you that on that weekend it was also raining. So Mike and Will decided to do what any normal person who is crazy about rainy weather sports does, go golf, I don’t get it.

Kate and I decided not to walk but to go into Park Rapids and get coffee and then go drink wine, wine that Kate’s good friend had so kindly told us where to find at her lake cabin. Thank you Sandra.

Okay, back to coffee. The place we ended up going was Bella Caffe. It is very cute and on that date, not so busy. Once we got there I decided I was good without the coffee.

But the weekend Mike and I went, I had my normal Latte with sugar-free caramel, always heated to 190 degrees. It is a MUST in my world to have it that hot! Mike had his regular “strongest of the day” cup. While we waited for my pills to be made, I started looking around and paying a little more attention to this cute place.

I realized that years ago I actually knew the owner. I found that it was not at all just about coffee. However, that is what got me in the door. Isn’t it that way now in all the coffee places? They are all very cute and there is all this temptation around you to pair that coffee, tea or smoothie up with something.

So again I had already eaten and could only look at what I might have had. What I quickly realized was that there was a theme going on here: Italian! They had items like La Venezia sandwiches and Crostini salads. There were even items like antipasto trays, bread and dipping oil, and of course wine available. So why exactly was I having coffee?

Neither of the ladies working that day were the owners, but absolutely you could tell they loved what they were doing. They told me that Thom Peterson was the owner and that he also ran another more traditional lunch place that was connected to the coffee shop. Well, I saw that menu too, but this one really interested me because again I came in for COFFEE.

I highly recommend it if you are in Park Rapids. Oh, remember about my 190 degree temp? Well when we got in the car and settled in, I took a sip of mine. I quickly realized that not only had they not heated it up to 190 but I had not any caramel either.

So out of the car and back in I go. I asked if they would add more caramel. I said I would pay extra. They were fine with just adding it. They were surprised that I could not taste the caramel. Anyway I went back to the car and as I got in, Mike was taking a sip of his coffee. He slowly looked at me and without a word, I knew what his look meant. I had picked up Mike’s coffee, regular and black.

He looked at me and said, “Well, I was wondering why I almost scalded my mouth.” We had a good laugh.

We are really lucky here in Fargo/Moorhead to have such a variety of coffee places to go to and pick from. Now, I am not trying to put down chains, but I am very happy to see that the local coffee places are doing well and are in the downtown area. There again, it is not about just the coffee. You can walk into Atomic Coffee, Moxie Java, Babbs, and see all these wonderful items you can munch on with that coffee. Or into Josie’s Corner for food and get that coffee you are yearning for.

I even found a site online for “coffee geeks.” UGH!! According to some of the coffee facts I found on line, “Coffee is an important export commodity. In 2004, coffee was the top agricultural export for 12 countries and in 2005, it was the world’s seventh-largest legal agricultural export by value.”
So anyway, I thought it would be fun to see what other people thought about their coffee. SO here are a few that responded to my questions. Again, thanks for taking the time.

Barrie M, Moorhead: My favorite thing about drinking coffee is the flavor and aroma. If I did not have coffee every day, I would probably switch to tea. If I could compare coffee to the best of something else, no no, there is nothing that compares with coffee.

Barb L, Fargo: My favorite thing about drinking coffee is grinding the beans. If I did not have coffee twice a week I would miss it. On weekend mornings, I like to make myself a cup of cappuccino. When we run out of milk and I can’t make it, I miss that. Good coffee is like good chocolate: dark, rich and worth every bite. I liked the coffee they served in Cairo, in teeny little cups with a large glass of water. You need the water to chase it down because it is so strong and thick. Yummy! But I’ll skip any bad (aka weak) coffee…blech!
Kay L, Minneapolis: My favorite thing about drinking coffee is the creamer. If I did not have coffee seven times a week, I would go back to being 10 years old. If I could compare coffee to the best of something, it would be similar to smoking a cigarette after sex.

Kate K, Fargo: My favorite thing about drinking coffee is the smell. I love the smell of freshly brewed coffee, and it gives me a bit of energy. If I did not have coffee every day, I would get an extreme headache. I am addicted to coffee. I went off it completely a couple years ago and had an intense headache and some nausea for about three days. Yikes! I like my coffee really hot and I like it strong too—none of this lukewarm brown water stuff. If I could compare coffee to the best of something it would be a really good book.

Questions and comments: deb@hpr1.com