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Newsletter for June 2004 Your source for what’s cooking at OBW
25 South Indian Alley Winchester VA, 22601 540-662-1455 |
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Wine Dinners: May, June, and July |
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Privacy Policy. We never disclose your email address to any outside party and we send the newsletter in such a way that others cannot see your email address (nor can you see theirs). |
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I do not have much free time, but from time to time I am available on Mondays to teach cooking classes for groups of 8-12 people in my home kitchen, the restaurant kitchen being too small to accommodate that many people. These are free-format, hands on, relaxed sessions centered on a particular theme, such as summer appetizers or knife skills. I like to center these classes around lunch so that we can have a glass of wine and prepare our own lunch. There is a nominal fee to cover the cost of the food and wine.
Recently, I hosted a group of ladies from Millwood Country Club and we prepared (and ate!) some easy summer appetizers. These included Sautéed Goat Cheese and Grilled Asparagus Salad with Balsamic Reduction; Goat Cheese Spread with Pesto, Pine Nuts, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes; Grilled, Herb-Marinated Shrimp; and Pancetta, Red Onion, Artichoke Heart, and Tomato Frittata. (recipes and more…)
If you have a group that it interested in a class, call me or email me for details.
May: A Night in Tuscany
Oh boy did we have fun on May the 12th with Bill McKenney from Michael Downey Selections! Bill presented a Vernaccia, a Chianti, a Chianti Classico, a Super Tuscan Sangiovese, and a Vin Santo. Judging from the sales of the Vernaccia, everyone loved it. What’s not to love? It’s a great crisp summer patio wine. The hit of four-course dinner appeared to be the timbales of polenta stuffed with guinea hen. June 23rd: Jim Law of Linden Vineyards
Jim Law of Linden Vineyards will be at One Block West Restaurant in Winchester on Wednesday June 23rd at 7pm for a four-course wine dinner featuring his wines. I will create a seasonal menu to complement the eight wines, which will be served in four flights, two wines per dinner course, so that you can explore terroir and age. Wines featured are Sauvignon Blanc 2002 Avenius and 2002 Glen Manor, Chardonnay 1999 Avenius and 2000 Hardscrabble, Red 1998 Glen Manor and 2000 Hardscrabble, and Late Harvest 1999 and 2001. Many of these wines are no longer commercially available but will be available for sale the night of the dinner only. Cost of the dinner is $75 per person, all inclusive (including food, wine, taxes, and gratuity). Seated is limited to 24 guests by reservation only and this will definitely sell out early.
July: Willowcroft Farm Vineyards
Up next in July, Amy and Lew Parker of Willowcroft Farm Vineyards, from just south of Leesburg (near Oatlands, if you know the area) will discuss their wines. We currently feature their Riesling-Muscat and Cabernet on our wine list.
For the second year in a row, I cooked at Kitchen Kapers, a fund raiser for Quota Club on Saturday May 15th. And in a twist this year I cooked in my own kitchen, which was one of five on the tour. I did about 15 variations on the theme of frittatas, a simple baked omelet that anyone can make at home. (recipes…)
Happy Hour is Rolling
Happy Hour is rolling on Fridays from 4:30 until 6:00pm, give or take, weather permitting. Last Friday, Boo Snider was singing to a deck full of people and Ben was on the grill turning out Lemongrass-Marinated Beef Sate with Spicy Peanut Sauce, Herb-Marinated Shrimp, Smoked Chicken and Red Onion Quesadillas with Pico de Gallo and Sour Cream, Yellowfin Tuna with Soy-Sesame-Wasabi Sauce, and Sea Scallops with Spicy Thai Sauce.
As always on the deck, we do not take reservations, so come early and join Boo and the rest of us! By all accounts, this is a great time and a boost to the downtown after work scene. Also remember that next Friday is June 4th, First Friday. As always, First Fridays are hopping, so make sure that you call for dining room reservations early in the week.
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So what do we do in our very limited time off? We try to visit with our suppliers to learn about their businesses. We’re constantly educating ourselves so that we can better help our guests. May 23rd found us in the quite enviable position of getting a private tour of Chrysalis Vineyards from Jenni McCloud, owner. We couldn’t have asked for a nicer day to tour the farm; taste old, current, and unreleased vintages; and grill out on Jenni’s monster 48” twin grills. In exchange for Jenni’s hospitality, we brought sea scallops, asparagus, and polenta for the grill and Jenni and Michelle Hunter joined us for a wonderful afternoon. The reserve Nortons are fantastic, but for patio drinking, the hit of the day for us was the chilled rosé of Norton, Sarah’s Patio Red 2002. It is so worth a trip over to Middleburg to visit a fantastic setting at one of the state’s best wineries, that you must do it soon. |
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In recent days, I’ve been approached by several customers about the differences between some common herbs. These herbs are cilantro, Italian parsley, and cutting celery. The leaves are confusingly similar to one another, but fortunately, smelling or tasting the leaves will quickly sort them out.
Cilantro (Coriandrum sativum), also known as Chinese parsley or coriander (although in common American usage, coriander is reserved for the dried seeds of the plant), is probably the most commonly used herb in the world and has a bright green flavor all its own. A distinct minority of people do not like cilantro at all, claiming that it tastes soapy, bitter, or worse. Scientists theorize that there is some underlying genetic issue that causes the taste differences. I love it; many hate it. In any case, it is assertive and you should use it with care. We use cilantro for flavoring our salsas and pico de gallo and as a garnish for certain soups, especially posole, which is a topic for another newsletter.
Italian parsley (Petroselinum crispum var. neapolitanum), as it is known in the produce trade, is also called flat leaf parsley. I think it has a better flavor than curly parsley (Petroselinum crispum) and it certainly is a lot easier to wash, dry, and cut than curly parsley. Parsley is our workhorse herb for marinades, herb mayonnaise, and of course, for crab cakes.
Cutting celery (Apium graveolens) looks to me just about like Italian parsley, but it clearly smells and tastes of celery. Many people recommend substituting it directly for our usual fat-stemmed celery, but I find it too bitter for that. I find that a couple of pieces will impart all the celery flavor that I want to a huge pot of stock. We use it mainly for garnish. It does not appear to be available on the wholesale market; we get it from two local growers.
Oh, it’s that glorious time of year again when softshell crabs are on the market. As with most good foods, the more simply you cook them, the better the crabs are. The only trick to softshells is cleaning them. There is a good set of photos in James Peterson’s excellent book called Fish & Shellfish. Of course, this is not how I do it. I cut the eyes and mouth out with a sharp knife or scissors, taking a small V-shape out of the crab. This lets me pull the two small white sacks out. Then I lift either side of the shell by the points and scrape out the gills. Most people pull the apron off the bottom; I don’t see the need. If you don’t feel like cooking them yourself, come on down. We should have them for the next two weeks or so.
Plan on two jumbo crabs per person for a reasonable main course; I prefer three myself.
Sautéed Softshell Crabs
oil Cleaned crabs Wondra or flour Salt and pepper to taste Paper towels
Film a hot sauté pan well with oil (we use pure olive or grapeseed). Dredge the crabs in seasoned flour and place in the pan. Cook 2-3 minutes per side until crispy brown. Remove from the pan to paper toweling and blot off any excess oil. Serve immediately. Hints: do not crowd the pan—fry the crabs in batches. Also, they pop like crazy so be careful.
I have been out looking for new wines for the list and have found some very interesting ones. We have a fantastic new Albariño from Pazo San Mauro that is very floral. Also two interesting Virginia wines that have received a lot of press, especially from Wine Spectator: Valhalla Cabernet Sauvignon and Valhalla Valkyrie, a Bordeaux blend. Both are in the fruit forward style that is very common and popular today. I found a gem in Fracasi’s 1996 Barolo. Expensive, yes, but what outstanding flavor. Finally, a great California Viognier from Echelon. Not quite as good a Chrysalis’ Viognier, but excellent for the price.
If you were tuned in to WINC-FM last Monday, perhaps you heard me on the air cooking cicadas, Barry Lee’s idea of a good time! In case you wondered, there’s not much to them. They taste a little vegetal, which is to say, you could survive on them, but there’s no culinary reason to seek them out.
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Copyright © 2004 Shenandoah Food and Beverage Holdings, LLC |
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