Fast & Fabulous: Moules Marinières & White Burgundy!

Moules Marinières!

This dish is a favorite in our house and I especially love making it during the Summer months. It is light, delicious and easy to prepare! 

This recipe for Moules Marinières (aka Mussels in White Wine) is from the Barefoot Contessa's, "Barefoot in Paris" cookbook. For the longest time I was under the impression mussels were difficult to make, but that couldn't be farther from the truth! When working with cultured mussels, simply rinse them under cool water just before cooking and remove any pesky "byssus" threads (fibrous strings that sometimes stick out of the shells) and you are all set. Mussels even have a built in self timer - if they are open, they're done. The most important thing to keep in mind when purchasing mussels is they have to be very fresh. They should be a glistening, shiny black color and the shells should be tightly closed. If you come across any that are open, a quick tap on the shell should cause them to close up again. If not, discard! Conversely, after cooking if any of the mussels have not opened, discard them as well.

Cultured PEI Mussels from Captain Clay's

For my local foodie friends, I purchased my mussels from Captain Clay's Fish Market in Delray Beach. They were cultured mussels from Prince Edward Island and were a lovely glistening black color and extremely fresh. When making this recipe, be sure to ask your fishmonger if you need to soak the mussels with the flour for the 30 minutes to get them to disgorge their sand as stated in the recipe. When dealing with cultured mussels such as the ones from Captain Clay's, you do not need to perform this step and soaking them could actually kill the mussels prematurely so definitely make it a point to ask.

A Nice Bath for the Mussels!

Once you have rinsed the mussels and prepped the garlic, shallots and thyme (which can all be done ahead), this is essentially a quick, one pot meal - 8-10 minutes and dinner is served! Be sure to serve the mussels with grilled bread that has been rubbed with a garlic clove. I love the way the garlic just melts into the hot bread and the delicious flavor goes so nicely with the heavenly sauce! 

As for wine (I know you were waiting for this part!), enjoy this dish with a Chardonnay like the Domaine Faiveley Montagny 2008. This white Burgundy has enticing notes of citrus, green apple and white flowers with just a hint of spice. It's crisp yet has a delightful creaminess to it and complements the mussels very nicely. As with most wines in France, this one is named for the area it is from: Montagny is the most southerly village in Côte Chalonnaise, bordering the Mâconnais region of Burgundy. 

I hope you enjoy this delicious duo - shellfish and white Burgundy are a fabulous match! Also, many wine regions, especially Burgundy, can be quite confusing and I'd love to hear any wine-related questions you might have. So please, ask away and by all means, don't be shy!

Cheers,






Moules Marinières (Mussels in White Wine)
from "Barefoot in Paris" by Ina Garten, 2004

Ingredients
6 1/2 pounds cultivated mussels
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon good saffron threads
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons good olive oil
2 cups chopped shallots (10 to 15 shallots)
1/3 cup minced garlic (12 to 15 cloves)
1 cup chopped caned plum tomatoes, drained (8 ounces)
3/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup fresh thyme leaves
2 cups good white wine
4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Directions
To clean the mussels, put them in a large bowl with 4 quarts of water and the flour and soak for 30 minutes, or until the mussels disgorge any sand. Drain the mussels, then remove the "beard" from each with your fingers. If they're dirty, scrub the mussels with a brush under running water. Discard any mussels whose shells aren't tightly shut. Soak the saffron in 1/4 cup hot tap water for 15 minutes and set aside.

In a large (12-quart) nonaluminum stockpot, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for 5 minutes; then add the garlic and cook for 3 more minutes, or until the shallots are translucent. Add the saffron with the soaking water, the tomatoes, parsley, thyme, wine, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.

Add the mussels, stir well, then cover the pot, and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until all the mussels are opened (discard any that do not open). With the lid on, shake the pot once or twice to be sure the mussels don't burn on the bottom. Pour the mussels into a large bowl and serve hot with the bread. Serves six

Open That Bottle Night 2011: 2001 Cos d'Estournel and Rack of Lamb Persillade

The last Saturday in February is recognized by many oenophiles as "Open That Bottle Night."  This vinous "holiday" was created in the late 1990's by long time Wall Street Journal columnists Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher as an opportunity for wine lovers to pop the corks on those "too-special-to-ever-be-opened" bottles in their cellars.

This year, my husband and I opened a bottle from France's Bordeaux wine region, a 2001 Cos d'Estournel. This blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Merlot hails from the Saint-Estèphe appellation, the northernmost of the four major appellations of the Haut-Médoc. Saint-Estèphe is home to two of Bordeaux's "second growths" or deuxième cru as determined by the Médoc Classification of 1855: Cos d'Estournel and Château Montrose. While they are the stars of this appellation, they are definitely not the entire show! Other classified growths in this region include Château Calon-Ségur, Château Lafon-Rochet and Château Cos-Labory. I had tried the 2001 Cos d'Estournel three years ago and was excited to see how it had evolved with a few more years of bottle age.

The wine was a seductive purplish-red color in the glass with aromas of currants, cedar and spice and flavors of sweet, black fruit, cassis and a hint of licorice. The tannins were beautifully integrated and the wine was very well-balanced - it had softened nicely since having it in 2008. The wine really appeared to be at its peak and was positively delicious!

With our special bottle, we served the Barefoot Contessa's Rack of Lamb Persillade, a succulent rack of lamb encrusted with a mixture of parsley, bread crumbs and garlic with a hint of lemon zest. It was both easy to make and mouth-wateringly delicious! The lemon zest added a nice pop and freshness to the dish that was pleasantly surprising. You've gotta love those dishes that offer alot of  "wow" for the effort - this is definitely one of them! Ask your butcher to "french" the racks and remove the excess meat from the ends of the bones for a more elegant look. Once done, we cut the chops into double chop portions and served them atop a pillowy bed of garlic mashed potatoes - YUM!

I am happy to report the pairing was a big success! The flavors of the lamb synergized beautifully with the flavors and texture of the wine and Open That Bottle Night 2011 at Chez Miskew drew to a close with two very satisfied palates. Be sure to mark your calendars for next year - I am looking forward to it already!

Cheers,

Rack of Lamb Persillade
from the Barefoot Contessa's "Barefoot in Paris"
3 small or 2 large racks of lamb, frenched
Good Olive Oil
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups loosely packed fresh parsley leaves
1 tablespoon chopped garlic cloves (3 cloves)
1 cup fresh white bread crumbs
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Directions
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
Place the racks in a roasting pan, fat side up. Rub the tops with olive oil and sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Roast the lamb for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, place the parsley and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and process until they're both finely minced. Add the bread crumbs and lemon zest and process for a second until combined.
Take the lamb out of the oven and quickly press the parsley mixture on top of the meat. Drizzle with the melted butter and return immediately to the oven and roast for another 15 minutes.
Take the lamb out of the oven and cover with aluminum foil. Allow it to rest for 15 minutes, cut in double chops, and serve.
Serves 5 to 6 

Big Changes for "Stephanie Savors the Moment!"

To everyone who has followed Stephanie Savors the Moment over the past 1 1/2 years - I am happy to announce some exciting changes!


As some of you already know, I was "tripped up" in my quest to complete "The Savor the Moment Challenge" after suffering a fractured hip in October and subsequent hip surgery in January. During my lengthy and ongoing recovery, I have decided to kick off 2011 with a new look and focus to my blog. A girl's gotta shake things up, after all!


True to my personality (and sense of humor) I will be changing the name of my blog to "The Glamorous Gourmet." I look forward to writing about food and wine with a fun and refreshing approach, somewhere along the lines of The Barefoot Contessa meets Carrie Bradshaw.

Features will include:
Vintage Vogue: Be in the know with wine facts and reviews to expand your knowledge of all things vinous!
Kitchen Confidential: Reviews of coveted cookbooks, kitchen tools and wine accessories!
Still Savoring...: The "Savor the Moment Challenge" continues complete with wine pairings and entertaining advice for every recipe!

The Event File: Get the scoop on the hottest food and wine events around town!

Fast & Fabulous: Quick and flavorful recipes that deliver maximum deliciousness for the effort!

A Perfect Pairing: Recipes and wine pairings from your favorite Chefs and Sommeliers - please let me know if you have any suggestions!

In addition to the blog, I'm also looking forward to continuing my other endeavors including chairing The Boca Bacchanal and Auction with my husband Steve on Saturday, March 19th here in Boca Raton; writing for The New Times and continuing my "Art of Wine & Food" Series at The Museum of Art in Ft. Lauderdale. Be sure to check out the Events section for a current list of updates!


I will be tweaking the site over the course of the next week so please bear with me. I hope you enjoy the new look of the blog and find lots of fun and entertaining info to share with your family and friends! I greatly appreciate you support and look forward to your input and comments. 


Cheers,

Our Christmas Eve Menu & An Injury Update!

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Crème Fraîche & Caviar

Every Christmas Eve, my husband and I host dinner for the family at Chez Miskew prior to a fabulous Christmas Day feast at my sister's house. Since being on crutches since late October, getting around the kitchen has been a challenge to say the least. I've had to rely on my husband, friends and family for help with the grocery shopping - a big change after being there just about every other day! In any event, after having to defer doing Thanksgiving dinner this year due to my injury, I was looking forward to hosting Christmas Eve dinner for my family.

Florida Seafood Gratin

Our menu was inspired by "The Feast of the Seven Fishes," a meal that is thought to have originated in Southern Italy and is traditionally held on Christmas Eve. The meal typically consists of seven seafood dishes and is a commemoration of the wait, Vigilia di Natale, for the midnight birth of the baby Jesus. Ok, so the Miskews are not even 1% Italian but we are Catholic and let's face it, the Italians know their way around great food! Our Christmas Eve menu consisted of:

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with
Crème Fraîche & Caviar
Shrimp Cocktail

Rosemary Roasted Cashews

Florida Seafood Gratin

Miskew Family Secret Recipe Crab Cakes

Fennel and Basil Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette

The Bubble Room's Red Velvet Cake

Miskew Family Crab Cakes

We served the Champagne Gosset "Brut Excellence" NV with hors d'oeuvres and the Shafer Red Shoulder Ranch Napa Valley Chardonnay 2007 with the more decadent main course. If you are looking for a special recipe to make for guests in the coming weeks, I strongly suggest the Seafood Gratin. I adapted it from Ina Garten's (aka The Barefoot Contessa) recipe and it is seriously amazing! You will look like a superstar when you serve this - I promise! I have included the recipe below - we used Florida lobster, grouper and Gulf shrimp to "keep it local." I also doubled the recipe and it is a good thing if you can purchase the lobster meat already cooked since that saves you from having to boil those suckers yourself!

The Bubble Room Red Velvet Cake

The meal turned out extremely well and The Bubble Room Red Velvet Cake is simply the best I've ever tasted. The Bubble Room is a restaurant in Captiva Island, Florida we went to every Summer during family vacations and their Red Velvet Cake takes me right back to my childhood. The recipe was actually originally published in the Junior League of Ft. Myers Cookbook - so I'm not that far off topic! In fact, we were returning from my first trip to Captiva in over a decade when I tripped up a step and broke the bone in my hip. Unfortunately, it hasn't healed as we hoped it would and I have to have surgery next month to correct it. I do look forward to a "Hip Hip Hooray!" party once I'm all healed and will do my best to keep cooking and blogging in the meantime. Wish me luck!

Bon Appétit,




Florida Seafood Gratin
adapted from Ina Garten's "Barefoot Contessa at Home"
Ingredients

For the sauce:
2 cups clam juice
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup plus 6 tablespoons good dry, white wine, such as Chablis, divided
6 tablespoons tomato puree
1 teaspoon saffron threads
1 pound raw Gulf pink shrimp, peeled, deveined, and cut in half crosswise
1 pound raw grouper, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 pound cooked Florida lobster meat, cut into 1-inch chunks
14 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
5 cups julienned leeks, white and light green parts (4 large)
3 cups julienned carrots (5 carrots)
2 cups panko (Japanese dried bread crumbs)
2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
4 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon leaves
2 tablespoons minced garlic (2 cloves)
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
For the sauce:
Combine the stock, cream, 1 cup of the wine, the tomato puree, and saffron in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and add the shrimp. After 5 minutes, use a slotted spoon to remove the shrimp to a bowl. Add the grouper to the stock for 5 minutes, until just cooked through, and remove to the same bowl. Add the cooked Florida lobster to the bowl.
Continue to cook the sauce until reduced by half, about 20 minutes. Mash 2 tablespoons of the butter together with the flour. Whisk the butter mixture into the sauce along with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Simmer, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
Melt 6 tablespoons of the butter in a medium saute pan. Add the leeks and carrots and cook over medium heat for 7-10 minutes, until softened. Add the remaining 6 tablespoons of wine, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook for 7-10 minutes, until tender. Set aside.
Combine the panko, Parmesan, parsley, tarragon, and garlic. Melt the remaining 6 tablespoons of butter and mix it into the crumbs until they're moistened.
Spoon the seafood evenly over the bottom of a 14 by 9 1/4-inch oval gratin dish or glass baking dish. Strew the vegetables on top of the seafood and pour the sauce evenly over the seafood and vegetables. Spoon the crumbs evenly on top. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the top is browned and the sauce is bubbly. Serve hot.
Serves eight

Share "Savor the Moment" with Friends this Holiday Season!

I don't know about you, but I love getting homemade, baked treats around the holidays from our friends and neighbors. That's probably because we are fortunate enough to know some pretty good cooks! We look forward to delicious sticky buns from the Langfords, tasty bread from the Plamanns, we even got a stollen from Bill & Peg Emes last year that was pretty darn good! I usually make Ina Garten’s Rosemary Cashews from her “Barefoot in Paris” cookbook (one of my favorites), package them in a glass jar and tie it with a decorative, holiday ribbon. This year, however, my lucky friends and neighbors are in for a different treat: they will be receiving the famed “Savor the Moment” Magical Toffee.

Now, you may have actually had this particular confection or something similar before. Upon sampling “The Toffee” I’ve heard many people comment, “Oh, I had that at so and so’s party, luncheon, etc.” It's a mouth-watering mixture of brown sugar, chocolate, nuts and saltines (the secret ingredient), that come together in a deliciously, decadent way. In addition, it only has 5 ingredients, takes about 10 minutes to make and is pretty much foolproof. A word of caution though, this recipe has the same addictive quality as crack OR the The Real Housewives of Atlanta depending on how you roll. Be sure you have a plan to move it out of your house in a timely fashion or you will find yourself eating the whole batch! It was always the most popular sample item we served at any Savor the Moment promotional event, people would come back for thirds. I once had a lady try to copy the recipe down right in front of me – without buying the book! Thankfully, that was an isolated incident and I have included the recipe below because it is just that good.

I usually make “The Toffee” and stick it in the freezer overnight to let it set up really well. I use light brown sugar, milk chocolate chips and chopped pecans but cashews would be really nice too. In addition to the Magical Toffee, there are a few other recipes from “Savor the Moment” that would be fabulous for holiday gift giving as well:
1. Spiced Boca Nuts (pg. 66) – the coconut, curry and cayenne will have you craving these.
2. Celestial Sugar Cookies with Royal Frosting (pg. 48) – yummy and you can omit the frosting & sprinkle with sugar crystals if you prefer.
3. Poppy Seed Bread (pg. 89 ) – pour the delicious, festive almond orange glaze over the freshly baked bread.

Present your favorite hostess, friend, relative or other lucky recipient with their very own copy of “Savor the Moment” along with a sample of any of the abovementioned treats and they are sure to have a very happy holiday. I hope you enjoy making these recipes and have a very happy & healthy holiday season as well. Cheers!

To purchase copies of "Savor the Moment" please visit www.jlbr.org.

Magical Toffee
Arrange 40 saltine crackers on a foil-lined 11x17-inch baking pan. Bring 1 cup butter or margarine and 1 cup packed brown sugar to a boil in a saucepan and boil for 3 minutes. Pour over the crackers. Bake at 400 degrees for 6 minutes. Sprinkle with 12 ounces chocolate chips and let stand until softened. Spread over the top and sprinkle with 1/2 cup nuts. Place in the freezer to cool. Break into pieces and store in an airtight container.