Want Some Squash Soup, Pumpkin?

Today was one of those perfect fall days that was equal parts productive and relaxing.  Actually, that's a blatant lie.  Dave is off on Long Island probably tasting his 32nd wine as I write this and I spent my morning running errands, cleaning and getting ready for a wine tasting I worked this afternoon.  Finally, I am at home with the candles lit and settling in to catch my faithful blog followers up while I sip a glass of Nero D'Avola.  Ain't no better way to spend a Saturday night if you ask me.

A couple of weeks ago Dave's best friend Alexis was celebrating her birthday along with about 60 guests at her family's seaside country abode.  Dave and his brilliant mind decided he wanted to make a whole lot of something and put it in a big pumpkin!  There was going to be quite a few vegan guests at this event, so a soup of squash and root vegetables that skipped on the animal product but not on the flavor seemed to be the perfect solution.  Enter the recipe below and the festive presentation and you've got yourself an edible party favor folks!

Surprisingly, this pumpkin was relatively easy to carve given it's size (keep in mind we had to have enough soup for 60) and after a few capacity tests using water we were ready to go.  Please note, we did NOT travel with the soup in the pumpkin...use tupperware to transport and just pour into your pumpkin upon arrival at your destination.  Naturally, we almost had no pumpkin to host our soup as Dave was loading it into the car and it nearly slid off the trunk...yes, I know...he needs to stick only to the cooking.

Regardless, it was hit and so we've decided to share it with all of you.  See below for the Curried Squash and Root Vegetable Soup a la Dave!  If you are not vegan then feel free to throw in your fair share of cream and butter to this and make it REALLY creamy!

Pick up your favorite Chardonnay or Pinot Noir for this, sit back and enjoy the rave reviews from your friends on your festive and creative presentation!

2 Large sweet Potatoes

2 medium Butternut Squash

2 onions

3 carrots

4 parsnips

½ cup orange juice

2 tablespoons curry powder

2 qt vegetable or chicken stock

Cream (optional)

Salt to taste and parsley to garnish

Optional Topping:  Crème Fraiche and toasted pumpkin seed oil

Place everything in a big pot. If there is not enough liquid to totally cover the vegetables add some water. Bring the entire conundrum to a boil, then reduce to a simmer until the vegetables are very tender, about 40 minutes or so. Then use an immersion blender (or regular blender or food processor) to make it allllll creamy and smooth. Season with salt to taste and add a dash of cream and/or butter if you like. 

To serve it in a big pumpkin, just cut the top off the pumpkin and scoop everything out. Then you just pour the soup in, and put the top back on. If you have any pumpkin meat or pumpkin puree, you can add this to the soup as well when you add the other vegetables.

Bravo Dave, bravo!

Cheers!

September Goings On

The fall equinox is officially upon us!   I'm sitting in my dining room on a beautiful Saturday morning with a mug of hot breakfast tea and some toast...my Grammy would be proud.  Before I begin on what I know you're all waiting anxiously to hear about, I'd like to wish Dave's best friend Alexis a very happy birthday today!  Alexis was responsible for the 'Summer In A Glass' post when we first started this blog and I look forward to celebrating with her later.

The last you heard from me on the seasons I was near tears over the impending end of summer.  I'm happy to report that I'm over it now.  I've breathed autumn in, accepted it and moved on.  Fall in New England after all is for many the absolute best season to visit here and is a very close second to summer for me.  Everything quintessential about the fall season is here--foliage, warm fall days with cool fall nights that will soon give way to crisp days and cold nights, fires, pumpkin and apple ciders (and muffins, coffees, lattes, beers...you name it), mums and hayrides at almost every rustic New England farm you come across.

I've been out and about in my little city quite a bit these last few weeks.  I will say, I've been enjoying the ability to walk everywhere without needing to change my shirt upon arrival at my destination due to the bucket of perspiration that's come out of me from the heat.  I was on my way to a Genever tasting the other night (I know I know, what the heck is Genever...blog on that to follow) and it was perfect walking weather.  I walked past the skaters in Kennedy Plaza and soon smelled the beginnings of a busy night for Haven Bros., just gearing up for the evening to the tune of Pink Floyd.  I strolled into Symposium Books down on Westminster and ducked into Eno Fine Wines to browse.  The last of the movie nights outside was setting up and people were everywhere...shopping, eating and just enjoying a beautiful Thursday evening in Providence, reminding me that the best way to experience this town is on foot so you don't miss anything.

I attended the Rennaisance Wine Festival at the same Kennedy Plaza a couple of weeks earlier and navigated my way through the 200 wines onsite to try some fantastic Pouilly Fuisses, California Cabernets and Chardonnays, some Lambrusco and Pinot Noir.  I also caught a couple of chef demonstrations by the head chef at Constantino's on Federal Hill and Cafe Nuovo.  Once I had sufficiently tasted I moseyed on over to Westminster Street to meet a friend at Providence Coal Fired Pizza (www.providencecoalfirepizza.com), one of my favorite new spots due to their fantastic cocktails and specialty pizzas.  This is no ordinary pizza here folks!  We enjoyed a meal of baked goat cheese, pork rib appetizer and a clam pizza with littlenecks, potatoes and onions.  

Attention ladies and gay men--their cucumber cosmopolitan is amazing and I highly recommend it to wash down your grub.  If you are a straight man you should not drink that...ever.  Lucky for you they have plenty of straight man friendly cocktails as well.

Later that week I worked an industry tasting put on by MS Walker at the Westin and was fortunate enough to pour for Vin Divino wines.   Vin Divino is a wine importer from Italy and has a fantastic portfolio, mostly Italian obviously which is right in my sweet spot but they also have a few greats from other regions.  Among the wines I poured was a Gavi, Prosecco, Nero d'Avola, Merlot, Montepulciano, Sangiovese, Gruner Veltliner, Sauvignon Blanc and a Fallanghina.  Not a bad job if you ask me, and the tasting showcased spirits as well so there were fantastic tequilas, whiskeys, and vodkas to boot.

Finally, I hit up a beer tasting at Bottles on the east side yesterday after work.  The Sebago Brewing Company came down from Maine and those nice folks let us taste their Frye's Leap IPA, Boathouse Brown, Local Harvest Ale and Bourbon Barrel Aged Stout.  I'm not a huge beer drinker so when I like a beer it's gotta be pretty good, and these were pretty good.  If you're a Rhody, you can find their brews at Bottles and many of the Douglas stores.

Today I'm headed to an oyster festival hosted by Hemenway's, the best seafood restaurant here in Providence and sponsored by the Ronald McDonald House.  Narragansett Beer will be flowing and I will continue enjoying the brand new autumn season.

Anyone seen Dave?

Cheers,
Trish

Top Ten Wines For Ten Dollars

Happy Hump Day!

This is a quick mid week post, courtesy of The Wine Enthusiast, posted on their Facebook page today. Everyone is always looking for bargains on wine that doesn't taste like jug juice, and I've tried most of these so I think it will meet your approval.  Keep these in mind as we come into cocktail party and gift season so you don't break the bank!

http://www.winemag.com/Wine-Enthusiast-Magazine/Web-2012/Septembers-Top-10-Under-10/

Dave and I are headed to a gin tasting put on by the Providence Wine Academy tomorrow, so stay tuned for that.  We know how much Dave likes his gin, hopefully he can walk out of there.

Cheers!
Trish

Grapes With Dinner Goes Big Time!

Okay...well granted the owner of the shop that asked us to co-host a wine tasting is a friend of Dave's.  And sure, it was a small event in the little seaside town of Warren, RI...not really Times Square or even Wayland Square for that matter.  BUT it was the first time our name was in print and it was exciting!

Katie is the owner of a great shop in Warren on Water Street called the Wooden Midshipman (http://woodenmidshipman.blogspot.com/).  Water Street is quickly on it's way to becoming a premier East Bay destination with it's shops and restaurants paired with a fantastic water view.  The Wooden Midshipman carries local art and photography, books, jewelry, clothing, home decor, you name it that make perfect gifts for either yourself or someone in your life...I wanted one of everything!  If you're in the area be sure to stop by and check it out, I guarantee you don't leave empty handed.

Katie invited in the owner of a wine distributor called Sage Cellars for a complimentary wine tasting this past Thursday.  Jessie Sgro brought with him a 2011 Arbor Hill Riesling from the Finger Lakes region in upstate NY, as well as a Rose and a Chardonnay from Hendry Ranch Wines in Napa Valley, one of the oldest in that region having had it's beginning in 1939.  She asked Dave and I to be on hand to answer questions and she featured a few of our recommend wine reads in the store as well.

Let's start with the Riesling.  Not typically a Riesling drinker, I was pleasantly surprised by this clean, balanced, not "sickly sweet" wine.  It was great to see Germanic grapes being harvested so well in upstate New York to create a Riesling of this quality.  For those of you that say "I like sweet" this is a great wine to segue way you to some different flavors and varietals because you'll still get that sweetness that naturally comes in a Riesling but this is a semi dry wine that will prevent overkill.  If you are indulging in Chinese food or other Asian cuisine pour yourself a glass of this, it won't disappoint.

Next up is the Hendry Rose...bravo on this one, bravo.  I love a Rose in the summer as you all probably know by now.  This Rose is made with both Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon and is just exceptional...refreshing with notes of red fruit.  Serve this chilled with zesty marinated meats, garlic flavors, bleu cheese.  Dave would like to add that Rose should be served with colorful foods, so be sure to take note of that.  With the pink hue of the wine and bright vegetables and fruits in dishes, it does make for a much more fun plate.

As much as you know I like Rose in the summer, you likely know by now how much I loved an oaked Chardonnay, however, I have been experiencing a bit of a transition in recent months.  Unoaked Chardonnays have been grabbing my attention more and more these days, and the Chardonnay Jesse served this night was no exception.  This is entirely fermented in stainless steel with no malolactic fermentation incorporated into the process.  The result is a clean, crisp wine that is lighter in body than an oaked Chardonnay and has flavors of citrus and green apple.  This wine can take you right through fall cuisine as well--your roasts, stews, etc.  If you're not a red wine drinker this one will do you just fine.

You can pick up these great wines at Brickyard or Grapes and Grains in Barrington, RI, all extremely reasonably priced.  We hope to see Jesse again soon!

For our vegetarian reader that came from Middleboro, MA, we have a fabulous portobello mushroom dish we're trying out this week for you to pair with a Merlot (of course we'll be trying that as well so as to provide you with the best possible information we can....er...yeah, that's why).

Thanks again Katie, we'll be seeing you soon!!!

Dave and Trish

Labor Day Crab and Blues

Happy Labor Day to all of you!  I hope your summers were good and you're gearing up for fall.  I for one am having a bit of a bittersweet Labor Day...or maybe just bitter.  I had a fantastic summer with a lot of beach time, good summer foods and wine.  I'm not ready to let it go yet!  As I sit here finally catching up on a few posts we've had in the works I'm sipping a rose and mourning the inevitable departure of my betrothed, summer.  Yup, I've replaced dates with seasons...you can do that.

Yesterday Dave and I headed to the beach on what was another beautiful summer day here in New England.  Once Dave hit his sun quota, we went over to Bristol to get some blogs written while we downed some white wine and munchies.  This isn't a bad way to spend a Sunday if you ask me.

Dave had made a corn and crab chowder the previous weekend on the Cape and really wanted to share it with you all but needed a good white wine to suggest you pair it with.  It's a tough job to research that, but someone's gotta do it.  We picked up two to try, a 2010 Corvo Insolia from Sicily and a 2010 Remy Pannier Vouvray from the famed Loire Valley in France.  Both of these wines were less than $20, so don't let the fancy names scare you off.

We started with the Vouvray, which is made from a grape called Chenin Blanc.  Both of these wines are great summer whites, so those of you that like to sip on wine in warmer weather will likely be pleased with either, though they have very different flavor profiles.  The Vouvray tastes of peach, honey, flowers and golden apples.  There's some sweetness to this wine but it finishes dry and it's pale color should not lead you to believe it's too delicate to stand up to food, such is not the case!  Go ahead and enjoy this with your saltier summer spreads--cheeses, meats, grilled pizzas.

The Corvo Insolia also delivered with it's smells and tastes of white peach, pear, honeysuckle, melon and green apple.  The grape Inzolia is local to Sicily and Dave and I both remarked on how Sicily doesn't carry the great reputation for wine as other cities and regions in Italy so it was good to see them representing with this.  This is not a citrus-y wine which can be a nice deviation from some of the "usual whites" we see in summer.  It's quick on the finish and medium bodied, which means you can serve it with your seafood or poultry dishes and likely have yourself a lovely little experience.

In the end, the Vouvray won out as the best match for Dave's chowder, recipe below.  The sweetness in the wine we felt would marry well with the corn in this dish, and the weight of the wine could stand up to the heartiness of a chowder.  Either way, we thoroughly enjoyed both as we watched the sun start to set on the Narragansett Bay on the unofficial end to summer (I am literally crying as I write this).  

Run out and get the last of the delicious summer corn to whip this up and pay a proper homage to the end of the season!

Dave's Corn and Crab Chowder:

12 ears of corn (or 2 bags frozen) boiled for a few minutes, it doesn't need to be cooked through 

1+ lb. of crab (Dave wants me to make sure you know he hand harvested his on the Cape...so there you have it) dungeness, jonah or lump NO IMITATION crab meat here...or ever really

2 medium or 1 large onion, diced

4 stalks of celery, diced

3 bell peppers--color is up to you, Dave used one each green, red, yellow--he likes color

4 diced red bliss potatoes

3 strips of GOOD bacon--render this, dice it up and then throw your diced onion, celery and peppers into the bacon fat and sauté them.  

2 boxes of your favorite chicken stock (or your homemade stuff)--heat this up  to a quick boil then throw your potatoes in until they're tender.

A bundle of a few sprigs of fresh Thyme and 2 Bay leaves--if you have them dry and don't feel like running out to get fresh just do a healthy pinch of the thyme--put this into your stock and potatoes now.

Add in the corn and the crab

TEMPER in 1/2 pint of heavy cream--temper because you don't want it to separate and get chunky (blech)...so whisk in just a little at a time 

Add 1/2 stick of butter and let this all come together...a little salt and pepper to taste or if you like it HOT feel free to add your cayenne, tobasco or whatever your weapon of choice now

For summer everywhere--Dave and Trish

Trish and Dave's Awesome Adventure

This is a great time of year in my opinion.  We're deep into summer where everyone's had the opportunity to sink into it and take a big bite.  This time of year some start complaining of the heat and you start seeing the back to school specials.  For me, I want time to literally stand still...preferably at a moment when I'm on a beach looking out at the Atlantic with a cooler by my side.  The sleepy summer month of August will be here momentarily and I am savoring as much of summer as I can.  Actually, we both are...so while we have some good wine posts coming up we wanted to share with you some of what's been keeping us from blogging:

First, we had to celebrate the 4th of July (Dave chose to do this with a little too much bourbon, preventing us from attending the infamous Bristol RI 4th of July parade the next morning)Luckily there was a cookout at his parent's fabulous waterfront home to distract me.

In New England, summer means seafood...any time of year means seafood really.  Dave and I are both huge fans of a good raw bar and there are some great local oysters to be had in these parts.  We took a trip (the first for both of us) down to Matunuck Oyster Bar  (www.rhodyoysters.com) to taste their variety of locally sourced crustaceans.  It just so happened East Matunuck Beach was around the corner and it was yet another beautiful beach day.  After we stuffed ourselves with oysters, Sauvignon Blanc and fried clams we meandered on down to sit it off in our beach chairs :)

There's a great little getaway just an hour's ferry ride from Point Judith here in RI, and it's called Block Island.  It's one of my favorite places on earth and is home to about 1,000 people year round.  The island measures approximately 10 square miles in area but don't let it's size fool you!  This island is stuffed with many beautiful beaches, cliffs, houses and tons of great places to eat shop and drink.  Sign me up!  We took a trip with our mothers this past Saturday and made the most of a day on the Block.

Oh yeah...we did attend another fine tasting put on by Eno Fine Wines and the Providence Wine Academy.  Here's a little pictorial preview until Dave and I get our act together enough to post about the favorites we tried.  Happy drinking!

We hope you're enjoying your summer as much as we are ours.  Cheers!

Dave and Trish

Summer Corn and Tomato Salad with a side of Sancerre

By now you all know how much David loves his French wine, with Sancerre ranking amongst his favorites.  Also, any of you ladies who have been indulging in a little Fifty Shades this summer should recognize this wine as well.  This is a white from the Loire Valley in France known for it's sauvignon blanc wines.  To be clear, sauvignon blanc is the grape, Sancerre is the region and it's the region, with it's soil and climate, that gives it the nice little spin separating it from the rest of the world's sauvignon blanc wines.  There's great balance to this wine and you'll get subtle notes of fruit, floral and mineral from it.

Because the flavors in this wine are more shy than outgoing it has a reputation for being very food friendly and is a great pairing with some of summer's best fresh vegetables.  I picked up locally sourced Point Judith sea scallops at Dave's Market the other night and needed a nice side to go with it that was both light and flavorful.  Lucky for me the farm stand near my house had some corn ready due to a great early growing season.  I selected some lovely looking cherry tomatoes from the same stand and headed on home to create a delicious summer meal.

This was a throw together meal as I didn't really have a set plan in my head...I just started cooking and whatever came of it was what it was.  I halved the cherry tomatoes and cut the corn from the cob, tossed it with some red wine vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, salt, petter and parsley along with some finely diced shallots.  You could grill the corn before adding it to give it a nice smoky flavor.  Toss this all together and even add some cubed ciabatta bread for a summer panzanella if you so fancy.

The scallops I seasoned with salt and pepper and then seared them on both sides in olive oil with a squeeze of fresh lemon.  I felt like they needed a little something extra so I reduced down some balsamic vinegar with agave nectar, a natural sweetener I've been into lately, and drizzled it right over them.

What should you expect to pay for this Sancerre I speak of you ask?  Well, Dave's favorite is the Lucien Crochet and you can get it for around $35, nothing earth shattering.  For about $22 you can pick up the 2010 Joseph Mellot, a less expensive bottle that's on our list to try.  Put a nice chill on it and enjoy!

Cheers,
Trish and Dave