French wines

This delicious Syrah is from France.  Dennis Kohl recommended it and Dianne and I sampled while prepping appetizers for our Thanksgiving eve event. Super delicious.  Dianne described it as being soft in her mouth.

This Cabernet Franc is very earthy and tastes of mushrooms.

Very tasty French Rose.

Thanksgiving menu, 2015, 2016 & 2017

I start Thanksgiving morning making pies.  3 go to the church and 2 stay home. Such a fun way to start the day. A stop at the grocery store and then on to the dressing, then the turkey goes in the oven. Next up is the sweet potatoe casserole and the cranberry relish. Whew!

•  10# organic turkey, followed this dry brine recipe.  http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-dry-brine-a-turkey-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-212426
• Note from 2016. I used the same dry brine and then roasted the turkey upside down. It turned out very moist, just like they said in this recipe http://allrecipes.com/recipe/21422/upside-down-turkey/
• New dressing recipe, cranberry, sausage and apple stuffing http://allrecipes.com/recipe/9115/cranberry-sausage-and-apple-stuffing/ I love this and will make it again. Next time I want to add chestnuts in honor of my mom.😇
• Raw corn and radish salad with spicy lime dressing. http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/raw-corn-and-radish-salad-with-spicy-lime-dressing This is fantastic. I used black radishes so it was also very beautuful. I will definitely make this again.
• Sweet potato casserole is a must include at my Thanksgiving dinner.
• In 2016 I used the cranberry salsa as my side and love it. Mike had his favorite, jellied cranberries from a can.
• Cranberry relish. This was a new recipe via Claire and the folks at Silver Stag Winery. I so want to test their wine. Mama Parsley's Cranberry Compote:

2 cups fresh cranberries

1 cup sugar

3 tbsp orange juice

¼ tsp cinnamon

½ tsp vanilla

Cook in medium pan for approximately 5-7 minutes. 

When berries start to pop, mash together. 

Cool and serve.

• Apple pie for Mike. First thing on Thanksgiving morning I make pies for the church Thanksgiving dinner. Fun. Then a pie for Mike and then the dressing and finally the turkey.

Mike and I went for a walk after dinner. Light snow falling. Very beautiful. Feeling blessed. Missed the presence of family but enjoyed the quiet especially after a hectic fall of moving. Peace.

Thanksgiving Eve Tapas event (2015)

Mike and I enjoyed the company of good friends on Thanksgiving eve. Thanks Penny and Jan for joining us.  My good friend Dianne assisted in preparations the day before.  That too is a fun event accompanied as well by good wine. A big thank you to Claire Dailey for wine and food pairing ideas, co-owner of Nov & Somm

Below is the menu.

Below is a photo of the wines served. I absolutely loved the champagne. I purchased the Muscat Canelli especially for Jan as she likes sweet wine.  The Girasole was recommended by Dennis Kohl from Cellar 70.  For a sweet wine, this was actually good and did pair well with blue cheese.  Thank you Brian Page Page Wine Cellars and Revolver Wine Co for making amazing wine. The cab was delicious and the Petit Syrah dessert wine was fantastic.  Claire, you were right, champagne does go well with something salty.  The popcorn with truffle salty was fabulous. I forgot to add to the list above, a fantastic sweet dip that Jan provided. It's delicious with fresh veggies.

I big thanks to my friend Dianne who came over on Tuesday afternoon to prep and sample wine, of course. Dianne brought the sweet potato hummus which had a little kick.

I tried a new empanada dough recipe from Ruth Riechle.  It has many stages but is a great thing to do while talking and sipping wine. The result is a beautifully flaky crust.  We opened an amazing Syrah from France, also recommended by Dennis Kohl.

Notes for the future.  I did not like the tomato Ginger jam or maybe it just didn't pair well with the empanadas. I loved the shrimp cocktail and will be capturing the cool way the shrimp were cooked.  The empanadas are delicious but SOOOOO time consuming to make.  Below is my first batch.  I need to make the slits deeper. The good news is that I made extra and froze them for our Christmas tapas event.

Creamy wild rice soup slow cocker

http://www.littlespicejar.com/creamy-chicken-wild-rice-soup-slow-cooker/

granola from Sower and the Seed

Here's our granola:

3 c. rolled oats

1/4 c. whole wheat flour

3/4 c. coconut--flaked or shredded

3/4 c. sliced almonds

1/2 t. cinnamon (we add lots more)

1/2 c. maple syrup/honey/or agave

1/3 c. oil

1 t. cinnamon (we add more of this, too)

Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl.  Heat the oil and maple syrup and vanilla, pour over the dry ingredients and mix well.  Put one layer onto a cookie sheet and toast at 300 degrees, turning once.  Toast until granola is as golden as you like it.  Remove from oven, cool, stirring once or twice to reduce clumping.  Store in an airtight container.  Great as a gift!!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins!

Here, as promised, is the recipe for one of our most popular baked items, our Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins!  Our granola recipe follows.  Next email we will have more of our recipes for you.

1 1/2 c. flour

1 c. sugar

1 t. baking soda

1 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. cloves

1/4 t. allspice

1/4 t. salt

Mix all dry ingredients together, then add:

2 beaten eggs

1 c. canned pumpkin

1/2 c. melted butter

1 c. chocolate chips

Blend til moistened.  Bake in greased muffin tins of whatever size you choose.  350 degrees, 20-25 minutes

Recipe from Sower and the Seeed. October 2015

Winter Minestrone and Garlic Bruschetta Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/winter-minestrone-and-garlic-bruschetta-recipe.html?soc=socialsharingfb&oc=linkback