In an effort to get Sam on board with the Supper Club concept, Michelle and I wooed her with food. I’d normally dance to some Outkast, maybe “Pony” by Ginuwine, but pulled a hamstring recently.
My friend Michelle Leroux, PR goddess of the Sea to Sky and Flower Farmer (Bandit Blooms), among many other talents and tricks and I had talked a few times now, over drinks, about doing a supper club that would feature our amazing local farmers here, what we can grow, breed, etc. I’ve always wanted to do this with wine pairings to introduce fun, lesser-known wines to folks and how they complement the food. In comes Samatha Rahn, former Wine Director at Araxi, VIWF Somm of the Year, overall fancy pants in wine world up here. Sam’s s good friend of my good friend Dom (it’s who you know) so this was the perfect opportunity to invite her over and see if we could work together on this.
I gave Sam the menu in advance, Michelle donated some product from Bandit Farms (chicken, cauliflower, etc) and I supplemented from my garden and refrigerator full of our own meat. Voila! Instant party and of course, my husband Chris showed up just as we were sitting down. By the end of it (and getting her sufficiently buzzed I think) Sam was in. Off we go!
First Course: Hamachi sashimi, nectarine, marcona almond, jalapeño
Click image for recipe.
I learned about “composed” sashimi dishes back when I worked with the Uchi group in Austin. They are an easy way for you to make something DELICIOUS that seems difficult but is super easy. You will need to find a reputable fish monger to buy sashimi grade fish, but after that, you just come up with flavour combinations that results in a “wow” moment that didn’t take you any time at all. I normally try to include the following: 1) The fish (sharpen your knife before you slice); 2) fruit or some fresh but sweet element - think orange, raspberry, apple…whatever is in season; 3) crunch (to break up the texture) so a nut of some kind, maybe a seed or fish roe; and 4) the basics (olive oil, sea salt and a ponzu or soy of some kind).
PAIRING: Sam paired this with the Clos du Soleil, Fumé Blanc. They are a small artisan winery on the Upper Bench of the South Simikameen Valley here in B.C. It was a beautiful pairing. With this specific dish, you could also do a German riesling (since this is on the spicy side with the pepper). One of my favourite producers is Egon Muller. Sake of course, would be GREAT. Konteki “Tears of Dawn” as some tropical fruit with a clean finish or my STRONG recommendation if you can find it is Toko Ginga Shizuku Junmai Daiginjo “Divine Droplets”. It’s made in an igloo on Japan’s northern most island! I don’t need to drop tasting notes here, just drink it. It’s all in the name.
Second Course: Stuffed Squash Blossom with mozzarella & anchovy.
Click on image for recipe.
Full disclosure, the picture above is not from this dinner but from a batch I made in 2016 at my sister’s in Arkansas. It’s just a better photo and let’s be honest, I am just trying to get this blog ball rollin’. :) If you grow squash in the summer, please, I beg you, USE THE SQUASH BLOSSOMS! They are so much fun. Fry them as I have done, sauté them, throw them in a quiche or pasta dish. Whatever…”Nose to tail” even for plants - as long as they are edible. These are beautiful and tasty.
PAIRING: We kept rolling with the Fumé Blanc but you can always do a champagne or some good bubbles with fried foods. Plus it will classy up your dish. Even Nicki Minaj looks a bit more…um, sophisticated standing next to Ben Kingsley - by way of example.
Third Course: Chicken & Salami Agnolotti, Garlic Scape Pesto, Crispy Chicken Skin.
Click on image for recipe.
This was as good as it sounds like it should have been. My first foray into stuffed pasta and it was totally worth it (as long as you aren’t cooking for too many people with no helpers). If you don’t want to make your own pasta or don’t want to individually create these precious little pain in the asses, you can just use store bought linguine and skip the step where I drop the chicken in the food processor. As for the crispy chicken skin, it was so easy to do and I got the recipe from Bon Appétit HERE. Once again, nose to tail veggies as well….if you grow garlic (and if you can in your environment, you should) USE YOUR GARLIC SCAPES! They make amazing pesto, and you can pickle them for fancy bloody marys (or Caesars as they have here in B.C.).
PAIRING: Sam brought the Brancaia 2019 Rosé for this one. Tuscany, 100% merlot. Just like this dish, the wine was summer in a bottle with notes of strawberry and even some grassy notes to go with the scapes.
Fourth Course: Pork loin, cheddar cauliflower purée, chimichurri.
Click on image for recipe.
Do yourself a favour. Buy a sous vide machine, especially if you make a decent amount of meat but for veggies too. It will make your life easier, while making you look like a genius. As the millennials say “ Work smarter, not harder”. I have an anova and it’s not expensive. DO IT. Then you can cook pork loin medium rare, as it should be, safely. Completely pasteurized. And you never have to worry about overcooking anything as long as you follow temperature and time suggestions. Then what can I say for chimichurri? I managed an Argentine band for 8 years. They were amazing musicians, songwriters, performers. I totally adopted their Buenos Aires via LA culture and one of the best souvenirs they gave me was this. You can make it in 5 minutes, keep in refrigerator for a month and it makes everything but ice cream taste better. Plus it’s healthy - just parsley, oregano, garlic, red pepper, red wine vinegar and olive oil. There you have the recipe. ;)
PAIRING: Bodega LANZAGA Rioja 2012 (I believe). The spice and cherry of the wine went great with the pork and garlic in the chimi. You could also do a younger, fruity Burgundy, cru Beaujolais or a good, new world Pinot Noir. Littorai (Ted and Heidi Lemon) is my only true love Producer in California from the Sonoma Coast. They don’t have large releases but the price is worth it if you come across any of their stuff.
And the finale: Strawberry spoon cake with goat’s milk ice cream.
Click on image for ice cream recipe.
Some friends of ours had “too many strawberry plants”. WHO SAYS THAT? HOW CAN YOU HAVE TOO MANY STRAWBERRIES”? Anyways, beyond me considering them slightly mental, they generously let us pick some plants up. We put them in the ground a few years ago and they FINALLY came through for us and then some. So beyond freezing them daily, as I continue to stockpile for the apocalypse (meaning incase a certain unnamed, demented orange man stays around - I know I technically no longer live in this unnamed country but technically the mist of that spray tan makes it’s way all over the world). I digress….. So I decided to try this recipe I saw in the NYT. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery but it’s also how to develop your own ideas (HELLO! Picasso mastered all styles of painting before he came up with cubism). I digress again…and definitely am no Picasso, but if we keep aiming for the stars, maybe we make it to the moon. :) This was delicious. And again, EASY. The ice cream recipe here is my own. I always use goat’s milk for ice cream for two reasons: #1 It gives your ice cream an earthier flavour that I find wonderful but that most folks will not pinpoint and #2 I’m lactose intolerant and goat’s milk is much easier for humans to digest that cow’s milk. MIND BLOW.
PAIRING: I was pretty buzzed at this point so we abandoned a pairing (or I don’t remember it! YIKES if that is the case). But on a normal day, I’d say sauternes. If you don’t know it, don’t read up on it. Drink it first. The mold part might confuse you. :)