Recipes

Fromage Forte or “French Strong Cheese”

Fromage Forte is a special recipe I found years ago in a very old and worn French cookbook. The French call this recipe strong cheese. The cheeses can be of hard or soft varieties. Last time I made this I used leftover Brie, English Huntsman, Mozzarella, Goat Chees and Gorgonzola. This is delicious when served with either a dry white wine such as chardonnay or sauvignon blanc as well as with a full-bodied merlot or cabernet sauvignon.

3 to 4 garlic cloves, peeled

1 pound leftover pieces of cheese (trim to remove surface dryness and mold)

1/2 cup Latah Creek Chardonnay

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Place peeled garlic in bowl of food processor and process until coarsely chopped. Add cheese, wine and pepper. Process for 30-45 seconds until mixture is soft and creamy but not too smooth. Place in a crock, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.

Delicious when spread on baguette slices that have been placed under the broiler until the cheese is bubbly and served hot.

Yield: Varies

Approximate nutrition per serving: Unable to calculate due to recipe variables.

Crab Chardonnay

1/2 cup butter

4 tablespoons cornstarch

2 cans chicken broth (or 4 cups homemade chicken stock)

1 cup Latah Creek Chardonnay

1 cup dry Vermouth

4 tablespoons chopped parsley

4 tablespoons minced or pressed garlic

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons sugar

2-3 cooked large Dungeness crabs, cleaned and cracked

Before starting, be sure to pour the chef a glass of Latah Creek Chardonnay.

Melt butter in a 4-quart pan. Remove from heat and blend in cornstarch. Return butter mixture to heat and add broth, 1/2 cup chardonnay, vermouth, parsley, garlic, soy sauce, lemon juice and sugar. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add crab to hot broth, cover and simmer until heated through, about 10-15 minutes. Ladle broth and crab into large shallow bowls. Splash remaining chardonnay over hot crab, garnish with parsley sprigs and serve.

Yield: 4-6 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving (based on 4): 482 calories, 25 grams fat, 15 grams saturated, 47 percent fat calories), 18 grams protein, 21 grams carbohydrate, 114 milligrams cholesterol, less than 1 gram dietary fiber, 1,043 milligrams sodium.

Bruschetta, Bruschetta, I love Bruschetta

For the bruschetta slices:

4 slices crusty, firm-crumbed country bread, cut ½-inch thick

2 large fresh garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half

Very fruity, rich-tasting extra-virgin olive oil

For the Capri-style bruschetta topping:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 Walla Walla sweet onion, diced

2 yellow crookneck squash, diced

2 garlic cloves, diced

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes (or 2 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped)

1/2 cup Latah Creek Merlot

8 fresh basil leaves, chopped (you can add more if that is your preference)

Grill or toast bread on both sides until golden. Rub cut garlic lightly onto one side of grilled or toasted bread. Generously brush with olive oil. Set aside or serve immediately.

In medium pan sauté onions and squash in olive oil until golden, approximately 8 minutes. Add garlic stirring constantly for another minute. Add diced tomatoes and Latah Creek Merlot. Simmer until half of the liquid is absorbed. Remove from stove and cool. Add chopped basil just before serving. (You can add freshly diced tomato also – it is your preference). Serve on bruschetta slices.

Yield: 4 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: 239 calories, 9 grams fat (1.6 grams saturated, 36 percent fat calories), 5.5 grams protein, 28 grams carbohydrate, 20 milligrams cholesterol, 3 grams dietary fiber, 208 milligrams sodium.

Veal d’Moscato

2 thinly sliced veal round steaks (thinly pounded chicken breasts may be substituted for veal steaks)

4 tablespoons flour

Salt and pepper, to taste

4 sage leaves

2 slices prosciutto

3/4 cup Latah Creek Moscato d’Latah

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

¼ to 1/2 cup beef stock

Place flour on a dinner plate adding enough salt and pepper to season the flour. Layer veal slices, sage leaves, and prosciutto as follows: Top each veal slice with 2 sage leaves placed side by side in the center. Top this with a single slice of prosciutto (trim any prosciutto that overhangs the veal slices). Take toothpicks and weave through the 3 layers to secure. Place olive oil in skillet and turn heat to medium-high. Once olive oil is hot, dredge layered veal, sage, and prosciutto pieces in flour mixture and place in hot oil. Cook with veal side down first. Upon veal side turning a golden brown, turn layers over onto prosciutto side and lightly brown. Take meat out of the skillet and place onto platter. With heat still on, pour Moscato d’Latah into pan. Let wine boil while deglazing pan. This will loosen the stuck flour, etc. from pan. After a few minutes when pan is completely deglazed, add beef stock and simmer slightly. Return layered veal, sage, and prosciutto pieces to pan and warm. Remove from pan and place steaks onto platter pouring sauce over. Serve immediately.

Yield: 2 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: Unable to calculate.

Ellena’s Roasted Vegetables

I have been having so much fun experimenting with all the fabulous new salts that are now on the market. There are Sea Salts, Grey Salts, Red Salts, etc., etc., etc. I make my own concoctions all the time and they truly have been delicious. I think Mike and I are actually using less salt.

1 each red, yellow, and orange bell pepper

2 baby zucchini

1 red onion

1/2 butternut squash

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon herbed sea salt

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

11/2 tablespoons Latah Creek Sangiovese

Slice peppers, zucchini, onion, and squash into large chunks and place in bowl. Stir together garlic, sea salt, olive oil and Latah Creek Sangiovese. Pour over vegetables in bowl and mix to make sure all vegetables are coated with oil mixture. Place in roasting pan that has been lined with foil. Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 30 minutes turning vegetables every 10 minutes. Remove from oven and place on serving platter.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: 136 calories, 11 grams fat (1.5 grams saturated, 69 percent fat calories), 1.4 grams protein, 8.7 grams carbohydrate, no cholesterol, 2.4 grams dietary fiber, 578 milligrams sodium.

Lemon Riesling Cake

For the cake:

1 small package lemon Jell-O

1 cup boiling water

2/3 cup oil

4 eggs

1/4 cup Latah Creek Johannisberg Riesling

1 package Lemon Supreme Cake Mix

For the glaze:

4 tablespoons butter, melted

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon Latah Creek Johannisberg Riesling

1 cup powered sugar

Dissolve Jell-O in boiling water and cool. Blend oil, 1 egg, cooled Jell-O, wine, and cake mix. Continue to mix well, while adding the remaining eggs, one at a time. Grease a jelly roll pan lightly, line with waxed paper and then grease waxed paper. Pour cake mixture into pan and bake at 350 degrees until done (approximately) 20-30 minutes. When done, turn cake upside down. Mix glaze ingredients together and pour over hot cake. Easy to take for a picnic or tailgate party.

Yield: About 30 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: Unable to calculate.

Chocolate Merlot Rounds

1 (12-ounce) package vanilla wafer cookies

1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa

1 cup pecans

1/4 cup dark corn syrup

1/2 cup Latah Creek Merlot

About 1/2 cup powdered sugar

In food processor combine cookies, cocoa and pecans. Whirl until reduced to fine crumbs; pulse for several seconds. Add corn syrup and merlot. Continue until well blended, approximately 15 seconds. Using your hands, form dough into 1-inch balls; roll in powdered sugar. Serve, or store airtight up to 1 month; for longer storage, freeze up to 2 months. Just before serving, roll balls in more powdered sugar if a white snowball effect is desired. Serve while sipping Latah Creek Merlot. (This could also be made with Cabernet Sauvignon – whichever is your favorite.)

Yield: About 4 dozen rounds

Approximate nutrition per serving (2 rounds): 121 calories, 5.7 grams fat (less than 1 gram saturated, 40 percent fat calories), 1 gram protein, 17 grams carbohydrate, 8 milligrams cholesterol, 1.3 grams dietary fiber, 49 milligrams sodium.