Bonjour! It's been a little while since we flexed our French cooking muscles (after all, I did promise to shelve it for a while), but this week we decided to go back to one of our favorite cuisines! And the meal was spectacular!
Cocktail - The French 75 Cocktail
There is a little debate over the French 75. It can be made with either cognac or gin, and there seems to be controversy over which ingredient is the "true original." We made this with cognac. Drop in a couple sugar cubes, add some cognac, add some lemon juice, and top with champagne! It's that simple! (Second batch, we added a tiny bit of Grand Marnier... even better!) This is the perfect champagne cocktail for those who don't necessarily enjoy the bubbly stuff on its own. However, it sneaks up on you. Big time. (And that is why this post is in the evening and not the morning... had to nurse a wicked hangover.)
Appetizer - French Onion Soup
This is a great basic recipe, but Jennifer made some fantastic modifications. First, she used less beef broth, and more red wine. (The bottle is open, after all.) Then, she added some "better than buillon" beef base for more richness. She also included a little sherry. (Yum!) The soup was spectacular! Now here's the secret for out of this world French Onion Soup - croutons! When you use an entire slice of baguette, it gets soggy and then you're fighting with it while eating. If you use hard croutons, you'll make sure to get a piece of bread in every bite, and they'll absorb the soup while still staying crunchy! Perfection!
Appetizer Wine - Hugel Gentil 2010
Wine Spectator - 87/100
This French white took us by surprise. On the initial palate, its crisp, acidic, with a slight fruit and some mineral and stone to it. In fact, we actually called it "nondescript". There was no overpowering flavor or scent that we could really put our finger on. However, once we then paired it with the food, this nondescript wine was perfect! It brought out all the flavors in the soup and was the perfect backdrop!
Entree - Coq au Vin
There are millions of coq au vin recipes out there, so we figured we'd take one from the true pioneer of French cooking - Julia Child! And it was out of this world. So simple, so easy, so delicious! We followed the recipe to a T (although probably simmered the chicken a bit longer, we just let it sit in there and get "fall off the bone" tender). The chicken was tender, delicious, and full of dynamite flavor! What a perfect autumn dish. (And we did boil the bacon as instructed. Not sure if it made a difference, but if anyone knows why she does it that way, I'd love to know.) For the chicken, we did use 1 whole chicken, chopped into parts. (You can buy whole chicken cut up, or if you have a favorite local grocer - the butcher will usually cut one up for you - Thanks, Stew Leonards!)
Coq au Vin Cooking Wine - 2010 Josephine Dubois Bourgogne Grande Reserve
First and only rule of cooking with wine. Use a wine that is something you would drink. This French burgundy is a fantastic wine to not only cook with, but drink as well!
Side Dish - Brown Braised Onions
This recipe is in the entree recipe. Fantastic! Highlight of the dish. (We used the red wine leftover from cooking the chicken.) Can't wait to make these as a side dish for other meals!
Side Dish - Mushrooms
This recipe is also in the main entree recipe. Simple and fabulous, and a wonderful side.
Side Dish - Roasted Potatoes and Green Beans
Simple and self-explanatory. We wanted a simple veggie and starch so it didn't compete with the rich sauce.
Final Plate
Entree Wine - 2009 Vincent Girardin Bourgogne
Wine Spectator - 87/100
Okay, I have a confession. So William at Harry's Wine asked us if we would prefer a Pinot Noir or a French Burgundy with the meal. Jennifer said "burgundy all the way!" So when he hands us this bottle, I kept quiet, but the whole time kept thinking "it says Pinot Noir!" Well, apparently - French Burgundy is made from Pinot Noir grapes. But its different than your typical Pinot Noir found in Oregon. (Just shows how much I don't know about wine.) Anyways - fantastic wine! There's fabulous flavors of dark fruit and berries with a nice structured finish and soft tannins. A beautiful drinking wine!
Dessert - Bread Pudding Souffle with Whiskey Sauce
This recipe is from Commander's Palace in New Orleans, LA. You should already know that New Orleans is one of my favorite places in the US to visit, and mostly because their food is simply amazing. And when I got to enjoy lunch there on my last visit, there was no way I was going to miss out on their signature dessert. And once I had my first bite, I understood why. (It could also be the 25 cent martinis... yes, 25 cent martinis at lunch.) This was incredible! We followed the recipe exactly and it was amazing. The sauce is rather strong - if you're not a big drinker, half the whiskey. (I used Crown Royale, by the way.) Also - we found it rather sweet. Next time, we'll half the sugar overall. Regardless - make this. Now. You won't regret it.
Dessert Wine - 2005 Chateau Filhot Sauternes
Okay - this is a wonderful dessert wine. However, its very sweet, and therefore was difficult to drink with the dessert that was already sweet for our tastes. To match the dessert, we probably would have been better off with a whiskey. However, this is a fabulous wine, and we will use it for another dessert. Flavor profile - Rich and complex with crystallized orange, honey, and slight hazelnut.
Next week is the famous John and Jennifer Halloween Party. Therefore, Sunday will be spent nursing a hangover, cleaning up, and catching up on DVR'd TV shows. However, we won't leave you empty handed. Next Sunday will be about breaking out the Crock Pot and making something simple and delicious that involves almost zero effort.
Next Week - Pulled Pork Sandwiches
No comments:
Post a Comment