Weekend of April 10th and 12th

Saturday, April 10th
Belle Marie Winery
Eat & Drink Wine for the Health of it!
2-4pm - Interactive course that pairs healthy food with wine. 
http://www.bellemarie.com/index.html

Sunday, April 11th
West Steak Seafood & Spirits
Sunday Supper
5-9pm - 3 course meal for two.
http://www.weststeakandseafood.com/

Green Thai Curry Chicken with Roasted Carrots

You can also use this same technique on a whole chicken, turkey, game hens, etc. Just alter cooking time accordingly. The curry gives this dish a bit of heat.


2 tbps unsalted softened butter
3 garlic cloves, minced
4 tsp green curry paste
4 tsp ginger, minced
3 tsp lime juice
skin-on, boneless chicken breasts
baby carrots
olive oil
salt and pepper for seasoning

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Combine butter, garlic, curry, ginger and lime juice and mix together. Season with salt and pepper. Loosen skin on chicken and rub curry mixture under the skin of each chicken breast. Finish chicken by rubbing remaining amount on top of chicken. Place chicken on a roasting pan. You will need a roasting pan with a rack.

Place carrots in a baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Please chicken on middle rack and place carrots on bottom rack in the oven.

Bake in 10 minute increments for about 30 minutes. In between 10 minute increments, take carrots out and toss to keep coated with olive oil. This will help them stay moist.

Serve and ENJOY!!!!

Wine pairing.........Viognier or Chardonnay.

Pesto Pasta with Roasted Asparagus, Shallots, Red Bell Pepper and Pancetta

This one scored high with the family. This recipe is a nice spring time meal. Easy to cook. Serve with garlic bread and/or a nice mixed green salad.

Cavatappi Pasta
1 lb Asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces
3 Garlic Cloves, coursely chopped
1 Red Bell Pepper, cut into 1 inch strips
3 Shallots, halved and then quartered
1 4oz package of diced Pancetta
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper for seasoning
Packaged or fresh made pesto (I used Trader Joe's brand pesto from the cooler section of the store. I think it is the best packaged pesto around).
Shredded Paremsan for garnish (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees. On a large baking sheet, toss asparagus, red bell pepper, shallots, onions and garlic, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for about 15 minutes, tossing every 5 minutes or so.

Meanwhile, start cooking water to bring to boil for pasta. Don't forget to season your water with salt. Once water is boiling, cook pasta according to package directions.

Add pancetta to roasting vegetables, toss and continue to roast while water finishes boiling and pasta cooks. Besure to toss vegetables every 5 minutes or so.

Once pasta is done, place pasta in a large bowl and toss with pesto. Once completelty coated, add roasted vegetables and toss until mixed nicely. Garnish with shredded parmesan (optional) and sever and ENOY!!!!

Wine pairing......Chianti or a Barbera.

Fish Tacos

Sorry for the not so great picture. This was a difficult one to snap a picture of, especially with it being a soft taco style. This scored 10 out of 10 with the family. They loved it.

Olive Oil
1 White Onion (half of it quartered and half of it coarsely chopped)
1 Whole Garlic Clove
2 Medium Tomatoes, Quartered
1/2 Red Bell Pepper, Quartered
1 Habanero, Seeded
Salt and Pepper for Seasoning
White Fish Cut into Large Chunks (I used Halibut)
Southwest Seasoning
3 Bacon Slices
Taco Size Tortillas (I used whole wheat tortillas)

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Put bacon on baking sheet and bake until crispy and completely cooked, mixing frequently to make sure it cooks evenly. Once bacon is cooked, let it rest on a paper towel. Once cooled, crumble bacon and set aside for garnish.

While bacon is cooking, prepare salsa. In a food processor (I used a mini one for this job), combine quartered onion portion, tomato, red bell pepper, habanero, garlic, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Process until completely chopped, almost a puree texture but kind of chunky. Or just process until it is the texture you prefer.

Wrap tortillas in foil and place in the oven to warm them.

Turn oven up to the broil setting. Drain bacon fat off of baking sheet. Place fish and onions (coarsely chopped portion) on baking sheet and season with salt, pepper and southwest seasoning. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil. Toss to coat.

Broil fish for about 5 minutes. Toss fish and onions, trying not to break up to much. Broil for an additional 5 minutes (about, may depend on your oven). Be sure not to overcook the fish, you will have to keep checking on it.

Once fish is cooked take out tortillas. Top tortillas with fish and onion mixture, salsa and some crumbled bacon. Serve and ENJOY!!!!

Beverage pairing......what goes best of course, a nice cold one. Great with a Pacifica (or Mexican beer of your choice).

Sunday Supper - Tomato and Bacon Sauce with Pasta

This is great served with garlic bread or a nice mixed green salad.

Olive Oil
6 Slices of Diced Bacon
1 Diced Red Onion
3 Minced Garlic Cloves
Red Pepper Flakes
1 - 28 oz Diced Tomatoes
Salt and Pepper for Seasoning
Pasta (of your choice, I prefer smaller pasta like penne or orecchiette)
Shredded Parmesan for Garnish

Cook bacon until crisp and completely done. Remove bacon and discard bacon fat.

Begin bringing water to boil for pasta. Don't forget to season your water with salt.

In the same sauté pan that you cooked the bacon in, drizzle with olive oil. Add onions, season with salt and pepper and sauté until beginning to caramelize. Add garlic and season with red pepper flakes. Continue to sauté for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently so garlic does not burn. Add diced tomatoes and keep sautéing and stirring frequently.

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Once pasta is fully cooked add to a large bowl and mix in tomato and bacon sauce. Serve garnished with shredded parmesan and ENJOY!!!!

Wine pairing......Sangiovese.

Ale Sausage and Red Potatoes

If you enjoy ale beer, you will like this dish. The sauce gives the dish a nice rich ale taste. The red potatoes provide a nice creamy texture that soak up the sauce.

Olive Oil
Italian Sweet Sausages
1 Diced Yellow Onion
3 Minced Garlic Cloves
1 Bottle of Ale Beer (I used a Fat Tire Ale)
Red Potatoes, Quartered
Salt and Pepper for Seasoning
Chopped Cilantro for Garnish

Heat non-stick sauté pan over medium-high heat. Drizzle with olive oil. Add sausages and sauté until brown on all sides. Remove sausages and place in a bowl to rest.

Add onion and season with salt and pepper and sauté (stirring frequently) for about 10 minutes. You want the onions to start to brown and begin to caramelize. Add garlic and sauté for another 5 minutes. Add potatoes and beer and cook for about 20 minutes under a medium simmer.

Add sausages and any juice from when the sausages were resting. Cover and reduce heat to a light simmer and cook for an additional 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Test potatoes. If they are done, then you are ready to serve and garnish with cilantro. If the potatoes need more time, cover and continue to cook until potatoes are done. Serve and ENJOY!!!!!

Serve this dish with an Ale Beer.

2005 Ojai Pinot Noir Clos Pepe Vineyard

We enjoyed this bottle on Saturday night.  The wine showed a silky and satin finish with a nice structure.  Cherry, currants, with a hint of licorice and cola hit the palate.  The nose showed off all the berries along with a slight rose scent.