Volume 11, Issue 66 - October 2, 2006 |
 Good Day Member,
I am very happy to introduce our hosts this week, award winning authors Andrew
Dornenburg and Karen Page. Their new book is hitting the shelves of bookstores
everywhere as we speak. And it is on a topic most of us wish we knew better,
pairing food and beverages, especially wines. I am looking forward to adding this
book to my collection. Let's get started...
"In WHAT TO DRINK WITH WHAT YOU EAT, Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page have
created the most exciting and comprehensive guide to wine pairing that I have
ever seen."
—Eric Ripert, chef-owner, Le Bernardin (NYC)
This week we have a special treat for you: James Beard Award-winning authors
Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page are going to be sharing tips on pairing food
and drink so well that it's possible to transform any meal from good to great.
Their new book WHAT TO DRINK WITH WHAT YOU EAT: The Definitive Guide to Pairing
Food with Wine, Beer, Spirits, Coffee, Tea — Even Water — Based on Expert Advice
from America's Best Sommeliers is based on the collective wisdom of experts at
dozens of America's best restaurants, including Chanterelle, Daniel, the French
Laundry, Frontera Grill, the Inn at Little Washington, Jean Georges, Tru,
Valentino, and Veritas.
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 Ceviche Clásico
(Classic Ceviche)
Adapted from the recipe by
Rick Bayless
Frontera Grill / Topolobampo
Chicago, Illinois
www.fronterakitchens.com
Serves 8 as an appetizer, 12 as a nibble
Ingredients:
1 pound fresh, skinless snapper, bass, halibut or
other ocean fish fillets (the fish I listed I like because they have a large
flake or meaty texture), cut into 1/2-inch cubes or slightly smaller
1 1/2 cups fresh lime juice
1 medium white onion, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
2 medium-large (1 pound ) tomatoes, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
fresh hot green chiles to taste (roughly 2 to 3 serranos or 1 to 2 jalapeños),
stemmed, seeded and finely chopped
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus a few leaves for garnish
1/3 cup chopped pitted green olives (choose manzanillos for a typical Mexican
flavor)
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil, preferably extra-virgin (optional but
recommended to give a glistening appearance)
salt
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice or 1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 large or 2 small ripe avocados, peeled, pitted and diced
tostadas, tortilla chips or saltine crackers for serving
Preparation:
Marinating the fish. In a 1 1/2-quart glass or stainless steel bowl, combine
the fish, lime juice and onion. You'll need enough juice to cover the fish and
allow it to float somewhat freely, too little juice means unevenly "cooked"
fish. Cover and refrigerate for about 4 hours, until a cube of fish no longer
looks raw when broken open. Pour into a colander and drain off the lime juice.
The flavorings. In a large bowl, mix together the tomatoes, green chiles,
cilantro, olives and optional olive oil. Stir in the fish, then taste and season
with salt, usually about 3/4 teaspoon, and orange juice or sugar (the sweetness
of the orange juice or sugar helps balance some of the typical tanginess of the
ceviche). Cover and refrigerate if not serving immediately.
Serving the ceviche. Just before serving, stir in the diced avocado,
being careful not to break up the pieces. For serving, you have several options:
set out your ceviche in a large bowl and let people spoon it onto individual
plates to eat with chips or saltines; serve small bowls of ceviche (I like to
lay a bed of frisée lettuce in each bowl before spooning in the ceviche) and
serve tostadas, chips or saltines alongside, or pile the ceviche onto chips or
tostadas and pass around for guests to consume on these edible little plates.
Whichever direction you choose, garnish the ceviche with leaves of cilantro
before setting it center stage.
Working ahead: The fish may be marinated a day in advance; after about 4
hours, when the fish is "cooked," drain it so that it won't become too limey.
For the freshest flavor, add the flavorings to the fish no more than a couple of
hours before serving.
Beverage pairing recommendation, from Frontera Grill sommelier Jill Gubesch:
"With Rick Bayless's ceviche, I like 2003 Dr. von Basserman-Jordan (Riesling Kabinett) or 1999 Argyle Brut (sparkling wine) from Willamette Valley, Oregon. A
nice, crisp Champagne is also great with ceviche."
Adapted from WHAT TO DRINK WITH WHAT YOU EAT by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen
Page.
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About the Authors:
 Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page are the James Beard
Award-winning authors of Becoming a Chef, Culinary Artistry, Dining Out, Chef's
Night Out, and The New American Chef. Called "the brightest young author team on
the culinary scene today" on National Public Radio, Dornenburg and Page have
been married since 1990 and live in New York City.
Their Web site www.becomingachef.com was named "one of the 400 Web sites that
New York City is better for" by www.ManhattanUsersGuide.com, and their Web
site's popular Blog was named one of The New York Times Company's
GourmetFood.About.com's "Top 10 Food Blogs."
Pairing food and drink has been cited as one of the top trends of 2006. Why?
There's no faster way to create a peak experience for your customers than by
matching up a delicious dish with the right beverage. Doing so can elevate the
pairing to an extraordinary experience they'll want to return for again and
again. In addition, recommending beverages to pair with your dishes is also an
easy way to increase sales.
Don't have the money to hire a sommelier? No problem — just get your hands on a
copy of WHAT TO DRINK WITH WHAT YOU EAT, which will allow you to select the
right beverage for virtually any dish — from foie gras to French toast, from
tuna to tiramisu — with the ease with which a writer consults a thesaurus to
find just the right word. The guide also works in reverse, allowing you to
search by beverage to find the perfect food match. Look up any wine, beer or
other beverage (e.g. Shiraz), and discover the foods and flavors that pair best
with it (e.g. barbecue, cheese, duck, grilled dishes, lamb, mushrooms, steak,
tuna, venison) — to create an instant special for the night!
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Braised Short Ribs
with Aromatic Vegetables and Red Wine Sauce
Adapted from the recipe by
Scott Bryan
Veritas
New York, New York
www.veritas-nyc.com
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients:
4 pounds short ribs, cleaned
salt and pepper
1 tablespoon canola oil (or enough to coat pan)
1 head of garlic, clove separated and peeled
4 plum tomatoes, seeded, peeled and diced
2 bottles red wine
2 sprigs each rosemary, thyme and sage
6 tablespoons butter
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced carrot
1 cup diced celery
1/2 pound porcini mushrooms, sliced
1 tablespoon chopped chives (for garnish)
rosemary sprigs (for garnish)
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Season short ribs with salt and pepper. Heat oil in
skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ribs and cook, until golden. Transfer to
a casserole.
Add garlic and tomatoes to the skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring
occasionally, until soft. Add wine and bring to boil. Pour wine mixture over
ribs and add herbs. Cover with foil and braise in the oven for 2 1/2 hours,
until fork-tender.
Transfer the ribs to a platter. Strain cooking juices through fine strainer,
discard the solids. Return strained juices and ribs to the casserole.
Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion,
carrot and celery and sweat until tender and pale. Add the ribs. Melt remaining
2 tablespoons butter in the skillet; add the porcini and sauté until golden. Add
to the ribs. Adjust the seasoning to taste.
Garnish with chopped chives and rosemary sprigs. Serve with potato purée or soft
polenta.
Beverage Pairing Recommendation:
Veritas sommelier Tim Kopec told us he likes to pair this dish with Chateauneuf
du Pape.
Adapted from WHAT TO DRINK WITH WHAT YOU EAT by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page
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