Archive for June, 2012

Here’s a lovely dinner idea for a special occasion or just because. The Italian inspired topping makes for a delicious meal.

Ingredients:

• 4 fillets salmon
• butter
• 50g fresh white breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp chopped parsley
• ½ lime , juiced
• olive oil
• 40g Parmesan

Method:

Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Season and put the salmon fillets on a lightly buttered non-stick baking tray.

Whizz the breadcrumbs, parsley, lime juice, 1 tbsp oil and Parmesan in a food processor. Cover the salmon with the breadcrumb mixture and bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes until the salmon is cooked through and the breadcrumbs golden. Serve with salad or new potatoes.

Recommended wine: The Kumkani Chardonnay Viognier will pair excellent with this dish.

Source: bbcgoodfood

Sparkling wine is not only a favourite of many, but it’s also a very interesting wine. Here are some fun facts about the famous Sparkling wine:

• Pressure built up in a bottle of sparkling wine before disgorging is about 105 pounds of pressure per one square inch! That is an about three times the psi, in an average size car tire.
• The longest recorded sparkling wine cork flight went a distance of 177 feet and nine inches.
• The bubbles that are in sparkling wine were originally considered by early vintners as a defect. But later enjoyed and became a welcomed effect.
• Ever drop a raisin into a glass of sparkling wine? It will repeatedly bounce up and down between the top and bottom of the glass.
• Sparkling wine was first made in England many years before it was in France.
• The first recorded sparkling wine party was recorded in 1472.

Try the Kumkani Infinity. This sparkling wine has a full mousse, pale straw colour with fine, lazy bead. Nose of warm toast, hazelnuts, almonds and citrus. Creamy, yet crisp entrance with a rich complex palate of almonds and hazelnuts. Well balanced acidity with a complex full persistent finish.

Source: french-wine-online.com

A lovely wine pic in Paris. What do you think?

Here’s a lovely one pot idea for a warming supper. Simple, but delicious it will virtually cook itself, so you can relax with a glass of wine.

Ingredients:

• half a leg of lamb (about 1.25kg)
• 1kg onions (about 4 large ones)
• handful of thyme sprigs
• 300ml red wine
• large handful parsley

Method:

Firstly, prepare the lamb. Heat oven to 160C/fan140C/gas 3. Wipe the meat all over and season well. Heat 3 tbsp of olive oil in a large heavy flameproof casserole, add the meat and fry all over on a fairly high heat for about 8 mins, turning until it is evenly well browned. Remove to a plate.

Thinly slice the onions. Add to the pan and fry for about 10 mins, until softened and tinged with brown. Add a few of the thyme sprigs and cook for a further minute or so. Season with salt and pepper.

Sit the lamb on top of the onions, then add the wine. Cover tightly. Bake for 3 hrs. You can make to this stage up to 2 days in advance, then reheat for 45 mins.

To finish off, strip the leaves from 2 thyme sprigs and chop them with the parsley. Scatter over before serving.

Recommended Wine: The kumkani Shiraz will pair excellent.

Source: bbcgoodfood

‘Wine is inspiring and adds greatly to the joy of living.’
-Napoleon

Since the age of time, wine and chocolate have always been treasured as such a lovely pair.

With all those deep, dark chocolate notes right in a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon, this wine seems like a natural match for an intensely-flavoured, dark chocolate dessert.

When pairing wine and chocolate there is a few guidelines to follow because some wines and chocolates are really not a match made in heaven.

Wine and chocolate tips:

• The chocolate shouldn’t be sweeter than the wine.
• The darker the chocolate, the more likely it will be to taste good with red wine (partly because chocolate with a higher percentage of cacao has less sugar).
• The darker chocolates, with deep-roasted flavours, pair well with  wines with dark, toasty notes themselves.

A great wine to serve with dark chocolate is the Kumkani Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon.

Source: myrecipes.com

Here’s a simple pork recipe to try for a lovely dinner this week. With great food, great company and great wine, nothing can go wrong.

Ingredients:

• 1.5kg pork belly , scored and boned (ask to keep the bones to make stock for the gravy)
• 25g butter
• 25g flour
• 1l chicken stock

Method:

Roast the bones until browned, then transfer to a pan and cover with 1 litre chicken stock. Gently simmer for 1 hr, skimming off any scum that comes to the surface (you will need about 500ml for the gravy). If you don’t have pork bones, don’t worry about this stage.

Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Put the pork on a wire rack in a roasting tray, skin side up, and cook for 1½ hrs. increase oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7 and cook for a further 15-20 mins to crisp the skin. Remove the pork from the tin and allow to rest for 45 mins.

To make the gravy, remove all the fat from the bottom of the roasting tin. Add the butter and heat to melt. Tip in the flour and cook for 1-2 mins, scraping the bottom of the pan. Gradually stir in 500ml stock and cook for 5 mins until thick.

Recommended wine: The Kumkani Pinotage will accompany all the flavours.

Source: bbcgoodfood.com

“A man who was fond of wine was offered some grapes at dessert after dinner. ‘Much obliged,’ said he, pushing the dish away from him, ‘but I am not in the habit of taking my wine in pills.’”

-Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

There are many a cheese and wine pairing going on all the time, but it’s a nice change hosting one in the comfort of your own home. So if you are planning a cheese-and-wine evening, here are few paring and serving tips.

Pairing wine and cheese can sometimes feel like you’re trying to solve the Sunday crossword puzzle. But there’s no need to over think it; the key is to keep your theme straightforward and your flavours saturated.

When preparing a cheese platter I keep it plain and simple. Some people are really not into funky old or goats cheeses so stick to the traditional platter.

For a traditional take on the cheese platter, offer cow’s milk cheeses that are familiar and not too pungent (stinky), such as Gruyère, Gouda, Cheddar (avoid extra-sharp) and soft cheeses like Brie and Camembert.

The wines that will pair well with this platter are the Douglas Green Chardonnay and even the medium to full bodied Cabernet Sauvignon.

Another easy and stunning platter is a Philadelphia cream cheese covered with a sweet chilly sauce served with salty biscuits. The Douglas Green Chardonnay Viognier will be great with this dip/platter.

Source: womansday.com

Sweet and crunchy, these flash fried steaks make for a perfect midweek dinner. Great with a glass of wine and some candles.

Ingredients:

• olive oil
• 2 tbsp sherry vinegar
• 1 small shallot , thinly sliced
• 150g winter greens
• 20g pine nuts
• 30g raisins
• 2 large or 4 small lamb leg steaks, about 380g in total

Method:

To make a shallot dressing, whisk 1 tbsp of the oil with 1 tbsp of the vinegar, add the shallot and season.

Blanch the greens in boiling water for 3 minutes and then drain and refresh under cold water. Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a wide pan and lightly toast the pine nuts. Add the raisins, the greens, the remaining vinegar, season and toss. Take off the heat and keep warm.

Rub the steaks with another tsp oil and season well. Fry or grill for 3-4 minutes on each side until cooked to your liking. Serve with the greens and the shallot dressing.

Recommended wine: The Kumkani Shiraz will spice up the meal even more.

Source: bbcgoodfood.com