Recipes

Recipes to pair with our Charity Wine of the Month

MARCH WINE OF THE MONTH RECIPE

Canederli Dumplings

Canederli are wintry, soulful, rich and filling dumplings from the Italian Alps. They are easy to make and are great served in broth, or with a variety of sauces. Pairs perfectly with our Rosso Alpino!

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Total time: 40 minutes
Yields: 6 servings

Ingredients:

4 ounces Stale Bread -crusts removed (about 4 healthy slices)

1/2 cup Milk (or broth)

2 tablespoons Butter (or olive oil)

1/2 cup Onion – minced

2 ounces Speck – minced (can substitute prosciutto or salami)

3 tablespoons Parsley- minced (can substitute chard, spinach, other dark greens)

3 tablespoons Parmesan Cheese – finely grated

1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon White Pepper

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1 or 2 Eggs – lightly beaten

Flour (see note below)

Directions:

Tear the bread into bits and put in a bowl with the milk. Squash it all down and let this soak while you chop onions, parsley and the meat.

While the bread is soaking, sauté the minced onion in the butter or olive oil until soft. It’s OK if it browns a bit, but you don’t need it caramelized. Remove it from the pan and put it into a large bowl to cool.

Have a large pot of simmering water ready, with enough salt to make it taste like the sea.

Squeeze out excess milk from the bread and add it to the bowl with the onions. Add the minced meat, parsley, cheese, nutmeg, pepper and salt. Mix well. Stir in the eggs and work this mixture well, like its a dough.
(NOTE: If it’s too wet, add flour 1 tablespoon at a time until it comes together like a proper dough you can roll balls out of.)

Roll out round dumplings with your palms. Size is up to you, but I like to make them the size of a walnut in the shell; they expand a bit when cooking. Do this with all the dough, then gently put them in the simmering water.

The canaderli are done about a minute or two after they float to the top.

Serve by giving everyone a few dumplings in a bowl, then pouring some rich broth over them. Chopped herbs like parsley, savory, or sage are nice here.

TIPS:

If you want to use the crusts in this, you will want to chop them very fine, or dry them completely, pulverize and add them to the canederli as breadcrumbs. They are tasty but won’t fully soften in the milk.
If you’re just whipping some up, you might just want to serve them Central European style, with butter and caramelized onions, maybe with the slightest drizzle of honey.
Mostly, however, you will serve canederli with broth. What broth is up to you. With these, I prefer a dark, rich broth made from mushrooms, game or beef

SPRING CLUB RECIPES

Roasted Strawberry Tiramisu
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

2 1/2 lbs Whole Strawberries

1/4 cup (plus 3 tbsp) Granulated White Sugar

1 tbsp (plus 1 tsp) Vanilla Bean Paste

zest of 1 Large Orange – reserve 1 tablespoon

1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream – cold

16 ozs Mascarpone Cream – cold

1/4 cup Sparkling Rosé of Dolcetto

1 cup juice 1 Large Orange

7 ozs package Savoiardi (Ladyfingers) Biscuits

1 tbsp Fresh Mint – roughly chopped

chocolate shavings – to garnish

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees and gather a roasting pan lined with aluminum foil.

Wash and dry the strawberries well and place roughly 2 lbs into a bowl and set the remainder .5 lb of strawberries aside.

Cut the 2 lbs of strawberries into quarters, removing the green tops. Place the quartered strawberries into a large bowl.

Combine ¼ cup sugar, 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste, and orange zest with the quartered strawberries until they are evenly coated.

Spread the strawberries onto the roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes until they are syrupy and soft. Stir the strawberries once or twice while roasting.

While the strawberries are roasting, prepare the cream filling by adding the heavy whipping cream to a chilled mixing bowl with a whisk attachment. (You can use either a stand or hand mixer.)

Whisk the whipping cream on high speed for 1-2 minutes, gradually adding the 3 tablespoons of sugar and a teaspoon of vanilla bean paste, until soft but firm peaks begin to form.

Use a rubber spatula and scrape out the whipped cream into a small bowl and set it in the fridge to chill.

Wash out the mixing bowl thoroughly and add the mascarpone and the reserved 1 tablespoon of orange zest into the bowl with the whisk attached.

Whip the mascarpone for 1-2 minutes on medium speed until creamy.

Pull out the whipped cream from the fridge and gently fold it into the creamy mascarpone. Set the cream filling aside to begin assembling the tiramisu.

Gather an 8”x 8” or 10” x 10” baking tin. Using an 8” x 8” will fit 3 layers and a 10” x 10” will fit 2 layers.

Pour the orange juice and sparkling rosé wine into a small shallow bowl.

Hull and thinly slice the remaining .5 lb strawberries and place them into a small bowl.

Transfer the roasted strawberries from the roasting pan into a small bowl, reserving as much syrup as possible in another small bowl.

Once the roasted strawberries have cooled, roughly chopped them until they are soft and slightly broken down into syrupy bits.

Begin to assemble by spooning either 1/3 (8” x 8” tin) or ½ (10 “x 10” tin) of the roasted strawberries and 1/3rd of the syrup into the bottom of the tin, spreading them evenly.

Dip the biscuits into the orange juice and rosé mixture briefly, flipping them with a fork or your finger. They should only be in the liquid for a mere second or else they will break down and become too soggy.

Layer the biscuits side by side, covering the tops of the roasted strawberries. Gently push them down so they can soak up the juice.

Gently pour either 1/3 (8” x 8” tin) or ½ (10 “x 10” tin) of the cream on top of the biscuit layer.

Spoon over a tablespoon of strawberry syrup over the cream with the back of a spoon.

Continue the layering process by adding a second layer of roasted strawberries, syrup, and cream. Cut any biscuits if necessary to fit into your tin.

Once the final layer is completed with a cream top, sprinkle the fresh strawberry slices and any remaining roasted strawberries on top of the cream with a drizzle of additional syrup.

Cover with cling wrap and allow the tiramisu to set in the fridge for at least 8 hours.

When it’s time to serve, grate over additional fresh orange zest, mint sprigs, and optional chocolate shavings if desired.

Honey Glazed Grilled Lamb Chops with Garlic and Red Wine
Serves : 4

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Syrah Wine

1/4 cup Olive Oil

3 tablespoons Fresh Oregano – chopped

2 tablespoons Garlic – minced

2 teaspoons Red Wine Vinegar

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper – freshly ground

8 Lamb Chops – thick cut

2 tablespoons Honey

Directions:

Mix the first 7 ingredients in large glass baking dish. Arrange lamb chops in single layer in dish, turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours, turning and basting often. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep chilled).
Prepare barbecue or broiler (medium high heat).
Transfer lamb to plate.
Mix honey into marinade.
Grill or broil lamb to desired doneness, turning and basting with marinade often, about 10 minutes for medium rare.

Red Wine Maple Glazed Carrots
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter

¼ cup Shallots – sliced

1 inch Fresh Ginger – peeled and sliced

½ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

½ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon

½ teaspoon Kosher Salt

¼ teaspoon Black Pepper – fresh ground

1 pound Carrots – whole, chopped, or baby

½ cup Petite Sirah Wine

¼ cup Maple Syrup

2 teaspoons Apple Cider Vinegar

Fresh thyme

Directions:

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook shallots, stirring occasionally until softened, about 3-4 minutes.
Add fresh ginger, cayenne, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
Stir in carrots, Petite Sirah wine, and maple syrup. Simmer, covered, for about 18-20 minutes, stirring occasionally until carrots are just tender.
Uncover and add vinegar. Cook 3-5 minutes more until liquid is reduced to a thin glaze.
Remove from heat and toss with sprigs of fresh thyme. Serve.

Red Wine and Mushroom Risotto
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons Olive Oil

1/2 a Large Yellow Onion – diced (about 1/2 cup)

3 cloves Garlic – minced

12 ounces Baby Bella Mushrooms – sliced (about 4 cups)

Kosher Salt – to taste

6 sprigs Fresh Thyme – plus more for garnish if desired

2 cups Arborio Rice

1 cup Rosso Alpino wine

6 cups Chicken or Vegetable Stock – divided (you may not need all of it)

1/4 cup butter

1 cup Parmesan Cheese – finely grated

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a large, deep saucepan over medium heat.
Add onion and sauté, stirring occasionally, for 2-3 minutes or until translucent and slightly browned.
Add mushrooms to saucepan and sauté, stirring occasionally, for 5-7 minutes until mushrooms have reduced in size and begun to brown. (Tip: Reserve a few of the browned mushrooms for topping the risotto later if you like!)
Add garlic and a pinch of salt to mushroom mixture. Pull thyme leaves off the sprigs and add them to the pan (discard or compost the stems). Stir to combine and cook another minute or so, until garlic is fragrant.
Add arborio rice to saucepan; stir to combine. Cook, stirring frequently, for about a minute, until the rice has absorbed any remaining liquid and the grains begin to turn translucent around the edges.
Add Rossa Alpino wine to pan to deglaze. Stir to incorporate, making sure to scrape any browned bits (called “fond”) off the bottom of the pan. Cook, stirring frequently, until rice has absorbed nearly all of the wine, about 7-10 minutes.
Add one cup of chicken stock; stir to combine. Cook, stirring frequently, for 10-15 minutes, until rice has absorbed nearly all of the stock. (You should be able to drag a wooden spoon across the bottom of the pan without seeing any large pools of liquid). Repeat this process, adding one cup of stock at a time and letting the rice absorb it in between each addition, until rice is cooked through. As you near the end of the cooking process, you may want to add stock in smaller increments – such as ½ cup or even ¼ cup at a time – so as not to overcook the rice. Taste for doneness and add salt as needed between each addition: the only surefire way to know when your risotto is “done” is to taste it! When your risotto is ready, the rice should have a slight bite to it and be creamy but not stiff or gummy. When you drag a wooden spoon across the bottom of the pan, the finished risotto should slowly seep back into the space.
When rice is cooked, turn off the heat. Add butter and grated parmesan cheese, stirring continuously until they’ve both melted into the risotto. Taste again and add seasoning if necessary.
Add optional toppings (we like adding extra fresh thyme, more parmesan, or reserved mushrooms) and serve immediately.

Notes

Should I warm up my chicken stock? Traditional risotto is made with warm or simmering chicken stock. Using hot stock can speed the cooking process (cold stock can cool down the pan, which adds extra cooking time because the pan needs to come back up to temperature). It also encourages your rice to release as much starch as possible for an ultra-creamy risotto. If you have the time and the inclination, bring your stock to a low simmer in a separate saucepan and ladle it directly from that saucepan into your risotto as you cook. If you don’t want to dirty an extra pot, you can add stock to a microwave-safe measuring cup and microwave it for 30 seconds or so before adding it to your risotto. We tested this recipe with cold, room-temperature, and simmering chicken stock, and honestly? They’re all fine. Using warm or simmering stock definitely makes the risotto cook a few minutes faster and it’s a little bit creamier, but the difference is pretty negligible. So do whatever you want!