• A Winemaker’s Margarita

    by  • February 22, 2013 • 0 Comments

    dave-margarita

    Today is (apparently) National Margarita Day, so I thought I’d share this recipe for an easy at-home margarita that I’ve been shaking up for about a year now. The recipe was given to me last spring by David Hopkins, he of the killer Bridlewood Syrahs. At some point, our wine-tasting dinner conversation veered to the...

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    “Sicilian” Cannellini with Tuna

    by  • February 9, 2013 • 0 Comments

    white-beans-tuna

    This dish is sort of an inverted, main course version of a classic Tuscan bruschetta starter. It’s a bowl of well-flavored beans served room temperature alongside crunchy toasts, rather than the other way around. I decided to try the parchment paper/oven method of cooking the beans after seeing it mentioned in various cookbooks. I’ve only done...

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    Blue Ice Organic Wheat Vodka

    by  • February 5, 2013 • 1 Comment

    For those of you interested in upping the environmentally-conscious factor in your cocktails, organic spirits are becoming more widely available. (And there’s some evidence to suggest that organic spirits pack less of a hangover, which I suppose make some intuitive sense, since they are probably “cleaner” products overall…) Blue Ice Organic Vodka has been...

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    January 2013 Wine Roundup + Puff Pastry Love…

    by  • January 25, 2013 • 1 Comment

    butternut-goat-cheese-tart

    I haven’t done one of these grab bag roundup posts in a while, and watching a variety of people devouring this puff pastry tart with all manner of wines and cocktails at a Golden Globe viewing party got me in the mood. It was an annual potluck affair, and I basically rolled out a sheet...

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    Michael Chiarello’s Spiced Candied Walnuts

    by  • December 30, 2012 • 0 Comments

    spiced-candied-walnuts

    I couldn’t resist one more post to close out the year — this one a quick addition to New Year’s Eve nibbles to pair with bubbles, and it’s what I’m toting along tomorrow evening to a friend’s party. These irresistable, perfectly crispy/spicy/sweet candied walnuts are straight out of At Home with Michael Chiarello: Easy Entertaining —...

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    Sparklers for Toasting the New Year!

    by  • December 27, 2012 • 1 Comment

    Here’s a quick round-up of the various tasty bubbles I’ve been enjoying lately. Hopefully just in time for those of you are setting out to buy New Year’s Eve provisions! And if you’re looking for nibbles to go with, here are a few from the archives: blue cheese pecan crackers, caramelized onion and herb...

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