Cambria Style Magazine: Winter Issue ~ Classic Brunch Recipes paired to Sparkling Wines
Entertaining this holiday season and need a few new ideas to supe up your Recipe/Wine Pairings rolodex?
In the latest edition of Cambria Style Magazine, the winter issue featuring Andrea Bocelli, I lay out a number of delicious sips paired to a lovely array of Classic Brunch Recipes.
Article Title: Family Style
Written by Amanda Lecky / Photography by Steve Henke / Pairings by Sommelier Leslee Miller
December, 2013
BRUNCH IS ALL ABOUT COMFORT. Comfort foods, served at a comfortable hour, in a comfortable setting. And it’s a meal that should be as easy for the host or hostess to prepare as it is for the guests to enjoy. That means dishes that can be made or at least prepped ahead, and that are designed for serving family-style—so there’s no last-minute fussing by the chef, and everyone can sit back, sip their coffee (or mimosas), and enjoy every last bite of egg-y, bacon-y goodness. Finding the right recipes is easy, too. Give old-favorites a foodie twist by adding fresh herbs or perfectly aged cheese—or look online for real-life inspiration like some of our family favorites from two award-winning food blogs, home chef Deb Perelman of Smitten Kitchen, and former pastry chef Phyllis Grant of Dash and Bella.
These easy and delicious updates on hearty brunch classics will prove irresistible to family and friends.
Brown Butter Apple Galette
Serves 8
Ingredients:
1 sheet of frozen puff pastry
1/2 stick salted butter juice/zest from 1/2 lemon
1/2 vanilla bean
4-6 apples
2-4 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. apricot jam
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Take dough out of freezer and let sit until soft enough to roll out. Roll out dough, place it on a sheet pan, and refrigerate.
Melt the butter. When very lightly brown, remove from heat. Cool. Add lemon juice/zest. Halve and scrape in vanilla bean. Mix well.
Cut a little cap off of the top and bottom of each apple. Peel. Cut in half from top to bottom and remove core from each half. Slice each half lengthwise into super thin slices. As you finish each half, slide the slices into the brown butter/lemon mixture and coat all over.
Taste the apples to see if they’re tart. This will determine how much sugar to use. Spread the apple slices over the dough, leaving edges of dough uncovered. Sprinkle apples with sugar.
Bake until crust is crispy along the edges and the apples are softened and nicely browned (about 45 minutes). Broil the top if it’s not brown enough. A nice touch is to paint the tops of the cooled tart (apples) with warm apricot jam. Serve with créme fraîche or ice cream.
Wine Pairing:
Domaine Carneros by Taittinger ‘Le RÊve’ Blanc de Blancs Sparkling Wine Carneros, California
Sophisticated, with notes of lemon curd and baked Asian pear, this wine is a gorgeous accompaniment to apples.
Bacon Corn Hash
Makes 4 to 5 cups
Ingredients:
1/2 pound thick-cut bacon, cut into small dice
1 pound red potatoes, scrubbed clean and diced into 1/4 to 1/2-inch cubes (about 3 to 31/4 cups) Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 medium-large ears corn, kernels cut from the cob (21/2 to 3 cups)
1 bundle scallions, thinly sliced
Directions:
Toss bacon into a large skillet over medium heat, no need to heat the pan first. Let rest for a few minutes until it starts sizzling, then move the bits around so that they begin to brown evenly. Again, wait a couple minutes before shuffling the pieces; you’re looking for them to get evenly golden and crisp. This should take about 10 minutes. Remove the bacon bits with a slotted spoon, leaving the drippings in the pan and transferring the bacon to paper towels to drain.
Heat the pan to medium/medium-high, making sure the bacon fat is sizzling nicely, then add your potatoes all at once in a single layer. Sprinkle them with ½ teaspoon of table salt and several dashes of freshly ground black pepper. Let them cook for a few minutes in one place and get a bit golden underneath before turning them over and moving them around. Repeat this process until the potatoes are browned on all sides; this takes about 20 minutes. Spoon off all but a small amount of the fat.
Bump up the heat a little and add the corn to the skillet. Saute the potatoes and corn together until the corn gets a bit brown but stays fairly crisp, about four to five minutes. Add the drained bacon, and stir the mixture together until it’s evenly warm, about one more minute. Remove the skillet from the burner and sprinkle the scallions over the hash. In two minutes, they should be warm and mellowed. Season with more salt or pepper to taste, if needed.
Wine Pairing:
Marc Hebrart Brut Rosé Champagne
Champagne, France
The perfect complement to the smokey, toasty richness of the bacon and roasted corn, the ripe, sun-kissed flavors of the wine’s juicy cherry/raspberry center will make you think breakfast should be served all day long.
Spinach and Cheese Strata
(Adapted from Gourmet Magazine; February 2003)
Serves 6 to 8
Ingredients:
1 (10-ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed, squeezed of all excess liquid, and chopped
1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion (1 large)
3 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
8 cups cubed French or Italian bread in 1-inch cubes (1/2 lb)
6 ounces coarsely grated Gruyère (2 cups)
2 ounces finely grated parmesan (1 cup)
2 3/4 cups milk
9 large eggs
2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
Directions:
Sauté onion in butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat until it’s soft, about five minutes. Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/4 teaspoon of pepper and nutmeg and continue cooking for one minute. Stir in spinach, remove from heat and set aside.
Spread one third of the bread cubes in a well-buttered three-quart gratin casserole dish or other ceramic baking dish. Top with one-third of bread cubes, one-third of spinach mixture and one-third of each cheese. Repeat layering twice with remaining bread, spinach and cheese.
Whisk eggs, milk, mustard and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper together in a large bowl and pour evenly over strata. Cover with plastic wrap and chill strata for at least eight hours or up to a day.
The next day, let it stand at room temperature for 30 minutes while preheating the oven to 350°F. Bake strata, uncovered, in middle of oven until puffed, golden brown, and cooked through, 45 to 55 minutes. Let stand five minutes before serving.
Wine Pairing:
Berlucchi Franciacorta Brut NV Franciacorta, Italy
Franciacorta is Italy’s answer to the Champagne region of France, yet it’s still unknown to many ‘bubble’ fanatics. With creamy tones to highlight the gruyère cheese and earthy notes in tune with the spinach and spice, this wine is sure to impress any bubble-loving guest!
Dutch Baby
Serves 3
Ingredients:
4 eggs
1 cup whole milk
1/4 cup crème fraîche (or sour cream)
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
pinch salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 Tbsp. salted butter
powdered sugar
lemon
maple syrup
Directions:
Throw your eight- or nine-inch cast-iron pan (or ovenproof dish) into the oven. Preheat oven to 425°F. You want your pan to be very hot.
In a food processor or a blender, blend well the eggs, milk, crème fraîche, flour, salt, and vanilla (30 seconds or so). If you mix it by hand, add the flour in a few batches and mix really well.
Add butter to the hot pan in the oven. Careful. The butter will brown very fast. When the butter is just melted, remove pan from the oven, quickly pour in the batter, and put the pan back in the oven. Resist the urge to open the oven. Hopefully, after a few minutes the pancake will start to climb up the sides of the pan and puff up in the middle. It’s done when the edges start to turn brown and the batter is just set in the middle. About two minutes before it’s done, you can sprinkle it with powdered sugar, praline, or chocolate chips and they will melt into the surface.
Serve with powdered sugar and lemon. Or warm maple syrup. Or both.
Wine Pairing:
Philippe Foreau Vouvray Demi-Sec ‘Clos Naudin’ Loire, France Lush and glossy, with scents of toasty apricot and sweet honied florals, this well-balanced wine is the perfect accent for the sweet notes of this dish.