Holiday Pairing to…
I have a good friend, Jeannine, who has spent the good part of her year pairing to something quite fun and unusual – Cheesecake! Isn’t that fun?
Jeannine, a serious foodie, I knew when I met her…as she sat front row in one of my Cooks of Crocus Hill Classes. Brite eyed and wanting to learn more about the fun discoveries of food and wine pairing, she is a wonderful example of a true food enthusiast open to trying any combination of food, wine, drink and well, just about anything. We quickly became pals but it wasn’t until she invited me to a gathering she put together that included a variety of cheesecakes, asking me to pair wines to them, that I knew she was more than just a weekend warrior when it came to food & drink. The cheesecakes flavors selected ranged from pumpkins, caramels and chocolates. The best part, we found a number of wonderful pairings to combine to every single one of them.
A rich oaked Chardonnay with the pumpkin, a dark jammy Shiraz with the chocolate and a ripe Chenin Blanc with the caramel. All to die for. And, the cheesecakes courtesy of Muddy Paws Cheesecake ~ delicious, unique and incidentally, a great gift idea when showing up at a dinner party.
Jeannine, so in love with cheesecake decided to take on more of these creamy delights, but by combining them with various libations. Intrigued by her quest, I asked her to submit her most recent combination. Here it is…
‘Tis the season for eggnog cheesecake and…
Where does a fivehour drive due north from Minneapolis bring you? Almost to Canada…the Gunflint Lodge in Grand Marais to be exact. I spent the weekend with friends in the great white north sitting by the fire, snowshoeing to Lookout Point, laughing hysterically at the antics of my friends, and eating and drinking way too much. We ventured out of Minneapolis just before the snownami hit last Friday afternoon. If you’venever made the drive up 35W northbound to Grand Marais you really need to do it, and at any time of year. It’s beautiful; the scenery constantly changes from cityscape to rural hobby farms to the Duluth Lakewalk on Lake Superior, on through Lutsen ski area. Watch out for deer at dusk!
On the way to Gunflint Trail the snow thinned out and I was scared to think that we may be headed to a snowless area of Minnesota after just leaving the city that got slammed with six inches of powder while we were gone. I also realized I forgot all the stuff to make lasagna I had planned, and the wine I was going to pair with our Eggnog Cheesecake. Fortunately, the grocery store in Grand Marais was still open (they close at 7 in winter people!) and I was able to buy all my lasagna ingredients including homemade hot Italian sausage made by a local meat company in Grand Marais; excellent. I love supporting local businesses.
We arrived to the most snow Gunflint has seen at the beginning of winter (thankfully!), and after a day of hoofing it through the wilderness on snowshoes, most of us snowshoe virgins, we were tired, giddy and ready for the sauna and a hot, hearty meal. Yes, the cabins at Gunflint have saunas in them! After dinner of course in comes dessert….Eggnog Cheesecake from local bakery Muddy Paws Cheesecake Company. I asked my tasting team for their opinion after bringing this decadent dessert to room temperature. Since I forgot the wine I paired Kahlua on the rocks. Everyone took a bite of cheesecake…the responses I got are not printable here except for one…”Thunderbolts and Lightning!” It was hysterical! Seriously, Eggnog Cheesecake alone is delicious and when paired with the Kahlua..WOW! We were digging this combo! Imagine a slightly chilled coffee taste with mild, velvety eggnog spices in the cheesecake. That put everyone into a food coma. Sunday came, we packed up and left reluctantly, but our memories of snowshoes, cheesecake, Kahlua, and The Gunflint Trail live on forever….