en primeur day 2

Chateau L’Eglise Clinet.

 Château L'Évangile.

 Château Pavie. 

 JP Moueix.

 Château Figeac.  

Château Ausone.

 Vieux Château Certan. 

 Château Cheval Blanc and Château d'Yquem.

 

Château Faugères. 

en primeur day 1

Bordeaux en primeur 2014.

Château Margaux.

Château Palmer.

 Cos d'Estournel.

Château Ducru-Beaucaillou.

hide that beetroot

Chocolate Beetroot Cake

recipe adapted from YoungPost (October 19, 2014), SCMP.

makes one 8 inch square or one 6 inch round double layer cake

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup good quality cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

1 cup light brown sugar

2 cups pureed cooked beetroot

2 eggs, beaten

3/4 cups buttermilk

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tsp vanilla

Chocolate Frosting

METHOD:

1. Preheat oven to 325F (163C). Grease and line a square 8 inch baking pan or two 6 inch round cake pans.

2. In a small bowl whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside.

3. In the large bowl of your stand mixer, add brown sugar, beetroot, eggs, buttermilk, olive oil and vanilla. Mix on medium until well combined.

4. Add dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just combined. Pour batter evenly into cake pans. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Rotate pans halfway through baking. Let cake cool in pan for 15 minutes before turning out on a wire rack to cool completely. For a square cake, dust with confectioner's sugar before serving.

5. For a round cake, frost the layers together with buttercream and decorate as desired. If baking ahead, cakes can be frozen by wrapping them in 2 layers of cling wrap. Just remove them from the freezer 4 hours at room temperature prior to frosting.

stout and cake

A year round favourite for stout lovers out there. This cake is especially good around the holidays for sharing and hostess gifts.

Guinness Gingerbread Cake
recipe adapted from Nigella Lawson

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/4 sticks (10 tbsp or 282g) butter
1 cup golden syrup (such as Lyle's)
1 cup (packed) plus 2 tbsp dark brown sugar
1 cup Guinness or your favourite stout
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda

1 1/4 cups sour cream
2 eggs

METHOD:
1. Preheat oven to 325F (160C). Line a 13 x 9 x 2 inch foil tray or cake pan with aluminum foil and grease it.

2. Put the butter, syrup, dark brown sugar, stout, ginger, cinnamon and ground cloves into a pan and melt gently over a low heat.

3. Take off heat and whisk in the flour and baking soda. You will need to be patient and whisk thoroughly to get rid of any lumps.

4. Whisk the sour cream and eggs together in a measuring cup and then beat into the gingerbread mixture, whisking again to get a smooth batter.

5. Pour into your cake/foil pan, and bake for about 45 minutes; when it's ready it will be gleamingly risen at the centre, and coming away from the pan at the sides.

6. Let the gingerbread cool before cutting into slices or squares.

Cake will stay moist kept in an airtight container up to 5-7 days.

brisket and wine

Braised Brisket
serves 4-6
Recipe adapted from Post Magazine (October 5, 2014), South China Morning Post.

INGREDIENTS:
3 tbsp olive oil
3 lbs brisket
4 large onions halved and sliced
4 large garlic cloves sliced
1/2 tsp chili flakes
1 1/2 tbsp grainy mustard
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 15 oz can of diced tomatoes
1/2 cup port or red wine
3/4 cups low sodium beef stock
1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley

METHOD:
1. Heat oil over medium in a Dutch oven or large pan (needs to be big enough to hold the beef in one piece). Season brisket with coarse salt.

2. Brown brisket (about 5 minutes per side), remove from pot and then set aside.

3. Add onions and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 5 minutes longer.

4. Add chili flakes, mustard, vinegar, syrup, tomatoes and simmer for 5 minutes. Then add port or wine, scrape the bottom of the pot.

5. Return beef to the pan and add beef stock. Bring to a boil and then simmer over low heat for 2-3 hours until the brisket is very tender. Stir every 20-25 minutes.

6. You can serve the brisket in long slices topped with the sauce (reduce to thicken as desired). Serve along with a rustic potato and cauliflower mash and arugula salad. Or cut the brisket into pieces and serve over rice or pasta. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Tip - leftover brisket can be used as a filling for ravioli.

wings and chestnuts

Chestnuts are one of our favourite nuts and we'll always order it if we see it on the menu. It's usually an ingredient in Chinese desserts, but we love it in savoury dishes. Here's a comforting dish for the winter cold.

Braised Chicken with Chestnuts

serves 4 as part of a main course
Recipe adapted from Post Magazine (January 22, 2012), South China Morning Post.

INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs chicken parts, drumettes and/or middle joint wings

1 inch piece of ginger, sliced thinly

1 cup chestnuts, halved and  roasted
1/2 cup green onions, cut into 1 inch pieces plus more for garnish

1 cup chicken broth

Marinade:

2 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp cornstarch

1 tsp salt

few dashes ground white pepper

3 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine

1 tsp olive oil

METHOD:

1. In a large shallow bowl, add chicken, ginger and marinade ingredients. Mix well and let marinate in the fridge for 2+ hours.

2. In an Dutch oven or other shallow enamel pot, add chicken including the marinade, chestnuts, green onions and chicken stock. Bring to a boil, stirring consistently to ensure nothing sticks to the bottom, and then lower heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes.

3. Sauce should lightly coat the chicken, stir in more broth if it's too thick. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired. Garnish with remaining green onion or chopped cilantro (optional).