Bubbles & Bites
This time of year seems to go by so fast. There are parties to plan, and we work hard to make everything right!
Sometimes, you just want to casually gather with a few people you love and celebrate the moment.
That was the approach we took for this celebration. Michael and I have had a crazy schedule lately, but we finally had a day off. I wanted to do something special, but I didn’t want to spend a lot of time on the planning.
In keeping with the theme “bubbles from around the world with small bites,” I sent Michael to the wine fridge to pick a bottle of sparkling wine, and I went to the pantry and the fridge to see what we could whip up.
Ideas!
So what’s in the fridge? Hmm… eggs, capers, roasted red peppers, caviar (not the fancy kind, but… it’s caviar!), zucchini, corn, celery, hummus, olives, butter, and a selection of cheeses…I have rosemary in the backyard and basil, mint, and parsley growing on the counter. In the pantry, there is Polenta, dried cranberries, almonds, and pecans. In the freezer, there are scallops and puff pastry. We have oils and vinegars, honeycomb, spices, and flavored salts….Oh, and there is a pack of microwave popcorn!
Let’s see what we can pull together.
Beginning with the Bubbles!
I sent Michael on a search for bubbles, and he returned from the wine fridge with 2 bottles of sparkling wine, one from Healdsburg, the other from Italy!
Dot Wine Brut – North Coast Sparkling Wine
Dot Winery was founded by Lise Asimont and Shawn Phillips. Lise has been in the industry for over 20 years and has worked for some major brands, including Cambria, Geyser Peak, and Cakebread. Shawn would have bottles of wine open for her at home after a long day in the vineyards. Somehow, he could never find the perfect Pinot Noir for her. So…she decided to make it, and they founded Dot Wines.
We picked up this bottle of Dot Sparkling Brut on a visit to Sonoma.
This wine made by Lise Asimont is made of Pinot and Chardonnay and is made in the Methode Champenois.
This sparkling is bright with luxurious bubbles.
12.5% abv – $35 SRP
Villa Sandi – La Rivetta 120 Valdobbiadene DOCG
This is a Prosecco from the Vadobbiadene DOCG in Italy.
100% Glera, this sparkling wine from the Valdobbiadene Hills is a blend of grapes from their Valdobbiadene and Cartizze estates. The La Rivette vineyards are in the Cartizze area, between Santo Stefano and San Pietro di Barbozza.
Villa Sandi is a Palladian-style Villa that dates back to 1622. The Moretti Polegator family made the Villa the company’s main office. The Villa has underground galleries that the family restored to produce classical method sparkling wines in addition to their Charmant Method Proseccos.
11.5% abv – $25 SRP
The Bites!
I did run out to the store and grab a few things; eggs, cream, sweet peppers, yogurt, frozen peas, cherry tomatoes, radishes, and canned biscuits.
I made a list of bites (which, as usual, was longer than it should have been but…was delicious)
Here is our lineup!
- Roasted red Pepper Blinis with creamed corn (inspired by Jonathan Waxman)
- Deviled Eggs (something I rarely make but that I love!)
- Fried Polenta with roasted cherry tomatoes
- Mini biscuits with butter and radishes
- Seared scallops on a pea puree
- Pastry puffs with lobster pate
- & cranberry & Rosemary
- Zucchini with roasted pepper and grana padano
- Herb and parmesan popcorn
I worked on the bites before and after shopping and was exhausted by the time we were ready to shoot photos! But when we sat down it was delicious!
Roasted Red Pepper Blinis
I found this recipe by Jonathan Waxman and adapted it a bit. I only had ½ jar of red pepper and did not add the salmon or chives. This made about 12 small blini.
I added some dried thyme to the corn, and we garnished the dish with partially whipped unsweetened crème and caviar. (The crème was a punt. I had decided to go with Greek yogurt to give a bit of tang, and without the hit to my wallet that crème fraiche would make, but…I accidentally picked up blueberry-flavored yogurt! Since that wouldn’t do, I used some of the whipping crème I had picked up. I just whipped it to give it a little body without making it firm. It worked great under the caviar.)
Note on the caviar. It sounds really fancy that I have caviar in my fridge, doesn’t it? Well, I picked it up at the grocery store. A 2-ounce jar is $9.99 for black lumpfish caviar, and while it’s not the highest quality, it adds the right saltiness and pop to top a dish!
So the basics: I tossed the pepper in the food processor, then added 1/3 cup of flour, 3/4 teaspoon of baking powder, ¼ teaspoon of salt, an egg, 2 tablespoons of crème and 3 tablespoons of melted butter, (as his recipe called for) and zipped it all up in the food processor.
The blinis are cooked over medium heat in a pan with a bit of olive oil for about 3 min per side.
The corn and crème cooked down in a pot, and I whisked in the butter at the end.
To plate, the corn went down first, topped with 3 blini, a dollop of the partially whipped crème and a bit of caviar.
Deviled eggs
I rarely make hard-boiled eggs, so I searched the internet for instructions.
Place your eggs in a pot and cover 1 inch over with cold water. Bring to a rolling boil. Cover and turn off the heat. Set a timer for 12 minutes. When the timer goes off, place the eggs in an ice bath to cool, peel them, and cut them in half. Pop out the yolks and mix with mayonnaise, mustard, a bit of sweet pickle juice, salt, and smoked paprika.
Put this mixture in a sandwich bag and cut off a corner. Squeeze and fill.
Garnish with a bit more paprika and either fresh dill or (as I did) fennel fronds.
Fried Polenta with roasted cherry tomatoes
I made a batch of quick Polenta (1 cup polenta to 3 cups water with a pinch of salt). It cooks for about 15 minutes until it is thick, stirring occasionally. I lined a 9-inch round pan with parchment and poured the Polenta in.
This went in the fridge for a few hours (I did this early so it could set while I cooked the rest).
Later, I turned it out and used a small round cutter to cut out pieces to fry. These cook for 4 to 5 minutes per side in olive oil until lightly golden brown. Then, they drain on a paper towel.
For the tomatoes, I tossed some in an oven dish with olive oil and a bit of balsamic, covered in aluminum foil, and let it cook on a lower rack while I baked other things.
A spring of fresh basil finished this off.
Popcorn with parmesan and herbs
This one is perfect for bubbles, and it’s so easy! I used microwave popcorn, and when it was done, I tossed it in a bowl with dried oregano, thyme, dill, and finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano. We served it in highball glasses.
Pastry puffs with toppings
I had one sheet left in an open box of pastry sheets. I defrosted it for 30 minutes and cut part of it into squares and part into circles with my cutter. These went on a baking sheet with parchment, got pricked with a fork, and were coated with egg wash. 15 minutes in the oven, and they were good.
I let them cool and topped the square ones with lobster pate. Yes, from a gift basket at some point. This was a tin of lobster pate with cognac. I topped it with a sprig of parsley.
I added a bit of cranberry sauce and fresh rosemary to the round ones.
Zucchini with pepper and cheese
I found this recipe on food and wine and adapted it.
I had a small zucchini that I sliced into ¼ inch slices on the diagonal. These got salted and sat on a rack for 30 minutes, then I rinsed and patted them dry.
I chopped up 3 orange & red sweet peppers very finely.
I added 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a large pan and microplaned 2 garlic cloves. (Microplaning garlic is new to me; Trevor at work told me he had tried it and has never looked back!) I added a dollop of tomato paste, cooked it down a bit, and then tossed in the finely diced pepper. This is cooked for 3-5 minutes, then I set it aside.
The zucchini cooked in olive oil for about 3 minutes per side (they will start to brown)
These get laid out on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Each zucchini slice is topped with the pepper mixture and then finely grated grana Padano. This goes in the oven for about 20 minutes.
We served these in spoons. You had to because the zucchini slice was soft. While the flavor was good, we both would have preferred a crunchy vehicle for the zucchini.
Biscuits with butter and radishes
Simple and delicious, I cut down my canned biscuits and baked them, then split them, slathered with softened butter, and topped with thinly sliced radishes and a sprinkle of specialty salt.
My radishes were a bit mild, so we ended up grinding a bit of black pepper on top.
Seared Scallops on pea puree
I had large frozen sea scallops left from a recipe a week or so ago (Sea scallops in vermouth…), So I quickly thawed 2 of them and seared them in butter. These are plated on a quick pea puree.
I filled a pot with water to cook the peas and dropped in a large clove of garlic. The water boiled with the garlic for 3 minutes or so, and I added the frozen peas. They cooked until tender and then drained. The peas and garlic go in the food processor with 3 tablespoons of butter and some salt and pepper. This whizzes up and then I drizzled in about 2 tablespoons of crème.
Place the puree on the bottom, top with the scallop, and garnish with fresh mint.
While we would make some adjustments if we tried these recipes again, we were pretty well satisfied with an Impromptu small bites feast!
More on Bubbles and small bites from the writers at #WorldWineTravel
Camilla of Culinary Cam leads us this month on our exploration and celebration of bubbles from around the globe! So, if you are ready for some terrific ideas on sparkling wines and small-bite pairings for the holidays, well, you have come to the right place! There are links to all my colleagues articles below!
- Cam of Culinary Cam shares A Bouquet of Bubbly Rosés with Festive Nibbles: From California’s Central Coast to Neusiedlersee, Alsace, Swartland, and More
- Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm shares A Tropical Grazing Board and Hawaiian Sparkling Wine; Mele Kalikimaka
- Andrea of The Quirky Cork shares A Sparkling Journey Through Hungary, Germany, and Armenia
- Terri at Our Good Life Shares Top Affordable Sparkling Wines for Every Budget
- Martin at ENOFYLZ Wine Blog shares Bubbles and Bites: Dr. Konstantin Frank Sparkling Brut Meets “Meat and Potatoes”
- Lynn at Savor the Harvest shares Sparkling Wine From Around the World with Dinatoire
- Jeff at Food Wine Click shares A Very Bourgogne Holiday Apero
- David of Cooking Chat shares Brie Crostini with Prosciutto and Sparkling Wine
- Gwendolyn Lawrence Alley of Wine Predator will share Sekt Means Sparkling in German: 2013 Raumland Cuvee Marie Luise Brut Means Fondue Fun and Small Bites– Clink Different!
More on Bubbles from Crushed Grape Chronicles!
- Celebrate Sparkling Wine Week!
- Organic, Pink, Bubbly – Whar’s not to love?
- Iris Vineyards in Oregon’s Southern Willamette Valley – Bubbles, Background and a Pairing with an Areté Pinot Noir
- Bubbles by any other name…Sparkling wines from all over the globe. #WinePW
- Where are the Women in Champagne? #Winophiles
- Celebrating Conegliano Valdobbiadene; Prosecco and Beyond
- Cava: Traditional Method Sparkling Wine from Spain
- Swift – Delicious Traditional Method Sparkling Wines from Printhie and the High Altitude Vineyards in Orange Australia
- Vivacious, charming, and sparkling! The wines of Bellenda!
- Unwind and Savor Sparkling Spumante on Italy’s Gorgeous Trabocchi Coast in Abruzzo
- Monti Lessini – the sparkling wine for star-crossed lovers
- Sparkling wine from Jansz Tasmania and a Tassie-inspired seafood curry pie #WorldWineTravel
Robin Renken is a wine writer and Certified Specialist of Wine and WSET 3 Certified. She and her husband Michael travel to wine regions interviewing vineyard owners and winemakers and learning the stories behind the glass.
When not traveling they indulge in cooking and pairing wines with food at home in Las Vegas.
Check out our book series, “Tempting Spoonfuls” available through Amazon!
Inspired by the flavors and aromas in wines, these books create “tempting spoonfuls” of flavors to pair with wines.
“Tempting Spoonfuls – Pairing single bites with glorious wines” – Our first book paired wines from boutique wineries on the west coast, in California, Oregon, and Washington, with delicious spoonfuls.
This book is 60 pages, 18 recipes, lots of beautiful photos, and insights into some fantastic small wineries!
“Tempting Spoonfuls – small bites paired with wines from around the Globe” – This book takes us around the globe to explore 12 wine regions, a wine from the region, and then gives you a recipe for a pairing!
A slightly larger book at 104 pages, this time you learn about pairing with a type of wine from a region. Rather than a specific bottle, you can look for a style of wine from a region and feel confident that it will go well with the recipe pairing we provide. We give you 12 recipes, each to pair with a wine.
The goal is to make your mouth water and encourage you to create your own “Tempting Spoonfuls.”
12 Comments
Leave your reply.