Recipes With Wine

The Great Canadian Wine Match

Posted on: May 4th, 2013 by Carla Johnson No Comments

This week was the launch of the premiere The Great Canadian Wine Match. The fun slogan is “Red, White and Truth North Food.”

Please join in and vote. It is wine pairing in 6 different categories: chicken, beef, pizza. cheese, seafood, dessert. Click on each image below for each different category. I have nominated a wine in each of the categories.

If you tweet, use the hashtag #GCWM. Thanks!

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Best Chicken Wine
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Best Beef Wine
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Best Pizza Wine
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Best Cheese Wine
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Best Seafood Wine
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Best Dessert Wine

Thanks for your votes!

Note – There is a bit of confusion. The image for the Riverview is the same as the Ravine wine. That’s an oops I am trying to correct.

Going Green… with Wine

Posted on: March 16th, 2013 by Carla Johnson No Comments

There’s a dear little plant that grows in our isle,
‘Twas St. Patrick himself, sure, that sets it;
And the sun of his labor with pleasure did smile,
And with dew from his eye often wet it.
It grows through the bog, through the brake, through the mireland,
And they call it the dear little Shamrock of Ireland.
~ Irish Blessing

Cooking With Sin Carla Johnson

Tomorrow is St. Patrick’s Day and all the buzz is about green beer, so I’m thinking about green wine instead. Now, the thought of colouring wine green is rubbing me rather abrasively, so went looking for green glasses instead.

It was fun! I hope you enjoy them. There is something for every budget and type of party. You can click on each pic to find out where to purchase them.

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Green plastic glasses at Party City         Green recycled glass from the UK

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Luigi Bormioli at Target             Artland Iris Goblet at Sears

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Green Lustre – Bed Bath & Beyond     Fun Plastic Glass at Party City

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“Here’s to the land of the shamrock so green, 
Here’s to each lad and his darlin’ Colleen, 
Here’s to the ones we love dearest and most. 
May God bless old Ireland, that’s this Irishman’s toast!”

Happy St. Patrick’s Day Everybody!

 

Flaming Cherries Jubilee

Posted on: February 14th, 2013 by Carla Johnson No Comments

“Love must be as much a light as it is a flame.” H. D. Thoreau

Cooking With Sin Carla Johnson

This past Saturday I shared Flaming Cherries Jubilee, a simplified version of  “She’s a Trooper” Cherries Jubilee on the Cooking Stage at The Total Woman Show in Kitchener. On the Friday evening before I was practising my flambé skills – fortunately nothing was singed! – when I realized I was running low on Kirsch. I made a point of heading out early Saturday morning to buy another bottle only to learn the entire city of Cambridge was sold out!

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I needed something with an alcohol content of 40% so it could ignite and one of the liquor store managers talked me into using marshmallow vodka. I had never bought or tasted it before, but I decided to take his word for it. I’m so glad I did!

When I arrived at the show I was so happy to find out my friend Jay Chagnon was hosting my segment. I was also relieved to have my friend Chef D of Chef D TV working nearby to help re-jig that cooking surface for me. Jay and I ended up inviting Chef D to join us on stage and we had a fantastic time. Much hilarity ensued and I just hope the audience had as much fun as we did.

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Me and Chef D on The Total Woman Stage - Photo Credit K. Stenhouse

Deciding to add the marshmallow vodka at the last minute was certainly a risk, especially with a live audience there to taste it, but it was a wonderful surprise! In fact, it was so good that two of the volunteers who were helping afterward cleaned up the pan with their bare fingers! Yup, “finger licking good!” :lol:

If you saw us on stage, you know we joked about measuring the booze with a “wrist feel” where you pour until your wrist feels lighter, but for this post I’ll give you some more specific amounts. Feel free to add as much as you want. That’s all part of the fun and it’s especially timely for a Valentine’s Day dinner.

Flaming Cherries Jubilee

 
Serves 6
 
1 can cherry pie filling
2 ounces Cointreau
2 ounces marshmallow vodka
2 ounces Kirsch
vanilla ice cream
 

1. Pour the can of cherry pie filling into a large pan. Heat on high until bubbling.

2. Move the cherries to the side of the pan then pour the alcohol onto the scrapped side of the pan. This ensures the alcohol comes in contact with the pan directly and heats up quickly. Using a lighter with a long nozzle, ignite the alcohol.

3. Let the flames burn down then mix it into the pie filling. You can also douse the flames with the pan lid if you wish.

4. Pour the warm cherries and sauce over individual dishes of vanilla ice cream and serve.

*Tip* You will want to make this in the evening when it is dark to appreciate the glow of the flames.

I especially like this recipe because it is very simple, very showy and the cherries remain a nice red colour.

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Photo credit www.RovingEye.ca

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“I Love NY” Sangria

Posted on: February 10th, 2013 by Carla Johnson No Comments

Monica and her dad are very close and they have an annual tradition; they make wine together at a local wine makers. It is a special father-daughter venture and each year they choose a new red grape juice to work with. They have made Shiraz, Merlot, Cabernet, Cabernet-Sauvignon and several others.

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While she teaches grade 5 students by day, on the holidays Monica might be your tour guide on a bus trip to Montreal or New York. She has been to New York enough times that she has several favourite places. It was at a little Italian restaurant in NYC where she fell in love with their sangria and she set out to make her own version at home in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada.

Monica loves to entertain and invite people to her home. When it comes to party hostesses, she is one of the best. She is especially known for her delicious sangria. She has worked hard to find the right mix and at her last party I got a chance to have a few sips of it myself. I just loved it!

I find that sangrias can sometimes have a bit of a dry edge, but Monica’s is a smooth as silk. Her key ingredient cherry brandy. It works wonderfully.

“I Love NY” Sangria

 
1 750 ml bottle of Monica’s red wine
1/2 cup cherry brandy or cherry whiskey
1/2 cup triple sec
1/2 cup peach schnapps
1/2 cup lemonade
1/2 cup orange juice
1 cup Sprite
Frozen berries
 

1. Mix the liquid ingredients together in a pitcher or punch bowl. Monica pours her sangria into large plastic pop bottles which are nice to pour from and make it easy to store.

2. Monica keeps a bowl of frozen berries nearby to spoon into each cup as it is served.

Note: You want to look for cherry brandy specifically, not Kirsch. Kirsch is a cherry brandy that is made with the whole cherry, including the pit. It works really well in my Flaming Cherries Jubilee, but is too bitter for Sangria.

Who Would You Like to Have a Glass of Wine With?

Posted on: January 5th, 2013 by Carla Johnson No Comments
“A person with increasing knowledge and sensory education may derive infinite enjoyment from wine.” ~ Ernest Hemingway

Natalie MacLean is a passionate sommelier dedicated to sharing her expertise with Ontarians and people across Canada. Recently she interviewed one of my favourite people, Arlene Dickinson of CBC’s Dragons’ Den. Arlene’s personal journey from humble beginnings to solid business success is truly inspiring.

One of my two commitments to Cooking With Sin is to share personal stories and near the end of the interview Natalie asked Arlene about wine makers and taking wine tours. Arlene said it so well,  ”When you actually talk to the owners they all have great stories… We’re back to mentorship, right? There’s a great story everywhere.” So true. Thank you Natalie and Arlene.

So, how would you describe Kevin O’Leary as a wine? :???:

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