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Here in Oregon we're priveleged to have access to an amazing array of wild mushroooms and truffles. This dish brings out the best in the morels and the Pinot. You can use rabbit or chicken in this one - the chicken will of course be fattier - so take care to skim the sauce carefully. Chicken will also cook a little faster. You can make this ahead (a couple of days at most) and reheat ... 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 8 garlic cloves, peeled 1 3-4 lb chicken or 1 2-3 lb rabbit, cut into serving pieces (or 4 pounds chicken thighs and legs) salt & freshly ground pepper 4 shallots - peeled & quartered 2 carrots - peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces 4 oz fresh morel mushrooms - rinsed well 1 sprig fresh thyme 2/3 cup dry white wine 2 cups stock (rabbit or chicken - low-sodium if using canned chicken stock) 1/2 lemon Heat 1 tablespoon butter and the oil in a casserole or deep skillet - medium high for a minute or so. Add the garlic and brown for about 3 minutes, transfer to a plate, Add the rabbit (or chicken, skin-side down) Season with salt & pepper and brown well on all sides, in batches if needed. Transfer rabbit or chicken to a plate, pour off fat, reduce heat to medium-low. Add carrots and shallots and cook for about 10 minutes, until they're soft and beginning ot brown. Then add the morels and the thyme and cook for another minute or two, and then return the rabbit/chicken and garlic to the pan. Increase the heat to medium-high, add the wine and simmer until wine has reduced by at least half. Scrape up any browned bits and dissolve them into the wine. Add the stock, set heat so the liquid is just simmering, and cover the pot. Cut until meat is cooked thru and tender 20-30 minutes. Remove the meat and keep it warm. Spoon off any grease in the liquid. Increase heat and simmer until it reduces in half. Add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, swirl in 1 tablespoon butter, and adjust salt & pepper as needed. Return the meat to the pot, simmer to heat through and serve. Serves 4 DAGOBA CHOCOLATE BROWNIES One can certainly debate whether this is "Pinot-friendly" or not - but we had to put it in here anyway, these are just too good! We're big fans of Oregon's own Dagoba Chocolate - they're completely organic, and the chocolate is absolutely fabulous. These are hands-down the best brownies we've ever tried, and are second only to Martha's famous "House Chocolate Cake" as best dessert ever. The original recipe calls for Dogoba's "Xocolatl" chocolate - which is infused withchiles and spices for some mild heat. We also love 'em with Dogoba's "New Moon" 74% Dark chocolate, or their Lavender infused chocolate. The choice is yours - it works just as beautifully any way you want to go. Generous 1/3 cup unsalted butter 3/4 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup firmly-packed brown sugar 2 1/2 bars of Dagoba Chocolate (flavor of your choice - 5 oz total) 2 eggs 1 teaspon vanilla 3/4 cup all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons Dagoba Organic Cacoa Powder or other unsweetend cocoa 1/2 teaspoon baking powder Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease an 8-inch square baking pan and line with parchment paper. Place butter, sugars, and chocolate in a heavy pan and heat gently, stirring until the mixture is melted, well-blended and smooth. Remove from heat and let cool. Beat together the eggs and vanilla. Whisk into the cooled chocolate mixture. Sift together the flour, cocoa and baking powder, and fold carefully into the egg and chocolate mixture using a metal spoon or spatula. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 25 minutes - until the top is crisp and the edges are beginning to pull away from the pan. The center will still be soft to the touch. Let cool completely in the pan. Cut into squares and serve - add a scoop of vanilla ice cream if desired!
CURED, PAN-SMOKED SALMON Quite simply, this is the very best salmon preparation we've ever had - anywhere. This is one of those rare recipes that is incredibly simple yet yields results so impressive that you'll want to serve it to guests. And they will ask for the recipe. You'll start by fashioning a cast iron skillet into a smoker. To do that, line a 10 inch skillet with foil, tearing a 1 ½" hole in the center. This is where you'll place the wood chips (mesquite, alder, etc. Incidentally, grapevines work well). You'll need a round wire cake rack with 1" feet. If you don't have one with feet, improvise by balling up 4 small pieces of tin foil and placing them underneath the outer edges of the rack so the rack is balanced. Lastly, line your skillet lid with foil. That's it. You've done the hard part. Now, on with the recipe.
In a small bowl, combine the salt, pepper
and sugar. Place the fish on a platter and rub the seasoning mix all over.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Prepare your
skillet as described above (don't put the chips or cake rack in yet) and
place over high heat until very hot, about 5 minutes. Pat the salmon dry
with paper towels and lightly brush both sides with oil. Add wood chips
to the center of the skillet and then position the cake rack on top. When
the chips begin to smoke, place the fish on the rack, skin side down and
cover tightly with the foil-lined lid. Reduce heat to moderately low and
Serves 4 GARLIC & ROSEMARY CHICKEN AND
POTATOES We cherish those recipes in our that are deeply flavorful, but without requiring hours of preparation. This has become a favorite in our house.
Preheat oven to 500º F. Cut potatoes
into ½ inch pieces. In a bowl stir together potatoes, half of garlic,
half of rosemary, oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Pat chicken dry with
paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Rub chicken with remaining
garlic and rosemary. In a roasting pan arrange chicken in one layer and
scatter potatoes around meat. Roast chicken and potatoes in middle of
oven until chicken is cooked through and potatoes are crisp, about 35
minutes. Serves 2 |
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