South African Delights and Shoppe Favourites

Last night I finally had a minute free to visit my long lost friend Eileen the Wine Goddess at Cardullo's. For this Tempt Me Thursday, she was tasting South African wines. The first was a 2010 Limestone Chardonnay from the Robertsons region. 2008 Meerlust Stellenbosch region. Both were very fresh and crisp and summery, but I think the Meerlust was my favorite.

Since she was a little occupied with customers (the nerve!), I took her iphone around the store and took some photos of some of my Cardullo's favorites...

1. Cardullo's Raspberry Merlot Balsamic Glaze. I used this quite a while ago as a marinade on a pork tenderloin. It was an amazing flavor, especially in the fall with some root vegetables... mmm.

2. Lake Champlain's Aztec Spicy Hot Chocolate. In the chillier months, Eileen often offers me something hot to sip on when I come into the store. This was the most delicious thing she gave me last winter. Chili pepper + chocolate = heaven. I ask you, is there anything that doesn't mix well with chocolate?

3. Pecorino Tartufo. As if pecornio weren't amazing enough on its own, someone decided to add truffle to it. This cheese is for a special occasion, or when you just need to treat yourself. It's definitely an indulgence. And may I reccomend you taste it with this, also available at Cardullo's.

4. Edmond Fallot Mustards. Last Christmas, I baked a ham and served it on biscuits with Edmond Fallot Honey-Balsamic mustard, and it went over like gangbusters. They have a lot of interesting flavors: Black Currant, Tarragon Dijon, Burgundy, as well as more classic flavors. It would be lots of fun to experiment with these.

Now I am feeling inspired! Maybe I'll have some actual recipes for you this weeknd... I'll work on that.

Happy Friday!

m

I Got Chills!

I swung by Cardullo's on my way home from work tonight for their Tempt Me Thursday Tasting, and I must say, Eileen may have outdone herself.

As she was listening to the Grease soundtrack today (which is surprising, I didn't think her radio has ever played anything except country), she got inspired to make a chilled soup (you get it?-- "I got chills!"). Though she had never made soup before, she "whipped up" a Carrot and Cilantro chilled concoction in about half an hour, brought it to the shop and found for it the perfect wine and cheese pairings.

Here's what she did:

shred about 5 bags of "really good" carrots, sauté with some Irish butter and shallots. Add a little chicken stock and chopped cilantro. Salt & pepper to taste. Adjust seasoning to your liking. Blend and cool. Garnish with shredded carrot and gouda. 

I've never been too interested in gazpachos, or any soups in the summer. But guys, this was good. Like, really good. I'm going to make it for myself sometime. And when I do, I'll be sure to pick up one of Eileen's perfect pairings...

Eileen wanted something green and herbal to go with the crispy freshness of the carrot-cilantro soup, so she served a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. Sauvignon Blancs are a favorite of mine, and this one is excellent. It's a little dryer and bolder than what I'm used to, in a good way. And it balanced out the soup and cheeses nicely.

And for the beer-drinkers: a Belgian White, also from New Zealand. I loved this one. It had "fairly aggressive hops" and a super cute label. ;)

the label has unicorns and other woodland creatures on it :)

Also for tasting: Beemster Vlaskass and Beemster XO. Both aged goudas are delicious with the wine or beer. 

happy tasters

Eileen does tasting every Thursday from 5:30-7:30pm. If you haven't been yet, you are missing out. I hope she doesn't get mad at me for saying this, and I mean it in the best way possible, but Eileen is kind of a big nerd when it comes to food. Of course, that's just the pot calling the kettle black. She loves to chat people up about pairings, recipe ideas, eating local & organic, etc. I always get great ideas when I go. In fact, I'm stopping back by tomorrow to pick up some gouda and beer for myself!

m

Keep your slaw-ptions open

Today was one of those days for me. I won't get into detail, but it was the kind of day where I just needed to see a friendly face at the end of it. I headed to Cardullo's to see my friend Eileen, who always has her friendly face on. 

show us that friendly face, Eileen!

Tonight she was doing a tasting all of her own. In celebrating of Father's Day, she whipped up a few different slaws using deliciously unique condiments that Cardullo's carries. And of course, everything paired perfectly with a selection from her wine shop. I snapped a few pictures on my phone, which is crappy, to say the least, Bare with me.

The first one featured a fruit vinegar, jicama, apple, and some other things I can't remember, because I took a picture of the wrong slaw. Oops. It was awesome, though. This one was paired with an amazing Prosecco. For those of you who have never tried it, jicama is kind of a sweet root vegetable. It's a Mexican potato that looks like a turnip and tastes sort of like a pear. Flour has a delicious sandwich with jicama, chicken and avocado, which I can't not order whenever I go there.

that's jicama on the left

The second slaw had Sweet Thai Chili sauce as a base, Cardullo's own brand. Eileen tossed fresh radicchio, pineapple, red pepper and cilantro. I think this one was my favorite. She paired it with a hard apple cider.

This next one blew my mind a little. Yes, you are reading that right. Baconnaise. Someone recently decided that everything should have a bacon-flavored alternative, and ever since then, we are seeing everything from bacon-flavored cocktails to bacon-laced cupcakes. Yuck. I have to admit, though, baconnaise and coleslaw is a match made in heaven. I would love to put a spoon-full of this stuff on a juicy burger.

 ...this stuff is vegetarian: Believe it, or Not!

I am feeling a lot better now, thanks Eileen. Oh, and I have more unfortunate news: I had to postpone my tasting next week at Cardullo's due to a work event. Stay tuned, as I will definitely have a new tasting-day in the near future!

Do you have any food-related traditions for Father's Day? What about any cookout specialties?

m