5 minute read
My Favorite Things
My Favorite Things
BY JIM DOEHRING
With Valentines Day around the corner, I thought it was a good time to give you a quick snapshot of a few of “My Favorite Things” – Home Valentine’s edition!
This year the kids will be away on a school trip, so instead of the heart shaped pizzas from our friends at Lou Malnati’s, I might just don the chef jacket for Amy and me and see what happens. Of course, we could bail out and go to a super packed crazy restaurant – not. We could also call in some food in case of emergency – not likely given this easy menu, but you never know.
Preparation – in this case shopping is key, a stop at Burhop’s and Kramer’s just about has me set – of course the wine cellar at home is already stocked, although if in need of something fun, Emmett over at Sav Way always has some stuff around the shop. Close, easy, quick – my idea of shopping for sure.
With steak it is too easy to grab your favorite Napa Cabernet and enjoy. With the delicate flavor and richness of a fillet, however, I tend to go toward something Italian with a bit more acidity.
First off, I pop a bottle of Sparkling Rose to sip on while I prep up. In this case it is “SR 262”, a sparkling rose made from 100% Syrah from the Buckshot Vineyard in Washington’s Columbia River Valley. Delicate rose petal and bright strawberry notes are punctuated by tiny bubbles, a joy to drink any day of the week and especially good for something light after a long day.
A while ago Kramer’s put in a little cheese cabinet right near check out – an easy stop for our appetizer this evening, which is a round of Cowgirl Creamery Mt. Tam cheese. This stuff is a triple cream buttery delicious cheese made by a couple of very talented women out in Petaluma CA. It is perfect on some good crusty Turano bread that I toast up on the grill. With all the richness of the cheese, and it being Valentine’s, some great bubbles are in order. I am a huge fan Pol Roger Champagne – a bottle of Sir Winston Churchill pops open to reveal a fresh biscuit -like, almost yeasty, aroma. It’s delightful bubbles and right amount of acidity cut right through the bread and cheese. Good enough for Winston and his bottle or two a day, so it’s certainly good enough for our first course!
Now to the crab dip and shrimp cocktail I picked up at Burhop’s. As you can see, I am keeping this super simple and the chef jacket is probably overkill. A squeeze of lemon and some great cocktail sauce for the shrimp, some super light and thin Bremner crackers to put a little crab dip on, and course two is underway. Now it would be easy to just stick with the Champagne for this one, but I have another white wine in mind, a little number from the Loire – Domaine Vacheron “Les Romains”. Made from the Sauvignon Blanc grape, this is a bright and beautiful Sancerre, with white fruits, minerality and a backbone of acid that is perfect with the shellfish.
To keep the “home steakhouse” theme rolling (and have leftover sandwiches the next day), I am going to roast up a whole tenderloin. Pick your favorite butcher and have him trim and tie one up. The guys in the back of Kramer’s do a great job on this. I keep it super simple, a splash of Lea & Perrins Worcestershire across the fat cap the butcher has so nicely trussed onto the top, kosher salt and a nice grind of pepper.
Many of you will go outside and fire up the grill, which is always a great option, but since it is a cold Chicago night – convection roast in the oven will work just fine. Roast to a perfect medium rare, rest it up and you are ready. For this evening, I will cut two gorgeous steaks right out of the middle - the “Barrel Cut” and plate them up. The rest I will put in the fridge to slice up for sandwiches on pretzel rolls when the kids get home.
The key to any fillet is a great sauce. A dash of herb butter, perhaps? A bearnaise is always fantastic of course, but I am going to do the prime rib twist on this filet and serve up a horseradish cream that is just fantastic (recipe below). A stack of French green beans sautéed in butter with slivered almonds rounds out the plate. With steak it is too easy to grab your favorite Napa Cabernet and enjoy. With the delicate flavor and richness of a fillet, however, I tend to go toward something Italian with a bit more acidity. A great one that will not require much of an adjustment to your wallet is Vietti Barbera d’Alba Vigna Scarrone. A single vineyard “Scarrone” in Castiglione Falletto right near the winery, this wine sees a combination of aging techniques, in oak barriques, regular size French Oak barrels and some time settling in stainless steel. The result is a racy, bright, fun wine that shows red and black cherries, layers of complexity and wonderful balance.
Oops, I forgot the salad, sorry. Desert is most likely more wine and some relaxed time on the couch trying to figure out what Netflix show to watch and yelling at the TV when that stupid automatic preview comes on instead of us being allowed to just flip and read the description. More than anything, happy for some great time with my wife of almost 20 years and, of course, happy for another Valentine’s Day…….
Horseradish Cream Sauce
1 cup sour cream
4 tbs prepared horseradish
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
4 tbs mayonnaise
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
Blend all ingredients together, cover and chill, overnight if possible. ■
