Category: Wine

Ingredients

3 large red bell peppers
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
3 cloves crushed garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).

Rub peppers with enough oil to coat; place on sheet tray and roast in oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until skins turn black.

Remove from oven and set aside to cool. Remove stems and skins.

Place peppers, oil, vinegar, mayonnaise, cheese, garlic, basil and salt and pepper in blender; Process until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Ingredients

3 whole artichokes
1 bulb fennel, trimmed and diced
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 quarts water to cover
salt and pepper to taste
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon margarine
1 pound mussels – cleaned and debearded
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 lemon, juiced
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Directions

Remove the hearts and stems from the artichokes and discard the leaves. Chop the hearts and stems and place them in a large pot over low heat with the fennel and onion. Add the cream, just enough water to cover all, and salt and pepper to taste. Let this simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until tender.

Meanwhile, rinse and de-beard the mussels. In a separate large saucepan over medium low heat, sweat the garlic in the butter or margarine for 30 seconds. Add the cleaned mussels and the wine, cover and let simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the mussels and reserve the liquid. (Note: Be careful not to brown the garlic.)

Transfer the vegetable mixture to a blender and puree until smooth. Add the lemon juice, reserved mussel liquid and season with salt and pepper to taste. Strain this mixture through a fine mesh strainer and top each serving with some mussels. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley.

Ingredients

2 cups red wine
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle Irish stout beer
3 fluid ounces Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup steak sauce
4 (1/2 pound) beef steaks

Directions

In a glass bowl or baking dish, mix together the red wine, beer, Worcestershire sauce and steak sauce. Place steaks into the marinade, cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours to allow the alcohol to get the meat good and soft.

Preheat your oven’s broiler.

Place steaks on a rack over a broiling pan. Arrange the shelf so that the steaks are about 5 inches away from the heat source. Broil for 5 to 7 minutes on each side, or to desired doneness.

Pour the marinade into a saucepan, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for about 15 minutes. Repeatedly strain the mixture to remove the proteins (foamy substance). Not doing this will make it taste bad. Once the marinade has been cooked down to remove all of the meat proteins and alcohol, use as a sauce.

Ingredients

1 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 (14.5 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, drained and chopped
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chiles, drained
1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
10 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup half-and-half cream
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Saute onion in skillet over medium heat in oil until softened, about 4 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and chiles, let cook 2 minutes.

Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and stir in spinach, cheese, cream cheese, half and half, and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon mixture into shallow baking dish like a 9 inch quiche dish or pie plate.

Bake in the preheated oven until the dip is bubbly and the top is light brown, about 35 minutes.