Old Man Winter, Pack Your Bags!

The colder months have already begun to subside and now we are looking forward to Spring’s arrival. The foods we crave, like the weather, change with the seasons. Therefore, the ingredients for our menu planning are going through changes as well. As the saying goes, March comes in like a Lion and goes out like a Lamb. So I’m presenting you with two unique ideas, one for the departure of winter, the other for the arrival of Spring. No lamb or lion dishes, just some distinctive and creative ideas.

CANNELLONI BEAN AND PORTOBELLO BRUSCHETTA

Serves 8
Ingredients

• Olive oil
  
• 1 medium onion, chopped
  
• 1 cup peeled and diced eggplant
  
• ¼ teaspoon chili pepper
  
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
  
• 1 19-ounce can of cannelloni beans, rinsed and drained
  
• 4 or 5 whole, peeled canned tomatoes, preferably Italian, coarsely chopped and juices reserved.
  
• 4 Portobello mushrooms, cleaned, stemmed, and sliced
  
• 1 medium sized loaf country Italian bread, cut into 12-14 thin slices and toasted
  
• ½ cup pesto
  
• 12-14 slices mozzarella cheese
  
• Fresh basil to garnish
  

METHOD

Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with foil.
Over medium heat, in a large sauté pan, sauté onion in olive oil until tender, 5-6 minutes. Add eggplant, chili pepper, several large pinches of salt, and 1-2 tablespoons more oil. Cook over medium high heat, stirring frequently, until eggplant is golden brown and tender, about 2 minutes. Lower heat to medium, add garlic and continue to sauté for several minutes more. Stir in beans and chopped tomatoes and their juice. Remove from heat and set aside. (Eggplant and bean mixture may be tightly sealed and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days before assembling the bruschetta.)

Toss mushroom slices in oil and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Place slices on prepared baking sheet and place in oven. Roast until soft and fully cooked, 4 or 5 minutes.
To assemble bruschetta, spread each slice of toasted bread with pesto. Divide roasted Portobello slices among bruschetta and spoon bean-and-eggplant mixture over the mushrooms. Top each with a slice of mozzarella. Place bruschetta on baking sheet lined with foil or parchment paper.

Pair with Casillero del Diablo Reserve Sauvignon Blanc A crisp, aromatic counterpart to the creamy, earthy notes of this dish - a match made in heaven! Casillero del Diablo Reserva Sauvignon Blanc is the color of straw with green hues. the aromas are fresh and attractive with hints of citrus, peaches and gooseberry. On the palate, the wine is elegant, round, and mouthfelling. the wine is also balanced with attractive crisp acidity.

SPICED PORK EMPANADAS
Makes 32 empanadas

Ingredients
Filling

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
  
• ¾ pound ground pork
  
• Kosher salt
  
• 1 large onion, diced
  
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
  
• 2 teaspoons Spanish paprika (or to taste)
  
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  
• ½ cup pitted green olives, coarsely chopped
  
• ¼ cup golden raisins
  
• ¼ cup hot water
  
• 3 hard-boiled eggs, coarsely chopped
  
• ½ cup parsley, coarsely chopped
  
• Freshly ground black pepper
  
• Dough
  
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
  
• 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
  
• 12 ounces (3 sticks) unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
  
• 8 ounces cream cheese, cubed and chilled
  
• 1 egg yolk combined with 2 teaspoons ice water
  
• 2 eggs lightly whisked with 2 teaspoons cold water, for egg wash
• ½ cup sliced almonds, for tops of empanadas

METHOD

For the filling

Heat oil over medium-high heat in a medium-sized sauté pan. When oil is shimmering add pork, breaking it into little clumps with your fingers as you add it to the pan. (Take care not to crowd the pan; it may be necessary to sear the meat in two batches.) Allow meat to brown undisturbed for a few minutes before stirring. Add a few pinches of salt and continue browning until most of the pork has a golden-brown crust, adjusting heat as necessary. Remove meat from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside in a bowl.

Add onion to pan and stir quickly to help release the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Reduce heat to medium; add a generous pinch of salt, and sauté onions until they are thoroughly soft and translucent, seven to ten minutes. Add garlic and cook for another few minutes, stirring, until garlic is soft and fragrant. Add paprika and stir. Add tomato paste and sauté for a minute until it becomes fragrant. Return pork and any accumulated juices to the pan and stir.

Add olives and raisins along with a quarter cup of hot water and increase heat to medium-high. Allow water to nearly evaporate and take pan off heat. Let cool for a few minutes before stirring in hard-boiled egg and parsley and seasoning with salt and freshly ground pepper. When the filling has reached room temperature, transfer to a sealed container and place in the refrigerator for at least an hour. (Filling can be stored, well-sealed, in the refrigerator for up to twenty-four hours.)

For the dough:
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, place flour and salt and stir to combine. Add chilled butter and cream cheese and toss in the flour to coat. On medium-low speed, work the butter and cream cheese into the flour until dough appears pebbly. With the paddle working, drizzle in the egg yolk water and continue to mix until dough begins to come together into one large mass. (It may not be necessary to use all of the egg yolk water; keep a close eye on the dough and stop adding liquid when the large clumps of dough begin to adhere to one another. Use your hands to press the dough together in the bowl. If the dough is still dry and not coming together in large clumps after adding the liquid, add more water, a teaspoon at a time, until dough begins to come together.) Gather dough into a ball. Divide into four pieces and form each into a flattened disc. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and allow to rest in the refrigerator for at least an hour before rolling out. (At this point, the dough may be stored in the refrigerator for up to two days or in the freezer for month.)

Working with one disc of dough at a time, roll into a 1/8-inch-thick circle. Using a round 3-inch biscuit or cookie cutter, cut out eight circles of dough and transfer them to a baking sheet. Place sheet in the refrigerator while you repeat the rolling and cutting with the remaining three disks of dough. You will have a total of thirty-two three-inch circles.

Filling and baking empanadas

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Working with eight circles of dough at a time, place a heaping teaspoon of filling in the center of each circle. Brush the outer edges of each circle with egg wash and fold them in half to form a half moon; the filling should be snuggly encased in the center. Press edges together

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