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When they opened their first store in 1977, Joel Dean and Giorgio DeLuca's mission was to spread the gospel of good eating. Today the very name Dean & DeLuca conjures up visions of the holy land for seekers of fine cheeses, charcuterie, and fresh-baked artisan breads. In
Dean & DeLuca: The Food and Wine Cookbook, D&D wine director Jeff Morgan celebrates the sublime marriage of D&D's original old-world concept--offering top-quality international culinary selections--and the influence of California's diverse wines. Beginning with a veritable "California Wine 101" course, Morgan details a concise history of California winemaking from pre-gold rush days through the dry gulch of Prohibition and onward to glory in the 1980s. Also included are primers on the chief varietals and the basics of pairing wine with food. The recipes, which range from uncomplicated to fairly ambitious, and from economical to downright indulgent, are both inventive and inviting. Simple dishes like Chilled Yellow Tomato Soup with Guacamole, and Fish Soup with Artichoke Hearts and Artichoke Aioli highlight the best of California's bounty, while Lobster, Cabernet, and Shitake Soup, or Caviar Soufflé provide opportunities to revel in the elegant. Clever twists on more usual dishes are also well represented: Chile-Pecan Chicken Breasts with Honey Mustard Glaze, Garlic Pork Chops with Sauvignon Beurre Blanc, and Saffron Chardonnay Risotto offer welcome variety. Not all of the recipes include wine as an ingredient, but each includes helpful wine-pairing suggestions. All in all, this book provides a handy recipe for embracing the good life by celebrating the best of food and wine.
--Robin Donovan
Pressestimmen
"The Food and Wine Cookbook," a guide to pairing California wines with food, is the latest effort from Dean & DeLuca, the New York-based chain of gourmet shops that has an outlet in Napa Valley s St. Helena. Author Jeff Morgan, wine director for the chain and a frequent contributor to "Wine Country Living," packs a lot of information into the early chapters, providing a thumbnail sketch of the history and geography of California wine country and a primer on serving, cellaring and drinking wine. None of the information is new, but it is presented here in a well-organized, accessible format.
The 80 recipes, developed by Dean & DeLuca s chefs with Morgan, are an eclectic and well-chosen selection. The accent is on Mediterranean flavors, but Asian and Middle Eastern ingredients appear as well. Each dish gets several wine recommendations based on Morgan s sensible and flexible guidelines.
The book is also a useful reference work. It contains guides to salad greens, mushrooms, olives and cheeses, and there is a section on standard techniques how to cook dried beans, shuck oysters and trim artichokes and recipes for basics like mayonnaise and veal demiglace.
Recipes cover everything from appetizers to sweets. Imaginative main courses include a slow-cooked beef brisket rubbed with Indian spices and skate wings dredged in porcini dust. Side dishes, such as zucchini-blossom tempura with goat cheese and roasted figs, are equally creative. Morgan s broad knowledge and passion come across in his engaging prose, and Steven Rothfeld s photographs are mouthwatering.
Throughout the book, Morgan promotes enjoying wine as part of a leisurely meal created with fresh, healthful ingredients. But not too healthful he also recommends putting a dollop of St. Andre butter, a blend of butter and super-rich French cheese, on your steak. -Wine Country Living
For anyone who lives in New York, many who have visited New York and perhaps a few who've barely heard of New York, two word