Posts Categorized: Recipes

Tillamook Frozen Custard & Underwood Strawberry Cooler Syrup

July 19, 2019

A Perfect Pairing:
Tillamook Frozen Custard & Underwood Strawberry Cooler Syrup

Strawberry season goes by way too quickly, but we aren’t quite ready to say goodbye just yet!

We have recently discovered (and fallen in love with) some of our local Tillamook Creamery’s Special Batch ice cream, gelato and custards. We thought it would be interesting to pair strawberries with their Sea Salt & Honeycomb Toffee Custard, and it worked amazingly. To sweeten the deal we created a simple, yet very complex tasting, Strawberry Cooler Syrup, which really highlights the salty crunchy bits of toffee in the creamy custard.

The syrup is simple to make and will stay good for weeks in the refrigerator.

Underwood Strawberry Cooler Syrup

Underwood Strawberry Cooler
3 ripe strawberries
3 sprigs of mint
1/4 teaspoon of black peppercorns
2 Tablespoons of sugar (optional)

STEP ONE:
Pour a can of the Cooler into a wide, heavy bottomed pot and bring to a boil. If adding the sugar, do so at this time. Stir until the sugar is dissolved so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot.

STEP TWO:
Immediately reduce to a simmer and continue to cook, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

STEP THREE:
After 15 minutes, place the strawberries (stems removed), mint and peppercorns into the pot and continue to simmer for another 15 minutes or until almost all of the liquid has evaporated.

STEP FOUR:
Strain liquid immediately into a bowl and refrigerate until ready to use. Once cooled, scoop out some custard (or your favorite Tillamook ice cream flavor), add a few strawberries and a healthy drizzle of the syrup.

Bon Appétit!

Photography, Recipe and Text by David L. Reamer. (@dlreamer)

Redefining The Radler

July 5, 2019

Riesling Radler Granita with Grilled Pineapple

During these hot summer months there is very little as refreshing as an ice cold Underwood Riesling Radler. It’s light, citrus flavored, white wine makes for a solid afternoon beverage. But that got us thinking about how else we could bring the flavor of one of our favorite cans to life.

Enter the Granita. An Italian flavored ice dessert, it is similar to a sorbet but instead of needing an ice cream maker, Granita can be made simply with a pan and a fork for mixing. Often served as an intermezzo, Granita also makes a delicious and refreshing dessert. We decided to pair our Radler Granita with grilled pineapple as both can be done in advance when entertaining. This recipe will serve 4-6 people.

STEP ONE:

Preheat your grill.
Peel your fresh pineapple and slice into rounds that are roughly 1/2 an inch thick.
Lightly brush slices with canola oil and grill on both sides for about 5 minutes per side.*
Let slices cool and then keep in a container in the fridge until ready to serve.

(*To achieve the “crosshatching” grilled effect, simply turn the slice 45 degrees halfway through the grilling process.)

STEP TWO:

In a medium sized metal or ceramic dish, pour:

1 can of Underwood Riesling Radler
1 oz fresh lime juice
1 1/2 oz simple syrup

Place dish in the freezer. Set your timer for 20 minutes.
When the timer goes off, stir the liquid gently with a fork to begin incorporating the frozen bits into the liquid. This is done to create a shaved ice texture, and not have the liquid freeze into a solid sheet.

Continue this process, remembering to set your timer and stirring every twenty minutes or so. After about an hour, you will see the liquid becoming quite slushy.

Continue this process until the Granita is completely frozen and there is no more liquid in the pan.
At this point, you can transfer the Granita to a quart container. This will save room in your freezer and also make scooping it out easier.

STEP THREE:

When it is time to serve, place a slice of the grilled pineapple on a plate. Using a 2 oz ice cream scoop, dip the scoop into some warm water, pack the Granita tightly into the scoop and place in the center of the slice.

Serve with an ice cold can of Radler. Bon Appétit!

Photography, Recipe and Text by David L. Reamer. (@dlreamer)

Wine Can Chicken on the Grill

June 28, 2019

Wine Can Chicken
(The Best Damn Chicken You’ll Ever Eat!)

Most people are familiar with Beer Can Chicken, a technique where you barbecue a whole bird balanced on a beer can. This is done so that as the bird roasts, the beer steams and flavors the bird from the inside out.

Well, we wondered how this would work out if we used an Underwood Pinot Gris can instead, and let us say that we were absolutely blown away by how easy and how delicious this turned out! To make a more complete meal out of it, we roasted some potatoes at the same time, and while the bird was cooking, we whipped up a simple Chimichurri sauce.

STEP ONE:

Remove any offal or neck pieces from the cavity of the bird. Rinse well inside and out with cold water and pat dry.
Evenly coat the whole bird with olive oil and salt and pepper.

STEP TWO:

Fire up your grill. Whether you’re using charcoal or gas, you don’t want any heat directly under the bird, so keep the center free of direct heat.

Crack a can of Pinot Gris and drink about 1/4 of the wine. This is actually a very important step, as it will create a little room for the wine to steam and not overflow into the grill. Slide the can into the cavity of the chicken and place it in the center of the grill.

This is the most important part—make sure the can is sitting flat on the grill and splay the legs so that they form a steady tripod. We found it best to lean the legs into the grooves of the grill plate. Cover the grill and let the bird cook for about 10 minutes. Check to make sure the bird hasn’t fallen over and then recover it and DO NOT UNCOVER IT for at least another 45 minutes. If your grill has a temperature gauge, try to keep the heat around 450 degrees. The bird will take about 1 hour to cook altogether.

You can also place a few medium red potatoes on the grill—again, make sure they are not directly over the heat, and let them roast as the bird cooks. They should finish at just about the same time as the chicken.

In the meantime, make the Chimichurri sauce—a sort of zesty Argentinian pesto. There are many variations of the sauce. Here is ours:

CHIMICHURRI SAUCE:

1 bunch of cilantro
1/2 bunch of curly parsley
3 large sprigs of oregano
juice of half a lemon
1 TBS red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic
1 medium shallot
pinch of salt & crushed red pepper
1/2 C olive oil

Rinse, dry and pick all the herbs. Finely dice the shallot. Set aside.

In a food processor, place the 2 cloves of garlic and pulse several times Then add all the other ingredients except the shallot and the oil. Pulse a few more times.

Once everything is starting to be finely chopped, slowly drizzle in the olive oil while the food processor is running. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the diced shallot. Keep covered in the refrigerator until ready to use.

BACK TO THE BIRD…..

Cook the chicken until a thermometer inserted reads 165 degrees. Carefully remove the chicken from the grill and set it on a pan to rest. Gently remove the can, it will still have a good amount of VERY hot wine in it so be very careful.

Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes and then carve, removing both legs and breasts.

Arrange your desired pieces on a plate with a few pieces of the potato and a generous amount of Chimichurri. Crack an ice cold can of Pinot Gris and DIG IN!

Photography, Recipe and Text by David L. Reamer. (@dlreamer)

Perfect Pairings

May 31, 2019

At Union Wine Company we love to support and collaborate with other fellow artisans in our community.

Our favorite cheesemonger, Steve Jones of Cheese Bar and Chizu, has been honing his skills for 15 years and just released his very first book: CHEESE BEER WINE CIDER: A Field Guide to 75 Perfect Pairings. Co-written by Steve Jones and Adam Lindsley (and photographed by your humble narrator, David L. Reamer) you can order a copy of CHEESE BEER WINE CIDER at Powells Online or keep an eye out for copies at your local bookstore or wine shop.

It is, as the title says, a guide to pairing specific cheese with their appropriate ‘adult beverage’ counterparts. We thought this would be a great opportunity to have Steve formally taste three of our Underwood wines—Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and Rosé—and choose a cheese that he thinks would go well with each. If you are going to be doing some entertaining in the next few weeks, or if you just want to have an indulgent late spring picnic, this will help you to know the best cheese to accompany your favorite cans. So, without further ado…

**************

UNDERWOOD PINOT NOIR paired with SUMMER COMTÉ.

Comté is a cow’s milk cheese from France’s Massif du Jura region. It has a very earthy taste (think mushrooms cooked in brown butter) but also has a slight sweetness which pairs quite well with our Underwood Pinot Noir. There are various styles of Comté, but this one gets its name from the season it is produced, when the cows are dining on the lush and verdant summer grasses.

UNDERWOOD ROSÉ paired with 1605 MANCHEGO

This very popular aged Spanish sheep’s milk cheese comes from the windmill-dotted La Mancha plateau immortalized in Don Quixote. (The producing farm, 1605, actually takes its’ name from the year the book was first published!) Much like the terroir of its origin, Manchego is dry, pale and very sheepy. As it ages, the cheese’s nuttiness and buttery qualities increase, making it absolutely delicious, and a perfect pairing to our Rosé.

UNDERWOOD PINOT GRIS paired with JACQUIN BUCHERON.

Bucheron is from what is called the Bloomy-Rind Family. A French goat’s milk cheese, it has its origins in the Loire Valley which is accepted as the home of chèvre. The Jacquin Family has been making cheese in the Loire Valley for four generations. Bucheron, from the French word for “log”, has two distinct parts: a gooey section that has started to break down just below the rind, and, a more traditional, dryer, white chèvre filling the center. The contrast between the salty cream of the buttery ring and the lemony, goaty center make for a complex flavor, as well as a great pairing for our Pinot Gris.

Big thanks again to Steve Jones for taking the time to share his knowledge and palette for this little culinary experience. A good time was had by all!

Photography and Text by David L. Reamer. (@dlreamer)

Chefs at Home Series: BUNK’S Nick Wood

April 19, 2019

Since such a large part of the Pacific Northwest culture revolves around food, we decided to start up a series here on Field Notes that features local chefs who love to drink and cook with Underwood wines. For this post, we reached out to one of the founders of the Portland institution Bunk Sandwiches, Nick Wood.

Nick was raised in Cincinnati, but really cut his teeth in New Orleans, cooking for several fine dining restaurants, including Brennans and Martinique Bistro, before relocating to Portland. Because of this, on his days off, Nick loves to return to the cuisine he feels most comfortable with, Creole. When we asked Nick to come up with a recipe using the Underwood Pinot Noir, he immediately suggested Marchand de Vin, a Creole take on a classic French sauce, literally meaning “Wine Merchant”. We had never even heard of this sauce but apparently it is a mainstay of all the best restaurants around New Orleans.

It’s a pretty simple recipe and one that is guaranteed to knock the socks off anyone lucky enough to indulge. Make sure to enjoy with some crusty French bread and plenty of Underwood Pinot Noir!

Marchand de Vin Sauce
(the best sauce you’ve never heard of)

** Serves 4 people **

Ingredients:

3 garlic cloves
3 shallots
4 green onions (tops reserved)
8 large cremini mushrooms
1/2 lb tasso or smoked ham
1 can Underwood Pinot Noir
1 QT beef stock
unsalted butter
salt & pepper
Tabasco
Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 lb steak, such as bavette or tri-tip

****

Dice first 5 ingredients, setting green onion tops aside for garnish.

Season steak well with salt and pepper. Heat a wide, heavy bottomed pot, add 2 Tbs of olive oil and sear steak on each side. Place steak on a sheet pan and finish in the oven, 5-10 minutes depending on size. Set aside to rest.

Place beef stock in a small pot and reduce by half, keep warm.

Heat up the large pot again, (leaving any steak bits in the bottom), add 2 Tbs of butter and 2 Tbs of oil to the pot and sauté top five ingredients on medium heat for 7 minutes, stirring frequently so as not to burn. Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Without lowering heat, slowly add the can of Underwood Pinot Noir and bring to a simmer, continuing to stir for 5 minutes.

Add warmed beef stock gradually with a ladle and let liquid reduce by half, about 10 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Turn off heat and add 2 Tbs of butter and a generous splash of Tabasco and Worcestershire to taste.