In the Kitchen: Spiced Gluten-free Beetroot Loaf

Hub got me an amazing Phillips juicer for Xmas and lately, I've been obsessed with beetroot. So there always this brightly colored beetroot mush splattered about in the juicer and as I do, I tasted it. I thought it was going to be bland and boring, but to my surprise it was tasty, moist and still sweet. Inspired by my gluten-free baking course and compulsiveness to never throw things out, I thought I'd use the pulp and make a healthy gluten-free beetroot loaf.

I found this Spiced Beetroot & Chocolate recipe from Wholesome Cook and modified it to match what I had in my cupboard. I wanted to make more of a bread loaf then cake, so I eliminated the cocoa powder.

Dry ingredients:

• 1½ cups self-raising gluten-free flour
• 1 tsp regular baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarb soda
• A shake each of ground cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg
• ½ cup leftover juiced beetroot mush (4 beetroots)

Wet ingredients:

• ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
• 40ml dark agave nectar (I actually put half of 1/3 cup which is 40ml)
• ⅔ cup water water
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

I preheated the oven to 170C and then followed the instructions. Combine the dry with the beetroot, whisk the wet separately then fold into the dry. I lined a 1L loaf tin with baking paper and cooked it longer than 35 minutes, 38 to be exact.

The loaf was perfect...pink, really most center and a lovely bit of crust which I like. It was probably fully cooked at 25 minutes and if you don't like a pronounced crust then I would take it out sooner. There was just a hint of beetroot, nice spices running through it and slightly sweet. Hub loved it, we ate it with peanut butter and surprise, surprise it's gluten, dairy, and sugar free.

 

  

Wine Class: Chardonnay & Pinot Noir

Three weeks in and we are exploring Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Never been too keen on Chardonnay, which I discovered is odd because a) chardonnay is very popular b) it grows in various climates from cool to moderate to hot and therefore c)  means it can take on broad ranging flavors. I was expecting to be proven wrong and we tried four different kinds: a premier cru from Chablis, one from Puligny-Montrachet, Jacobs Creek, and one from Yarra Valley in Australia. Each was so different in their flavor, but to my surprise and delight none of them grabbed my acute attention. Part of this journey is to obviously learn about white, but it's also about building confidence in knowing what I like. BUT if I had to choose, my favorite was the '08 Chateau de Puligny Montrachet Puligny-Montrachet. I loved the smell of butter, ripe peaches and sweet spices like vanilla, but the taste was more acidic, like citrus with a hint of spice.

We tried two Pinot Noirs, one from Burgundy and a Californian. Both were delicious, but my fav was the '08 Au Bon Climat Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir. It was pungent and tasted of ripe red fruits, which I'm learning is slightly more tart then that black fruits. I can't always make it out, but I'm working on it.

 

Afterwards I bonded with a classmate who has a wine company named Bourne Wines and he introduced me to Le Nez du Vin aroma set. Some people are blessed with a strong nose and palate whilst others (moi) need a bit training. It's a great little kit with several concentrated oils like licorice, grapefruit, etc. and helps train your nose in recognizing these scents in wine. Cool, no?

Savory Gluten-free Pancakes

I love pancakes and growing up near the International House of Pancakes; we ate them morning, noon or night.  But it's not common round these parts except on Pancake Day. In the UK people make pancakes on Shrove Tuesday because traditionally the recipe calls for rich foods such as eggs, milk, and sugar, which are given up during the fasting season of Lent. In the US we celebrate FAT Tuesday because let's face it we are a bunch of fatties and like to indulge in gluttonous festivities a la New Orleans.

Hub is a weird one, he does not like sweet pancakes and finds them rich and sickly! So for Pancake Day, I decided to make savory crepes like they do in Paris. I made them gluten-free and swapped the customary lemon and caster sugar with mushrooms and cheddar.

For the batter:

1 1/2 cups of Doves Farm Gluten-free Flour

300ml of whole milk

2 eggs

First I blended my batter together and made sure it was thin like crepe batter and not as thick as pancake batter. Then I finely chopped 1/2 small onion and 2 large garlic cloves and sweated them over a little bit of olive oil and salt. Then I added chopped mushrooms, a splash of red wine, and lots of dried sage and rosemary. And more salt, I'm generous with my salt!

I made the pancakes as you normally do, but instead of butter I oiled my pippin' hot pan with EVOO. After I flipped it over, I filled one side with my mushrooms and grated cheese and folded it like an omelet. We loved having these for dinner and it was a healthier alternative to sugary pancakes. They also make a great breakfast, I enjoyed the leftovers the next day before heading to work.

Wine Class: Understanding the Label

My second day at WSET reminded me of evening classes at Parsons where I would find it hard to concentrate after a long day of work and no sugar. My mind immediately perked up once we reached the tasting portion of the class.

Wines I loved:

The 2009 Ridge Lytton Springs Zinfandel had a lovely and potent smell. There were prunes, vanilla and spices on the nose and it was just like I like my reds - big and bold. It had full body, was dry and more spice on the tongue.

Out of the whites, I liked the 2008 Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec. I used to think that Vouvray was a grape (sad), but it's a well known area in the Loire Valley. The grape is actually Chenin Blanc and this wine had a lovely honey scent with hints of tropical fruit. I couldn't smell the tropics, but teacher pointed out lychee and melon. It had a shallow sweetness to it and a long finish. One way to measure a good wine is how long the taste lingers in your mouth after you swallowed. In class we ask ourselves did this wine have a long finish or a short finish?

What I learned in class:

• A cheap wine that has an oaky flavor has not been aged in oak barrels, but possibly infused with oak essence. Not to be confused with natural oak chips soaking in the wine.

• Old world wines (think France) label their wines according to winery, the region and sometimes the vineyard. It’s rare that the grape is ever mentioned because, the producer/winery will give you an indication of the quality and consistency of the wine (reputation) and the region (say Beaujolais) will give a hint as to the style, flavour, and grape. Alas for us amateurs this can be a tricky one if you don’t know about what kind of grapes grow in that region or even recognize that it’s a world renown vineyard like La Tache.

So the other night this lucky bird got to try La Tache 2000, a bottle that retails in the four figures.  My friend informed me that La Tache is a Grand Cru vineyard (aka the best) of Burgundy and the wine is made from Pinot Noir. It is controlled by a single winery (aka monopole) called Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and my impression is that if it says monopole on the label, prepare yourself for a good’un. It had a lovely smell to it, somewhat strong yet delicate and I managed to pick up red fruits and vanilla. The taste was silky smooth, easily drunk on it's own and the lovely flavour lingered on for what felt like ages.  

Wine Tasting 201

This week I started my first wine course at the Wine and Spirit Education Trust. My interests in wine began with my first restaurant job at the now deceased Biltmore Room. The guys behind the bar had such enthusiasm for wine and creating unique cocktails, it was infectious. Since then I feel like my knowledge has been slowly developing, but I haven't made any real efforts to learn more until now.

I really wanted to develop my palate and be able to anticipate what a bottle should taste like based on the label, so I signed up for the Level 2 Award in Wines and Spirits.  My first day did not disappoint and our teacher Michelle Cherutti-Kowel was fun with a relaxed teaching style, which was nice.

Some great wines I discovered in our tasting was a 2010 Pio Cesare Barolo. The first time I tried Barolo was when I was studying abroad in Florence and it blew my mind away. I love big, powerful tasting reds and although this young Barolo is good, apparently in 3-5 years it will be great. For only £36.99, I think it's worth buying now and saving it for a special occasion in a few years time.

I know very little about white wines except that I always enjoy a sweet one and this Cave de Turckheim Gewurtztraminer is deliciously sweet. It's not too sweet like a dessert wine, but it's very fragrant and flowery. I have a shit palate and nose, but I could smell the flowers. This one is £16.99 and would be crowd pleaser at a party.

And my absolute favorite of the night was this Royal Tokaji 5 Puttonyos Aszu Blue Label. This was beautiful...full body and very sweet, like dessert. My teacher rated it very good-outstanding and Hub and I have agreed to invest at only £18.99 a bottle. I also think this would make a great gift.

And a few interesting things that I learned on the day:

• Most wines we see strive to be acceptable, if not better, and that includes a Sainsbury Pinot Grigio for £4.99
• Although I always read about chocolate notes in certain wines, chocolate is a tricky food to pair with wine because it is both sweet and bitter
• I love Thai food and really aromatic foods like Thai need really aromatic wines

Have you taken any classes at the WSET? I'm really curious about their evening tastings and plan on trying them after my course ends. I have 7 more classes to go and will keep you updated as I go along.