Make Mom feel like “Queen for a Day” with a special Mother’s Day Cocktail, the Strawberry Rhubarb Fizz!
This delightful drink incorporates some of my favorite Springtime flavors as well as one of my ALL time favorite things, Champagne! While I normally don’t mix anything with Champagne (I usually opt for Prosecco or Cava to make sparkling wine-based drinks such as Mimosas or Bellinis), I find the heavenly notes of strawberry, rhubarb, thyme and citrus nicely accentuate Champagne’s sublime flavors and bubbly texture.
Strawberry and rhubarb go together like peas and carrots, eggs and bacon, wine and cheese and any other such pairing you can think of. Since it doesn’t roll off the tongue as easily, however, I don’t think it gets enough play but it is no less delicious, I promise you!
If you’re not familiar with rhubarb it is a plant with triangular-shaped, bright green leaves and rosy-pink stalks. You’ll find it in your local grocery store in early Spring, usually just the stalks are packaged since the leaves are somewhat poisonous. The tartness of the rhubarb balances the sweetness of the strawberry to create a divine, unique flavor that’s perfect for pies, tarts, crumbles…or even cocktails.
Making the Strawberry Rhubarb Fizz, is also super easy. A little day-in-advance strawberry rhubarb simple syrup prep is all the work that’s required. Thankfully, simple syrup is just that, incredibly simple to make!
Simply combine equal parts sugar and water along with a pound each of strawberries and rhubarb, a handful of fresh thyme and some lemon zest in a saucepan. Simmer for 20 minutes, allow the mixture to cool and you are ALL done! Refrigerate the mixture overnight and when ready to serve, simply pour some of the delightfully pink syrup into the bottom of a flute, top with the Champagne and garnish with a strawberry slice and thyme sprig.
You can also serve this delicious Strawberry Rhubarb Fizz paired with some of our favorite Mother’s Day brunch treats such as Blueberry French Toast or Neiman Marcus’s Popovers with Strawberry Butter.
Wishing all you fabulous Moms out there a very Happy Mother’s Day!
Cheers,
The post Mother’s Day Cocktail Couture: Strawberry Rhubarb Fizz! appeared first on The Glamorous Gourmet.
“Champagne is the only wine that leaves a woman beautiful after drinking it.” – Madame de Pompadour What better way to spoil yourself, or a special Mom in your life, on Mother’s Day than Champagne? In honor of this very special holiday, The Glamorous Gourmet is giving away a fabulous bottle of Laurent-Perrier Cuvée Rosé Champagne to one very lucky... Read More
The post The Glamorous Gourmet’s Mother’s Day Giveaway featuring Laurent-Perrier Cuvée Rosé Champagne! appeared first on The Glamorous Gourmet.
Mother’s Day is fast approaching and I’m sure you’ll be treating Mom to a feast fit for a Queen! If you’re looking for the perfect wine pairing for your festivities here’s 5 Fabulous Wine Recommendations from some of our favorite “Women of the Vine”: GIFFT Pinot Noir Rosé, Monterey, California, 2014 ($16): This wine is the newest addition to Kathie... Read More
The post 5 Fabulous Mother’s Day Wine Recommendations! appeared first on The Glamorous Gourmet.
Mother’s Day is fast approaching and I’m sure you’ll be treating Mom to a feast fit for a Queen! If you’re looking for the perfect wine pairing for your festivities here’s 5 Fabulous Wine Recommendations from some of our favorite “Women of the Vine”:
GIFFT Pinot Noir Rosé, Monterey, California, 2014 ($16): This wine is the newest addition to Kathie Lee Gifford’s GIFFT line of wines created in partnership with Scheid Vineyards (for more information, please click here). This delightful dry rosé is crafted from 100% estate grown Pinot Noir from the Scheid family’s Mesa del Rio vineyard in Monterey, California, a region known for producing beautiful Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The grapes were fermented entirely in stainless steel to preserve the fresh, fruity flavors of watermelon, strawberry, and raspberry. A crisp, food-friendly acidity and lengthy finish will keep you coming back for more.
Elena Walch Pinot Grigio Castel Ringberg, Alto Adige, Italy, 2013 ($22): Elena Walch is a leading wine producer in the Alto Adige region of northeastern Italy. She runs her eponymous winery with the help of her two daughters, Julia and Karoline, and together they produce an array of acclaimed wines. This wine is 100% Pinot Grigio from the Castel Ringberg vineyard. 85% is fermented in stainless steel while the remainder is fermented in used French oak barriques. The result is a lovely incarnation of this grape with ripe aromas of pear, sage and spice with a creamy mouthfeel, zippy acidity and lengthy, clean finish.
Domaine Drouhin Pinot Noir, Dundee Hills Valley, Oregon, 2012 ($44): Maison Joseph Drouhin was established in Burgundy, France in 1880 and the family expanded to Oregon in the late 1980’s upon realizing the potential of the Willamette Valley to produce world class Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Véronique Boss-Drouhin is the family’s fourth generation winemaker and is responsible for crafting the family’s wines from both Burgundy and Oregon terroirs. This Pinot Noir is a lovely example of her expertise with enticing notes of violet, earth, pomegranate and cherry pie with supple tannins and a deliciously lengthy finish.
Hall Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, California, 2011 ($48): Kathryn Hall is the proprietress of Hall Winery and has been involved in the California wine industry since her family first purchased a vineyard there over thirty years ago. Known for her eponymous Cabernets, this wine is a blend of 97% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc which spent 20 months in 55% new French oak. The resulting wine has delicious notes of red currant, plum, tobacco, mocha and spice and is the perfect choice for Moms who crave big, bold reds with oodles of tannin.
Veuve Clicquot Demi-Sec Champagne, France, NV ($70): Barbe Nicole Clicquot Ponsardin (aka Veuve Clicquot or Widow Clicquot) assumed the reigns of her husband’s Champagne House in 1805 at the age of 27. Her contributions to Champagne were many including this delicious Demi-Sec, which is slightly sweeter than your standard Brut Champagne, but balanced by an elegant acidity. This blend of all three Champagne grape varieties (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier) exhibits notes of peach, honey and toasted brioche which will make the perfect accompaniment to a lighter, fruit-based dessert.
Please join us this Thursday, May 7th for our Mother’s Day Wine Tasting featuring Kathie Lee Gifford’s GIFFT Wines at Linen Closet in downtown Delray Beach. Come sip, sample and shop with us and for more information, please click here. I’d also like to wish all you fabulous Moms out there a very Happy Mother’s Day!
Cheers,
Last May I asked my Mom friends what their ideal Mother’s Day would look like. Almost unanimously, right after “sleeping in” they said “breakfast in bed” so I posted a delicious recipe for baked Blueberry French Toast that was very well received. This year I thought I’d continue the tradition and share another one of my favorite breakfast dishes that would make the perfect surprise for Mom: Neiman Marcus Popovers with Strawberry Butter.
If you’re not familiar with the Neiman Marcus popover, let me give you a little background. Of course when I say Neiman Marcus I’m talking about the glamorous department store founded in Dallas, Texas in 1907 by Herbert Marcus Sr, his sister Carrie Marcus Neiman, and her husband A.L. Neiman. While the store has endured many changes since then, one of the most important was the addition of their first in-store restaurant in Dallas in 1953. The success of the first restaurant led to the addition of others and today some of their most well-known restaurants include Zodiac in the flagship Dallas store (which celebrated its 60th anniversary last year), the landmark Rotunda restaurant overlooking Union Square in San Francisco, and Mariposa in Coral Gables, Florida. We are also fortunate to have a Mariposa at the Neiman Marcus store in Boca Raton which is the quintessential spot for “ladies who lunch,” bridal and baby showers, or a quick bite after an arduous day of shopping.
Regardless of which restaurant you’re at, in keeping with sacred Neiman Marcus tradition, you will be greeted with a freshly baked popover accompanied by fragrant strawberry butter and a demitasse of flavorful, heart-warming chicken broth. This tradition dates back to the days of Helen Corbitt, a New York-born Chef hired to run the Neiman Marcus kitchen in 1955. Stanley Marcus called her the “Balenciaga of food” and she was well known for her larger than life personality and how efficiently she ran her kitchen. Even today, many decades later, several of Corbitt’s touches live on at Neiman Marcus which includes the sacred popovers and chicken broth.
A popover is an airy, hollow roll made from an egg batter which is baked in a “Popover Pan” (pictured above & available at Williams-Sonoma) which gives the roll its signature shape. Popovers can be made in either sweet or savory incarnations but for Mother’s Day breakfast, the sweet version is the way to go. Fresh out of the oven, they look like misshapen, golden brown globes of bread but on the inside, they are hollow and delicate with a deliciously mouth watering aroma. And once the strawberry butter hits the warm popover – forget about it. Positively intoxicating!
Because making popovers is a little time consuming, its probably best to pair them with something simple like a beautiful plate of sliced fruit or berries and/or maple glazed bacon depending on how Mom rolls (no pun intended!). I would advise making the strawberry butter the night before to cut down on prep the morning of. Also, be sure to read through the recipe once or twice. There are a few ingredients that need to be at room temperature and the batter need to rest for an hour halfway through the process which can be a big momentum killer if you’re not expecting it. If you find this recipe makes too many popovers for your celebration, it can be halved for future reference. Any extra popovers can be reheated in the microwave. Heat in increments of 10 seconds at a time until you get a feel for your microwave just so you don’t overheat them.
For something to drink, a rosé Champagne or other bubbly is sheer perfection! The flavors of the rosé pick up the strawberry notes of the butter beautifully. The J Vineyards Brut Rosé from California’s Russian River Valley is a lovely choice as well as the Charles Ellner Brut Rosé Champagne. You can check out these wines as well as our other Mother’s Day selections at our online store by clicking here. I promise this menu will have you looking like Husband, Daughter, and/or Son of the year. Wishing all the fabulous Moms out there a truly delicious day!
Cheers,
Neiman Marcus Popovers with Strawberry Butter
Ingredients:
6 large eggs, at room temperature
3 1/2 cups of milk
4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 lb. unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups strawberry preserves
Beat the softened butter in a mixer until light and fluffy. Add strawberry preserves and beat until well combined. Put in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Preheat over to 350 degrees. Microwave the milk on high for 2 minutes, or until warm to the touch. Beat the eggs at medium speed for about 3 minutes, until foamy and pale in color. Slowly stir in the milk at low speed. Beat again for 2 minutes on medium speed. Let the batter rest for 1 hour at room temperature.
Add the flour, baking powder and salt. Spray the popover pan heavily with non-stick spray or grease with butter. Fill cups almost to the top with batter. Place popover pan on cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes at 450 degrees, then reduce heat to 375 degrees and bake for 30-35 minutes more. Popovers should be a deep golden brown on the outside and airy on the inside, Serve hot with strawberry butter.
Recently I asked some of my Mom friends what they’d most enjoy doing on Mother’s Day. Out of every Mom I asked, each reply inevitably began with, “I want to start the day with breakfast in bed,” and the responses diverged from there. So for my Mother’s Day post I thought I’d share a delicious recipe and very special cocktail for a decadent breakfast in bed for all the fabulous Moms out there: Blueberry French Toast and Wild Hibiscus Royales!
To the husbands who will be making this breakfast don’t forget to prepare the French Toast the night before. It needs to hang out in the fridge for 8 hours for maximum yumminess and the morning of all you have to do is prepare the sauce and pop it in the oven! Also, don’t fret about the cocktail, the hibiscus flowers can be found at your local liquor store. Cheers to all you fabulous Moms and I hope you enjoy your day…especially breakfast in bed!
Cheers,
Blueberry French Toast
12 slices day-old white bread, crusts removed
2 8 ounce packages cream cheese
1 cup fresh blueberries
12 extra large eggs
1/3 cup maple syrup or honey
Sauce:
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup water
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
Cut bread into 1-inch cubes; place half in a greased 13″ x 9″ x 2″ baking dish. Cut cream cheese into 1-inch cubes; place over bread. Top with the cup of fresh blueberries and remaining bread. In a large bowl, beat eggs. Add milk and syrup and mix well. Pour over bread mixture. Cover and chill for 8 hours or overnight. Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Uncover; bake 25-30 minutes more or until golden brown and the center is set. In a saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch; add water. Bring to a boil over medium heat; boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in the cup of fresh blueberries; reduce heat. Simmer for 8-10 minutes or until berries have burst. Stir in butter until melted. Serve over French toast. Serves 6-8 (1 3/4 cups sauce)
Wild Hibiscus Royale
Jar of Wild Hibiscus Flowers in Syrup
1 750ml bottle of Rosé Champagne
Place a hibiscus flower at the bottom of each Champagne flute. Drizzle a small spoonful of hibiscus syrup over each flower and fill the rest of the glass with the Rosé Champagne. Enjoy! Makes 6 servings.
Sign up to get the latest on sales, new releases and more …
© 2024 The Wine Atelier
