0 Merlot, Cravo e Canela

Each week, the Boston Globe Magazine presents a trio of recipes around a common theme. As winter draws nigh, the theme this week was warm, mulled wines. Of the Gluhwein, Glogg, and Elderflower options, I chose the first, simply because I knew I could find the ingredients handily.

Once Pam's annual lasagna was in the oven and the kitchen was clear, I began preparing the grog. Since we had no guests for dinner, I halved the recipe, using just one bottle of Merlot. I used the juice of five clementines along with a couple strips of the rinds. I heated the juice with brown sugar, cloves and cinnamon (hence the Sonia Braga reference in the title of this post).

I then added the Merlot and simmered it for an hour, so that the syrup would combine with the wine, and the wine would be infused with the spices and fruit. I then fortified the mixture with cherry schnapps (brandy or kirsch would have been fine as well), and removed the solid infusants.

I placed just a bit of rind in each of two warmed mugs, and filled them up with this perfect winter warmer. A more soothing beverage would be difficult to imagine.

Now if only Netflix carried Barreto's classics!

Detail: Merlot, Cravo e Canela

0 Hot Sweetness or Sweet Hotness?

One great thing about living in Massachusetts is the availability of fresh cranberries. Through the fall and early winter, we buy them frequently and try various preparations (as a search of this blog for the word "cranberry" reveals).

Andrew Sorivani, NYT.

The latest variation is from David Tanis, as published in the New York Times. His Spicy Red Pepper Cranberry Relish is easy to make, especially in our indispensable cast-iron saucepan. We printed the recipe before his correction, which advises the addition of a half-cup of water, but it worked fine without it. The only other change we made was to use Anaheim peppers, since our local market did not have any red jalapeños. (The cranberries themselves came from nearby Hanson Farm, natch!)

We are about to put this in the fridge so it will be well-chilled in time for dinner, but a sampling of the warm relish suggests this will be amazing, as suggested by the title of this post!

Detail: Hot Sweetness or Sweet Hotness?

0 Pan d'Nog

Pam and I met in French class, as the world knows, and though she was about 100x the French student that I was, I do like to dabble in the cuisine and language when I can get away with it, and therefore took the liberty of creating the faux French title for this post.

Crescent Ridge ...
But, of course!

This evening's breakfast-for-dinner dinner did not rely on any books. Yesterday I made a large loaf of French bread in our bread machine ("French bread" -- especially when it is shaped like a cinderblock rather than a torpedo -- being American for "white bread for snobby grown-ups"). Even with the help of our dinner guests (delightful BSU students), we had half a loaf remaining. Pam almost toasted some of it this morning, but decided to save it for a French toast evening.

All of our indispensable cast-iron pans (except for the one we reserve for coffee-roasting emergencies) needed cleaning, as did much of the kitchen. So I eased into this meal by doing some cleaning and some pan-reseasoning. The griddle had last been used for cod, so I decided desperate measures were called for.

After scrubbing it a bit, drying it, and seasoning it in the oven with olive oil, I could still make out the cod. I love cod, of course, but not in French toast. So on top of a hot stove, I cooked about a quarter cup of Triple Sec orange liqueur. (I first checked to see that it was 15 percent alcohol, or 30 proof; this is well below the 100-proof level, at which flash fires can occur.) As the liqueur evaporated (and started making the kitchen smell really nice), I added a bit of butter, and got ready to cook.

What I cooked was a modification of my usual approach to French toast. Since we had eggnog in the fridge, it made little sense to mix together its components (eggs, milk, vanilla). It could be used alone as a batter, but I could not resist a couple of small modifications: to a shallow bowl full of nog, I whisked in a glug or two of Triple Sec, a dusting of freshly-shaved nutmeg, and a teaspoon of baking powder.

I then dredged one-inch chunks of the French bread, filling the already-hot griddle with the pieces. I cooked cooked them on medium-high heat, turning a few times. Because I was not certain I had soaked the batter in, I did something a bit unorthodox -- I used a small spoon to poke divots in the bread, and then to spoon leftover batter over each slice. This helped to ensure a nice texture throughout.

Served with local maple syrup, this was a very yummy treat.

Detail: Pan d'Nog

0 Starbuck's Spiced Holiday Coffee

I took this recipe from a free download called Christmas Gifts for Coffee Lovers. Since I am married to a coffee lover, I figured it was at least worth a look. There was nothing in it that I could imagine I would spend any money on that we did not either already own. However, it did include a bonus coffee recipe which I made over the weekend.  I played with the proportions a bit since I was making only two mugs-full.

Below is the recipe as it appears in the Guide:

2/3 Cup ground dark roast coffee beans
4 cinnamon sticks, crushed or broken into small pieces
6 Cup water
1/2 Tsp. ground cardamom
2/3 Cup honey
Half-and-half or milk

Mix together the coffee and cinnamon
sticks. Using the coffee-cinnamon mixture and
water, brew coffee by your customary brewing
method (we strongly recommend using a French
Press). Add the cardamom and honey to the hot
coffee and stir until the honey dissolves.
Serve warm. Pour about 2/3 cup coffee into each glass.
Pass the half-and-half or milk.
Enjoy!

I used two cinnamon sticks, and considerably less honey. I did put in the full amount of cardamom. This was warm, creamy, and spicy. It tasted like Christmas. A good treat for a snowy day.

Detail: Starbuck's Spiced Holiday Coffee