Skinny Parsnip Soup

I love parsnips, especially this time of year when they are super sweet. Parsnips look like an albino carrot and the flavors are somewhat similar except parsnips are spicier. It seems that the most common preparation for parsnips is to mash or puree them with copious amounts of butter and cream sort of like potatoes. There's certainly nothing wrong with this but we're trying to be healthy here. Plus I find that if you add too much butter and cream, you can't really taste the parsnips.

Last night, I reached for the bag of parsnips that were sitting in my refrigerator and decided to turn them into something soothing and comforting for dinner but without all the fat and calories. I had such good luck with Martha's Cauliflower Soup so I figured why not apply the same technique to the parsnips and make a soup. I cut the parsnips into a fine dice so they would cook quickly and sauteed them with onions along with a tiny amount of olive oil in a nonstick pan. After the parsnips were soft, I added chicken stock and adjusted the seasonings with salt and pepper. I covered the pot and let the mixture cook on medium heat until the parsnips were uber soft (about 15 minutes). This mixture was then transferred to a deep bowl to be pureed with an immersion blender. I prefer a thicker soup but you can always add more chicken stock if you prefer a more soupy texture.

As with the cauliflower soup, I added brown rice to the soup and ended up something that resembled a creamy risotto. Roasted chicken breast was my protein but grilled salmon or even pork would be delicious here too.

If you were to do the full throttle preparation of parsnips with cream and butter, I would recommend a rich, buttery, oaky Chardonnay. The butter and cream rounds out the soup but without these fats we have a dish that is much sweeter and calls for a wine with good, clean fruit. We can stay with Chardonnay but I would recommend a non-oaked style. Many non-oaked Chards can be hollow and tart but the Mer Soleil Silver Unoaked Chardonnay ($26) is perfect. Fermented in stainless steel, the wine features tons of tropical fruit notes and the finish is fresh and clean. Even if you don't like Chardonnay and prefer the clean zip of Sauvignon Blanc or dry Rieslings, my guess is you'll probably enjoy this wine.

Martha Stewart's Creamless Cauliflower Soup

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Martha Stewart had an entire show devoted to making soups earlier this week. She included her recipe for Cauliflower soup which caught my eye because it seemed fairly easy to make and low in fat and calories. I tried it out last night and it was delicious! There is no cream in the soup but it tastes really rich and satisfying. I also added some brown rice and roasted chicken breast to turn it into a substantial meal.

And speaking of brown rice, there's a commercial for microwaveable brown rice playing on TV right now. It features a group of office coworkers enjoying lunch together and talking about how long it takes to cook brown rice - at least 45 minutes! Brown rice does take a long time to cook but I use a rice cooker and make 2 cups at a time. It's fairly sturdy so it lasts several days in my refrigerator and I can portion out what I need a little at a time.

But back to the soup. Here is the recipe for it. I reduced the oil to 2 tablespoons and skipped the croutons and fried parsley garnish. I also used regular onions instead of shallots because I didn't have any on hand. I also didn't bother with the straining part and the texture came out fine.

At Everest, Chef Joho worked with cauliflower quite often so I'm used to pairing it with wine. Cauliflower features a sweet earthy component that I find melds beautifully with the tropical fruit and earth notes of Alsace Pinot Gris, but nothing too over the top sweet.

Something along the lines of Trimbach Reserve Pinot Gris ($24) would do.

A riper Oregon Pinot Gris such as A to Z would also be nice ($14)

Time to Get Healthy!

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mmm...delicious smoked salmon from Jerry's Famous deli in South Beach

I have always been fascinated by my sense of taste and according to my mother, my love affair with food goes back to even before I was born. She claims she never ate so much as when she was pregnant with me. As an infant, I would voraciously consume bottle after bottle of milk. At age two, I would climb on top of the kitchen counter in order to steal the bowl of sugar. This was also around the time I got into a fist fight with my cousin over a bunch of grapes. When I was three, I was mesmerized by the cookies featured on a TV commercial and I became angry after I couldn't get them out of the TV console. During family gatherings, I was the first to line up at the buffet to get served. When most children watched cartoons, I watched cooking shows on PBS. Instead of playing house, I would pretend to have my own restaurant. If I needed to be bribed or compensated for doing a good job in school, my parents would take me out to dinner. When I was sixteen, I didn't speak to my brother for one month after I found out he ate my slice of carrot cake. When my mother asked me what I wanted for my 21st birthday, I requested a spice rack. Even today, my husband knows that perfume and accessories don't cut it with me - the magic password is All Clad. It's really no surprise that I ended up with a career in food and wine. I was born to this job.

I was put on my first diet when I was ten. My mother would concoct all sorts of weird food schematics for me to stick to. When I 12, there was the grapefruit juice diet which inadvertantly led to the first time I became intoxicated. It was at a religious function where drinking was not allowed but that didn't stop my aunt from spiking the carton of grapefruit juice she found in the refrigerator with vodka. Little did she know that her secret stash belonged to me. I drank a good portion of the carton and since grapefruit juice already tasted bitter to me I couldn't tell that it had been altered. My family couldn't figure out why I kept crying but they finally realized that is was because my juice had been contaminated and I was drunk. My mother would go on to other diet plans with shakes, powders and what not. She even enlisted the help of outside sources, Ms. Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers and Herbalife. I would lose a few pounds but then the siren of good things to eat would call me back. This cycle would repeat itself in various reincarnations well into my adulthood.

Despite all of this, I have been fairly content and comfortable in my skin. It's a little frustrating when you pick out things to try on at a clothing store and they don't fit the way you imagined in your head but you work with it. And sometimes you get those unflattering photos of yourself but everyone has those. I was ready to make peace with my physique until I heard the news that my beloved Uncle had been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. This would make him the fourth person in my immediate family who would now have to live with this awful disease. I remember my grandmother having to prick her finger to test her blood for sugar and even though she said it didn't hurt, it was really painful to watch some you love go through that.

Hearing about my Uncle is enough of an incentive for me to get healthier. With the help of my doctor, I'm focused on getting in shape, eating better and working on dropping some pounds. Of course, I still want to enjoy good food and you can certainly do so by getting creative in the kitchen.

Over the next few months, I will let you know how I'm doing and post any recipes that I find to be extremely tasty along with wine pairings. Being surrounded by food and wine all day makes this challenge an uphill battle but the payoff will be a healthier me.

Join Me & PBS Travel Journalist Burt Wolf for a Rhine River Cruise & Help Support Public Broadcasting

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Burt Wolf, the host of the public television series Travels & Traditions, and I will be your hosts for a spectacular nine day fun filled Rhine River cruise that will take us through France, Germany and Holland. Our journey will begin in Basel, Switzerland and the cruise itinerary stops include Heidelberg, Rudesheim, Coblenz, Cologne and finally Amsterdam. This is a great opportunity to travel with Burt, see the sights and experience the places where his television shows were filmed. I will also conduct several wine seminars including a talk about the Rhine River and it's history with wine.

I've never been on a cruise before but Burt assured me I would have a great time. His said the main purpose of the trip is to have fun!

This trip is scheduled for departure from Basel on July 31st and return from Amsterdam on August 8th.

Cruise priced from $3,189 to $3,838 (plus airfare). Click here for more information - http://burtwolf.com/alpanacruise.pdf

I'm Back on Twitter

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I abruptly quit my Facebook and Twitter accounts last month after a not so pleasant experience with a security breach. I regret not giving my online friends an explanation before cancelling my accounts but I was advised by numerous IT security pros to shut down my accounts immediately. Unfortunately, I won't be returning to Facebook and I will miss all 3,346 of my Facebook friends but I will be posting regular status updates on Twitter.

You can follow me @alpanawines

You can also view my latest Tweets on the upper right section of this page.

With much appreciate and gratitude,

Alpana

Hot for Ginger!

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Whenever I think of ginger ale, I am reminded of a former restaurant co-worker who was addicted to ginger ale. She worked back of the house (restaurant lingo for kitchen) but the sole soda gun was located at the bar in the dining room. No less than three times a day she would quickly dash out of the kitchen, fill a giant pitcher with ginger ale and then rush back to her station. I couldn't believe that a human being could consume that much ginger ale and quickly became obsessed with her habit. I tried talking to her a few times, wondering if she ever drank other flavors like orange Fanta or Fresca but whenever I approached her, I could tell she was too hopped up on sugar to concentrate. When she finally left us to pursue a position at another restaurant, our bartender went from changing the ginger ale syrup once a week to once every couple of months.

My former co-worker would be pleased to know that ginger is the newest flavor sensation to hit the food and drink world, a title previously held by pomegranate, mint and even basil. Ginger is a unique spice and I can see it's appeal in cocktails - it's sweet, savory and spicy and easily blends well with the flavors of many different types of spirits. It brings out the juniper, citrus and floral components of gin, enhances the baking spice and caramel notes of rum and Bourbon, brings out the vanilla flavors of Cognac and of course stands on it's own with the neutral nature of vodka.

Ginger originated in Asia and has long been hailed for its medicinal properties. It is used to combat nausea, aid digestion, and improve circulation, among other things. As a child, whenever I had a cold or started coughing, my Indian grandmother would make ginger tea for me or give me a piece of ginger to chew on. There is also an increasing presence of artisan ginger beers and ginger ales. At my local Whole Foods last week, I counted no fewer than six different types of small batch ginger ales available on the store shelves.

Perhaps the recent popularity of ginger really ties into the overall trend of "health" cocktails and turning a vice into a virtue drinking, in other words - If you're going to drink, why not make it something that's supposedly good for you. It's the marketing of drink well and live longer, e.g., acai berry and pomegranate for antioxidant benefits, organic vodka made with non-gmo grain that leaves you with a buzz sans nasty pesticides or chili powder to help burn calories and boost your Vitamin A intake. Feel good and well....feel good. I happen to like ginger so I welcome the trend, whatever the reason.

Here's a sampling of the ginger based drinks, spirits and liqueurs

SKYY Infusions Ginger

Launched earlier this month and currently the only nationally available ginger vodka. Made with an infusion of real ginger, the aromas are consistent with ginger ale and on the palate the flavor is slightly sweet and reminds me of spicy ginger candy. This would be good mixed with coca cola or lemon lime soda.

Domaine de Canton Ginger Liqueur

A good option if you don't want to go through the trouble of making your own ginger syrup. Domaine de Canton is French Cognac infused with baby ginger. You can also cook with it. I like to drizzle it over grilled fruits such as plums, peaches, apples and pineapples.

Koval Distillery Ginger Liqueur

This is an organic product made by a local boutique Chicago distillery owned by a very adorable and inspiring husband and wife team. Sixty pounds of ginger went into making just one batch.

Yazi Ginger Vodka

Vodka infused with ginger, lemon, orange, cayenne and red pepper. The product is marketed specifically towards women, note the perfume shaped bottle.

Bruce Cost Ginger Ale

Bruce Cost is a partner in our Lettuce Entertain You Asian Concepts and his latest venture is Bruce Cost Ginger Ale. I had an opportunity to try his latest batch and it's really spicy and with real pieces of ginger, it's very gingery in flavor. Not at all like the usual canned stuff.

The Artist Janet Sobel

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Image via Jose Parla Blog

Janet Sobel was a self-taught artist whose drip paintings of the early 1940's were admired by the likes of Peggy Guggenheim and Jackson Pollock (there is a theory out there that Sobel's abstract drip and splatter method may have had a possible influence over Pollock's own style). She was also my husband's maternal great Grandmother and because of this I may be biased but I think her art work is extraordinary, especially when you consider her unlikely story.

Image via Gary Snyder Gallery

Janet Sobel was born in 1894 in the Ukraine and emigrated to New York with her mother in 1908. She was married at the age of sixteen and proceeded to live a fairly normal life as a Brooklyn housewife and mother of five. At the age of 43, she started to scribble little designs on scrap paper and occasionally in the evening she’d steal one of her son’s paint brushes to fool around with. At first she was ashamed of her desire to paint and didn't tell anyone. In her mind, she was just a housewife and what did she know about art and painting? Her son Sol, who was considered to be the true artist in the family, finally caught on to what his mother was doing and took her paintings to his art teacher who thought they were good enough to be featured in a gallery. Janet Sobel continued to paint when she found the time, often at night, and by 1943 her unique style of abstract painting gained the attention and admiration of such art world luminaries as Peggy Guggenheim, the surrealists Max Ernst and Andre Breton, the philosopher and educator John Dewey and critic and collector Sidney Janis.

Janet Sobel with First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt

Janet Sobel with University of Chicago Laboratory School founder, John Dewey. Little did they know that Janet's great grandchildren would one day attend his school.

Charles' grandmother Lillian was Janet's daughter and she would sometimes tell stories of how Peggy Guggenheim used to come to the house to visit her mother. Lillian passed away in 2007 well into her nineties and we miss her dearly. She was a very spirited lady (she liked to curse, which of course made me giggle) but what I loved most about her was her sense of independence and support of women. She used to say to me, "Stick with me kid, and I'll make you a star!". In her later years, she developed eye sight problems but that did not stop her from sitting two inches away from the television screen so she could watch my show. She liked to talk about wine with me and even though she never drank wine, she would often ask for recommendations as she said it was never too late to learn. She must have inherited this desire to keep learning and discovering from her mother.

The Gary Snyder Gallery in New York City is currently running a Janet Sobel exhibit. You can view her artwork and learn more about her amazing story here.

Chicago Tonight Segment - Valentine's Suggestions

Is the Cult Cab Dead?

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This question was presented in an article titled - Dark Days for Cult Cabs in today's Food section of the LA Times. Cult Cabs are Cabernet Sauvignon based, limited production and high scoring wines that in better times sold for more than $300 per bottle. Demand has weakend and you don't have to be an economist to figure out that this downturn is tied to the Great Recession but I would like to pose another theory - The Millennials are now old enough to drink.

The term Millennials describes those born between 1980-2000. This is the tweeting, Facebooking, texting and tech-driven generation. They are more likely to get their wine recommendations via social media, texting or their friends. In other words, the point driven cult model doesn't apply to them and price wise these wines most likely don't fit their budget. But are the Millennials purchasing wines to begin with? According to a recent article by Dr. Liz Thach for winebusiness.com - they most certainly are,

"Even during this recession, we've heard how the Millennial generation has continued to drive wine sales--albeit at slightly lower purchase prices. They are credited with a 46% increase in wine consumption for 2008, as well as positive wine bar patronage and new wine club sign-ups at a time when most wine clubs are losing members (Wine Market Council). With more than 50% currently under the age of 21 and an estimated population size of 81 million, they are a formidable consumer group. Because of this, most wineries are now paying attention to the older end of the generation--ages 21 to 32."

The Millennials are also the first generation with no direct link to prohibition and their Baby Boomer parents were probably more likely to embrace drinking wine at the dinner table. Millennials seem to have a more positive attitude towards wine and view it as an integral part of their social life rather than some sinful activity. With massive amounts of information available at their fingertips, this generation wants to knock wine off of it's pedestal, expose it's mystery and learn more about it. They go to wine tastings, throw dinner parties and participate in tasting groups. While their parents can't imagine sullying a wine with a screw cap, Millennials know it's there to protect the flavor. I have noticed this generation is also more open minded when it comes to trying wines from newer regions or unknown grape varieties, especially if the recommendation comes from a trusted peer. They buy wine from Argentina, Spain and Greece and they aren't afraid to get into Albarino, Gruner Veltliner or Aglianico. Millennials relish connecting wine to it's origin and they love to pair it with foods of all kinds - both high end and casual. Millennials don't seem to be driven by mailing lists, points, scores and status. The prestige of wine doesn't matter - what's more important is the authenticity of the experience.

Millennials are acutely aware they don't have to spend a great deal of money for a good bottle of wine. Remember, they've done the research and they exchange information with their friends. They know they don't have to pay $50 for a bottle of California Cabernet Sauvignon when they can buy 5 bottles of Malbec from Argentina for the same price. They don't seem to be as interested in aging wine for the future. Wine is not a trophy, it's something you drink tonight while watching the season premiere of "Lost".

So on the top end, prices are being driven down because of the recession and those who were spending $50-$60 on a bottle are spending less but on the bottom end, you also have this new group of younger drinkers who are buying a great deal of wine but also at lower prices. Are the wines aisles being stocked with more affordable selections to take care of the needs of the recession group or the Millennials? It's probably a mixture of both but I have a hunch the lower prices are likely to stick around for a while. The recession group has become accustomed to finding decent wines for less money and it will take more convincing to get the Millennials to spend outside their bargain priced comfort zone.

But what does this mean for Cult Cabs, are they truly dead? My answer is no but the criteria for what constitutes Cult Status will change. The pool for higher end wines will most likely shrink and those that are in it just for the prestige and cult status without offering a purposeful message or mission will fall away. There are always going to be certain wines that are worth a premium and I'm sure Millennials will eventually find these wines and splurge but their reason for doing so will be because they connected with the winemaker, visited the region or recognize the rarity of the product. This new consumer is very informed and not afraid to ask questions. They know your competition and they know what is out there. Taking an unknown critic's review or some abstract score at face value is not enough for them. They want to feel, taste and be a part of the entire experience. As for the recession group, time will only tell if they return to their previous buying patterns.

I asked my friend Lauren, who is 30 and an avid wine enthusiast, if she would ever pay $300 for a bottle of wine and she responded, "Do you know how much wine I could get for $300?" That's a very good question Lauren, and I'm sure she knows the answer.