16 - North Shore News — Wednesday, September 27, 2000 ish yours sei Cooking two perfection LIVING near the Okanagan makes us the envy of the rest of Canada for a variety of reasons, including our proximity to some of the country’s finest wineries. Traditionally, the first week in October is set aside as an opportunity to taste the vintage. People come _ from far and wide to help - celebrate the harvest of the grapes which grow so well in ~ the Okanagan for creating fine wines... . It’s wine fest time: from - Sept. 29 to Oct. & there are - hundreds of activities planned throughout the val- - ley at a variety of wineries, -restaurants and other venues, to taste-test the pairing of - different wines with various foods. . vo We can also do some ‘experimenting at home, both esting different food : flavours with different wines, and cooking with wine. It’s generally considered a _ Safe bet to serve the same swine alongside the dish you :add your wine to. : It’s also ‘recommended that you. “don’t use'a wine for cooking that you wouldn’t want to erve or drink y urself with ‘that food. Remember dat wine is a close in of vinegar and adds that extra bite, that extra tang to most dishes... ‘Experiment. Try using a complementary wine in mak- ig Satices, stews, sprinkling ove steamed. vegetables or ing to gravy. You'll find ference astounding. ‘Whether you make fancy _ dishes using wine or jazzup: some of your regular stand- bys, inwoducing wine into your cooking is fun to exper- iment with. Start slowly with a simple basic wine sauce and gradu- ate to more complicated dishes. Basic White Wine Sauce Eating low fat foods may be better for you, but every once in a while foods faced with calories and high cho- lesterol are necessary to sat- isfy a deeper hunger. 2 Tbsp. butter 4 Tbsp. flour 2% c. stock % c. shallots 1c. wine % c. cream % lemon salt and pepper to taste Melt butter in a saucepan and stir in the flour to make a roux. Cook the roux two or three minutes before adding the stock of your choice a little at a time, stir- ring constantly with a whisk to ensure the sauce remains smooth. You can use homemade stock or powdered prepared stock. Experiment, use veg- etable stock one time, fish or chicken stock the next or even beef stock. ; In a separate saucepan simmer the finely-chopped shallots (green onions could be substituted) in the wine _for about 15 minutes before adding to the sauce. Mix - well, add seasonings to taste and the cream. Once the cream has been added make sure the sauce does not boil. This basic sauce can be used over vegetables, fish or even baked chicken. Chicken and Mushrooms in Wine ~ Wine is often.called the nectar of the gods and the - toast of lovers but it’s defi-. . nitely a complement to fine -- dining. 2.2 Ib. chicken (1 kg) 4. butter 1 onion 1 garlic 1 bay leaf 1 tsp. thyme % Ib. mushrooms lc. wine salt to taste pepper to taste 2 lemon lie. cream Brown the chicken pieces in half the butter in a Dutch oven or heavy casserole dish. Meanwhile, peel and chop the onions and garlic. Remove chicken pieces, and and saute the onions and garlic until they are soft. Add the thyme, bay leaf, wine and seasoning to taste, stir and bring it back to bub- bling. Return chicken to the casserole dish. Cover and cook gently on low heat for 50 to 55 minutes. About 20 minutes before the chicken is done and in another saucepan, heat the remaining butter. Juice the lemon, adding the strained juice to the but- ter and stirring constantly to ensure the mixture docs not change colour. Add the whole mushrooms and just _ cover with cold water. Boil the mixture without a lid. Take it off the heat and pour any remaining liquid off the mushrooms. Remove the bay leaf from the chicken mixture. Boil the liquid in. the casserole dish to reduce the ccoking juices by a third, Remove from the heat and let cool for a couple of min- utes before stirring in the - cream. Arrange the mush- rooms around the chicken and serve. Serves four. Cold Blueberry Soup Sinfully rich foods when indulged in on special occa- sions only heighten the sense of celebration. It really does- n’t matter if the boss is com- ing to dinner, it’s an anniversary, wedding or a simple acknowl- edgement of a weekday, cold blueberry soup will start the feast and ‘will ensure it’s memorable. 2 . blueberries 1% c. water %c. sugar I lemon 1 cinnamon stick 6 cloves % tsp. allspice lc. sour cream Wash blue- berries and place in a saucepan with the water, sugar, spices and all the peel from one lemon. The stick of cinna- mon should be approximately three inches long. Simmer this mixture for 15 minutes then turn off the heat and let if sit for at least 10 minutes before discard- ing the lemon peel. Pour this mixture into a blender or food processor and purce before pouring the spiced blucber- ries back into the saucepan. Put the saucepan into the fridge and let it cool for at least evo hours. Just before serving add three quarters of the sour cream stirring until the cream is well mixed. Pour equal amounts of this " mixture into six soup » bowls adding a dollup of sour cream to the centre of each - dish. For colour and addi-, tional flavour place a slice ‘of - fresh lemon and a sprig of © fresh mint on the edge of _ . each bowl. Your guest or: YOUR friends and family will love cold J blueberry soup - _— creamy treat perfect fora special occasion. . family’ will talk about this soup for a long time t _ come. a — If ‘you have questions to “ask or rec pes to shave, contact Phyl - an ‘McNaughton Rd. B. Cc. Viz 282. Night and day. Your r new ; Speaker system from. ’. Energy® will deliver that _ . “being ight there” feeling. For movies. For music, . ‘Bring in your favourite. CD or video tape for a Iisten! You'll hear pure and natura sound: that’ Ss closer : < 2 for C55 Lo regular $5.95. ---—9 ~ BAKED OR UNBAKED aie Bakery ‘ /e Buckets of Balls for fhe price of 1 Buy one ee of balls and get the 2nd one FREE!* * Wath this od. Valid only unt! Oct 05/00. 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