32 — Wednesday, August 25, 1999 — North Shore News north shore news {fe ROOD These bi ainess . of vitamins A and C, iron, calcium, phosphorus and fibre. FREE INSTAILARON (WNCLUDES ONLY REMOVAL ¥. FRANKS INSLALLERS. ADDITIONAL VF ENSTALLATION: REMOVAL OF EXISTING DISI {WASHER AND INSTALLATION OF NEWS photo Tervy Peters IT’S blueberry season! Although they’ ve arrived tate this year due te the rain, they are as gcod — and as good for you — as ever. Blueberries are an excellent source iE Sark blue pearls touched by a misty bloom, blueberries are a wonderful treat from Mother Nature. Harvested from carly July to late August, these berries are indigenous to North America, Native Indians gath- ered and sun-dried the fruit centuries before the Europeans arrived. They used the tart berries to enrich stews, soups and seasoned meats. it was also pulverized into a powder and steeped as 2 beverage. The medicinal qualities of of the blueberries were not discounted fer good reasons. They are an excellent source of Viramins A and C, iron, calci- um, phosphorus, and fibre. One cup of fresh blueberries contains about 80 calories. A suggestion for trouble- free freezing is to freeze the benies on sneets of silicone paper. In a good home freezer they should be hard frozen in about six hours. Now: place them into freezer bags — as fast as possible. Remove as much of the air as you can. Seal well. They are now indi- vidually frozen zad casy to usc in mufiins, cakes and for pic fillings. But they’re at their bese, when just harvested, and” purchased fresh. In fact, blue- rries are casy to keep’ for ip * to 10 days in the refrigerator. Halian ‘oddities’ surprise AN odd turn-up-for-. the-books at a summer wine and food sam- pling hosted by the - Italian Trade Commission — some of the most interesting They are the most storable of all the berrics we consume. “The 1999 ) year promises to be average,” commented Geraldine Austin of the B.C. Blucberry Council recently. “We had a slow start because of the weather, but the grow- ers are optimistic of a good August.” This wonderful summer fruit is on sale everywhere. Purchase lots of it, freeze some for the winter, make jams and jellies. Decadent Blueberry Muffins 2, fresh blueberries 1% c. rolled oats 1% c. alf purpose flour % c. golden yellow brown sugar 1c. 33% cream re Lguid honey large eges 2 tsp. beking soda 1 op. baking powder ; 1 tsp. vanilla Method: This is a rich and excellent formula. It will make 18 large muffins. Select the right raaffin pans, spray or brush with butter. Preheat oven to 375F, use the middie rack. In a stainless stcel bowl whisk together cream, liquid . honey, eggs, vanilla and the brown spa In a another large bea! mix well all the dry ingredients. Save a ttle of the flour and sprinkle over the berries, just to cover. Mix the liquid and the dry ingredients, now add the berries. Using a scoop, fill the muffin pans and “ bake for 20-30 minutes. Test with a toothpick: Do not over.- bake. After a few rainutes 5 .. turn out the muffins and cool -; on racks. Serve with buster for a memorable tea or cofiec - break. Blueberry Confit for Poultry Confit, in this case is a wrong name, lost somewhere in gastronomic history. Onginally, confit referred to an ancient method of preserving meat. It was salted and slowly cooked in its own fat. It was staled and could be kept in 2. cool panty for months. Today, we refer to some fruit sauces as “confit.” In any case, this is an elegant yet sim- ple dinner suggestion. 4 chicken or duck breasts : ; (2dout 6-7 oz. per person) olive oil to brush ic. fresh blueberries i c, red wine vinegar ¥ ¢. granulated sugar , c. poultry stock 4c. very finely diced onions : salt to taste Method: Ina saucepan . _melt the butter, saute the onions for 2-3 minutes. Add the chicken stock and simmer < until the onions are soft. There will be some evaporation. In an another saucepan slowly melt the sugar until it starts to caramelize; turning to golden brown. Add the vinegar and; stir well. Add the blueberries _ and the sugar mixnire to the ~ onions. Simmer uncovered * until the fiquid is nice and thick. Keep warm. Grill the "-pouit, breasts as usual. Do not over cook. Place the pieces © on a platter and spoon the confit on one side of the piat-"" ter, On the other side serve a . at cr stirfried vegetables. ‘For starch; present some wild ‘tice or pan browned potatoes. »° Serves four. posed to have evolved i into “ the Zinfandel, and if you’ve "ever wondered about that ~ connection, a nostril filled .. er This tastes li ere - California boutique Zin that would clock in at $25 or'- CHARGES MAY AFPLY EECTCAL GRAN OH WATER SUPT CONES AE EECUED, 1S NOT REQUIRED, $75 OR $100 (DEPENDING ON MODEL Wilt BE DEDUCTED FROM PURCHASE PRICE wines were the “oddi-. John Moore ties.” WINE SPOT: Ss Odditics are traditionally .. “rustic” reds unique to their regions, “which? have benefitted from adopting improved wine-° making techniques while retaining their dis- tinctive character, instead of being subsumed . __in subservience to some bland international style, Amid the lashings of excellent Chianti - Classico on offer, Antinori’s Peppoli °96 was a real stand-out. While their Chianti Classico Riserva remains one of the most consistently- elegant values for moncy-on the shelves, this’ ‘single-estate version —- made in a style that places less emphasis on barrel age and more on * fruit and freshness — combines the lively attack of the old straw-wrapped fiasci wines with the concentration and craft lavished on ° small-yield riservas. Retails around $22, but worth it to taste what the real Tuscans drink. | Another compare-and-contrast must is Le Petrose Primitivo 1997. Primitivo is the ancient half-wild grape that survived on the fringes of Italian viticulture for centuries, thanks to the national half- rshrug, penchant for “promiscuous cultivation”: pick em all and let the yeast sort ’em out. It’s all wine. When Iealians emigrated to America, they took cut- tings of Primitivo in their pockets rather than _ the more delicate Sangiovese. They knew from experience this vine would establish itself on the iron hills of Heli, given a drop of water and a glint of light. In California, it is sup- _’ More — a side by side tast ing would be i ive... a » -Pve taken to drifting toward ~Ttaly’s southern regions in search , authentic. character and wasn’t disap inted by .an excellent Ciro Classico Superiore from’ “whose roots are in the nial culture of ai soul orth: I was ‘eng an unfamiliar fake " Malbech Del Veneto Salbanelio. ithibed I In ‘the Veneto? I’ve yet to. de impressed by any. ttempt:to make a silk purse of this pig’s ear’ o a grape, used only for blending in its native - Bordeaux. Going solo, it tends to taste like © “watered-down cherry cough syrup. Luckily my jaundiced gaze was ‘noticed by - Valentine Citton, the personable president’ of : Gala Brands. He insisted only the Italians,“ knew how to handle this sullen grape and damned if he wasn’t right. The cherry notes . ..- are there, but in the form of fresh, racy fruit in’ | -. a light easy-drinking wine that would be just ~ the thing to accompany a picnic or impromptu barbecue. For a French grape, it makes a fine, distinctively Italian wine, the only straight. : Malbec in my experience worth rinsing a glass for, and at around $12 a real bargain.