Des Moines Wine and Food Connection

Le's Chinese Bar-B-Que

Le's Chinese Bar-B-Que is a little hole in the wall "restaurant" located at 1600 2nd Avenue just north of downtown Des Moines. I call it a restaurant loosely because there are a couple of tables in there but no chairs and I've never seen anyone there eating. Their business card says "Dine in & Carry out", but if you're going to dine in you'd better bring your own seat. What Le's lacks in ameneties though it makes up for with great bar-b-que. Not typical midwest bar-b-que though. No ribs, beans & slaw at this bar-b-que joint. What Le's does feature and specialize in is Chinese or more specifically Vietnamese bar-b-que pork and duck.   

What's hot at Casa di Vino

Hello again. Sorry your wine and food guy has been so slack but I've got this baby you see... O.K. no excuses. But look at this girl.  Two months old today.  She was 6 lb. 13 oz. and 19 1/2" at birth and as of this morning she's 22 1/2" and 12 1/2lbs.. And growing fast. Enough of my Sanya Jaye.

Casa di Vino tastings have been going really great lately and some of the most popular wines include: Starmont Sauvignon Blanc with it's mouthful of gooseberry & grapefruit and St. Hallet "Poachers Blend", a blend of Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc & Riesling from Australia that's a tropical fruit bomb that is just perfect for chilling down and chilling out with. This is one Casa di Vino will be running with(and consuming) all summer long. Try it with pineapple chicken or sweet and sour pork. 

Leftover Wine

I know there are many of you who believe it is sacrilege to open a bottle of wine and not finish it. This story is not for you. For the rest of us though there are occaisons when finishing the bottle just isn't feasible. Perhaps the next evening one has obligations and the next you just don't feel like a glass. What to do with this leftover wine? If I, your trusty wine guy haven't finished a bottle within 4-5 days of opening then I prefer to use these wines for cooking. Whether the wine is a red or a white I'll stick it in the refrigerator. White wines are great for using as marinades for chicken or fish. Add some herbs and spices or perhaps some Dijon mustard. Put the lot in a Glad Storage Bag. Leave it for 20 minutes, two hours, or overnight and you're good to go. Whites are also good for deglazing fry pans and making quick sauces. Turn the heat up to cook off the alcohol, scrape loose the cooked on bits, add some capers, salt & pepper, turn the heat down and reduce, and you've got a great sauce to pour over pan fried pork chops or a piece of fish.  

Who do you love?

Valentine's Day is Saturday (if you forgot here's your reminder). BESIDES the cards and the flowers, wine and chocolate will make any valentine smile. Casa di Vino has everything you need when it comes to this last bit. Thanks to Chocolaterie Stam CDV not only has the best wines for the occasion but also some of the best chocolates on the planet. Does your loved one like milk chocolate? Casa di Vino has a wonderful new moscato from Scagliola to make the day complete. Do they prefer dark? For those that like a dry wine Casa di Vino has a Cabernet Sauvignon from Carlos Basso out of Argentina that marries beautifully with a dark or bitter chocolate. For those that like sweeter there's one of our trusty standbys, Rosa Regale from Banfi. We call this "a party in a bottle". Big mouthful of sparkling strawberry and cherry that goes smashingly (as the Brits would say) with a bar of the Xtra dark chocolate from Chocolaterie Stam. Toss in a few raspberries or cut up strawberries and your loved one (or the one you lust after) will be eating out of the palm of your hand. Have a wonderful Valentine's all. I know me and my loved one will. 

Howard Bernstein, Owner

Casa di Vino, Wine and Food Guy

Des Moines Wine and Food Connection     

Wild Rice Stuffing

I don't know what usually goes inside your bird on Thanksgiving but I like a wild rice stuffing ( Laura makes a traditional bread dressing in a casserole dish). Here's my recipe. Have a great holiday.

Prepare 1 cup (uncooked) wild rice blend (from bulk food store). Makes approx. 3 cups cooked (I think). You only need about two cups cooked. While water is boiling for rice saute one medium onion finely diced in skillet with two teaspoons olive oil and one chopped clove garlic until soft. Add 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh mushrooms and one can water chestnuts(drained) chopped. Saute together until mushrooms just softened. Remove from heat. Once rice is cooked and cooled (you could prepare this the day before and just stuff the bird with the mixture Thanksgiving morn.) combine with the mixture in the skillet. Add 1/2 tsp. of dried crushed sage, 1/2 tsp. of dried crushed rosemary, 1/4 tsp. of dried crushed marjoram, and 1/4 tsp. dried crushed tarragon OR add 2 1/2 tsp. of "Herb de Provence" (preferably Penzeys). stir in 1 cup of dried mixed berries (cranberries, cherries & I don't remember the third) or just straight dried cranberries. Add salt and pepper to taste.
 
Seperate out two cups of mixture and stuff bird loosely. If needed add more stuffing. The reason I say seperate out two cups is once you've had your hand in the stuffing then the bird the stuffing is "contaminated" with raw meat. If you don't need more than two cups you can save the rest to eat later. Finally I pat a layer of the dried berries over the stuffed cavity of the bird to absorb juices and brown up. They taste great once they get stirred into the stuffing upon removing from the bird. 

This recipe is really good with wild birds. I especially like it with slow cooked pheasant or duck.

Howard Bernstein, Casa di Vino

Des Moines Wine and Food Connection