Autostrada or Binkley's?

Next Wednesday, May 20th, two wine dinners are happening in the northeast valley and wouldn't it be great if you could clone yourself so that you could go to both? Take a look at the menus and wine pairings, and call to make a reservation before the rest of the valley finds out.

Autostrada's wine maker's dinner will feature Toscana wines, imported from Italy by Giuliana Imports of Boulder, Colorado. The five courses of rustic, Italian-inspired cuisine from Chef Aaron May will be paired with selections from resident Sommelier, Dave Johnson.

First course: Mixed baby lettuces with white wine poached pears, sheep's milk ricotta, roasted hazelnuts and cherrywood balsamico, paired with Fontaleoni Vernaccia Di San Gimignono.

Second course: porcini crusted halibut with roasted baby beets and chive sauce, paired with Mocali Rosso Di Montalcino.

Third course: torchio pasta with broccolini, chile flake, grated bresaola and pecorino nero, paired with San Giusto A Rentennano Chianti Classico.

Fourth course: roasted lamb on sweet pepper ragu with salsa verde, paired with a Super Tuscan - Uccelliera Rapace.

Fifth course: almond and semolina souffle with candied orange, paired with the sweet Piazzano Vin Santo.

Details: May 20, 7 p.m., Autostrada, 20825 N. Pima (DC Ranch), (480) 513-2886, $75++/* per person


Binkley's and Duncan Farms are teaming up, along with AZ Wines of Carefree, to create a six course extravaganza. Starting with passed hors d'ouerves and a sparkling Cava from Spain, Kevin Binkley will roll out six "art on a plate" courses featuring the organic produce from valley favorite, Duncan Farms.

Halibut Carpaccio with haricots verts, gold nugget tomatoes, amethyst onions and tomato water vinaigrette, paired with the Frederic Giachino "Vin de Savoie" Abymes, France.

Soft Shell Crab with fried green tomato, charred spring onion, olives and horseradish, paired with Gerard Nuemeyer, "Les Hospices" Riesling, Alsace, France.

Desert Squash Blossoms, stuffed with sweet peppers, Italian sausage and Parmesan, paired with Benovia, Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast.

Duck Breast and rillette with pineapple, fennel and blackberries, paired with Qupe Vineyards, "Bien Nacido" Syrah, Santa Maria Valley.

Ribeye with honey bear squash, baby beets and leeks, paired with Cade, "Napa Cuvee" Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley.

Carrot Cheese Cake with coconut, raisins, pistachios, cinnamon phyllo and chocolate, paired with Lilly Pilly "Noble Blend" from Austrailia.

Details: May 20, 6:30 p.m., Binkley's Restaurant, 6920 E. Cave Creed Rd, Cave Creek, (480) 437-1072, $105++/* per person

* ++ means plus tax and gratuity.

Coddling Baby Fennel...

Don't you just love the name baby fennel? It sounds much more beguiling than just fennel.

Baby vegetables are either cultivated to be just babies or, including this baby fennel, are harvested before they reach maturity, so they are miniature versions of the fully matured vegetable. Generally, that means they're not only more tender, but also more delicate in flavor.

Fennel is sometimes mistakenly labeled anise, which is a completely different plant from fennel.

If you have fennel seeds in a spice jar in your pantry, those also are not from the same species that produces this lovely, off-white bulb. Confusing, I know.

Fennel seeds come from the common fennel plant and the bulbous vegetable is called Florence fennel, or finocchio in Italian.



Florence fennel can be eaten raw or it can be cooked. Raw, it has a crisp crunch and a delicate, understated flavor of licorice, much milder than the fennel seed.

Roasting the fennel, like you would butternut squash, sweetens the fennel, making it silky tender, too.

To use the fennel in a salad, cut the bulb from the green stalks. The feathery fronds on the stalks, which resemble dill in appearance, can be used as a garnish.



I like to shave the fennel using a mandolin, and the one in the picture above is my favorite mandolin. It's a Japanese Benriner.

Once cut, the fennel will oxidize (turn brown), so shave it just before you plan to serve it to retain the whitish color.

Tossing it with a delicate acid, like orange juice, will slow down the oxidization.



We're making an orange and fennel salad here, so after shaving the bulb into delicate ribbons, peel the pith from an orange, and separate the segments of the orange.

Squeeze the pulp of the orange after you've removed the sections over the fennel and toss.

To finish the salad, toss the shaved fennel and orange segments together, and then snip pieces of the fennel fronds over the top. Season with a little salt and pepper before serving.



If you are so inclined (and don't live with an olive hater) adding a few chopped black olives would really enhance this salad, adding a salty element to the sweet taste of the orange and fennel.

I especially like the wrinkly, dry-cured black olives. But, alas, I do live with an olive hater, so no olives for this salad.

Jicama - The Mexican Potato

We've seen this brown, bulbous root vegetable in our markets in the Southwest forever, yet without fail, someone in the grocery store will stop me and ask me what it is, followed by "what do you do with it?"

I use it as a paper weight. (Kidding).

Jicama, a staple in Mexican and South American cuisine can be eaten raw or lightly cooked. The flesh glistens pearly white.



It's full of fiber and water, so it has a lovely crunch. My favorite way to serve jicama is as a component in a salad. It can be the star or a supporting cast member.

The first thing you have to do is peel the thin brown skin. I normally peel it before I cut it in half but I wanted you to see the inside first.



Once peeled, you can cut it any way you like. Cut it into matchsticks or cube it.

I made a jicama, orange and jalapeno side dish to go with barbecue, so I cubed it, added some orange sections and minced jalapeno.



Squeeze the orange after you remove all the sections over the jicama and then give it a good toss.

You could add a little olive oil for richness, but it's fine to leave it fat free.

Season with salt and pepper to taste and you've got a refreshing, crunchy salad.

Montreal Steak Seasoning...

I picked up a free sample of McCormick & Co.'s Montreal Steak seasoning somewhere. I'm not exactly sure where I got it, either at a culinary festival or a culinary conference. I know that it was free because it says so right on the little packet.

We don't eat much beef around here anymore, despite my Texas upbringing, but I bought a couple steaks from a local Arizona cattle rancher at a farmers market a couple of weeks ago. Since I bought them (the young rancher looked so darn cute in his cowboy hat, I couldn't resist) I decided that I might as well grill them and use up the packet of free spice.

The Montreal Steak seasoning's first ingredient is salt. Normally, that would dissuade me from buying the spice. But the thing is, for steak, salt is probably the most important seasoning. You need salt and plenty of it to bring out the beefy taste (especially if the beef is grass fed, like these New York Strips).

Besides salt, there's a hefty amount of pepper - black peppercorns and red chile flakes. There are a few cracked coriander seeds and fennel seeds and lots of orange-tinted flakes that at first I thought might be orange peel. They're not. They taste hot. And garlicky. Maybe they're just granulated garlic but I'm not sure why they're orange.

If you grill a lot of steaks and you're always trying out a new spice mix, you might like this blend. Just be generous with it so it can live up to it's "bold" claim.

Roasted Curried Cauliflower

You remember I'm not a big fan of cauliflower, right? Well, I need to amend that because now have another recipe that makes me think it's not so bad after all.

Yesterday, I wrote about Maharajah curry powder, one of four global spice blends worth trying.

Today, I'm sharing a recipe for roasted cauliflower using that highly aromatic (and colorful) spice. And by recipe, you do know that I mean, I'll just talk you through the process, right?

The first thing you do, after turning the oven on at 400 degrees, is cut the florets off the head of the cauliflower, cutting the larger ones into bite size pieces.

Wash and pat dry with paper towels. We'll be tossing with oil later, so the florets need to be dry. Oh, this head of cauliflower is two pounds, kind of a medium-ish size.

I also cut 1/2 of a large, yellow onion into lengthwise wedges, because, you know, what's roasted cauliflower without onions?



Whisk together a scant tablespoon of the Maharajah curry powder with 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon (or, 1 full teaspoon if you dare) of Sriracha (or other hot sauce), and 3 tablespoons of olive oil.



Pour the mixture over the cauliflower and onions and give it a good toss, coating the whole caboodle. (Caboodle is such a fun word. Say it with me: kuh-BOOD-l. If that doesn't put a grin on your face, I don't know what will.)



Spread the cauliflower and onions on a baking sheet in a single layer. Place in the oven and roast until the cauliflower starts to caramelize and the onions are tender, about 20 to 25 minutes.



The only thing left to do now is to taste it and adjust for salt and pepper. I like to give it a good sprinkle of freshly ground white pepper, and finish it with some chopped fresh mint. Mint and curry go together like peanut butter and jelly, in an exotic sort of way. You could use cilantro if you have it in addition to, or instead of the mint.



Roasted curried cauliflower is really delicious as a side dish to say, grilled pork or grilled halibut. Or you could use it to top a salad dressed with a lemon vinaigrette. Or, you could even puree it, add a little vegetable stock, a splash of cream and call it a soup.

I'm getting hungry just thinking about it. I bought the Maharajah curry powder at Penzey's but you can find it at other specialty spice sites like The Spice House and Whole Spice, too.

Four Global Spice Blends To Try

There are literally thousands of spice blends on the market. Here are four that you may not have in your pantry, but should -- and why.

Berbere is an Ethiopian mix of paprika, chipotle, fenugreek, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon and garlic, used to flavor aromatic stews called wats. Like curry spice mixes, every family in Ethiopia has their own custom blend. The flavor is smoky with a peppery bite and added warmth that only cinnamon and ginger can bring. It's excellent on beef, lamb and pork, but it can also liven up vegetables like cauliflower and potatoes.

Za'Atar blends can be found in northern Africa and in the Middle East. It's a citrusy, earthy mixture of thyme, oregano, sumac (the citrusy flavor), sesame seeds and salt. Use it on chicken, fish and pork, or even stir into yogurt for a quick dip.




Adobo in this form, is a dry spice blend most often associated with Mexico, Puerto Rico and other Latin American countries. Typical ingredients include dried onion, garlic, black pepper, Mexican oregano, cumin and cayenne. Think of it as a Latin flavored seasoned salt. Use it on chicken, pork and potatoes. (Note: the Filipino adobo refers to a vinegar stewed dish, not a spice blend.)


Maharajah curry powder is on the mild, dare we say "sweet" side of curry powders. It is similar to the standard "grocery store" curry powder although worlds more aromatic. It gets its golden color from turmeric and a touch of saffron, but the aromatics make this Maharajah blend special: coriander, cumin, cardamom, fenugreek, ginger, nutmeg, fennel, cinnamon, and cloves. Black, white and cayenne peppers add subtle heat. Excellent with vegetables (especially cauliflower) and soups, stews and rice dishes.

Where to buy:

The Spice House

Penzey's

Flavor Bank

Whole Spice

The Burning Truth...about beets

Leave it to me to blab about a vegetable that's out of season. Or is it just coming into season? Beets, apparently, are not in season in northern California, at least according to Alice Waters' Chez Panisse Vegetables cookbook. I bet they're not in season in Kalamazoo, Michigan at the moment, either. Or, are they? Anyone?

All I know is that I can still get beets at our farmers' markets, so technically, they're still in season, at least in Arizona.

(I should know what's in season. I write for Edible Phoenix for cryin' out loud, and it clearly says in the Spring 2009 issue, on page 12, that beets are in season. Along with asparagus, fava beans and a dozen or so other vegetables.)

I love beets. Adore them. Especially pickled beets, like the candy sweet ones from Cotton Country Jams. But my hubby won't eat pickled beets.

Roasted beets, now that's a different story. He laps up roasted beets like a puppy with a bowl full of chow mix.

Here's how you roast beets: heat the oven to 375 degrees while you snip off the stalks, leaving about an inch above the beet (save the greens if you like braised beet greens).

Scrub-a-dub-dub the beets to get rid of any grit. Dry them. Put them on a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil, drizzle with a good extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Wrap those babies up tight and place in the oven until they're tender, but not mushy, about an hour if they're on the large size.



Roasting beets is super simple, but there's a deep, dark secret that you need to know about.

They're only easy to peel when they're burning hot, straight out of the oven. Oh, you can wait five minutes, maybe, but if they cool too much, the skin doesn't want to part from the flesh.

I thought chilling them would create a little pocket, you know, between the skin and the flesh, like it does with roasted sweet potatoes.

Nope. Has the opposite effect, the coldness acts like glue.

So, here's what you need to do.

Get some plastic, disposable medical gloves. Grit your teeth, and dive in.

It won't take long, and it's worth it. All the beet flesh stays with the beet and the skins slip right off (with a little help from a paring knife).