Baked Orzo with Fontina and Peas

I served this last night at book club, and it seemed to be enjoyed by all. It is super easy (except for maybe the cheese grating, which I do not have a talent for) and great for big groups.

Baked Orzo with Fontina and Peas
Courtesy of Giada DiLaurentiis and Food Network

4 cups chicken broth
1 pound orzo pasta
3 tablespoons butter, plus more to grease the baking dish
1 onion, chopped
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1 cup Marsala wine
1/2 cup heavy cream
4 ounces shredded fontina cheese (about 1 cup)
4 ounces diced fresh mozzarella cheese (about 1 cup)
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1 teaspoon dried thyme

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butter a 9 by 13-inch baking dish.

Bring the chicken broth to a boil over medium-high heat in a medium saucepan. Add the orzo and cook until almost tender, about 7 minutes. Pour the orzo and the broth into a large bowl. Set aside.

Meanwhile, melt the butter over medium heat in a medium skillet. Add the onions and saute until tender, about 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and continue to saute until the mushrooms are beginning to turn golden around the edges, about 7 minutes. Add the Marsala. Scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pan and cook until the Marsala has reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the mushroom mixture to the orzo in the large bowl. Add the cream, fontina, mozzarella, peas, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish.

In a small bowl combine the bread crumbs, Parmesan, and dried thyme. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture on top of the pasta. Bake until golden, about 25 minutes.

HaiVy's Edits: I added 3 cloves of garlic to give the dish some more flavor and an extra handful of fontina cheese, just because I love both. I also cut back on the bread crumbs to about 1/3 cup and the peas to about 3/4 cup because I'm not crazy about either of those.

Wines Under $15!

The April issue of Food & Wine is my favorite so far in 2008 - it features "winter into spring" recipes and some great articles about wine (my favorite being a feature about Santa Barbera). Above all, there is a feature that highlights F & W's favorite American wines under $15. Click here to see their lists. Some I have tried before and some I will be purchasing soon! I recommend picking up this issue and saving it as a guide when you need to buy some great but afforable bottles of wine for entertaining. Share your review if you try one!

Byerlys Lunds Wine Sale

Hooray! It's wine sale time at Byerlys and Lunds wine shops. Now until March 15, you can buy one bottle and get the second half off.

Happy shopping.

Food & Wine Experience

Andrew and I attended the Twin Cities Food & Wine Experience this past Saturday. This is our second annual trip to the event and it was as much fun as we remembered! The wine was fantastic. The highlight was at The Wine Company table and tasting room. We signed up for a special tasting in the room (a free extra, you just had to know what website to go to to sign up beforehand!) and met Luc, the 9th generation winemaker from Bouchard Pere & Fils, a French Winery (located in the the Beaune region of the Burgundy region) whose history dates back to the 1700's. We tried 4 Premier Crus - two whites and two reds... at $50-$60/bottle they were way beyond our budget but incredible to taste while listening to live commentary from one of the members of the Bouchard family (French accent and all)! If only we could have been sitting amongst the vines in Burgundy... sigh....

Back to reality, we came across what could possibly be our new favorite "go-to" red and white wines that each retail at $11/bottle! Four Vines Winery (Paso Robles, CA) makes an awesome unoaked Chardonnay (2006 "Naked" Chardonnay, Santa Barbera, see bottle, right) and a tasty Zinfandel (called Four Vines OVC (Old Vine Cuvee) Zinfandel). I know that you can find them at France 44, we ordered up a few bottles right away from their website - FYI, if you order online you can get this wine for $9.35/bottle, as they are offering a F&W Experience discount. Just search "Four Vines" from their home page. You can pick the wine up right at the store.

Cheers!

Chicken Scallopine with Saffron Cream Sauce

We tried this Giada - Everyday Italian - Food Network recipe last night and it was delicious! The saffron gives it an special kick. I didn't make any alterations to the recipe below except add a second clove of garlic. The recipe was extremely easy and is so pretty to entertain with. Enjoy!

Chicken Scallopine with Saffron Cream Sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound chicken cutlets (scallopine)
2 shallots, sliced 1
clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Warm the olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Season the chicken cutlets with salt and pepper. Cook the chicken until golden and cooked through, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to serving plate and tent with foil to keep warm. Turn the heat to medium, add the shallot and the garlic and cook until tender, about 2 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with the white wine. Using a wooden spoon, scrape all the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook until the wine is almost evaporated. Add the chicken broth and saffron threads, bring to a simmer and reduce for 10 minutes. Add the cream, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine and simmer for 1 minute to blend the flavors. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.

Tasty Chardonnay

I had this delicious 2002 Beaucanon Estate Chardonnay last night at Meritage in St. Paul. It's a very full, buttery Chard with pleasant hints of fruit, vanilla and oak (the latter of which I really like in my Chardonnays).

Our server recommended it with my entree - a delicious roasted striped bass with lobster. The meal itself was amazing and the wine was a perfect complement to the fullness and richness of the seafood.

I think I've seen this wine at a few shops in the area, or at least I'm hoping I did, because I would love to pick up a bottle or two for home dining. It retails for only $16 on the Beaucanon web site.

Update (5/11/08) - I found this wine at Solo Vino in St. Paul for $16.99. I'm excited to try it again - we'll pair it tonight with fish tacos.

Bulgar salad with grapes and feta cheese

This makes a delicious lunch or side dish salad. Enjoy! http://www.pbs.org/everydayfood/recipes/Bulgur_Salad_with_Grapes_and_Feta_Cheese.html