Sunday, July 21, 2013

postheadericon Quick Swedish Meatballs

Hello Everyone!  I went to the Madison Farmer's Market yesterday (more about this later) and bought these wonderful frozen, handmade meatballs.  They were precooked, so I knew all I needed to do was defrost and reheat them.  

I wanted to cook them tonight, so I thought, "why not cook Swedish meatballs?"  Here is the thing; many Swedish meatball recipes include mushrooms and Bill doesn't like mushrooms.  So I looked at a few recipes and came up with something that I hope would have some depth, but wouldn't include them.  

The resulting recipe was a hit, so I wanted to share it with you!




Quick Swedish Meatballs
by Milwaukee Kitchen

20-25 precooked meatballs, defrosted
1 14 ounce can of low-sodium beef broth
2 TBLS flour
1/4 cup cold water
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
salt and peper, to taste
3/4 cup sour cream

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and cold water, set aside.  In a medium saute pan, heat the beef broth to a boil.  Whisk the flour mixture into the boiling broth; reduce heat.  Add the nutmeg, salt and pepper.  Add the defrosted meatballs and allow them to heat in the broth mixture.  When the meatballs and heated, add the sour cream and stir to combine.  Reheat to taste.  

This meal took maybe 15 minutes and was good enough to serve to company.  Give it a try!



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Saturday, July 13, 2013

postheadericon Paris Wine Day Tour

Hello All!  Some of you know that I have been so fortunate to visit Paris the past two summers.  This year, I was able to visit Paris May 20 to 26 and wanted to share with you some of my adventures!

As I had been to Paris before, I really wanted to have some new experiences that would allow me to better understand french culture.  I also wanted to spend more time focused on food and wine this trip, which lead me to looking around Trip Advisor for wine tours near Paris.

I happened to stumble upon Paris Wine Day Tours, which provides English-speaking tourists an authentic wine experience in the Sancerre area of France.  Jean-Bernard is the owner and operator of the company and he seems to accompany all of the tours.  He is very knowledgeable and so sweet/funny...he immediately put me at ease and I didn't feel at all uncomfortable being the "party of one" in the tour.

Jean-Bernard met us at an easy to find bistro in Paris and we loaded up into the Paris WDT van.  Off we went to the south of Paris...even stopping for breakfast and a comfort break on the way!



Our first stop was at a local goat cheese producer, where we sampled different versions of the cheese to get a feel for how aging impacts a cheese.  We were also able to shop in a little shop of locally produced food products.


Tasting how the aging process impacts the taste of goat cheese.


Next we were on a way to one of two wineries in the area, where we met one of the wine makers and, importantly, sampled the wine!  It was great and Jean-Bernard was a great interpreter.


I look like a professional,  no?


In between the two wineries we had a traditional lunch at a local bistro and also spent time at a small (but very informational) wine museum in the small town in the area.


Overlooking the country side. 


 After more wine at the second winery, we were off in the van back to Paris.


Jean-Bernard (in yellow) listening to a wine maker educating us on his craft. 


What a day!  I can't speak highly enough about Jean-Bernard...he was kind, witty and even sent us some photos from our day to download after we got home.


Our group with one of the wine makers...every tour is small enough for you to ask questions, etc.

And most importantly, I learned quite a bit about modern wine making and the issues facing wine makers today.  Although the area we visited is not often times imported to the United States, I brought some wine home with me and continue to feel much more informed when ordering and buying french wines.

So, if you are headed to France, please make arrangements with Jean-Bernard to take a wine tour; you will not regret it!

PS...I used Trip Advisor quite a bit to help me plan my trip.  If you would like to follow me on Trip Advisor, my "handle" is MKEKitchen.

Until next time,

Sara


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Sara
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