Category Archives: Wine & Food

September 24, 2012 · 5:45 am

Cream of Roasted Corn and Poblano Soup

It’s easy. It’s elegant. It has a slight kick. It’s my corn and poblano chile soup.

I got the idea for this little gem some years ago from a local restaurant called Thyme Matters run by Owner/Chef Alejandra Chávez. Ursula fell in love with this soup at first taste, and I told her that I would have little trouble duplicating it. And, indeed, I nailed the flavors on the very first attempt. It really is that distinctive in taste and easy to make.

What you’ll need:

4 to 5 fresh poblano chiles, roasted and peeled
4 ears sweet corn, kernals shaved from cob after roasting
5 cups good, low-sodium chicken stock
½ cup Half & Half, or to taste

You’ve seen me roast poblanos, sweat in a plastic bag, and skin chiles before in my Chile Rellano recipe. But, if you need a refresher, just click on that link and read the directions (or see the photos below).

Roasting Poblano Chiles

Make ’em Sweat

Skin ’em Alive

Gut and clean ’em Like a Fish

Coarsely Chop the Poblano Chile

For the corn, remove the husk and silk and wrap in heavy-duty foil. Roast in an oven at 375° for 30 minutes, turning and rearranging the ears half way through the roasting. Cool and shave off the kernals.

Freshly Roasted

Mix together the chopped poblano and corn kernals and place them into a food processor.

In Goes the Corn and Poblano

Pulse initially, until well mixed, and then chop until granular looking, but don’t purée. You want some texture in this soup.

The Basic Mixture

Place the corn/poblano mixture into simmering chicken broth. Simmer for about five minutes.

Simmer the Corn and Poblano in the Chicken Broth

Add the Half & Half — more if you want creamy, less if you’re health conscious, or about a half cup if you want the best of both worlds.

Add the Half & Half

Let simmer another minute or two, stirring well. What you’ll have is a soup and warms you up as it warms your tongue. But don’t worry. It’s not that spicy.

Congratulations. Here’s your latest culinary masterpiece:

Soup’s On! Step Back and Don’t Get Trampled in the Stampede!

Don’t forget the wine pairing. Since this is a light dish a white is indicated. The mild heat of the poblano chile would seem to beckon for a little sweetness, but remember that you already have that heat-taming sweetness built into the soup with the sweet corn. So, to keep from battling the corn, I would recommend staying on the dry side. That leaves my go-to white for so many occasions — a nice New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough appellation. Save the red for the meat course that follows.

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Tagged as poblano chile, recipe, soup, sweet corn

September 17, 2012 · 5:45 am

Glacier Brewhouse

Brewed in Alaska • By Alaskans • For Alaskans

With that motto on the menu, you just know you’re entering a fine dining establishment. Well, tasty, at least.

Today we reach the end of our Alaskan adventure with a return to our favorite Anchorage dining establishment — Glacier Brewhouse.

Ursula and I first discovered this Anchorage treasure last year. This year we just knew we would be going back, even though we had severe reservations. No, not those kind of reservations. The I-want-to-show-up-and-not-wait-two-hours-to-eat kind of reservations. Thus, planning ahead, we had reservations for three visits — two dinners and one lunch. That’s what I refer to as “severe reservations.”

First off, this is not your father’s brew pub. If the hand-crafted hefeweizen and the India pale ale I had are any indication, then everything they brew here has to be simply outstanding. Hefeweizen is a Bavarian-style wheat beer that is known for it’s cloudy nature, but this particular example is positively opaque and as flavorful and robust as it looks. Don’t feel left out if you’re a teetotaler, however. The Glacier Brewhouse also make a very good root beer. House-brewed cream soda is also on the menu, but neither Ursula nor I gave it a try . . . at least not this visit.

Beyond the brews, however, is the incredible food. In particular, the Hearty Alaskan Seafood Chowder is an absolute must. This rich and tasty treat contains roasted corn, shaved fennel, red peppers (which accounts for the color), and bacon in a cream-and-crab broth flavored with a hint of dry sherry. Go for the bowl. It’s only two bucks more than the cup, and you’ll regret reaching the bottom too soon. Accompanying your bowl will be a basket of fresh bread slices, but the bread is nothing about which to write home. It lacks the crispy crust and flavorful interior of a traditional European-style rustic bread.

Hope you’re still hungry, because there are a lot more enticements awaiting you. Pictured below you will see the crispy cod sandwich, a pulled pork and slaw sandwich with homemade potato chips, and an example of one of Glacier Brewhouse’s wonderful rustic pizzas. Another pictured dish is, if I recall correctly, the crusted Alaskan cod Jasmine rice cake topped with a coconut curry sauce.

This place alone is almost worth the trek up to Anchorage.

: Crusted Cod with Coconut Curry Sauce

: Artisan Pizza as Good as It Looks

: Crisp Alaskan Cod Sandwich

: Pulled Pork and Slaw with House-made Chips

: Seafood Chowder

: House-brewed Root Beer as well

: House-brewed Hefeweizen

: Charming Atmosphere

: The Sign Above the Door

: Glacier Brewhouse — 737 W. 5th Avenue

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Tagged as Anchorage, food, Glacier Brewhouse, photography, restaurant review, travel

September 7, 2012 · 5:40 am

Revisiting Le Cirque—the MS Statendam Version

This blog article may seem familiar to you. That’s because we did something similar aboard Holland America’s MS Ryndam this past April, on our transatlantic voyage to the beaches of Normandie and beyond.

Holland America’s ships have an upscale restaurant that is well worth trying at least once every voyage. These dining rooms are called the Pinnacle Grill, and they are indeed worth the extra amount you’ll spend in them. But even more special is Le Cirque night in the Pinnacle Grill, and you’d better make reservations well in advance if you want to partake of this very special culinary treat.

At least once each voyage (and more on longer voyages), the Pinnacle Grill staff creates a special dinner using signature items from Sirio Maccioni‘s legendary Le Cirque restaurant founded in New York in 1974. Such a dinner is made even more delightful when it comes the evening following a full day of cruising Glacier Bay.

The captions below speak for the individual courses we had that enchanting, romantic evening. The waiter pictured with Ursula is an old friend—a friendly young chap who had served us many times before, during our numerous trips to the Pinnacle Grill aboard Holland America’s MS Prinsendam during a 54-day voyage back in March through May of 2010. Yes, he recognized us just as quickly as we did he.