When Irish Pies Are Smiling

It's spring and that means lots of activities.  Sporting events, hiking, bicycling and work in the garden leaves little time for cooking.  So this month we are going to revisit Erin's recipes for two Irish pies. Bake the pies in advance and serve them with some wine and a green salad and you will have the perfect supper.

The pies  are like quiche,and the difference being that if you drink enough of the wine listed in the pairing, you might be able to hear the Leprechauns talking about their pots of gold.


Click on the headings to be redirected to the recipes.

Erin's Irish Leek and Swiss Pie with River Run Vintners Cote D' Aromas

This recipe was featured in Murder Before The Bell. The unique part of this dish is the taste of the creamy leek and cheese custard. At the bottom of the pie is the salty deviled ham. The flavors in the pie blend and are accented by the Cote D' Aromas which is a Rhone Blend. In this wine, the bold fleshy Syrah counterpoints the sweet tones of Grenache as the wine opens.

Erin’s Egg, Bacon, and Leek Pie with Clos LaChance Syrah

This recipe was featured in Death In The Science Classroom. The saltiness of the bacon contrasts with the mellow flavors of the eggs and the leeks. Pairing with the pie is a Syrah that has meaty, bacon, and leather aromas. it's a wonderful combination.

Three Fish Dishes That Are Great For Potlucks

Rick Podowski and The Hefty Trio love to eat fish. This week we are going to revisit three easy to make fish dishes that are great to take to a potluck. Lick on the title to see the recipe and the wine pairing.

Irish Poached Salmon with Watercress Sauce

This dish from Murder Before the Bell is a favorite of both Rick and Erin. Rick likes to serve it cold with the pinkness of the salmon highlighted by the green watercress sauce. It's perfect to take to a picnic or a potluck.

Ceviche and Roasted Asparagus And Red Onion Quesadillas

In The Winning Certificate, Rick is having a romantic dinner with his girlfriend, Elaine.

Served in a glass bowl, the ceviche was a delicious blend of scallops marinated in lime juice until they were firm and white, along with tomatoes, onions, and fresh cilantro. Surrounding the dish was a sea of crispy tortilla chips to be used to scoop up the seafood.

"Once when I was in Acapulco," Rick told her. "I munched on ceviche while sitting in a restaurant located on the side of the cliff at La Quebrada. It was early evening and the divers jumped off the cliffs into the ocean several hundred feet below while a member of the band in the restaurant did a drum-roll. Perhaps it was the atmosphere but the ceviche there was perfection."

"This is almost as romantic, isn't it?" Elaine said pressing his hand.”
The main course was a grilled quesadilla filled with roasted asparagus, red onions, Jack cheese, and shrimp, accompanied by a cumin lime sauce. Also on the table was Mexican rice and refried beans. A simple salad also accompanied the meal."

Smoked Salmon Sandwiches

  Smoked Salmon Sandwiches are featured in The Fishy Chips. Rick loves these sandwiches and they are perfect to take to a party. The sandwiches contain red onion, cream cheese, capers, and dill weed on pumpernickel bread.

Chicken Macedonia with Rexford Winery's Pinot Gris

In Death Of A Foster Child, Rick and The Hefty Trio needed help on a case so they took Benito, an expert on gangs to  Scopazzi's Restaurant located in Boulder Creek, a quaint  town in the Santa Cruz Mountains.  The restaurant building has housed eating establishments for over 100 years.  With its long  wooden bar, the open beam ceiling and beautiful redwood paneled interior, a wonderful ambiance has been created. The recipe below is Rick's  rendition of their Chicken Macedonia. . 

2 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons chopped shallots

2 teaspoons curry powder

2 teaspoons sweet mango chutney

1 cup chicken stock

1 pound chicken tenders

1 green apple cut into slices

2 bananas cut lengthwise and then cut into thirds

Melt one tablespoon of butter in a large saucepan and sauté shallots until soft (about two minutes). Add curry powder, mango chutney and stock. Cook until the mixture starts to thicken. Place the sauce in a bowl.

Add a tablespoon of butter to the pan with the chicken tenders and apples and cook for about five minutes until the tenders start to brown.

Return the sauce to the pan and add the bananas. Simmer until the bananas are cooked about five minutes. Serve with rice.

Serves 4.

Rexford Winery

Joe Miller, a long-time Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz, is the winemaker at Rexford. The former director of Lick Observatory on Mount Hamilton and overseer of the Keck Observatory in Hawaii on behalf of the University of California played a major role in the building of the world's largest infrared and optical telescopes and their instruments. Now, that he is retired, he concentrates on developing wines that pair well with food.

Absolutely minimal cellar handling preserves the full character and complexity that the grapes can provide. Racking and bottling schedules do not follow rigid timelines, but are adopted to fit the development of each wine. Top-quality oak barrels are used judiciously so that oak flavors are never pronounced and at most provide a subtle background to the intrinsic aroma and flavor profile of the wine.

Currently Joe Miller and his son constitute the full staff, producing a total of seven hundred cases that include Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Zinfandel Rose.