The festival is the second of a five-festival season for the winegrowers association
By: Faith Bahadurian
The weekend of Aug. 11-12 will be a high point for New Jersey wineries and their many fans as the Garden State Winegrowers Association joins with the Jersey Fresh initiative to put on the Jersey Fresh Food & Wine Festival.
Member restaurants of Slow Food Central New Jersey movement are also participating, and they include Tre Piani and The Underground Café of Princeton, The Brothers Moon of Hopewell, High Street Grill of Mount Holly, The Bent Spoon of Princeton, Number 9 Restaurant of Lambertville and Nomad Pizza of Princeton.
The festival is the second of a five-festival season for the winegrowers association, and will feature hundreds of award-winning New Jersey wines. Festival-goers will also be able to pick up a copy of Edible Jersey, a new quarterly magazine celebrating the food and wine of the Garden State (www.ediblejersey.com).
New Jersey has been producing wine since 1864. Our wineries offer more than 200 varieties of wine, and several new wineries will be opening later this year, including Laurita Winery in Ocean County and Auburn Road Vineyards in Salem County.
Unique to New Jersey wineries is an array of fruit wines such as raspberry, cherry and blueberry, which lend themselves well to summery drinks and culinary endeavors in the kitchen. Recipes from some of the 28 members of the Garden State Winegrowers Association are below.
The Jersey Fresh Food and Wine Festival will be held on the bucolic grounds of Hopewell Valley Vineyards. The vineyard has been recognized with dozens of national wine competition awards
not surprising, since owners Sergio and Barbara Neri represent three generations
of Tuscan winemaking experience.
The Jersey Fresh Food & Wine Festival takes place Aug. 11 and 12, noon
to 5 p.m., rain or shine, at Hopewell Valley Vineyards, 46 Yard Road, Pennington
(www.hopewellvalleyvineyards.com).
Admission is $20, and includes wine tasting, live music, artisan vendors and
activities for children. For more information visit www.newjerseywines.com or
call (866) 488-9463.
TOMASELLO
CRANBERRY WINE
COSMOPOLITAN
3 parts Tomasello Cranberry wine
1 part Triple Sec
1 part premium vodka
Shake with ice, strain into a martini glass
SALAD WITH TOMASELLO
BLUEBERRY WINEVINAIGRETTE
Makes about 2 cups dressing.
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 shallot, minced
½ cup sugar
1 cup canola oil
¼ cup cider vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
½ cup Tomasello Blueberry wine
Mixed baby greens
Dried blueberries and slivered almonds for garnish
Combine mustard, shallot and sugar until well incorporated, whisk in half the
oil until mixture thickens then whisk in cider vinegar. Finish whisking in remaining
oil; add salt and pepper to taste and whisk in Blueberry Wine. Toss with baby
mixed greens, garnish with dried blueberries and slivered almonds.
ALBA VINEYARDS
CHOCOLATE ALMOND
RASPBERRY CAKE
One 9" round cake, 8-10 servings.
Cake:
4 ounces semisweet chocolate
¼ cup unsweetened butter
½ cup blanched almonds
2/3 cup sugar (divided)
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3 eggs, separated (room temperature)
1 tablespoon Alba Red Raspberry Wine
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
Frosting:
¾ cup whipping cream, well chilled
1½ teaspoons sugar
1½ teaspoons Alba Red Raspberry Wine
1½ ounces semisweet chocolate, grated
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cake: Position rack in the center of the oven; preheat
to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan. Line bottom with parchment or
foil; butter lightly. Melt chocolate and butter in a large heatproof bowl set
in a pan of hot water over low heat; stir until smooth. Cool about 10 minutes.
Grind nuts with 3 tablespoon of sugar in a food processor until
as smooth as possible; transfer to a small bowl. Thoroughly mix in 4 tablespoons
sugar and the cornstarch. Stir in the chocolate. Beat in egg yolks with a wooden
spoon until mixture is smooth and thick. Stir in wine.
Using clean beaters, beat egg whites with cream of tartar in
a large bowl until soft peaks form. Beat in remaining ¼ cup
sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time. Continue beating until whites are thick but not
dry. Fold 1/3 of whites into the chocolate mixture. Spoon chocolate mixture back
into whites; fold until blended and no white streaks remain. Pour batter into
prepared pan.
Bake 25 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes, run a thin-bladed
knife around sides of cake; turn out onto wire rack and remove paper. Invert
and cool completely. Refrigerate at least one hour before frosting.
Frosting: Beat cream with sugar and wine in a chilled
bowl until soft peaks form. Spread on sides and top of cake. Grate chocolate
on top. Serve at room temperature
MUSCAT WINE CAKE
WITH GRAPES
Bellview Winery
Makes one 10-inch round cake.
1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
8 tablespoons butter (1 stick) room temperature
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup Muscat wine (Bellview’s Lettizzia)
1½ cups seedless red grapes
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch springform pan. Sift
flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda into a bowl. In another bowl, whisk ¾ cup
sugar, 6 tablespoons butter and 3 tablespoons olive oil until combined. Whisk
in eggs, both peels and vanilla. Add flour mixture and wine to sugar mixture,
alternating each 3 times and blending well after each addition.
Pour into prepared pan. Scatter grapes gently over top. Bake
20 minutes until top is set. Dot top of cake with remaining 2 tablespoons butter
and sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Bake 20 minutes more until golden
and cake tests done. Cool in pan on rack 20 minutes. Serve slightly warm or at
room temp.

