Artisanal Merlot and Humane Veal!

If you're a regular reader of my blog, you've probably discovered I have a penchant for enthusiastically endorsing certain products, all because I love them, and some because I work with them. This blog includes a client - Woodworth Vineyards...

I LOVE THEIR WINES and I also work with them!

and a Field-to-Fork farmer - TAJ Farms...

Jack Ford of TAJ Farms

... both whom I wholeheartedly endorse. As a matter of fact, Woodworth plans to do a wine dinner in collaboration with TAJ Farms this coming fall... I'm VERY excited about that!

Woodworth asked me to review their latest release - 2009 Estate Grown Merlot. A Merlot that I opened recently for a wine lover friend... this is what he said:

"WOW, I was expecting a glass of red wine, not an experience... this wine is amazing, seriously, I'm stunned!" Phil Russ

My review and notes are at the end of this post...

Woodworth 2009 Merlot

And they asked me to write a recipe using veal. You know me, I love writing wine and food paired recipes!

Ah, veal you say? But veal is bad, the poor little calves lead a horrid life before slaughter. Yes, in many cases this is true, but it doesn't have to be anymore. TAJ Farms raises pigs, goats, sheep, beef, turkey, chickens, and rabbits - ALL HUMANELY!

To help with the veal debate I'm including this article from the NY Times Dining and Wining section... it's a very educational read, and may change your mind about veal. I know it did mine. Prior to this research, I had never cooked with veal in protest of the very bad conditions calves were raised in.

So, hopefully you've read the article and can now safely JUMP for more pictures and the Merlot notes and paired recipe...

Let me start by saying, I used my trustworthy book "What to Drink with What you Eat" by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg. Seriously, if you haven't rushed out to find this book and their others on similar topics... you're missing out on fantastic resources!

So, after doing my research, I started with these basics...

Showing my ingredients all the love I can!

1. Humanely farmed veal
2. Stuff for Mushroom Risotto - still need to blog about this, but Jake is the Risotto master!
3. Baby Carrots for steaming
4. Currants
5. Shallots
6. Tarragon
7. Bread Crumbs
8. And other stuff

First of all, the veal cutlets were pounded and cut into strips, then breaded for pan searing... NOTICE HOW PINK THE MEAT IS? 

Veal pounded and breaded for pan frying - Pink like humane veal should look

The veal was the easy part, it was simply pan seared in clarified butter... VEAL COOKS FAST SO BE WATCHFUL!

Pan Seared Veal

After the veal is cooked and kept warm for plating, it's time to make the Tarragon Scented Shallot and Currant Cream Sauce.

VealCutlets with Tarragon Scented Shallot & Currant Cream Sauce

• 4 (4-6 ounce) veal cutlets
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup bread crumbs
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4- 6 tablespoons clarified butter (for searing veal and sautéing shallots)
• ¼ cup chopped shallots
• ½ cup currants
• 1 cup white wine
• 1 cup cream
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon

Method

1. Flatten cutlets to 1/8-in. thickness and trim into strips. In a re-sealable plastic bag, combine the flour, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper. Add veal; seal bag and shake to coat evenly. In a skillet, heat 2 tablespoons clarified butter over medium heat. Add veal; cook over medium heat for about 1 minute on each side or until juices run clear. Remove and keep warm for final plating
2. In a saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons clarified butter, when heated, add shallots, cook until soft; add currants and wine. Continue to cook until wine reduces and shallot/currant mixture is just wet. Reduce heat to med-low, add cream and adjust with salt and pepper, bring to a simmer. 
3. When cream sauce is heated stir into reserved skillet over medium heat, stirring up any browned bits. Add minced tarragon and cook until slightly thickened – this will happen quickly. When thickened remove from heat and pour over plated veal. 

Finishing cream sauce in pan used for searing the veal

 And this is how the finished plate turned out...

Veal Finished with Tarragon Scented Shallot and Currant Cream Sauce

Finally here are the wine notes so you can see what my influences were for this pairing...

Wine notes:

This recipe was written to pair with Woodworth Vineyards 2009 Estate Grown Merlot. This Merlot is a stunning example of how elegant and finessed a Merlot can be:

The bouquet of this mid-weight wine offers a swirling array of bright cherries, currants, violets and plums. The first sip confirms the bouquet quickly entering into a mid-palate of soft spices, a velvety mouth-feel, and subtle smooth leather. It lingers in the finish with added herbal notes of tarragon, anise, and a rounded end of vanilla and spice.

The recipe was written to capture the richness of the wine in a complimentary way: Currants, tarragon, and cream, drizzled over a light meat. The end result is a complete balance and harmony of the wine and dish. Neither competes with the other. This pairing is a classic foregone conclusion demonstrating the magic of an amazing culinary dance. 

If you are interested in purchasing some of this wine, Woodworth Vineyards is creating a product code through my site so you can visit them on line and purchase their wines. For more info on Woodworth, you can check out my previous post - WOODWORTH VINEYARDS, this post will introduce you to them, give you links to their facebook and website, and also includes additional post links I've done for some of their other wines.