Waddup, ya'll! This one is off topic for the week, but I haaaaad to drop it for you. If you like chocolate, cake and or red wine, you'll love me after this. Bake for your next gathering, and lemme know how it goes!
Red wine pairings
It seems these days everybody’s a self proclaimed “wine drinker.” These are mostly the folk who have racks of nothing but Moscato in the garage fridge😐. You’re a Moscato drinker, love. Thassit. 🤷🏽♂️ I’m not saying that an affinity or even an interest in wine tasting (or casual sipping) has to be diverse, but it should be! What’s the fun in sticking to your guns when there are soooo many varieties -and varietals- out there?!
I’ll admit, it took a minute to work my pallet around the clock to reds, but Lawd when I did 🙌🏽. What made the transition easy was pairing, or partnering the wine with a compatible food. Virtually, you search for a flavor profile within or about the wine (notes of cherry, or “floral, spicy, earthy”, etc....) and exploit it with a dish or food item.
Red wine and chocolate
Specifically speaking, red wine, which is most often associated with dark fruits and berries in flavor profiles -the potency of which is affected by the climate in which the grape is grown- is known to pair best with food which are less lean (fatty, even) or rich.
Heavy rich reds are best for pairing with chocolate, which offers a bittersweet profile, to kinda fill in the gaps of what the wine may be missing when you enjoy them together.
Red wine & cake
When baking, your inner chemist has to stand tall. We gotta be precise ouchea! The slightest wrong move can result in an tragically dense, dry, bland or even overtly complex cake.
Adding acid (i.e. buttermilk, lemon juice, anything with a low pH balance) works to enhance flavors as well as contribute to leavening and tenderization of cakes. The chocolate and red wine are perfect here.
Also, cocoa beans are naturally fruity. Using a fruity red blend in a recipe calling for cocoa powder just make sense. We’ll play on the rich fruitiness here as an accent to the bittersweet chocolate.
Inspiration?
During a quite militant google search one day 😅 I stumbled across an article displaying info for Black owned wineries. The only Texan search result wasn’t available for order, so I moved to the next best looking options. The pure swag, thoughtful craftsmanship & selection of blends -which I’m working to learn to love- fixed my attentions on Maison Noir Wines.
A blend of (Oregon) Syrah, (Washington) Cabernet Sauvignon -my friggin favorite🤷🏽♂️- and Merlot, their Horseshoes & Handgrenades's bold, fruity and perfectly dry character made it not only great to enjoy in a glass,🍷 but also a fantastic companion for my chocolate cake recipe.
(Side note: When I say “perfectly dry” I don’t mean tannic. Tannins are that sort of gritty feeling stuff on your tongue when you drink certain reds. This blend is smooth but a bit bold. 💪🏽 You’ll enjoy it. I promise.)
INSTRUCTIONS
Prep
1. Preheat oven to 350F,
2. Gather ingredients, a large bowl or standing mixer, a medium-size bowl, a 12-cup bundt pan (and something to grease it with), and your necessary measuring utensils.
3. Grease pan, then set it aside.
4. In the medium bowl, sift flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
5. In a mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment (or large bowl, and your good arm) , beat together butter, sugar, and egg on medium-high speed for 3-4 minutes until combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary.
6. Add vanilla extract. Using a spatula, fold the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating it with the wine in 2 additions (starting and ending with the flour). Add the milk and combine. Do not over mix, dern-it!!
7. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes on a wire rack, then turn it out and let it cool completely. Drizzle the cake with chocolate ganache(I also dressed mine dried coconut chips and fresh cherries).
Thassit, ya'll. That's all I've got for today. I hope you enjoy!
Until next time, I challenge you to live good, to do good and to eat good. But above all else, from deep in my soul, I wish you happy feelin's. See ya in the kitchen!
-Julian B.
