My husband and I decided to celebrate our fifth anniversary early by going to the Niagara region. That was where we got engaged six years ago. Since we both love food, we decided to take a cooking class. Though we stayed in the Falls, the class was at the Wine Country Cooking School at the Strewn Winery in Niagara-on-the-Lake, a half hour car ride from our hotel (we decided to take a cab, since we were not sure how much we’d be drinking. The class included wine pairings).
Plating of the main course, featuring stuffed chicken, quinoa and asparagus (the recipe under the plate is for the dessert)
We arrived at the winery on a horribly cold, miserable day. Luckily, the building was warm and we were led into the kitchen where we were given aprons. We all worked with a partner – it was mostly (if not all) made up of couples various parts of Canada and even the United States – except for the first course, which was with another group of two. I think my husband and I were the youngest people there.
We knew going in that we’d be considered “babies” in the class and I was prepared to make foods that were a bit more old fashioned. However, I was pleasantly surprised to see the recipes – chickpea dip (that wasn’t exactly hummus in taste, unfortunately), quinoa with herbs, stuffed chicken, steamed asparagus (and NOT with a Hollandaise sauce, I might add. Instead, we made a tomato basil vinaigrette) and a delicious custard cake with cherries.
Dessert was custard cake with cherries. And yes, we made an ENTIRE PIE SIZED cake for TWO PEOPLE (a bit of a waste, IMHO)
The class was extremely hands on and there were some things I learned to make food tastier – for example, the instructor, Jane, taught us how to make quinoa using where you cook the quinoa with twice the amount of water you normally would for 10 minutes (not sure if I’d call it par boiling, since it’s mostly cooked at 10), then drain the water in a sieve and then steam the quinoa under a medium low heat for five. The quinoa comes out even more fluffy this way. Another tip I learned was that one doesn’t have to brown the chicken on both sides before placing it in the oven – one side is and then bake the chicken browned side up for baking. Yum!
During the meal, Jane’s husband, Joe talked about the history of the winery, how they got into the wine and cooking business and most importantly, how to best pair with foods. He noted that heavier foods should call for heavier wines and that the amount of acidity is important as it cuts through dishes. Colour, on the other hand, isn’t as important as some might think. Both red and white were available for the main chicken dish. And wines with less acid are better for salads, since dressings tend to be tart. Joe recommended Riesling or Sauvignon Blanc.
Delicious ice wine that accompanied dessert. A bit on the sweet side for me, but it’s great! We bought a bottle!
Though the class was fun, there were some things that I did could have been improved. The acoustics in the kitchen were awful and many of us had trouble hearing the instructor much of the time. It would have been nice if she wore a microphone! In addition, the recipe for the chickpea dip could have included more spices and some garlic (the chicken stuffing could have had a bit more substance as well). Perhaps we could have made “actual” hummus! It would have worked well with the tortilla chips we snacked on. Finally, my husband and I didn’t understand why we made so much food. Though we were making dinner for ourselves only – two people – each group made enough to feed twice the amount (with the exception of the chickpea dip, which we mostly finished and the asparagus dressing). When I went back to the kitchen for some additional quinoa and asparagus, there was a HUGE bowl of quinoa left – enough to feed at least another eight people and about the same number with the chicken. I don’t know about dessert, as we left as soon as we finished, but I’d guess that there was even MORE left over – each couple made one pie plate’s worth, enough to perhaps feed six. I don’t understand the point of that. In fact, I think the dessert would have worked well as individual portions, cooked in ramekins rather than a pie plate (cooking them stove top, in a bain-marie rather than baking would have been good too – our Saturday eggs are often cooked that way). Presentation would have been prettier too, as not everyone is the perfect slicer!
NOTE: This past weekend, my husband and I made our own version of the stuffed chicken (above) which included garlic powder as well as a Middle Eastern spice mixture (includes cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, star anise and a few others). Sides seen here are the “goddess” salad (warmed and lightly sautéed) from Loblaws and my cauliflower “mash”/”risotto” hybrid.
