Wine Down Wednesday Returns with Potato Kale Cakes

Dairy Free, Egg Free, Lighter Fare, Low Cal, Soy Free, Vegan, Vegetarian Add comments

May 242012

Welcome back to Wine Down Wednesday where I review a vegan dish paired with two different wines selected by my friend Gregg at Broadbent Selections.

Vegan Version of Bon Appetit’s Potato Kale Cakes

To pair wines with a meatless dish we must look at the spices and main flavors of the recipe.

In this dish we have garlic, thyme and nutmeg.

The wines are Secateurs Rose, South Africa, 2011 (SO excited about this one) and Caballero De La Cepa Malbec, Argentina, 2010.

Secateurs Rose, South Africa, 2011

Secateurs Rose

This rose is from a blend of grapes grown in the Swaartland district of South Africa-the vines being some of the oldest in that region.

“The Cinsault and Grenache grapes were picked early in the morning and the whole bunches were gently pressed so as not to extract too much color. The Shiraz juice had 4 hours of skin contact before it was pressed, then the juice was blended and naturally fermented in tank. Only 15% was fermented in old French oak casks. The wine was clarified naturally with minimal filtration, then bottled. Only 300 cases of this wine and ready to drink now.”

Caballero De La Cepa Malbec, Argentina, 2010

Caballero De La Cepa Reserva Malbec

This wine, in 1947, was the first to label wine by a specific varietal.Gregg’s suggestion for Malbec was to first taste, then decant the wine and funnel back into the bottle two to three times, then taste again.

Here is the rating info.

Categories

Category #1 – How well my dish turned out.
Category #2 – How well I like the wine.
Category #3 – Pairing notes – How well this wine pairs with the dish.

Rating Scale

Bleck -This wine is pretty bad.
Ho Hum- I could drink it if I was at a football game and there was nothing else in the cooler.
Nice -Good table wine. I would keep this in the wine cooler if it was a good value.
Yum – This is good, I would pay a fair bit more and have it for a special occasion.
Damn that’s Good – Self explanatory.
** We will use the same terminology for how the dish turned out and how well it paired.

Category #1 The Dish

Rating of Yum
The dish was delicious with its caramelized potatoes and wilted kale, but somewhere I went a bit wrong and they didn’t hold together. Next time I might add a bit of breadcrumb or some Mila to get it to stick together. They made a perfect light dinner with some fresh corn from the farm.
Category #2 The Wines

Caballero De La Cepa Reserva Malbec Rating of YUM and once decanted a Damn That’s Good
I was glad that Gregg gave me the recommendation to decant this wine and funnel it back into the bottle about three times. Technically I broke my decanter so I had to aerate with two glasses for each glass of wine I wanted to drink; however it was well worth it. On initial taste I noticed spice and cocoa and it had a medium body; the color a deep burgundy/purple. After “decanting” the wine really opened up-more body, smoother and a bit of fruit. I wrote “WOW!”

Secateurs Rose Rating of Damn That’s Good
Maybe I’m partial because I got a chance to meet Adi, the Winemaker of this South African wine, but this rose was DAMN good. I’m also partial to roses lately and I’ve decided it’s my new favorite. I loved the color of this one and wrote “JUICY!” as my first note and then rosy and fruity. Though you may see the pink color, this actually a dry blend of Cinsault, Shiraz and Grenache. Gregg (my friend from Broadbent Selections that is supplying the wines for each recipe), if you read this….I definitely want to order this again!

Category #3 The Pairing

Paring with Malbec Rating of YUM
With a bite of the kale cake and a sip of wine the taste of nutmeg exploded – the spicy Malbec was a great choice.
Paring with Secateurs Rose Rating of Damn That’s Good
This light and fresh wine is perfect with these vegan veggie cakes. The outside of the cakes becomes a bit caramelized and is lovely with the chilled rose. Damn that’s good. Oh wait, I already said that.

Where to buy

All the wines will be for sale locally at the Grotto in San Marco. You can contact Mitch Woodlief, grottomitch@aol.com with questions and pricing and anyone outside the Greater Jacksonville area can contact E-MAIL: mailto:info@broadbent.com PHONE PHONE: US +1 415-931-1725.

Potato Kale Cakes

Inspired by Bon Appetit

Makes 12 Cakes

Vegan, Gluten Free

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds unpeeled potatoes, scrubbed, cut into 1-inch cubes (I used a variety of KYV Farm potatoes)

1/4 cup plain non dairy creamer – I used silk soy creamer

2 Tbsp Earth Balance

1/2 tsp coarse kosher salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

3 1/2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 cup chopped onion

2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

1/2 pound kale, center rib and stem cut from each leaf, leaves coarsely chopped

1 tsp dried thyme or 1 Tbsp fresh chopped fresh thyme

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

Optional

Garlic Sun Dried Tomato spread such as Joy’s Gourmet brand (vegan).

Joy’s Gourmet

Directions

1. Heat large pot of water to a boil, add salt and cook potatoes until softened, about 25 minutes. Add non dairy creamer, Earth Balance, salt and pepper; mash potatoes (with skins) and set aside 3 cups to cool, reserving remaining potatoes for another use. This step can be done in advance.

2. Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat; add onion and garlic and cook about five minutes, until translucent; add kale and sautéan additional 5 minutes. Let cool and add to bowl with potatoes; sprinkle thyme and nutmeg. In about 1/4 cup scoops, shape firmly into patties. Heat 2 1/2 Tbsp oil in skillet over medium high heat and add potato kale cakes, about 4 at a time, to pan and cook 2 to 3 minutes per side.

Nutrition Facts
12 Servings
Amount Per Serving

Calories 96.8
Total Fat 6.2 g
Saturated Fat 1.1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1.0 g
Monounsaturated Fat 3.5 g
Cholesterol 0.0 mg
Sodium 127.3 mg
Potassium 224.8 mg
Total Carbohydrate 9.3 g
Dietary Fiber 1.5 g
Sugars 0.5 g
Protein 1.3 g

Vitamin A 51.3 %
Vitamin B-12 0.0 %
Vitamin B-6 8.1 %
Vitamin C 27.0 %
Vitamin D 0.0 %
Vitamin E 3.4 %
Calcium 2.2 %
Copper 4.0 %
Folate 2.8 %
Iron 2.9 %
Magnesium 3.4 %
Manganese 8.3 %
Niacin 2.6 %
Pantothenic Acid 1.4 %
Phosphorus 3.2 %
Riboflavin 1.7 %
Selenium 0.7 %
Thiamin 3.1 %
Zinc 1.3 %

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

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