Cooking with Dessert Wines
When I was a chef at Milano, a Culinary Concepts of Crown Center restaurant in Kansas City, Missouri, my station was overflowing with the finest foods. During the dinner hour at Milano, I was the dessert chef. I could be found at my station, elbow deep in buttery crusts, creamy sauces, fresh fruits, crisp fragrant mint sprigs, big bowls of cinnamon enhanced whipped cream and unbelievable chocolate ravioli! I spent as much time making sure each plate that left the kitchen looked as beautiful as it tasted heavenly.
When you are working in an upscale restaurant, presentation is a major factor. Lucky for me, the customers appreciated my efforts. I was requested in the dining room often, where I was complimented and thanked for making their evening perfect. I made sure they knew that there were 8 or 9 of us in that kitchen, all working together to make sure they had that perfect evening. And downstairs from the restaurant was the prep kitchen, where anothe
r 5 or 6 cooks worked all day preparing ingredients to be brought up to our kitchen. The chef that worked the grill didn’t have to chop his own shallots or mince his own garlic, he spent his time preparing osso bucco, shrimp scampi, and grilling perfect steaks. Team work, that is what it is all about.
One of the great desserts at Milano was the Fresh Berry Gratinato. Every afternoon, after I whipped that big bowl of cream, I prepared several quarts of Zabaglione, a dessert sauce made of egg yolks, sugar and Marsala wine. Each time I received an order for the dessert, I’d fill a large shallow bowl with fresh berries, top it with a ladle full of the wonderful sauce, add a sprinkling of toasted sliced almonds and put it under the broiler until the sauce was warmed and turning a beautiful golden brown. I would quickly add a dollop of whipped cream, and one of those mint sprigs, then lightly dust the entire dessert with powdered sugar! My goodness it was good!
I didn’t use Marsala again until a year and a half ago. I was reintroduced to that unique wine when I went to Marsala, Sicily. Try to imagine a town built in 4th century BC. Sicily is full of miracles like that! The town gave its name to the wine. One of the most famous Marsala wines is produced by Florio. The hot Sicilian summers produce a strong, sweet wine and a tour of Florio gives you the opportunity to try all of their wines. I truly fell in love with them!
Zabaglione
Makes 6 servings
½ cup sugar
7 large egg yolks
1 cup sweet Marsala wine, or if I may suggest a substitute, Somerset Ridge Tawny Port!
Select a heatproof bowl that will fit snugly in the rim of a saucepan. Pour water to a depth of about 2 inches into the saucepan and bring to a very gentle simmer. Meanwhile, in the heatproof bowl, whisk together the sugar and egg yolks until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is pale yellow, thick and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes. Continuing to whisk, gradually add the Mars
ala.
Place the bowl over, not touching the simmering water in the pan, and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture is thick and frothy, and has tripled in volume, about 10 minutes.
Zabaglione is not only wonderful in the berry gratin, but delicious over chilled fresh fruit or a blushing poached pear! Try it on French Toast! Or place a slice of pound cake on a pool of zabaglione. Make the sauce, try a spoonful and I guarantee you that you will find a way to eat it! When fresh figs are in season(August here in the Missouri/Kansas area), don’t forget to try them with zabaglione! Ahhhh, there it is again…. team work.
When you are working in an upscale restaurant, presentation is a major factor. Lucky for me, the customers appreciated my efforts. I was requested in the dining room often, where I was complimented and thanked for making their evening perfect. I made sure they knew that there were 8 or 9 of us in that kitchen, all working together to make sure they had that perfect evening. And downstairs from the restaurant was the prep kitchen, where anothe
r 5 or 6 cooks worked all day preparing ingredients to be brought up to our kitchen. The chef that worked the grill didn’t have to chop his own shallots or mince his own garlic, he spent his time preparing osso bucco, shrimp scampi, and grilling perfect steaks. Team work, that is what it is all about.One of the great desserts at Milano was the Fresh Berry Gratinato. Every afternoon, after I whipped that big bowl of cream, I prepared several quarts of Zabaglione, a dessert sauce made of egg yolks, sugar and Marsala wine. Each time I received an order for the dessert, I’d fill a large shallow bowl with fresh berries, top it with a ladle full of the wonderful sauce, add a sprinkling of toasted sliced almonds and put it under the broiler until the sauce was warmed and turning a beautiful golden brown. I would quickly add a dollop of whipped cream, and one of those mint sprigs, then lightly dust the entire dessert with powdered sugar! My goodness it was good!
I didn’t use Marsala again until a year and a half ago. I was reintroduced to that unique wine when I went to Marsala, Sicily. Try to imagine a town built in 4th century BC. Sicily is full of miracles like that! The town gave its name to the wine. One of the most famous Marsala wines is produced by Florio. The hot Sicilian summers produce a strong, sweet wine and a tour of Florio gives you the opportunity to try all of their wines. I truly fell in love with them!
Zabaglione
Makes 6 servings
½ cup sugar
7 large egg yolks
1 cup sweet Marsala wine, or if I may suggest a substitute, Somerset Ridge Tawny Port!
Select a heatproof bowl that will fit snugly in the rim of a saucepan. Pour water to a depth of about 2 inches into the saucepan and bring to a very gentle simmer. Meanwhile, in the heatproof bowl, whisk together the sugar and egg yolks until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is pale yellow, thick and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes. Continuing to whisk, gradually add the Mars
ala.Place the bowl over, not touching the simmering water in the pan, and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture is thick and frothy, and has tripled in volume, about 10 minutes.
Zabaglione is not only wonderful in the berry gratin, but delicious over chilled fresh fruit or a blushing poached pear! Try it on French Toast! Or place a slice of pound cake on a pool of zabaglione. Make the sauce, try a spoonful and I guarantee you that you will find a way to eat it! When fresh figs are in season(August here in the Missouri/Kansas area), don’t forget to try them with zabaglione! Ahhhh, there it is again…. team work.
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