The Naptime Chef

I’ve been working hard at learning a lot of about wine over the past six months. It is an area I’d like to write about more extensively. Today I am proud to share the first installment of my new Wine Love column. It features wine and all things wine related that I love. I hope in the future this includes reviews of my trips to wine destinations! First up is my review of Natura wines. Last year I was sent a few of their wines to try and today I am excited to share my thoughts on them.

About the wines: Natura wines are organic wines grown in the vineyards of Chile. The term organic in winemaking means that no pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or chemical fertilizers are used in the vineyard. Instead, in the Chilean vineyards where grapes varietals for Natura wines are grown, flowers and native plants are used as natural pest control. The wines feature more complex flavors, especially stronger earthy notes from the terroir since no chemicals are used that would normally get absorbed through the roots of the vine and into the grape, ultimately dulling the flavor and character of the wine.

Crispy chocolate pearls from France. (Food52, $24)

Spicy Maple Syrup for a spicy breakfast in bed. (Terrain, $20)

Gorgeous Meyer lemons for making marmalade and cheesecake. (White Flower Farm, $35)

A cool bottle stopper and delicious bottle of Rudi Schultz Syrah for drinking. (Crate & Barrel, $4.95; Wine shop, about $30)

Flourless Chocolate Pecan sandwich cookies which are pretty much to die for. (The Good Batch, $38)

The world’s most decadent hot chocolate for sipping in front of the fire. (Mariebelle, $23)

Pretty gold dipped seashell pinch bowls for serving decadent ice cream sundaes. (Food52, $55)

A gorgeous camembert for baking with herbs to make a delicious treat to enjoy with wine. (Murray’s, $45)

Cherry bitters for making fun cocktails once the kids are in bed. (Cecil & Merl, $26)

Heavenly cheesecake for two. Obviously. (Mah Ze Dahr, $10)

Last year I made a mushroom barley soup which has quickly become a staple in our house. I make it a few times each winter and often freeze a container for later. This week I decided to riff on it a little bit since I had some wheatberries to use up as part of my winter pantry experiment. Instead of soup I made a warm salad and topped it with a simple baked chicken breast for an easy weeknight dinner. It was full of umami mushroom flavors and was perfect for staying warm on a frigid winter evening.

Over the past month I’ve basically become obsessed with Panera Bread’s Garden Vegetable Pesto soup. I’ve eaten it several times in our town, and ate it every day for lunch last week when I was taking the WSET Level 2 course in New York. It is a riot of fresh flavor packed into a single bowl, it manages to be hearty, yet refreshing because of all the sharp sweet basil and tomato flavors. This is easily my new favorite soup for winter, but in the interest of my wallet I decided it was time I learned how to make my own version home.

Over the holidays my family and I were talking about our favorite dishes, noting ones I haven’t made in a while. We also started talking about Chocolate Chip Cookies. A lot of the recipes we discussed I wrote about during my first few years of blogging, and several are from my book recipe tasting. Since I am constantly writing new recipes for websites I often leave old favorites by the wayside.

This year I am going to change that. I promised my family that while I focus on new recipes, I’ll also focus on old favorites. This applies to all kinds of dishes from appetizers, to dinners, to dessert. In many cases this means I’ll go back through the archives and pull out the oldies but goodies and give them much better photos. In other cases, I’ll be revisiting ones from cookbooks of years past. Either way, it is going to be so much fun.

Today I am starting with one of the most popular posts I ever wrote about my Top 10 favorites chocolate chip cookie recipes. Most of the list is still the same, but I’ve added one in recent years. Here is the original post with a lot about how and why chocolate chip cookies are my absolute favorite. Below is the list with a few recent changes.

1. Dorie Greenspan’s My Best Chocolate Chip Cookies: Soft, sweet and slightly cakey, these are still my favorite hands down. The flavor notes of vanilla and chocolate are perfectly balanced, while the texture is slightly soft, but not crumbly. Part of their success is due to Dorie’s specific instructions for adding the ingredients – follow them carefully. These cookies stand up well when vanilla ice-cream is sandwiched between them, and are also great served on their own to adults and children alike.

2. The New York Times’ Chocolate Chip Cookie by Jacques Torres: A slightly more involved recipe, I’ve made this with both the complicated flours, and basic all-purpose flour. Both versions have been successful and delicious. I love how the chopped chocolate creates layers and ridges in the cookie, allowing the chocolate to melt and permeate every crumb. A particularly decadent cookie, these are great for impressing friends and guests.

Hi! It has been a looong time since I was on my regular posting schedule. The holiday season was so fun and busy I simply didn’t have time to sit down and write. We enjoy a lot of our favorite meals and I made scores of our favorite Christmas cookies. My parents visited from Cooperstown and I actually had them time to read a few great books. All in all it was a wonderful break from the routine, though I did miss this space and being here.

When I was thinking of things to write this week I decided to hold off on recipes and share a little bit about what I’ve been doing in the kitchen since the kids went back to school last week. On Monday, in a fit of Virgo-inspired OCD organizing, I tore through my cabinets and made lists of all the food I have on hand. Specifically, the dried food, the staples, the things I can use as a base or key ingredient for many delicious meals. A lot of these items have been hanging around in the my kitchen for an embarrassingly long amount of time and this winter it is time for me to do something about it.

So, as my experiment, and, frankly, a way to save some money after a generous Christmas season, I am pledging to use all of these things this winter. It will mean I spend money mostly on fresh food, and use what I already have to form the basis of my meals. Here are a few things I plan to use and how:

Last fall I had the pleasure of seeing The Lion King on Broadway with my daughter. It was a magical day for both us. The show is incredibly inspiring and perfect for the whole family. My daughter loved how it was so similar to the movie, yet the performances and live music were out of this world. Today I am thrilled to say that Disney has given me two tickets to give away for this show. Here are the details:

The Lion King on Broadway

When: Wednesday, February 24ht at 7:00pm.

I am sorry, tickets are not redeemable for any other time. Enter to win below by sharing your favorite part about The Lion King. The contest runs from January 11th at 7:00am through January 18th at 7:00am. Winner will be announced in the January 22nd newsletter. Good luck!