Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Fest is one of my favorite foodie events of the year. I attended for the first time 7 years ago and had so much fun that I have volunteered every year since. I always start the fest with one of the luncheons in the Hill Country at a winery. For the last few years I have been lucky enough to attend the luncheon at Fall Creek Vineyards.
Susan and Ed Auler are luminaries of the Texas wine world. The very first fest 25 years ago, the legend goes, was planned around Susan’s kitchen table along with a now megastar in the wine world, Karen MacNeil, author of the Wine Bible and beloved PBS host.
Here is the menu we enjoyed with pictures:
1st Course
By Chef Jon Bonnell
Peregrine Hills Chardonnay
2nd Course
By Chef Josh Watkins
Fall Creek Vineyards Tempranillo, “Salt Lick Vineyards”, 2008
Dessert Course
By Chef Randy Evans
Llano Estacado Moscato
The grounds at Fall Creek are gorgeous. Especially charming during this lush spring were the bluebonnets blooming among the vines. Only in Texas!!
Chef Jon Bonnell prepared a creamy gazpacho that perfumed the air with the scent of white truffle. The soup was topped with blue crab and Texas Gulf shrimp and matched with a crisp Chardonnay from Perregrine Hills.
It is no secret that I am a big fan of Josh Watkins. He shines like no other at the Carillon. But have you ever had a steak cooked to a perfect medium rare at any kind of large event off site from the restaurant? Josh’s solution is to cook the steaks sous vide, which basically means searing the meat off, sealing in a plastic bag, and then placing them in a large warm bath where they can be brought up to the perfect temperature. Another advantage to sous vide is that almost the entire steak is the correct degree of doneness and not just the pink center with a ring of gray around it. The steaks where enhanced by a lovely Tempranillo from Fall Creek but what I really wanted was the big, bold, and hard to come by Meritus that Fall Creek produces.
And I learned the secret to Josh’s candied garlic garnish! Maybe I will share in another post.
Of course, as a pastry chef, dessert is my favorite! I have an obsession with lemon curd which almost bloomed into a business at one point and Randy Evans did not disappoint. The pound cake was toasted for textural crunch, placed upon a layer of lemony buttery curd, then topped with fresh Texas strawberries and lightly whipped cream. Beautiful and tasty, it inspired me to create a blueberry version over the weekend which I will post along with recipe soon. Chef Evan’s version was paired with a not too sweet, almost musky Llano Estacado Moscato.
What a great start to a lovely weekend!
My name is Christy and I was born, raised, and still live in Austin, TX. I love to travel. I have been all over the US, Amsterdam, Paris, Barcelona, etc. My second favorite place in the world is Negril, Jamaica where I have been 10 times and counting. I am a trained pastry chef but I am not currently working in "the industry" right now. I became a pastry chef in part to complement the fabulous dinners conjured up by my best friends Ethan and Michelle, who hopefully will be contributing to this blog as well. We went through a 2 year period of "Tuesday Night" dinner parties which were a smorgasbord of bloody meat and red, red wine. Friendships and laughter. The men did all the cooking while the women got tipsy, as all dinner parties should be. If I wanted to participate with food, I had to bring something and I became Dessert Girl. Eventually I attended the Le Cordon Bleu program at the Texas Culinary Academy and received a certificate in Pastry and Baking. I have had several baking jobs but found it hard to make ends meet, so I earn my living elsewhere for now. I have had the pleasure of working with several celebrity chefs including Rebecca Rather, Bronwen Weber, and David Lebovitz. I have also cultivated some amazing friends and resources in the Central Texas area and would like to share my knowledge with all who care to join me. My most recent honor was winning Best Sweet at the Bacon Takedown during SXSW 2011. As the culinary icon Ms. Childs' says, "Bon Appetit!"
***CONTACT ME at christy111luv@yahoo.com or twitter @christy111luv***