Spring Cups
I hosted a California and Washington wine tasting party. Each wine was paired with small plate recipe I prepared specially for the evening.
This pairing: Spring Cups with Laurel Glen Rosé was one of the hits of the night. This rosé is full-bodied and full of flavor, but not overly sweet like so many rosés can be these days. Laurel Glen is located in Sonoma County and the fun thing about their rosé is that it’s 50% Estate Grown Cabernet Sauvignon, 50% Estate Grown Obscure Red Varietals. These Obscure red varietals make this a fun wine! The cheese, asparagus and peas really enhanced the flavor of the wine and the crab just gave the entire pairing a luxurious touch.
Here is the Laurel Glen Vineyard that I had the opportunity to tour on a recent trip. The Obscure Red Varietals that go into the Rosé are just 2 rows, and they are located behind me in this photo.
These Spring Cups are super easy to make and they are a perfect match for a chilled Rosé.
- 1 package round wonton wrappers
- 1 container 16 oz Farmers Cheese, Russian style*
- 1 bunch asparagus
- Olive oil
- 1 lemon
- Salt & pepper
- 1 cup English peas, blanched if using fresh
- 1 bunch radishes, cut into slices
- 1 pound Dungeness crab
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Spray a mini muffin tin with cooking spray. Gently form a wonton round into each muffin slot. Then lightly spray the wontons with cooking spray. Place in oven and bake until golden and crispy, 8 -12 minutes depending on your oven. Remove from oven and cool on cooling rack.
- Preheat your grill to 500 degrees. Toss the asparagus with a little olive oil and grill until it’s charred and slightly cooked. You don’t want it over cooked or mushy. Set aside to cool completely.
- Once asparagus is cool, pulse it a few times in a food processor. Once you have smaller pieces, add in the farmers cheese and pulse to incorporate. You want small chunks of asparagus remaining and the cheese to have a light green color. Add in the zest of 1 lemon. Taste for salt and pepper and stir in peas. Chill.
- Toss the Dungeness crab with the juice of the lemon.
- Spoon a teaspoon or more of the cheese mixture into each cup and top with a radish slice, and a piece of Dungeness crab.
- Serve with a chilled Rosé and enjoy on a beautiful spring or early summer day.
- Here is a link to the Farmers Cheese, I found this in the gourmet cheese case at Central Market.
- https://www.russianfooddirect.com/farmer-cheese-tvorog-bessarabski/
