Fort Ross Vineyard

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 medium red onion, peeled and sliced

3 peeled garlic cloves (1 minced, 2 left whole) 

2 cans (14 oz. each) crushed tomatoes 

1 teaspoon dried oregano 

About 1 tsp. each salt and freshly ground black pepper, divided 

6 cups (about 2 lbs.) butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2-in. cubes 

1/2 tsp. dried thyme 

1 pound Lacinato kale (often sold as dinosaur or Tuscan kale) 

9 whole-wheat lasagna noodles (about 8 oz.) 

1 container (15 oz.) part-skim-milk ricotta cheese 

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg 

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Heat 2 tbsp. olive oil in a 2- to 3-qt. pot over medium heat. Add onion and minced garlic; cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft and translucent, 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, oregano, and 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper. Reduce heat and simmer until thick and flavors are combined, about 30 minutes. Set aside.

2. While sauce is cooking, in a 12- by 15-in. baking pan, sprinkle squash with thyme, remaining olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Add garlic cloves and toss squash mixture to coat with oil. Bake until soft, 10 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile, bring 3 qts. salted water to a boil in a large pot.

3. Reduce oven temperature to 350°. Transfer squash and garlic to a food processor and purée until smooth.

4. Tear kale leaves from center ribs and discard ribs. Boil leaves until soft, 5 to 8 minutes. Drain; let cool. Squeeze out as much water as possible and chop finely.

5. In the same pot, bring another 3 qts. salted water to a boil. Add noodles and cook until tender to the bite, about 10 minutes. Drain; rinse with cold water.

6. In a bowl, mix ricotta, nutmeg, 1 cup mozzarella, and remaining 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper.

7. Coat the bottom of a 9- by 13-in. pan with 1/3 of tomato sauce (about 1 1/2 cups). Lay 3 noodles in a single layer over sauce. Top noodles with squash, spreading evenly. Sprinkle 1/2 of kale evenly over squash. Arrange 3 more noodles on kale and top with ricotta, spreading evenly. Top with remaining kale and noodles. Cover noodles with remaining tomato sauce and sprinkle with remaining 1 cup mozzarella.

8. Bake lasagna until juices are bubbling and cheese is melted, about 30 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

 Pair with our 2021 Bicentennial Chardonnay »

Ingredients:

10 ounces (2 cups) shelled fresh peas (from about 1 lb. pods)* or frozen peas, thawed

12 ounces ricotta, preferably sheep’s milk

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup Preserved Lemon

Herb Oil (recipe at right) or best quality extra-virgin olive oil

4 ounces (about 4 cups) mixed spring greens

1 ounce (about 2 cups) of at least 3 mixed fresh herb leaves

About 1/2 ounce (1 bunch) chives, trimmed and snipped into 1⁄2-in. pieces

Flaky sea salt

Edible flowers, such as Johnny jump-up violas, sage, thyme, or arugula (optional)

Preserved Lemon Herb Oil

Instructions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil; add salt until it tastes like the sea. Set a large bowl of ice water near the stove.

2. If using fresh peas, boil until bright green and tender, 30 seconds to 1 minute. With a slotted spoon, transfer to ice bath to cool. Drain well, spread on a kitchen towel, and pat dry. If using thawed frozen peas, dry them the same way, uncooked.

3. To 4 to 6 large shallow bowls, add a large spoonful of ricotta on one side.

4. In a large bowl, whisk together lemon juice, a pinch of fine sea salt, a few grinds of pepper, and 1/4 cup preserved lemon herb oil. Add peas, greens, herb leaves, chives, and another pinch of fine salt. Gently toss with clean hands. Season with more lemon juice, oil, or salt, depending on the greens used.

5. Mound salad next to cheese. Drizzle a spoonful of extra preserved lemon herb oil around each salad so that it forms a shallow, bright green pool. Top salads with flaky sea salt and a few edible flowers, if using. Serve at once.

Pair with our 2020 Mother of Pearl Chardonnay »

Ingredients:

 1lb celery root, peeled and diced 1’’

1lb Yukon potato, peeled and diced 1’’

2 large shallots, small diced

1 cup white wine

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1 tablespoon celery seed

2 teaspoon whole cardamom

6 black peppercorns, whole

3 sprigs fresh flat leaf parsley

2 quarts vegetable stock

½ cup heavy cream

2 tablespoon unsalted butter

2 tablespoon olive oil

¼ cup crème fraiche

Celery leaves to garnish

Kosher salt to taste

Instructions:

1. Make a bouquet garni by tying up thyme, celery seed, cardamom, peppercorn, and parsley in a cheesecloth. Set aside.

2. Heat a 6-quart stock pot to medium heat. Add celery root, potatoes, shallots, and olive oil. Season lightly with kosher salt. Sweat vegetables for about 10 minutes, stirring often until shallots turn translucent. 

3. Add wine to deglaze. Reduce for a few minutes until wine reduces by half

4. Add vegetable stock and bouquet garni and bring to a simmer. Simmer for about 20 minutes until celery root is fork tender.

5. Remove bouquet garni. Put soup in a blender with the butter, and blend until smooth. Pour soup through a strainer into a clean stock pot. Bring to a simmer. Add cream and stir. Season with kosher salt.

6. Ladle soup into a bowl. Garnish with a dollop of crème fraiche and celery leaves.

Pair with our 2019 Chardonnay »

Ingredients:

1 1/2 qts. peeled, 1 1/2-in. chunks kabocha* or other orange-fleshed winter squash (from a 3-lb. squash)

 About 1 tsp. kosher salt, divided

 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided

 1 onion, halved and cut into half-moons

 1 or 2 red or green serrano chiles, minced

 1 cinnamon stick (2 1/2 in.)

 20 fresh curry leaves* or 6 dried bay leaves

 1 teaspoon turmeric

 1 teaspoon cumin seeds

 1 can (14.5 oz.) coconut milk

 1 cup salted roasted cashews

 1 tablespoon lemon juice

 Steamed basmati rice

Instructions:

1. Sprinkle squash with 1/2 tsp. salt. Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. Brown half the squash in oil, turning once, 6 to 8 minutes; reduce heat if squash starts getting dark. Transfer to a bowl and repeat with 1 tbsp. oil and remaining squash.

2. Meanwhile, heat remaining 1 tbsp. oil in another large frying pan over medium heat. Cook onion, stirring occasionally, until deep golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer half to the nonstick frying pan and reserve other half in a bowl.

3. Add chiles, cinnamon, and curry leaves to onion in pan. Cook, stirring often, until curry leaves are very fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add turmeric, cumin, and remaining 1/2 tsp. salt and cook, stirring, until spices are fragrant, about 1 minute.

4. Return squash to nonstick frying pan (with onion) and add coconut milk. Bring to a boil over high heat, then cover, reduce heat, and simmer until squash is tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in cashews and lemon juice, and add more salt to taste. Top curry with reserved onion and serve with rice.

*Kabocha peels are edible. Find curry leaves in Indian markets.

Pair with our 2019 Mother of Pearl Chardonnay »

Ingredients:

Soup
1 butternut squash, about 2lb

2 quarts vegetable stock

2 cups cream

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 shallots, peeled and thinly sliced

1⁄2 teaspoon ground green cardamom

1 tablespoon sherry vinegar

Zest of one lemon

Kosher salt to taste

 Brioche crouton:
2 slices Brioche bread, cut into 1 inch sticks

2 tablespoons olive oil

Zest of half of a lemon

1⁄4 teaspoon ground green cardamom

Instructions:

Soup
1. Split squash in half, and scoop out seeds. Season with salt and green cardamom. Roast at 350F for one hour. Set aside to cool, then scoop the squash out of it’s skin.

2. In a large pot, sweat shallots over medium heat until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add roasted squash, and sauté for 2 minutes. Add sherry vinegar to deglaze.

3. Add cream and stock and bring to a simmer. Let simmer for 5 minutes, then blend until smooth.

4. Pour soup through a strainer into a clean pot a bring to a simmer. Season with salt and lemon zest.

5. Serve with crème fraiche on top and brioche crouton.

Brioche Crouton
1. Coat brioche with olive oil

2. Sprinkle on lemon zest and green cardamom.

3. Toast at 350F for 7 minutes, or until crispy

Pair with 2019 Chardonnay »

Ingredients:

1 king salmon fillet with skin (2 to 2 1/2 lbs. and about 1 in. thick; cut from tail end), pin bones removed*

 Zest and juice of 1 large orange

 1 small shallot, thinly sliced crosswise, separated into rings

 1 small, tender fennel bulb, trimmed and very thinly sliced on a diagonal, a few feathery leaves reserved (or use torn carrot tops)

 1/4 to 1/2 cup dry white vermouth, such as Dolin

 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

 About 1 tsp. flake sea salt, such as Maldon, divided

 1 teaspoon white pepper

 1 teaspoon ground coriander

 5 juniper berries, crushed with fingers

 Paper-thin radish slices (2 or 3 radishes)

 Dill Crème

1/4 teaspoon coriander seeds

 1 large ripe avocado, pitted and peeled

 2 tablespoons lemon juice

 2 tablespoons roasted hazelnut oil*

 2 tablespoons dry white vermouth such as Dolin

 1 cup crème fraîche

 About 1 tsp. flake sea salt such as Maldon

 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 325°.

2. Prepare the dill crème:

2a. Pulse coriander in a food processor to break up. Add remaining ingredients except for salt and dill; whirl until smooth. Season to taste with salt. Scrape sauce into a bowl and fold in dill.

3. Cut a sheet of 18-in.-wide heavy-duty foil three times as long as salmon and center it on a rimmed baking sheet, letting ends hang over. Set salmon, skin side down, on foil. Sprinkle fish evenly with orange zest, shallot, and fennel bulb. Bring corners and sides of foil up around salmon to make a canoe with 2-in. sides.

4. Pour orange juice into a glass measuring cup and add vermouth to make 3/4 cup. Microwave until steaming (about 170°) and pour evenly over fish. Drizzle with 1 tbsp. oil and sprinkle evenly with 1/2 tsp. salt, the pepper, coriander, and juniper berries. Tightly roll ends and sides of foil together to create a pouch.

5. Bake salmon until cooked through three-quarters of the way from edge to center of thickest part (which will still look wet; open foil and cut fish to check), 12 to 25 minutes, depending on thickness.

6. Slide two long metal spatulas under fish and carefully transfer to a long platter (Murray likes to use a madeleine pan), leaving poaching liquid behind. Sprinkle radishes, about 1/2 tsp. salt, and remaining 1 tbsp. oil over fish. Scatter torn fennel fronds on top. Serve with Dill Crème

Pair with 2020 Bicentennial Chardonnay »

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons mirin

3 tablespoons sake

1/2 cup white miso paste

1/3 cup sugar

Six 6- to 7-ounce skinless black cod fillets, about 1 1/2 inches thick

Vegetable oil, for grilling

Pickled ginger, for serving

Instructions:

1. In a small saucepan, bring the mirin and sake to a boil. Whisk in the miso until dissolved. Add the sugar and cook over moderate heat, whisking, just until dissolved. Transfer the marinade to a large baking dish and let cool. Add the fish and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

2. Preheat the oven to 400°. Heat a grill pan and oil it. Scrape the marinade off the fish. Add the fish and cook over high heat until browned, about 2 minutes. Flip the fish onto a heavy rimmed baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes, until flaky. Transfer to plates and serve with pickled ginger.

Pair with 2018 Mother of Pearl Chardonnay »

Ingredients:

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 small shallot, very finely chopped

1/4 cup diced fennel bulb

Large pinch of ground fennel

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 pound large sea scallops

1 bunch arugula, tough stems discarded

Lemon wedges, for serving

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl, whisk 3 tablespoons of the olive oil with the lemon zest, lemon juice, parsley, shallot, diced fennel bulb and ground fennel. Season with salt and pepper.

2. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium skillet. Season the scallops with salt and pepper and cook over moderately high heat until golden brown and opaque throughout, about 3 minutes per side.

3. Mound the arugula on plates and top with the scallops. Spoon the fennel and lemon relish on the scallops and serve with lemon wedges. 

Pair with 2019 Bicentennial Chardonnay »