Gone Nuts

June Gloom came a little early this year:

Raindrops on the rose leaves…

the sage…

…and the rose petals.

We recently had the pleasure of serving lunch to about 30 friends at the tail end of a long weekend in the Sonoma Wine Country.

The venue: Chateau Felice, 10603 Chalk Hill Road, Healdsburg, CA.

The event: Annual Barrel Club Wine Blending Seminar. The Chateau Felice website does a great job describing what the Barrel Club is, so I’ll point you there to read all about it: http://www.chateaufelice.com/ChateauFelice/Barrel_Club.html.

P.S. We’re proud Barrel Club members, and have an entire wine closet in our living room to prove it.

Unfortunately, since we were so busy cooking, heating and serving, we forgot to take pictures of all the food. We did, however, manage to get a few shots in:

Mixed salad tossed in balsamic vinaigrette, then topped with grape tomatoes, red onions, candied walnuts and chevre.

Setting up the lunch table while the guests were having hors d’oeuvres.

Prepping strawberry tarts in the kitchen. It was hot; the tarts melted.

The lunch menu.

The first course included a cheese spread and some nuts. In particular, I quickly sautéed some pecans in rosemary, sugar and salt for the crowd in between heating up mashed potatoes and preparing the salad. On my way out to set-up the salads, I had guests coming up to me to inquire about “these nuts!!”

“Did you make them?!”

Yes.

“How?”

I don’t know.

“Can I get the recipe?!?

Sure, but I’ll have to figure it out first.

So without further ado, here is the sweet and savory rosemary pecan recipe. A little but of sugar, and little bit of salt, but combined with the rosemary (plucked from our garden), it’s got a whole lot of flavor. Note: it also makes a great mid-day office snack.

Enjoy!

[K]

Sweet and savory rosemary pecans. 

Click here to view a printable version of this recipe.

Sweet and Savory Rosemary Pecans

~

~ Serves ~

8

~ Ingredients ~

• 8 oz. raw pecans
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• 1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
• ½ cup water
• 1 5” rosemary sprig (yield 1 tbsp. chopped)

~ Preparation ~

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

1. In a sauté pan, combine sugar, salt and water and cook over medium heat.
2. Meanwhile, finely chop rosemary.
3. Once mixture boils and begins to reduce and caramelize, add rosemary and nuts. Stir with spatula until liquid is fully absorbed.
4. Let cool in single layer on aluminum foil; then scrape into a bowl and serve.

Nutrition content per full serving: 181 calories, 6g carbs, 2g protein, 18g fat, 2g fiber

Cost per full serving: $0.28 – $ 0.52

Source: Rustic Garden Bistro

 A view of Chateau Felice from the luncheon looking towards the planted hills.

What your favorite nut to snack on?!

Tagged as: Rosemary