That's a Steal! Foris Fly Over Red

I've been a slacker of late - not writing much of anything except for nerdy things like literature reviews and strategic plans. I suppose we all have times when life things move into a lull...I suppose the past months have been that for me with the blog. If you were someone who has been pining for my beverage musings...I'm sorry. I don't however imagine that my absence has taken too much of a toll...

When I thought about the concept of "that's a steal," I was inspired to look at the notion broadly...not just the wine, but the food as well. I'd picked up a bottle of Fly Over Red, a Rogue Valley blend for Foris Winery, and I wanted to create around it a meal that was also delicious and inexpensive. Red blends are rather like my wine comfort food, and so I decided that I'd test out this one along with my ultimate food of comfort - grilled cheese and soup.

Of course I never do anything the "normal" way, so what I ended up with was open-faced grilled cheese with squash soup and a bean and corn salad. Since most of the food came from my garden, the total cost of the meal was about $2. What a steal! The wine, at $13 for the bottle, was by far the spendiest item in the bunch, but it was most definitely worth every penny. This wine is incredibly smooth, dark in flavor, and with a silky and heavy mouth feel. The nose is fruity with a bit of vanilla, which is what comes at the start of a sip as well...followed by just a bit of spice in the finish. I may have helped myself to more than one glass...

I figured I'd leave the recipes here as well in the event something looked good to you:

Summer squash soup (slow cooker version)
- 5lb yellow summer squash
- 4T bouillon (I used veggie, but you can use any kind you like)
- 1 gallon water
- 1 onion
- 4 cloves of garlic
- salt and white pepper to taste
- 1c 2% milk

Place all ingredients in a crock pot and put on low overnight. In the morning blend well with a hand blender until smooth. Add milk and let rewarm. Makes about 1 gallon of soup. I know the proportions are HUGE - I made enough to freeze.

Black bean and corn salad
- 1 can black beans
- 4 ears of sweet corn, uncooked
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 medium red onion
- 3T chopped, fresh cilantro
- 1/4c lime juice
- 1t cumin
- 1t olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste

Cut kernels off of corn. Wash and drain beans. Chop pepper and onion finely. Toss all vegetables with the cilantro and cumin. Whisk oil and lime juice together to form an emulsion and pour over salad. Salt and pepper to taste. Makes 2-4 servings depending on how much you like salad!

Grilled cheese - go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vq7G-Q9ZwC0 to see Hannah Harto's awesome episode of "My Drunk Kitchen." Seems apropos.