Cooking with the Indigo Girls

It must be 10 years or more ago now, maybe even 15 since I first heard the Indigo Girls. I was driving to work listening to the ABC 3LO or as it is today 774. They played music outside the top 40, a little from left field really.
You'd hear music that wasn't played on the top 40 and its introduced me to some great artists - since then we have possibly all their CDs.

Sue said, "Would you like to cook with me tonight?" Now there's two things I like when we cook together - music and a glass of wine.

Here's the Music:
Apologies to Diane and Nigel



Here's the Wine:

It was a 2007 Mildara Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon that we selected to go with Sue's Duck recipe.

Coonawarra is one of our favourite wine districts. It is just across the Victorian/South Australian border almost midway between Melbourne and Adelaide. It's their Cabernet Sauvignon that have a great reputation. The vines are grown on a thin strip of soil known as Terra Rossa. Initially established in 1890 by John Riddoch, the Redman family followed and their wines exist today. The bigger wine companies such as Wynn's and Penfolds produce vintages from Coonawarra as well.

Although the Cabernet is the main player, Shiraz, Chardonnay, Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc are grown in smaller quantities.
Coonawarra has a climate similar to Bordeaux.

I remember when I first met Sue, she took a trip with a girlfriend that took her to Coonawarra and she arrived back home with a boot full of wine. It didn't last long.

Our Dinner
Sue speaks in green because she is so envious of me and I speak in red - don't know why, maybe you can explain!

The recipe I used was from a favourite website and was called braised duck tagliatelle.

Leon is a dreadful (how could she say such a thing) when he makes a post and asks me to comment on the on the pics. OK...This is our pasta machine. *sigh*

100 grams 000type flour add 1 large egg and a little salt per person  in a food processor. Depends on the humidity of course, but the mixture should be on the dry side. You might need a little water.Then knead until the gluten starts working and the dough becomes elastic. Then rest for a bit.I cut in into strips to put into the machine,

Put it through the largest width first, for a few times until it feels smooth and silky. I'm sorry , I'm sure there's a term to describe it, but i have no idea what it is.
Go down I thickness a time until it is where you think it looks right. I like it really thin.

Then put it through the cutter on the machine. This is where Leon and I cooked together! Wasn't there for the duck bit. ( I had other things to do, mow lawns, do washing and ironing - a blokes work is never done)  But I needed the back of someones hand to pass the fettuccine over and  put it over the  alfoiled broom handle. Oh Leon, you were a star! (True- that's what I do)
I so love it when we cook together!
Ha Ha! I laugh at the man......but he does the dishes!

This is the ragu after I shredded the duck and added it back to the sauce  with some finely chopped parsley.

Whacked some grated parmigiano on top. ( and it was oh soooo good)

Strawberries are great at the moment. My favourite fruit shop  had 3 punnets for 2 dollars. How good is that!?
They are small. Cut up a punnet and macerated them in a little Cointreau and icing sugar. Made a slurry of marcscapone, cream and vanilla bean and put a tile of puff pastry on top. Yeah....good stuff.
Nights at home are good fun. And last night was doubly good because it was the first night where it was cool enough to sleep under the doona. Roll on autumn!

Hope your weekend was good too - I bet our overseas readers were under the doona as well.