Marvelous Malbecs. Photo courtesy Trapiche
Vineyards.

If you’re in charge of the wine for Easter, how about trying something new?

Malbec, the signature grape of the Cahors area of southwestern France, has become the signature grape of Argentina. You’re likely to find a nice choice of Malbecs from both areas on the shelves of your wine store.

Malbec is deep purple in color and lush with ripe, juicy berry and plummy dark fruit flavors. Secondary flavors can include herbal, licorice/anise and violet notes.

Malbec will appeal to lovers of the Bordeaux grapes. It has been called “the more rustic cousin of Merlot” by wine expert Jancis Robinson. For many years it has been used in some Bordeaux blends to add deep color, tannins and plummy flavors. In the Loire Valley it is blended with Cabernet Franc and Gamay.

Malbec is also delicious with bittersweet chocolate (see our chocolate and wine pairing chart).

Those who prefer organic, sustainable wines should take a look at the Malbecs from Trapiche Vineyards, Argentina’s largest exported premium wines. The company practices biodynamic agriculture.

Biodynamic is the word used in most countries to describe what Americans call organic. It is actually the most rigorous approach among biological and ecological agricultural practices, with tougher standards than organic.

Biodynamic agriculture supports everything that is natural and forbids the use of chemicals, herbicides and fungicides. It aims for a balanced ecosystem, biodiversity and the recovery of the bacterial activity in the soils. The only fertilizers allowed are the vegetable and animal wastes from a biodynamic farm.

The Trapiche Vineyards Malbec is a rich red wine with aromas of plums and cherries on the nose, hints of truffle and vanilla on the palate and a smooth, full finish. The prices range from $8 for the basic varietal to $41 for the finest single-vineyard Malbecs.

WANT TO HAVE FUN WITH EASTER WINES?

Beyond Malbec, THE NIBBLE’s wine editor, Kris Prasad, recommends wines that are perfect for an Easter celebration:

 
Here’s the full Easter wines article.

It is almost four years since we first discovered Somebody’s Mother’s dessert sauces—Chocolate Sauce, White Chocolate Sauce and Caramel Sauce—and named them a Top Pick Of The Week (here’s the original review). The chocolate sauces remain our favorite dessert sauces.

Now, the company has doubled the size of the line with three new dessert sauces, building on the original flavors:

 
Read the full review.

HOW MANY TYPES OF DESSERT SAUCED HAVE YOU TRIED?

Check out our Dessert Sauces & Toppings Glossary.

For a festive Easter dish, look for purple potatoes. You can serve them baked, boiled with parsley, as fries, mashed or in other favorite dishes. You can make purple gnocchi and potato chips.

Hash browns can become hash purples.

We turn them into a red, white and blue July 4th potato salad, mixed with white potatoes and red grape tomatoes.

The starch level is medium, so purple Peruvians are an all-purpose potato.

They have a creamy texture like russet potatoes and are rich in flavor. Some varieties have a charming nuttiness.

Once a rarity, purple potatoes can now be found markets nationwide.

In addition to the Purple Peruvian there’s a purple-fleshed Okinawan sweet potato, a staple in Hawaii. Look for it in Asian markets.

Your favorite potato dishes can now be charmingly purple. Photo courtesy Wandering Chopsticks. Here’s the recipe.

Millennia ago, potatoes grew wild in the foothills of the Andes Mountains of Peru. Along with many other varieties of potatoes, they were cultivated around 3,000 B.C.E. by the Incas. Today, purple potatoes are grown around the world. Here’s more about purple potatoes and a recipe for a colorful purple potato and beet salad.

For Easter, how about a purple sweet potato pie? Keep it hidden and surprise your guests with the bright purple filling, evocative of jelly beans.

Here’s a purple sweet potato pie recipe from Stokes Foods, a North Carolina grower of purple potatoes, which includes a photo of the bright purple pie.

PURPLE SWEET POTATO PIE RECIPE

Ingredients

Optional Topping

 
Preparation

1. COVER potatoes with water in a medium saucepan. Boil for 45 minutes until fork goes all the way through. Let cool; peel and place in a large mixing bowl.

2. PREHEAT oven to 425°F. Melt butter.

3. ADD all other ingredients to mixing bowl with potato. Use an immersion blender to liquefy ingredients.

4. POUR sweet potato mixture into pie shell.

5. BAKE at 425°F for 5 minutes, then at 350°F for 10 minutes until firm.

6. MAKE the topping while the pie is baking, Melt butter in a sauce pan. Mix in flour, brown sugar and pecans. Stir until thoroughly blended and set aside

6. ADD topping to pie. Bake 350°F for 15 minutes until done.

VARIATION

You can use this recipe to make 12 mini pies using mini graham cracker pie shells. After adding the pecan topping, only bake for 10 additional minutes instead of 15 minutes.

Find more purple potato recipes at StokesFoods.com.
 
 
  

Why make a decision when you can have both, our favorite thinking goes.

Edward Marc Chocolatier is obviously of the same mind, with this jelly bean chocolate bar. It’s $3.50 for a 2.5-ounce bar at EdwardMarc.com.

If you want to create your own jelly bean bar, head to Chocomize.com. For $4.75, you can make a 3.5-ounce jelly bean bar in dark, milk or white chocolate.

You can add scores of other ingredients, too, including dried fruits, herbs, nuts, seeds, spices and specialty Easter decorations.

Peter Cottontail would approve.

[2] Fiddlehead ferns (photo by Katharine Pollak | © THE NIBBLE).

We vote for something colorful. Doesn’t this dish just burst with springtime? You can make it with the ingredients in your fridge! The concept is by Chef Taleb Daher of Maison Kayser, Paris: Puréed cauliflower and peas (you can use any vegetable) topped with a bouquet of color: beets, broccoli florets, carrots, chives, and baby radishes.

Or, prepare a recipe with spring vegetables: low in calories, and high in nutrients. Most of this delectable group are fleeting, available only for a few months a year; so enjoy them while you can. One of the most memorable dishes in our lifetime of fancy eating was a simple spring sauté of asparagus, garlic scapes, morels and nettles.

Artichokes: Spring artichokes are larger, delivering more flesh on each leaf. It couldn’t be easier to steam them and dip the luscious leaves in a vinaigrette or melted butter; we actually enjoy them plain. Check out the different types of artichokes.

Asparagus: Domestic asparagus begins to appear in March; the season runs through June. We can’t get enough of the delicious spears. Here are 12 easy asparagus recipes.

Cardoons: This specialty item, also called artichoke thistle, is part of the same species as the globe artichoke. Not surprisingly, it tastes a lot like artichoke, and was popular among the ancient Greeks, Persians, and Romans. Try braising them in verjus as a side to grilled salmon.

Fava Beans: Fava beans, also known as broad beans and horse beans, are another sign of spring. They originated in ancient Egypt and were the only bean known to Europeans until the discovery of America. Unshelled, they look like lima beans, but have a more buttery texture and slightly bitter, appealingly nutty flavor. Enjoy them as a side, in soups, or in stews. As you may recall, Hannibal Lechter enjoyed his with liver and a nice Chianti.

Fiddleheads: Also called fiddlehead ferns, these young wild ferns are not cultivated but foraged (photo #2). The top unfurls as the fern matures, but when young it resembles the curled ornamentation (scroll) at the top of a violin or other stringed instrument. Fiddleheads have been popular in Northern France since the Middle Ages, and are found in Asian and Native American cuisines. They have an asparagus-like texture and flavor with a hint of nuttiness.

Garlic Scapes: Garlic scapes, also known as green garlic, are the curling tops of immature garlic plants; they look similar to the tops of scallions (green onions). They were usually cut off of the plant and discarded, since leaving them on only limits the growth of the garlic bulb. But some garlic farmers have been convinced to bring the scapes to market. With a delicate garlic flavor, they are a must-try spring treat.

Nettles: Nettles, or stinging nettles, may not sound like culinary delight. They grow as garden weeds. But they are delicious, high in protein and lose their sting after 30 seconds of cooking. Sauté them as a side or add them to soups, stews, and pasta dishes. Look for them at farmers’ markets, or ask where you can forage for them in your area.

Pea Greens: Pea greens are sold in big bunches of bright green vines with leaves, but don’t worry: That big bunch cooks down to about 10% of its raw volume. Look for pea greens in farmers’ markets or Asian markets. They wilt very quickly and need to be cooked within a day or two: simply sautéed in olive oil. Add some browned garlic or shallots and finish with a splash of lemon juice. Add raw pea greens to soups or stir-fries.

[3] Ramps (photo © Good Eggs | San Francisco).

Ramps: Ramps, also called wild leeks, are a wild onion native to North America (photo #3). The bulb resembles that of a scallion, but the plant has beautiful broad leaves with burgundy color at the base. The flavor and aroma of are a combination of onions and garlic. As such, they have an almost universal utility: in casseroles, potato dishes (delicious with fried potatoes), rice dishes, scrambled eggs, and soups. They can be used raw or cooked in any recipe calling for scallions or leeks.

Rhubarb: Rhubarb is often thought of as a fruit since it’s made in sweet preparations. But the giveaway is that it looks like celery. Make a rhubarb or strawberry rhubarb pie, rhubarb ice cream, a rhubarb sauce for fish, pudding with rhubarb topping or our grandmother’s favorite, stewed rhubarb.

Sweet Onions: Sweet onion varieties are plentiful in the spring and beckon to onion lovers to enjoy them raw: in salads, on sandwiches, as a general garnish. What about spring onions? Spring onions are simply regular onions that farmers pull from the field in spring to thin the rows.

All of these lovely spring vegetables will add spark to your table from now until the end of spring. Be sure to enjoy them while you can.