"Easy and Cheap" Is Really A Compliment

Despite my recent hectic schedule, I've managed to squeeze in a lunch and dinner here and there with friends. I just love cooking and entertaining this time of year. With so many delicious foods in season, I have a hard time staying out of the kitchen. One of the standouts dish I've made this year is a very simple, French dish... Radishes with Butter and Salt. Man, oh man, do you have to try this. I promise your guests will love it.

Radishes with Herbed Butter and Salt

1 stick of unsalted butter, room temperature
Fresh herbs (most any combo of your favorites will do. I used chives, parsley and lemon thyme)
Salt (sea is preferable, but Kosher will do, too)
Fresh radishes, sliced
1 Baguette, sliced

Mix together the butter and herbs. Add salt to taste, but remember, it should be slightly on the salty side. Pour some salt onto a platter and place the radishes on top. Spread some of the herb butter on the bread, and top with radishes, as desired. Crunch away.

I've also had some really great bottles of wine lately. I've been making more of an effort to break out of my Spanish wine comfort zones. I mean, I really love them for many reasons, one being that they are simply quite delicious, and another being that they are extraordinarily affordable. You can get superior quality wines without breaking the bank. And if you want to break the bank, you can get some really exquisite bottles. I, however, don't even have a bank to break. So I've been focused mostly on Spanish.

This time, though, I went for a California Chardonnay. I know, I know, not exactly hard to find or exotic, but seriously, I don't drink a lot of Chardonnays, and therefore really know very little about them. Now, the reason I don't drink them is because I don't really like them. I invalidObjectTag to the oak. *Gasp* How gauche of me, right? Well, I disagree. Taste is taste and while I don't find much out there that I don't like, oak is a flavor that I really just don't enjoy in wine. I mean, I can take a little, as long as it's subtle. But I don't want to feel like I'm licking the inside of a wine barrel with every sip. So I went after an unoaked Chardonnay.

Which is what led me to the Clos LaChance Glittering-Throated Emerald Chardonnay. This wine is one of the Clos LaChance Winery's Hummingbird Series, which the winery describes as "A line of quality and affordable wines from our Estate Vineyard and other select Central Coast locations. Each wine is named after a species of Hummingbird that demonstrate similar characteristics of each wine varietal." Admittedly, I don't know anything at all about the Glittering-Throated Emerald Hummingbirds, so I can't say exactly what characteristics they have in common, but I can tell you this... the wine was wonderful.

Completely unoaked, this wine was packed with the flavors of tropical fruits and citrus. A beautiful gold hue, and surprisingly long finish had me sold on Chardonnays. I didn't miss the oak at all, and feel like I've fallen in love. I would happily serve this to my guests who favor Chardonnays, and have some for myself to drink at the same time (which up until now, has never been the case). The winery's website lists this wine as $15.00 a bottle, but I get it cheaper at The Wine Source (god bless this store), for about $11.00. And it would pair beautifully with the radishes.