Join me as Fish Friday Foodies greets the French Winophiles for the Christmas Season.....
Here is the introduction to her invitation:
"The Feast of the Seven Fishes is an Italian American Christmas Eve tradition. There are no hard rules, but here is how Bon Appetit outlines it. Make one of the first five and I'll organize our list by course:
- 1st course: Appetizer or a snack
- 2nd course: Seafood salad
- 3rd course: Meaty fish, grilled or broiled
- 4th course: Fish in pasta
- 5th course: Seafood Stew
- 6th course: palate cleanser like gelato (not fish)
- 7th course: light dessert such as Italian cookies (not fish)
I have always wanted to have a dinner party serving the Feast of the Seven Fishes, unfortunately my husband is not a fish/seafood lover so I have to settle on sneaking in one fish course when entertaining. This is usually in the form of a first course or appetizer, however I sometimes am able to make a pasta course that he enjoys.
Let's see what courses the others brought to the table for this Christmas Feast:
- Artichoke Crab Dip Pasta Bake from Food Lust People Love
- Baked Mussels from Caroline's Cooking
- Crab Bites from Making Miracles
- Creamy Clam Dip from A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Creamy Mackerel Salad for Two from Sneha's Recipes
- Italian Seafood Salad (Insalata di Mare) from Karen's Kitchen Stories
- La Vigilia di Natale from Culinary Adventures with Camilla, who made new dishes for all of the courses for this Italian Christmas Eve dinner! Fun fact: She once spent a year in Rome and learned the food traditions of Italy. You need to check out her menu!
I decided to make this creamy clam dip that I found on Food.com. I made very minor adaptations and it turned out delicious, very garlicky and comforting. I served this up one evening to my brother and his wife when they joined us for dinner as we enjoyed a glass of wine and visited before dinner was ready to be served. It was so good that I made another batch to take to the potluck held at our Dive Shop.
Now, you may have thought that since Fish Foodies was serving up an Italian Feast that I would go with an Italian wine to serve with my clam dip. You would have thought wrong.
Jeff of Food Wine Click invited us to explore Vouvray for this month's Winophiles and then to join him for chat tomorrow at 11 am et on Twitter following #winophiles. You can see Jeff's invitation post here.
I was thrilled to find out that not all Vouvray wine is sweet. The last time I had Vouvray I used it and paired it with this lovely dessert and I was very happy with it but I'm not a huge sweet wine lover. This time I located a bottle of off dry white from Sauvion Vineyards that was fruity but not overly sweet. It is medium body and leaves a butter feel in your mouth. It paired very nicely with the clam dip.
This is what the other's are going to be talking about during chat. I will be there in spirit and I am scheduling some discussion however I will be busy at our Food Pantry distributing Food Baskets to families and helping Santa give gifts to the kiddies. If you have a free hour and you want to learn more about French wine and meet a great group of folks you should stop by Twitter and introduce yourself. You will be welcomed with open arms.
- Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla shares "Pairing a School Assignment with a #Winophiles Project: Moqueca + Gautier Vouvray Argilex 2012"
- Lynn at Savor the Harvest shares "Why I Chose This Vouvray as A Holiday Favorite"
- Robin at Crushed Grape Chronicles shares "The Multiple Expressions of Vouvray!"
- Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm shares "Creamy Clam Dip with a Sauvion Vouvray"
- Lauren at The Swirling Dervish shares "Monmousseau Ammonite Vouvray: Gussying-Up an Ad Hoc Holiday Feast"
- Gwendolyn at Wine Predator shares "CarĂªme Organic Vouvray and Lunch at Chateau de Pray"
- Nicole at Somm's Table shares "Champalou Vouvray Brut and a Very Lazy Cheese Night"
- Jane at Always Ravenous shares "Vouvray with an Indian-Inspired Dinner"
- Linda at My Full Wineglass shares "Still or Sparkling, versatile Vouvray shows it's style"
- David at Cooking Chat shares "Spicy Lentil Soup with Wine Pairing"
- Jeff at Food Wine Click! shares "Vouvray Pairs with Cream"
- Liz at What’s in That Bottle? shares “Va-Va-Va-Vouvray! Get to Know These White Wines from the Loire”
Yield: 2 cups
Creamy Clam Dip
This creamy clam dip is a nice change for your next holiday party when you want some seafood on the appetizer buffet. It can be served with crackers, bread or fresh vegetables.
prep time: 5 Mcook time: total time: 5 M
ingredients:
- 1 (6 oz) can minced clams, drained, 2 T. of juice reserved
- 8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/4 c. sour cream
- 3-4 dashes Worcestershire sauce
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 -3 grinds of black pepper
- 2 dashes hot sauce
- pinch of salt
instructions:
How to cook Creamy Clam Dip
- Place all ingredients into the bowl of a food processor and pulse several times until combined. Chill until ready to serve.
NOTES:
Adapted from a recipe found at Food.com
Property of A Day in the Life on the Farm
Jake and I have a free night while the boys are at a robotics holiday party. I think I know what I'm making as our first course. Thanks for the inspiration. Now I just need to get my hands on some Vouvray...maybe.
ReplyDeleteThis was a good one Cam.
DeleteThis looks like a wonderful seafood appetizer - creamy and lots of dipping options! I am sure your dive shop appreciated the seafood contribution. :D
ReplyDeleteIt appeared so Rebekah.
DeleteI am all about dips for holiday parties since they can be made ahead and are so easy to transport! Yours looks and sounds delicious, Wendy!
ReplyDeleteThanks Stacy.
DeleteI just happen to have a can of clams looking for a recipe! This dip sounds easy and delicious! I love that you started Fish Fridays while Frank is not a fan of fish!
ReplyDeleteYes, luckily he will eat anything I put in front of him, or at least try it, and sometimes he actually has seconds. That always makes me happy.
DeleteThat's so wonderful that you're volunteering at the food pantry! The crab dip looks delicious and sound like a great pairing.
ReplyDeleteThanks Nicole.
DeleteI am always in need of an appetizer recipe for a party. My daughter has a seafood allergy, so like you, I do seafood when I can! Your dip sounds delicious.
ReplyDeleteThank you Jane, it was.
DeleteI'm glad you found a Vouvray you like! I'm not opposed to sweet wines, but I sure would like to know whether they're sweet before I open the bottle
ReplyDeleteYes, that helps.
DeleteThis sounds tasty and perfect party food.
ReplyDeleteThanks Caroline
DeleteYum!! Dip, perfect party pleaser!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing an easy and delicious recipe to help us all get through the holidays! Merry Christmas Wendy!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome Lauren. Merry Christmas.
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