Did I ever get the name of that New York State wine wrong--it's Bobsled Red, produced by Glenora Wine Cellars in Dundee, New York, on Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes region. Ken and I sampled it last night: It's definitely a semi-sweet, bursting with blackberry or black raspberry overtones. The Glenora website does not identify the grapes they blend to make Bobsled Red, but I am curious, so I'll have to e-mail. What's the mystery? Are they afraid some other winery is going to produce it? Nashoba Winery in Massachusetts bares all, but then again, they don't have any real regional competition. The Finger Lakes region is loaded with vineyards, so perhaps that's the issue. Bobsled Red is not available in the Boston area, so I think we may bring home a couple of bottles for winter use.

For Ken's birthday, we drove to Indian Lake, New York, to have dinner at Chili Nights, supposedly the best Mexican restaurant in the Adirondacks. I'm sure it's called the best because it's the only one. I have never been impressed with the food there, but Ken loves the shrimp fajitas, and that's where we go on September 16th every year. I had beef fajitas, and was not happy with the overly salty, overcooked, not fresh, sizzling platter they presented me with. But I said nothing, because on one's birthday, one should not hear complaints from one's spouse about one's favorite Adirondack restaurant. It's not cheap either, which makes me mad, in a way, because they don't use the choicest ingredients, not by any means. So there's my review.

I should try making fajitas at home. For that I'd need to buy skirt steak. That's what fajitas are supposed to be made of, but many restaurants use cheaper cuts of meat, I've noticed.

On the wine front, we opened a bottle of Excelsior Cabernet Sauvignon from South Africa (2004) during the past week and it was so fruity and smooth. Near perfect. I recently bought a bottle of a New York red wine called Bobcat. I'm sorry to say I'm making this post from Cafe Sarah in North Creek and don't have access to the label or I'd be able to give more information. But this I know, it's not sold in any wine store I've been to in the Boston area.

If you are ever in the tiny farming hamlet of Wadhams, New York, in the Lake Champlain Valley of the Adirondacks, don't miss Merrick's Bread and Coffee, a bakery and cafe. The coffee is terrific, the tea amazing (and I am a lover of fine teas--they may be the only people in the U.S. who know how to brew tea), the scones delicious. We also bought a loaf of olive bread which was chewy and good.

Bon Appetit from North Creek!

The week after Labor Day found me immersed in preparations for our trip to Minerva, New York, in the Central Adirondacks. We arrived Saturday, and today was the first time I was able to pry myself away from the lake and make the 9-mile trek to North Creek where I'm writing this in the public library. Weather has been just too good. Every morning we're out paddling and walking, and in the afternoons we're relaxing on our deck overlooking the lake, books in hand. That said, not much has been going on in the culinary department since we've arrived, though I wish I could find some blueberries somewhere, frozen or not, so that I could put blueberry muffins on the table.
Pumpkin Muffin Challenge--Round #3
I've finally perfected the pumpkin muffin recipe. Go to the archives to find the post for August 21, and make one change to the Pumpkin Muffin recipe #2. Use 1/2 cup of white granulated sugar instead of the brown sugar. I also recommend Libby canned pumpkin, which has more moisture and is a smoother consistency than the One-Pie brand. In any case, these muffins are exactly what I've been looking for. Only problem is they're so much better than the Whole Foods Market pumpkin muffins that I've got to keep a close eye on my intake. Yum.

Coming Up: Celebrity Italian Cookbook

I haven't been cooking much this week. I had a blast visiting my cousin in Connecticut early this week and since then I've been busy catching up with life and early preparations for our annual trek to the Adirondacks.
Instead of blogging about kitchen adventures, then, I'll mention that I'm waiting for Shut Up and Eat!: Mangia with Recipes and Stories from Your Favorite Italian-American Stars (Berkley; Oct., $24.95) by Tony Lip and Steve Prigge, which will feature family recipes from James Gandolfini, Chazz Palminteri, Lorraine Bracco and others. Right now, there's not even enough information available for me to provide a link, but I'm eager to borrow this one from the library.

The cookbook I most want to purchase these days is Cover and Bake: Casseroles, Pot Roasts, Skillet Dinners and Slow-Cooker Favorites by the editors of Cook's Illustrated. I've had it out from the library several days now, and I so appreciate the detailed discussion about the preparation and cooking of each dish. It's about 327 pages--filled with advice. I flipped when I went to Amazon and saw that Cover and Bake is part of their semi-annual sale and is 60% off. For $11.98 you get the book and a free copy of Cook's Illustrated. Terrific deal and one I couldn't resist.