Lemon Balm Mediterranean Chicken

Mmmm… Mediterranean Chicken is so easy and tasty!

Ingredients:

Chicken:

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

• 1 cup Honeyed Lemon Balm Mead

• 1 cup chicken stock

• Juice of 2 lemons

• ½ cup cherry tomatoes, halved

• Goat cheese crumbles

• 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

• 2 sprigs of fresh oregano, chopped

• 2 sprigs of fresh thyme, chopped

• Olive oil

• Salt and pepper to taste

Marinade:

• ½ cup Honeyed Lemon Balm Mead

• ½ cup plain Greek yogurt

• Juice of 3 lemons

• 3 cloves garlic

• 2 sprigs fresh oregano

• 2 sprigs fresh thyme

Directions:

1. Prepare the marinade. Whisk together mead, Greek yogurt, and lemon juice. Place chicken breast in a Ziploc bag and pour mead mixture over the chicken. Add garlic and fresh herbs. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 5 hours.

2. Remove the chicken from the marinade, rinse, and pat dry. Season chicken breast with salt and pepper.

3. Add olive to large skillet over medium-high heat. When the olive oil is hot, add the chicken breast. Cook until lightly browned on each side, about 5 minutes per side. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.

4. Reduce heat to medium and add chopped garlic. Cook for 1-2 minutes until translucent. Add the mead, chicken stock and lemon juice and cook over medium high heat until lightly boiling. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and add the chicken and herbs to the skillet.

5. Cover and cook on low until the chicken breasts are cooked through and sauce has thickened, about 15 minutes.

6. Remove chicken from the skillet and top with sauce, cherry tomatoes and goat cheese crumbles.

Notes: Honeyed Lemon Balm Mead can be replaced with Off-Dry Traditional Mead or Off-Dry Pear Mead.

Pairs well with Honeyed Lemon Balm, Off-Dry Traditional, Off-Dry Pear or Off-Dry Blueberry Meads

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Recipe by Melody Freeman

Lemony Lentils and Rice

It has been all about comfort food for me lately. We've been enjoying all the cooking and baking and quite decadent eating for the last two months, but for me, I needed to return to a semblance of my typical eating habits or otherwise will need a crowbar to leave the house once it is again time for that.

But I still want comfort food!

Enter mujadara, a staple in many Mediteranen cultures, and something I first tried in a local Lebanese-restaraunt. It's basically beans and rice, made completely luxurious by a mess of caramelized onions, and a rich yogurt sauce, called labneh. I've cooked many versions of this dish using many recipes, but here is a bright flavor profile perfect for spring and summer that happens to pair perfectly with the Honeyed Lemon Balm.

A bright flavor profile perfect for spring and summer that happens to pair perfectly with the Honeyed Lemon Balm.

Ingredients:

• Kosher salt

• 1/2 C raisins (I prefer golden raisins)

• 1/4 C Starrlight Mead's Honeyed Lemon Balm Mead

• 4-5 medium onions (enough for 7 C sliced)

• 1/4 C, plus # Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil, divided

• 1/2 tsp. sugar

• 1 C French green (Puy) lentils

• 1 C basmati rice

• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

• 2 1/4 tsp. ground coriander, divided

• 2 1/4 tsp. ground cumin, divided

• 1/2 C fried shallot (optional)

• 1/2 C parsley leaves with tender stems

• 1/2 C plain Greek yogurt

• 1 lemon, juiced and zested

• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, place raisins in a small bowl. Add mead and 1 Tbs. very hot water to cover raisins. Stir to combine and set aside to "plump."

2. Halve and peel onions, and slice thinly into half-moons (again, you should have 7 cups).

3. Caramelize the onions: heat 1/4 C olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and stir to coat in oil. Season with salt, then reduce to low heat and cover skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and translucent, about 15 minutes.

4. Uncover skillet and sprinkle onions with sugar, which increases caramelization. Increase to heat to medium-high and continue to cook onions, stirring frequently and reducing heat if needed. If onions stick, add 1 Tbs. water to deglaze pan, and keep onions turning easily. Cook until rich brown and reduced in size by about two-thirds, about 35-40 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, add lentils to boiling salted water. Stir so there are no sinkers or stickers, then cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked through but still al dente, about 20-25 minutes. Drain and set aside. Wipe pot dry.

6. As lentils cook, rinse the rice. Repeat twice until water drains clear. Set aside to drain in a fine-mesh sieve.

7. Heat 2Tbs. olive oil in the same pot over medium-high until hot. Add 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, 2 tsp. coriander and 2 tsp. ground cumin and cook, stirring, until fragrant and a shade darker, about 30 seconds.

8. Add rice, 2 tsp. salt, and stir to coat the rice in spices, about 30 seconds. Pour in 1 1/2 C water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to lowest setting, cover with lentils in an even layer, and cover pot. Cook, undisturbed, until water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork and cover pot again.

9. Add raisins and any liquid in the bowl to the caramelized onions. Transfer onion mixture to pot with rice. Add half of fried shallots (if using), and juice from 1/2 lemon. Stir to combine, season with salt, and keep covered until ready to use.

10. Coarsely chop parsley leaves, save as garnish.

11. For yogurt sauce: mix Greek yogurt and remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil, juice of 1/2 lemon and lemon zest, 1/4 tsp coriander, and 1/4 tsp cumin in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper.

12. Transfer beans and rice to a platter. Top with chopped parsley (and remainder of fried shallots, if using). Serve with yogurt sauce alongside. Pour yourself a glass of Honeyed Lemon Balm mead and enjoy!.

For the sake of this pairing, I made slight modifications to the following recipe in order to include the mead: https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/mujadara

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Recipe by Jenn Hansen

Rita's Favorite Grilled Chicken and Rita Rice

Citrus flavored chicken and rice is a fun change of pace! And super easy to make!

Ingredients:

• 1 bottle Starrlight Mead Honeyed Rita

• chicken breasts (or thighs)

• olive oil for grilling

• salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Marinate chicken in enough mead to cover in a zip top bag overnight in the refrigerator.

2. Preheat grill to medium.

3. Drip dry chicken on a rack, then brush with oil and salt and pepper, as desired.

4. Grill on medium heat until done. Chicken breasts - about 9-10 minutes, chicken thighs - 8-9 minutes, depending on size, flip halfway through. Let rest and serve.

Rita Rice

Replace a quarter of the water called for cooking rice with Honeyed Rita. For 4 servings, use 1/2 cup mead and 1 1/2 cups water for 1 cup of rice. Simmer as directed for 20 minutes. Add a couple of teaspoons of chopped parsley or cilantro, if desired.

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Recipe by Becky Starr

Garlicky Oven-Roasted Chicken - Gà Rô-Ti

This recipe has a special place in my heart. Gà Rô-Ti was my first Vietnamese food experience, served to me by my Vietnamese host mother on my first night as an exchange student in Germany. The feels! The culture clashes! It is delicious, and I was literally terrified to mess with this recipe and dishonor Vietnamese food everywhere. However, Starrlight’s Honeyed Peach was calling my name. 

Most cultures have a roasted chicken dish, and in Vietnam, this is it. It is typically a special occasion meal, and traditionally the chicken would be marinated in Maggi seasoning, garlic, sugar, and pepper/chilies. It is so simple, but marinating is the key – allowing it to marinate for at least 12-24 hours will infuse deep umami flavors into the chicken. It also mimics a brining step since salt and sugar are included in the marinade, and it will keep your chicken nice and juicy. I prefer not to use MSG in my cooking, so I skip the Maggi and use soy sauce instead. Tamari or coconut aminos would do nicely also, but the flavor will vary slightly. Honeyed Peach mead will take the place of sugar in the original recipe.

Serve Beef Stroganoff with sautéed green beans and a glass of Blueberry Mead Off-dry!

Ingredients:

Marinade:

• 4 lbs of chicken drumsticks, thighs, and/or wings*

• 4 large garlic cloves, finely minced

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 3/4 teaspoon black pepper

• 3 1/2 tablespoons Maggi seasoning, soy sauce, tamari, or coconut aminos

• 2 1/2 tablespoons neutral oil (vegetable, canola, avocado, etc.)

• ½ cup Starrlight Mead Honeyed Peach mead

Dipping Sauce:

Vietnamese food is all about the condiments, so the dipping sauce is a must!

• 1 1/2 cups Starrlight Mead Honeyed Peach mead

• 1 teaspoon garlic chili sauce (optional – or add more for extra kick)

Directions:

1. Place chicken in a plastic bag or container. Combine the garlic, salt, pepper, Maggi/soy sauce, oil, and mead in a bowl. Pour over the chicken and marinate in the refrigerator for 12-24 hours. Don’t skip this step! I mean, you can…but the flavor won’t be nearly as good. To increase the flavor further, you can massage the chicken pieces and push marinade up under the skin as well. I also flip my chicken pieces every few hours or when I think about it.

2. Thirty minutes before roasting, take the chicken out of the refrigerator. Line a baking sheet with foil and preheat the oven to 400F.

3. While your chicken is waiting to go in the oven, you can start the dipping sauce. Put the peach mead into a saucepan, turn the heat to medium and get ready to stir and keep an eye on it.

4. Take the chicken out of the marinade and put it on the lined baking sheet, skin side down, and then place the baking sheet on the center oven rack. Discard the marinade. After 15 minutes, remove the baking sheet from the oven and flip the chicken. Put the chicken back in the oven for another 20-45 minutes, checking for doneness with a meat thermometer. If you have a lot of rendered fat in the pan when you check on your chicken, you can pour it off to encourage the chicken to get crispy.

5. While your chicken is in the oven, continue to reduce the peach mead until it is thick and syrupy. Pour into a small dipping sauce container with as much chili garlic sauce as you desire.

This chicken may be served hot or room temperature. It is great for picnics!

Serving Suggestions: Most recently, I served this with some leftover shrimp pad Thai and veggies I made the night before – super lazy Asian surf and turf. Normally I would serve it with sliced cucumbers and raw tomato wedges, rice, and whatever other vegetables I happen to have. To drink, I would go with the Starrlight Mead Honeyed Peach or Traditional Semi-Sweet if you chose the spicy dipping sauce option. If you decided not to spice it up, Ginger Mead or a cocktail of 50/50 Honeyed Peach and Ben’s Special Ginger are also nice!

*Can you use boneless, skinless chicken breasts? Technically yes. There are no food police here; however, I would encourage you to use bone-in, skin-on chicken for this recipe. You can include bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts if you prefer white meat. It stays juicier, and you can always remove the skin after cooking if you do not wish to eat it.

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This recipe was adapted by Ashley VanLeeuwen from Into the Vietnamese Kitchen: Treasured Foodways, Modern Flavors by Andrea Nguyen

Grilled Salmon with Savory Blueberry Sauce

I've had a lot of time to think over the last 8 weeks. There has been a lot of anxiety about what changes our culture will face in the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic. Whenever I get in my head too much, I look to grounding activities like gardening or cooking to bring me right back to the here and now. 

This recipe was inspired by a trip some years ago to Washington DC and a visit to the National Museum of the Native American. There is no more sacred space in our nation's capital than this, with the exception of the National Cathedral (if you go in for that). The collection is alive as much as the structure it's housed in. After a long day of exploring, learning, and quite frankly, weeping, I was happy to experience the Mitsitam Cafe (https://americanindian.si.edu/visit/washington/mitsitam-cafe). Featuring indigenous cuisines of the Americas, the meal was earthy, nutritious, and delicious--cedar plank grilled salmon, blueberry compote, and a wild rice pilaf. This meal made me grateful for the bounty of this land, and is one of the first food experiences that really brought the idea of local food home to me.

In the past few weeks, I've needed something that would remind me why I love this land, in spite of the arbitrary boundaries we place around nation, state, and country. I wanted to try to recreate that delicious meal from Mitsitam, using indigenous ingredients sourced as locally as possible. And of course, accompanied by Starrlight Mead, who use local honey as the base for all their meads.

The recipe I used (and modified) for this meal is here: https://food52.com/recipes/6378-savory-blueberry-sauce Modification: in lieu of the lemon juice, I used 1/4 cup of Starrlight Mead's Off Dry Blueberry Mead.

Grilled Salmon with Blueberry Sauce served with wild rice pilaf and roasted butternut squash with carrots and maple and a glass of Blueberry Mead Off-dry!

Ingredients:

Salmon:

• 1 salmon filet, wild caught

• salt

• pepper

• olive oil

For the Sauce:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 large shallot, chopped

• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon thyme (any fresh thyme), chopped

• Zest of one lemon

• 1/4 c. Starrlight Mead Off-Dry Blueberry Mead

• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated fine

• 1 teaspoon balsamic or apple cider vinegar

• 1 pinch dried cayenne 

• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

• 2 cups blueberries

Directions:

1. Preheat the grill to 450-550 degrees F. 

2. Arrange salmon filet on a grill pan lightly coated with olive oil. Sprinkle salmon with salt and pepper.

3. While the grill is pre-heating prepare the sauce. Using a medium-sized saucepan, heat the oil and cook the shallot until limp. Add remaining ingredients, except for the blueberries, and cook over medium heat for 3-5 minutes, or until liquid reduces by half.

4. Cook salmon to internal temp of 140 degrees F (about 2-4 minutes for medium rare, longer for desired doneness).  

5. Add the berries, reduce heat to low, stir gently and cook berries until they release enough juice to create a sauce but still retain their shape, about 10 minutes.

6. Serve immediately with protein of choice.

    Delicious with grilled salmon, roast pork or chicken. Have a glass of mead to accompany your meal and enjoy!

   Serving suggestion: Grilled Salmon with Savory Blueberry Sauce
   Wild rice pilaf with black walnuts & scallion and chard
   Roasted butternut squash with carrots and maple.

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Recipe from Food52.com adapted by Jenn Hansen

Beef Stroganoff with Blueberry Mead

Serve Beef Stroganoff with sautéed green beans and a glass of Blueberry Mead Off-dry!

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. beef stew meat and/or chopped chuck roast

• 1/3 c. flour

• 2 t. salt

• 1/4 t. black pepper

• 1/4 t. nutmeg

• 1/4 t. garlic powder

• 1 t. Herbs de Provence

• 2 Tablespoons neutral oil (light olive, avocado, etc.)

• 1 large onion, sliced

• 8 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced

• 1/2 c. Starrlight Mead Blueberry Mead Off-dry

• 3 cups beef broth

• 1 12 oz package egg noodles

• 3/4 c. sour cream

• 3 T. chopped fresh parsley/1 t. dried parsley

• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Instant Pot version

1. Combine flour, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and nutmeg in a bag or bowl. Dry the beef and add to the flour mixture. Toss to coat.

2. Set Instant Pot to Sauté, add vegetable oil and brown the meat on all sides. Don't skip this step! Work in batches to not crowd the Instant Pot. Transfer browned meat to a plate/bowl.

3. Add onion and mushrooms to the pot and sauté until tender (5-6 minutes).

4. Stir in Off-Dry Blueberry mead and scrape the bottom of the pot to loosen any browned bits. Let the mead reduce/cook slightly. Stir in beef broth and return the beef to the pot. Add the Herbs de Provence and dried parsley, if using dried. 

5. Cover and seal the lid, turn the vent to sealing, and set the Instant Pot for Manual (High Pressure) for 12 minutes. When finished, quick release the pressure and remove the lid. Add the egg noodles and stir. Cover and seal the lid, turn the vent to sealing, and set the Instant Pot for Manual (High Pressure) for 5 minutes. When finished, quick release the pressure. Stir in the sour cream and fresh parsley, if you're using fresh. Season further with salt and pepper, if needed. 

Slow Cooker Version

Follow the same recipe, same ingredients in a sauté pan to start. All directions are the same until you reach the Instant Pot directions. Instead, transfer the browned meat and sautéed vegetables (deglazed with mead) to a slow cooker. Add 2 cups of beef broth instead of 3 cups. Put the slow cooker on low for 6-8 hours. Cook the egg noodles according to package directions. Add the sour cream and fresh parsley to the slow cooker when finished cooking. You may thicken with cornstarch mixed with beef broth/water, if it is not thick enough to serve over the noodles. 

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Recipe adapted from “Instant Pot Beef Stroganoff” by Platings and Pairings by Ashely VanLeeuwen

Kickin' Pulled Pork

Yummy pork that's smokin'!

• 3 lbs Pork Shoulder, cut in half

• 1/2 - 3/4 bottle Starrlight Mead Kickin' Cranberry Orange Mead (this recipe is also great with Ginger Herb Infused or Honeyed Pineapple Mead)

• 2 sprigs of fresh Thyme

• Salt and Pepper to taste

• 1 onion, peeled and cut in half

• 1/4 cup honey

Directions:

1. Add 1/2 to 3/4 of a bottle of Starrlight Mead Kickin' Cranberry Orange Mead to a zip top bag. Add sprigs of thyme. Squeeze out air and store in the refridgerator. Marinate the shoulder for 12-24 hours.

1. Remove meat from marinade and pat dry. Salt and pepper the roast.

2. Slice onion and lay in bottom of a crock pot. Pour the marinade and thyme into the crock pot. Lay pork on top of onion bed. Drizzle honey over meat.

3. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours (or high for 4 hours) or until the meat is tender enough to be easily shredded with a fork.

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Recipe by Ben Starr

Blackberry Mead Crockpot Pot Roast

Beef and rosemary with blackberries - a match made in heaven!

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion - diced

• 1 Tablespoon oil

• 2 cloves garlic - minced

• 6-10 new potatoes

• 3-5 large carrots

• 2 lbs chuck roast

• ½ bottle Starrlight Mead Blackberry Off-dry Mead (or Blueberry Mead)

• 2 sprigs of fresh Rosemary

• Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Add ½ bottle of Starrlight Mead Blackberry Off-dry Mead to a zip top bag. Add minced garlic and one sprig of rosemary. Marinate the roast for 12-24 hours.

2. Remove meat from marinade and pat dry. Pour the marinade into a crock pot. Salt and pepper the roast.

3. Sauté onions in a tablespoon of oil until translucent. Add onions to the crock pot.

4. Brown each side of roast, then place into crock pot. Add carrots and potatoes to the crock pot. Add remaining sprig of rosemary to the crock pot.

5. Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours (or high for 5-6 hours).

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Recipe by Ben Starr