20130205 - Red Wine Chocolate Cake, domaineLA, Vin Vac

I love wine, and since February is the month to celebrate love, I thought I'd talk about one of the favorite loves of my life... great wine! Aren't we all so lucky to have access to such wonderful varietals these days? Seems the whole world is making delicious wine! However, I have found, the more you know about wine, the more you know how much you don't know. It can be very frustrating, but it has only spurred me on to further study, learn and taste more wine. (I know, it's a burden, but someone has to do it!) Learning about wine is really a terrific hobby, but sometimes a little fattening, and distracting, so I have to watch it. Isn't it great though, that red wine in moderation is good for the heart, and the soul. So go ahead and have a glass with dinner!

Moving forward on this "I love wine" theme, have a look below and check out an OUTSTANDING recipe using red wine, a fantastic place to get your wine, and a easy way to keep the wine you've got tasting smooth and delicious. I hope you enjoy it all and don't forget to become an LAFW Facebook Fan. Click Here to get daily updates on the happenings in our kitchen.

Happy V-day Everyone! Hope to be cooking with you all soon!

If you've done an event with us recently, you've probably had this dessert. Seems almost everyone chose to make it this past holiday season and why not!?! What part of the recipe title does not sound completely delicious? Red wine, chocolate, cake, mascarpone, whipped cream? Even "with" sounds amazing because it brings it all together!!!! This cake is super delicious, not too decedent, not at all hard to make...and the touch of cinnamon, just adds amazing fragrance to the whole thing. Warning... not all the wine cooks off during baking, so don't make it into cupcakes and serve it at your 3rd grader's next birthday party. However, make a cake for all the moms (and dads!), they'll love you for it!

Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan with parchment, and either butter and lightly flour the parchment and exposed sides of the pan, or spray the interior with a nonstick spray.
In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugars and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and yolk and beat well, then the red wine and vanilla. Don’t worry if the batter looks a little uneven.

In a separate medium bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt together. Add it to the wet ingredients and mix until 3/4 combined, then fold the rest together with a rubber spatula. Do not over mix or dough will become tough.

Spread batter in prepared pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. The top of the cake should be shiny and smooth, like a puddle of chocolate. Cool in pan on a rack for about 10 minutes, then flip out of pan and cool the rest of the way on a cooling rack. This cake keeps well at room temperature or in the fridge. It looks pretty dusted with powdered sugar.

Make the topping: Whip mascarpone, cream, sugar and vanilla together until soft peaks form — don’t over whip. Dollop generously on each slice of cake. It can also be covered and refrigerated for up to 4 hours.

Yield: One 9 inch cake, 8 servings. Per Serving: 306 Calories; 15g Fat (46.3% calories from fat); 4g Protein; 36g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 91mg Cholesterol; 243mg Sodium.

domaineLA...Love it!

Just two blocks away from my house, on the corner of Melrose and Mansfield (6801 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038 to be precise), is a wonderful wine shop called domaineLA. If one of our clients wants a no hassle way to have wine at their event, I always refer them to domaineLA! Why? Because they are so nice to work with (NO attitude), will help with wine and menu pairing and will even deliver in time for the class so there's not schleping! I also love just popping in. I'm like a kid in a candy shop imagining what it would be like to enjoy the wines with different foods, at different times and on different occasions. Owner Jill Bernheimer and her staff have an amazing selection of small batch wineries from both near and far and at almost any budget. They've got two great wine clubs and really fun tastings almost every Sunday! Check out their beautiful website, domainela.com and if you're going to a tasting some Sunday, let me know! I'll meet you there :)

I love this gadget! This little hand-operated pump extracts oxygen and creates a vacuum in an unfinished bottle to help slow the deterioration of wine and keep any left overs fresher for up to 7 days. The stoppers are dishwasher safe and come in fun colors too. Best of all, the cost for both the pump and a couple of stoppers is around $20. You can buy them online, of course, but I've also seen them at Sur la Table, Bed, Bath and Beyond, as well as liquor and wine stores around town. With this little thing, you can try a couple bottles of wine and be guilt free if you can't finish it all!

WANT TO USE THESE TIPS AND RECIPES IN YOUR E-ZINE, BLOG OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you do not alter the information in any way and include a credit that reads "by Rose LeBoeuf, www.lafoodworks.com, Interactive Cooking Classes, Parties, and Corporate Team Building Events for Groups Looking for a Fun and Unique Dinning Experience."

Ideal for Team Building, Summer Outings, Client Entertaining, Birthday Parties, Showers and Private Gatherings.
Let LA Food Works make your party one which your guests will not soon forget!

No previous cooking experience required!
Just willingness to put on an apron,
get your hands a little messy,
indulge in some great food
and have lots of fun playing in the kitchen!

We also happily design Custom Cooking Parties. If you have a group of 10 or more foodies who love great food and playing together in the kitchen, contact us and we will design a custom menu or theme class for you and your group.

Our interactive cooking parties both unify and entertain...perfect for any occasion that requires great food, interesting activities and lots of fun!

For information or to book your event, contact Rose LeBoeuf at 310-288-0100 for an event planning kit, pricing and availability.