Like many of you this year, we missed our Keystone Summer Festivals more than ever!
The smell of bacon filling the air, the rack of lamb from Keystone Resort that pairs perfectly with that special cabernet and discovering our favorite beers to drink for the year.
Missing summer made us want to bring Keystone Festivals holiday recipes to your home this winter season with our favorite festival pairings themed for the holidays! We even brought in some of our favorite Keystone Festival experts to make sure we had the perfect pairings. Read below to see what experts love to eat and drink during the holidays.
Bacon and Bourbon Pairings from Founder of Oh Bacon LLC, Brooks Reynolds and Executive Chef, Dominic Iannarelli
Executive Chef and restaurant extraordinaire, Dominic Iannarelli brings us a holiday pairing perfect for reminiscing about the Bacon and Bourbon Festival. Holiday Bacon Poppers and an Old Fashioned with eggnog are sure to delight your guests over the holidays! 
Holiday Bacon Poppers
Makes 12 (8 gram) Portions
Ingredients:
- 24 oz Ground Turkey
- Box Stuffing Mix – 1 6oz box poultry flavor
- 5 oz Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- 12 Slices of Bacon (cut in half lengthwise)
Directions:
In a mixer with a paddle attachment mix the ground turkey for 2-3 mins on medium high speed to activate the protein. Portion into 12 equal balls.
Make the stuffing according to the box, let cool to room temp and mix in the cheddar cheese and refrigerate until chilled (this can be done in advance).
To form the balls, make a pocket in the turkey balls with your thumb and put the stuffing mix in the center. Make sure the turkey completely covers all the stuffing. Then wrap the balls with the bacon making a crossing pattern.
Freeze.
Bake at 300 degrees for 45 until bacon is lightly crisp and stuffing starts to ooze out.
OR
Grill over indirect heat rotating every 10 mins until bacon is lightly crisp and stuffing starts to ooze out.
Serve with Cranberry Chipotle BBQ Sauce
- 8 oz. BBQ Sauce
- 4 oz. Cranberry Sauce (jelly can be used)
- 2oz. Chipotle Peppers
Blend all ingredients together.
Santa’s Old Fashioned
- 2 oz. Eggnog washed Bourbon (Recommend Granddad or Old Forester)
- 2 Dashes Orange Bitters
- 1 Maraschino Cherry
- Orange peel (½ in wide by 2 inches long approx.)
- Pinch of Sugar
- Pinch of Grated Nutmeg
In a shaker glass muddle the cherry, orange peel, sugar and nutmeg. Add ice and the rest of the ingredients stir until chilled. Strain into a cocktail glass and add a large ice cube garnish with a cherry wrapped with an orange peel.
Wine Pairings from RNDC Wine Expert, Tracy Whitlock
We asked our local wine expert, Tracy Whitlock to give us her favorite wines to enjoy over the holidays! She gave us one spectacular Rioja and a delicately balanced Champagne. Enjoy both of these with our food pairings and be sure to impress your guests this holiday season!
Taittinger Champagne
Taittinger Brut La Française is a blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier wines from at least 35 villages. It is delicately balanced Champagne, known for its consistently excellent quality and pairs perfectly with oysters. We have picked out a unique recipe that plays perfectly with the fruit flavors of this champagne, it is your classic Oysters Rockefeller with a twist!
Oysters Rocafella
Ingredients:
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons water
- 1/2 cup Champagne
- 1/4 cup fresh grapefruit juice
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup Champagne vinegar
- 1 small shallot, minced
- Freshly ground pepper
- 2 dozen bluepoint or other East Coast oysters, shucked on the half shell
- Crushed ice and coarse salt, for serving
- 1 tablespoon dried egg-white powder
Directions:
In a microwave-safe cup, combine the sugar and water. Cook at high power for 20 seconds. Stir until the sugar dissolves, then let cool.
In a small stainless steel bowl, combine the sugar syrup, Champagne and citrus juices. Set the bowl over a larger bowl of ice and keep cold. In another small bowl, combine the vinegar and shallot and season with pepper.
Arrange the shucked oysters on a bed of crushed ice and coarse salt. Add the egg-white powder to the Champagne-citrus juice mixture and beat with a handheld mixer or immersion blender until thick and frothy.
Spoon a little of the vinegar-shallot mixture over the oysters and a little of the Champagne froth on top.
Marques de Murrietta Rioja
Marqués de Murrieta is above all an excellent, harmonious wine, with a fragrant nose and a silky mid palate. With a bright cherry color, on the nose it offers refined fruit aromas that combine perfectly with floral, balsamic, spicy notes and hints of oak precisely measured by expert hands. Its mouth is juicy and rich, with elegance and slightly toasted.
This wine compliments each of the dishes below but we have chosen a lamb pair with this year to bring back memories of the Keystone Wine and Jazz Festival.
Baked Snapper with Grilled Vegetables, Acid White Wine, Apple, Lime and Rosemary; Cameros Truffle with Mushrooms and Cabbage with Extra Virgin Olive Oil; Milk Lamb Chops with Cheese Serum, Asparagus and Red Wine Citrus; Confit Suckling Pig with its Crispy Skin and Juicy Meat, Caramelized Apple.
Lamb Steaks with Milk, Honey and Cumin Marinade
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, lightly toasted
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons honey, warmed in the microwave
- 1 cup whole milk, warmed in the microwave
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- Six 7-ounce boneless lamb steaks cut from the leg, 1 1/4 inches thick
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Directions:
In a mortar, grind the cumin seeds to a coarse powder, stir into the warm honey and transfer 1 tablespoon to a bowl.
In a baking dish, combine the remaining honey mixture with the milk. Stir in the garlic, 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Add the lamb and turn to coat well. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat the oven to 450°. Heat a large heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet in the oven. Remove the lamb from the marinade; season with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil until almost smoking. Add the lamb and cook until browned on both sides. Transfer to the hot baking sheet and roast for 8 minutes for medium rare. Transfer to a warmed platter.
Stir the lemon juice into the reserved 1 tablespoon of the honey mixture; lightly brush half on the steaks. Put the baking sheet on a burner over moderately high and heat until sizzling. Add 1/2 cup of water and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add any accumulated juices from the lamb and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining honey-lemon juice mixture. Season with salt. Pour the sauce around the lamb and serve.
Winter Holiday Beer Pairing
When we think of the holidays, cranberries are a key ingredient so we have decided to give you a pairing that has cranberries and of course, beer in them! We have picked one of our local breweries to feature their amazing ale!
Cranberry Meatballs
Meatball Ingredients:
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 cup cornflake crumbs
- 1/3 cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoons dried minced onion
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 2 pounds ground pork
Sauce Ingredients:
- 1 can (14 ounces) jellied cranberry sauce
- 1 cup ketchup
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°. Mix the first 8 ingredients. Add pork; mix lightly but thoroughly. Shape into 1-in. meatballs.
Place on a greased rack in a 15x10x1-in. pan. Bake until a thermometer reads 160°, 20-25 minutes. Drain meatballs on paper towels.
In a large skillet, cook and stir sauce ingredients over medium heat until blended. Stir in meatballs; heat through.
Pair with local favorite Broken Compass Ginger Pale Ale.
Fresh ginger is the star of this mouth watering GABF Silver Medal ale. It is packed with ginger creating a mild and smooth ale perfect for a holiday pairing. Ginger and cranberry both are reminiscent of the holidays and that is why we have picked this delicious pairing!
We hope our Keystone Festivals holidays pairings become a tradition in your home for the holidays!
Share a photo of your Keystone Festivals holiday pairings and tag Keystone Festivals for a chance to win tickets to one of our 2021 festivals!
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