My new favorite magazine is Southern Living. My mom used to get it a long time ago and it was a straightforward publication that covered food and gardening in equal measure. It’s slicker and hipper, but hasn’t lost that southern charm, y’all, and the production design is exquisite. It’s become a key part of our event design/inspirational arsenal. (Camellias in simple white china? Effortless perfection!)
The recipes continue to delight, and last night, I was paging through my latest issue. They had a whole article on poundcakes (this is the kind of magazine Paula Deen no doubt has been reading since childhood – we’re talking 2 sticks o’ butter in every cake) and one had sauvignon blanc as a key ingredient.
I have a wedding coming up at a restaurant, and their least expensive wine was around $35. I suggested to the clients that I research some wines being sold at the 5cent Bev Mo sale that, even with the corkage fee, could save them around $200-300 total. I took on this horrible arduous task (buying wine! tasting it! buying some more! drinking it!) and discovered some awesome white wines.
I’m not a fan of whites, but I tried enough delicious chardonnays – leaning towards the brighter, fruitier type vs. the bottles with that unctuous, buttery layer – to win me over. I recommend the Montevina Chardonnay, which with the sale is $12.04 for every other bottle – quite a deal.
The other white I tried (well, I tried 3 – I must be thorough, after all!), was a Sauvignon Blanc by Santa Rita. Delicate, crisp, light, this works for fish or a cream sauce pasta – lovely, particularly in the summer, but you know, I had to open it, so I’m working my way down the bottle. (I know…this is a really tough, demanding job.)
And then I read my latest issue of Southern Living, and lo and behold, a recipe for Sauvignon Blanc Pound Cake. Butter, sugar, and wine. Really, it was a slam dunk.
To hell with the icing...we couldn't wait. The cake is good enough on its own.
Here’s the recipe, but I made some changes that you might find worthy:
– Substitute one cup of white flour for whole wheat to subtract some of the guilt
– Reduce the sugar by 1/2 cup – you won’t miss it, unless your taste buds are particularly dull. I’m not a fan of super sweet stuff.
A close up...you might be able to see those incredibly healthy flecks of whole wheat flour, surrounded by mass quantities of butter and sugar.
At your wedding:
Superfine Bakery’s champagne cake is to die for. Light, yet, dense with flavor – like a vanilla cake with something extra. Absolutely perfect. I’m also a fan of Plusko’s champagne filling. Mm-mm!