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5月, 2020
Moms Love Cake, Real or Virtual
Together apart: If your family can celebrate Mother’s Day, May 10, in the same room with Mom, what good fortune. But for many of us, “together apart” is the new normal. Still, we can get creative in how we let Mom know she’s the best. If you and your siblings are separated, why not pass around the recipe for this sumptuous yet simple Almond Meringue Torte so each household can bake a version? Share videos or meet up online to compare results and bragging rights. Get the grandkids or cousins involved—socially distanced, of course.
With California strawberries in their glory and other berries not far behind, this impressive and versatile cake is one you’ll want to master. Visualize layers of crunchy almond meringue sandwiched with a dreamy whipped-ricotta filling and juicy berries. With a few hours rest, the cake becomes soft enough to slice. Make it your own as the fruit season progresses by substituting apricots, peaches, raspberries or a combination.
Hooray for make-ahead desserts. Hooray for cakes that love wine. (A late-harvest Riesling or Muscat or a demi-sec sparkling wine would be downright perfect.) Most of all, hooray for Mom. Find more Mom-worthy dessert recipes here.
FOUR TO FOLLOW
The four winery winners of the 2020 Green Medal Awards were selected by a team of judges looking for excellence, commitment, and creativity in approaches to sustainability. This year’s honorees are relentless goal-setters who can inspire and guide others in areas like riverbank restoration (J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines, Leader), regenerative agriculture (Bonterra Organic Vineyards, Environment), employee and community relations (Clif Family Winery, Community), and water- and energy-efficiency (Pisoni Family Vineyards, Business). Their achievements are highlighting California’s global leadership in sustainable winegrowing and are helping to broaden a “green” future for the state’s wine industry.
The Pour
In your glass:
Open a bottle of California dessert wine with your handmade cake and make this a Mother’s Day that Mom won’t forget. You have choices. A gently sweet Muscat or a luscious late-harvest Semillon or Sauvignon Blanc? A plush and plummy California Port? Bubbles make any occasion more festive, so take a look at some of the options in that category. Brut is the driest style, but with cake, you probably want to go sweeter: either an extra-dry (a touch sweeter than a Brut) or a demi-sec (sweeter still). If you bailed on the cake and bought chocolates for Mom, add a bottle of California Cabernet Sauvignon, too. Chocolate with Cab remains a controversial pairing, with both avid fans and skeptics. Time to weigh in!
Wine Institute is an association of nearly 1,000 California wineries and affiliated businesses from the beautiful and diverse wine regions throughout the state. Wine Institute works to create an environment where the wine community can flourish and contribute in a positive fashion to our nation, state and local communities. For information please contact communications@wineinstitute.org.