Skip to content

Top Navigation

Cooking Light Cooking Light
  • Recipes
  • Cooking 101
  • Eating Smart
  • Healthy Living
  • News

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Email Preferences

Manage Your Subscription

  • All Access Subscribers
  • Magazine Subscribers
  • Cooking Light Diet Subscribers
Login
Logout
SUBSCRIBE
Pin FB

Explore Cooking Light

Cooking Light Cooking Light
  • Explore

    Explore

    • 31-Day Healthy Meal Plan

      Our 31-day calendar of meals and tips shows you how to cook more and love it with fun, family-friendly meals that come together quickly and deliciously. Read More
    • Dinner Tonight: Quick and Healthy Menus in 45 Minutes (or Less)

      Hundreds of delicious recipes, paired with simple sides, that can be on your table in 45 minutes or less. Read More
    • Our Favorite Healthy Air Fryer Recipes

      Who ever said that chicken wings, doughnuts, and pizza couldn't be healthy? Read More
  • Recipes

    Recipes

    See All Recipes
    • Breakfast & Brunch
    • Lunch
    • Dinner
    • Drinks
    • Recipe Makeovers
    • Quick & Healthy
    • Diabetic
    • Gluten-Free
    • Vegetarian
    • Cooking Light Live
  • Cooking 101

    Cooking 101

    See All Cooking 101
    • Essential Ingredients
    • Cooking Techniques
    • Meet the Chef
    • Cooking Resources
    • Budget Friendly
    • Smart Choices
  • Eating Smart
  • Healthy Living

    Healthy Living

    See All Healthy Living
    • Weight-Loss
    • Health
    • Fitness
    • Home
    • Travel
    • Nutrition 101
  • News

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Email Preferences

Manage Your Subscription

  • All Access Subscribers
  • Magazine Subscribers
  • Cooking Light Diet Subscribers
Login
Logout
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Home
  2. Recipes
  3. Harvest Dinner at Lynmar Estate

Harvest Dinner at Lynmar Estate

By Text: Linda Murphy, Recipes: Sandra Simile October 01, 2010
Skip gallery slides
Pin
Credit: Photo: Coral von Zumwalt
On a fall evening, a story of hard work and fresh flavors unfold on a table set for a group of alfresco diners in Sonoma Valley, California.
Start Slideshow

1 of 8

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Local Flavors

Credit: Photo: Coral von Zumwalt
From vine to bottle and from garden to table, every element of preparation for this Harvest Meal, created for Cooking Light by Lynmar Estate’s Chef Sandra Simile, is inspired by only the freshest ingredients. Take a look at the estate’s wine developing process and how it is paired with Simile’s beautiful medley of local flavors.

1 of 8

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 8

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Harvest

Credit: Photo: Coral von Zumwalt
Handpicked grapes grown in nutrient-rich soil arrive at the winery still cool from the early morning chill. The cold harvest temperature ensures grapes will not oxidize before fermentation. Handpicking and hand sorting allow for quality control throughout.

2 of 8

3 of 8

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Fermentation

Credit: Photo: Coral von Zumwalt
Once the grapes are crushed, they’re placed in fermentation tanks that are carefully monitored as the grapes convert their sugars into alcohol. No outside yeasts are introduced. When ready, the tanks are drained and solids are pressed. Once settled, the wine will drain into barrels.

3 of 8

Advertisement

4 of 8

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Aging

Credit: Photo: Coral von Zumwalt
The wine is aged in French oak barrels up to 15 months. Aside from weekly quality checks, the barrels are never disturbed. This allows natural settling to occur, eliminating the need to filter the wine, which could damage its complexity.

4 of 8

5 of 8

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Mixed Lettuce, Pear, and Goat Cheese Salad with Citrus Dressing

Credit: Photo: Coral von Zumwalt
After it’s aging, a glass of chardonnay is finally ready for a toast right before diners dig in to Simile’s first-course salad of baby lettuces with pears and goat cheese. “The wine has notes of citrus, apples, and pears, so adding those flavors to the salad make it chardonnay-friendly,” Simile says. “The acidity from the citrus in the dressing cuts through the creaminess of the goat cheese, while still complementing the wine.”

Wine Pairing: Lynmar Russian River Valley Chardonnay

 

5 of 8

6 of 8

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto with Sugared Walnuts

Credit: Photo: Coral von Zumwalt
The second course is a comforting follow-up to the citrusy salad. “The walnuts, which are toasted and lightly tossed with butter and brown sugar, help mitigate the tannins in red wine, adding to the compatibility of the dish,” Simile explains.

Wine pairing: Lynmar Russian River Valley Pinot Noir

 

6 of 8

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 8

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Roasted Breast of Chicken with Pinot Noir Sauce

Credit: Photo: Coral von Zumwalt
The entrée course is the perfect poultry-wine pairing, according to Simile. “The vineyard is so far west—the westernmost in Russian River Valley—that the cool condition allows the grapes to hang on the vines for a long, long time, and they develop rich, intense flavors and beautiful acidity,” she says. “Yet the wine is medium-bodied, making it a good match for poultry, both on the plate and in the glass.”

Wine pairing: Lynmar Hawk Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir

View Recipes: Roasted Breast of Chicken with Pinot Noir Sauce, Rosemary Roasted Fingerling Potatoes, Buttered Green Beans with Mushrooms  

 

7 of 8

8 of 8

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Honey-Baked Black Mission Figs with Orange and Ginger

Credit: Photo: Coral von Zumwalt
The final course is served as the sun sets to the west, throwing a warm glow over the table, the conversation covers a range of topics—family, politics, business, and the weather. It’s a beautiful meal with a casual feel, perfectly paced for a long, lingering California evening.

View Recipe: Honey-Baked Black Mission Figs with Orange and Ginger

 

 

8 of 8

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Text: Linda Murphy, Recipes: Sandra Simile

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 8 Local Flavors
    2 of 8 Harvest
    3 of 8 Fermentation
    4 of 8 Aging
    5 of 8 Mixed Lettuce, Pear, and Goat Cheese Salad with Citrus Dressing
    6 of 8 Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto with Sugared Walnuts
    7 of 8 Roasted Breast of Chicken with Pinot Noir Sauce
    8 of 8 Honey-Baked Black Mission Figs with Orange and Ginger

    Share & More

    Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message
    Cooking Light

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • Customer Service this link opens in a new tab
    • Advertise

    Connect

    MeredithCooking Light is part of the Allrecipes Food Group. © Copyright 2023 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Cooking Light may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright Cooking Light. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.cookinglight.com

    View image

    Harvest Dinner at Lynmar Estate
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.