Food & Wine July 2023

2021 DE WETSHOF LIMESTONE HILL CHARDONNAY ($20) Need a super-refreshing, palate-tingling Chardonnay for summer drinking? I had this zippy, un-oaked South African white from the country’s Robertson wine region maybe a decade ago at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen (where I loved it), and I revisited it recently. The verdict? It’s still a killer deal. 2021 DOMAINE DROUHIN ARTHUR CHARDONNAY ($42) Domaine Drouhin is probably best known for its impressive Pinot Noirs, which are some of the best in Oregon. But I chanced across an older vintage (2017) of their Chardonnay on a wine list and was just blown away by how well it ages—so precise and complex, and simply delicious. The current vintage is equally impressive. 2020 ARPEPE ROSSO DI VALTELLINA ($45) Finding a great summer…

Icons & Innovators JACQUES PÉPIN has made thousands of crêpes in his 87 years, but on this particular day in his Madison, Connecticut, kitchen, while he is preparing Crêpes Suzette (recipe p. 124) with a camera capturing the action, the Cognac in his pan refuses to ignite. “Is this real Cognac?” he jokes, asking if someone added water to the bottle. Unfazed, he simmers the Cognac, sugar, and Grand Marnier in the pan down into an aromatic syrup, enveloping the kitchen in warm aromas of orange zest and foaming butter. Who cares about a flambé fail when the outcome is this delicious? “You do a recipe and repeat that recipe 20 times, and you never do it exactly the same way, except it comes out the same way,” Pépin says.…

FOR DORIS HÔ`-KANE, baking has always meant more than just creating beautiful treats. “It’s always been so important for us to preserve our culture,” says the owner and founder of the Brooklyn-based Vietnamese-American bakery Ba·n Bè. “The easiest way to do it is through food.” On any given day, the offerings at Ba·n Bè could include multi-colored pandan waffles, mooncakes, bánh mì, tins of her signature bo˘ butter cookies, or tha·ch rau câu, fruit jellies that Hô`-Kane makes just like her grandmother did. Sometimes, she layers jelly made from agar, a gelatinous substance derived from seaweed, to make tha·ch rau câu dù˘a lá dú˘a, chewy confections with alternating tiers of pandan and coconut milk molded into a flower shape. If you’re lucky, she’ll have concocted her cà phê tha·ch rau…

EATING ICE CREAM straight from the pint has always been one of life’s simplest pleasures, and lately, that pleasure has been getting a lot more dynamic. A wave of ice cream makers are thinking of ways to enhance the pint-eating experience, designing gooey swirls, playful textures, layered flavors, and sundae-like toppings meant to be enjoyed straight out of the container. “What makes pints interesting to me as an ice cream maker is we really get to curate your experience,” says Hallie Meyer, owner of Caffè Panna in New York City. “You have a format that you can apply true infinitude to.” Here are four pints that we could not stop digging into. MARTINE’S PISTACHIO CAKE Crank & Boom, Lexington, Kentucky In collaboration with Martine’s Pastries, this pistachio-based ice cream is…

DANISHES ARE COMPLICATED. With such a broad definition—a laminated pastry with a filling in the center—it’s difficult to pin down what exactly makes the quintessential Danish. Danishes can really be filled with anything—cream cheese or custard, fruit or vegetables, chocolate ganache or even pork barbecue. The options are endless, making every single Danish distinct and memorable. So to discover some of the most special Danishes out there today, we took to the experts, asking each person, “What’s the best Danish you’ve ever had?” We then reached out to the person who made their favorite Danish and asked them the same question. We started with 2022 Food & Wine Best New Chef Genie Kwon of Kasama, whose long, thin, sugar-dusted ham-and-cheese Danish wowed Restaurant Editor Khushbu Shah. At the end of…

PRETTY MUCH EVERY DESSERT looks better on a cake stand—pies, cupcakes, cookies, even Popsicles (for a fleeting few seconds). Not only are cake stands undeniably functional, making cakes easier to maneuver for icing and slicing and providing a spot for storing baked goods under an airtight cloche, but they also create visual drama around a dessert that professional food stylists and food photographers love. “The eye likes to travel,” says Food & Wine contributing photo editor Matt Taylor-Gross. “It’s all about levels.” Adding a cake stand to your table can create the same effect. To serve your next dessert in style, read on for four of our favorite cake stands that help bring a professional flair to your pastries. ESTELLE CAKE STAND Estelle Colored Glass founder Stephanie Summerson Hall commissions…