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Friday, April 5, 2013 One Wining Moment: The 2013 Final Four Taste-Off
Friday, March 22, 2013 New Spring Recipes and 16 Red and White Wines
Wednesday, March 13, 2013 Wine-Braised Lamb and Chocolate Cake for Passover
More from Seasonal

Trick or Treat?

Sweet wines and pumpkin recipes bring out the spirit of the season

Eric Arnold
Posted: October 28, 2005

If the kids can have their sweet treats this time of year, we can have ours. Below you'll find scores and notes on a selection of sweet wines we've tasted in the past six months. Learn how some sweet wines can be paired with chocolate—that is, if you want to sneak some treats from the kids' stash. We also offer up some of our favorite pumpkin recipes, since you might as well put the insides of your jack-o'-lantern to good use. Happy Halloween!

Pumpkin Soup with Fig Quenelles and Prosciutto

• 1 buckskin pumpkin or 2 small pie pumpkins or an equivalent amount of butternut squash (about 3 pounds total)
• 3 medium onions, thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, chopped
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 quart chicken stock
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Salt, brown sugar and freshly grated nutmeg to taste
• Cayenne pepper if necessary
• Four thin slices prosciutto, julienned

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Slice the pumpkins or squashes in half and place cut side down on a sheet pan with just enough water to cover the bottom of the pan. Bake for about an hour, or until a knife passes through easily. During cooking, add hot water to the pan as needed to prevent the bottom of the pumpkin from burning.

Meanwhile, cook the onions, ginger and butter over very low heat in a heavy pot large enough to hold the finished soup. Cook the onions gently for about 50 minutes, until reduced in bulk, and be very careful not to let them burn.

Scoop out the cooked pumpkin and add to the cooked onion mixture. Add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Puree the soup in small batches in a blender, then return it to the pot. Add the cream and reheat. If it's too thick, add more chicken stock until you reach the desired consistency. Season with salt, brown sugar and nutmeg, to taste, plus a little cayenne if desired. For a more pronounced ginger flavor, bundle some chopped fresh ginger in cheesecloth and squeeze its juice into the soup.

When ready to serve, divide the quenelles among the bowls of soup and garnish with a sprinkling of julienned prosciutto. Serves 12.

Fig Quenelles

• 12 dried figs, stems removed
• 1 tablespoon dark rum
• 1 cup heavy cream, whipped

Cook the figs slowly in just enough water to cover them, until only one teaspoon of the liquid remains, about 30 minutes. Puree the figs and remaining liquid, along with the rum, in a food processor until smooth. Allow the puree to cool to room temperature before gradually folding in the whipped cream. Chill this mixture until you're ready to use it. Form 24 to 36 quenelles, shaping them between two demitasse spoons.

This recipe appeared in the Nov. 30, 2001, issue.

Sweet Wines for Halloween