Four Courses for July 4th

Independence Day celebrations may look a little different this year.

In the past, July 4th was a time for friends and families to gather - in parks and yards, on decks and patios, poolside and beachside - to celebrate together and enjoy a traditional cookout or barbecue.

With the ever-present concern over Coronovirus, we realize some may be opting for smaller get-togethers or staying in with the family. If you are looking to switch up your typical barbecue, burgers, and hotdogs for something unique - we have the perfect four-course meal for you!

These recipes were selected from Wineucation - The Cookbook which was curated by our founder, Jennifer McDonald. This cookbook features a collection of recipes to help enhance your food and wine experience and will be available for purchase soon!

First Course

Parmesan Crusted Scallops

Wine Pairing: Union Station

Serves 6

Ingredients

Sea Scallops – 2 lbs

Butter – 2 tbsp

Olive oil – 2 tbsp

Bread crumbs – ½ cup

Parmesan cheese – 2 tbsp

Parsley finely chopped – 1 tsp

Paprika – ¼ tsp

Black pepper – to taste

Directions

Preheat oven.
Dry the sea scallops and place them in a bowl.
Add in olive oil and melted butter, mixing it all thoroughly.
Pour the mixture over the scallops.
Take the rest of the ingredients and place them in a separate bowl. Then, add in the scallops.
After coating the scallops in bread crumbs, place them on the top rack of the oven for 10 minutes.
Serve.

Second Course

Beef Carpaccio

Wine Pairing: 2017 Pinot Noir

Serves 4

Ingredients

Beef fillet – 14 ounces

Arugula – 2

Parmesan – 1 tbsp

Sea salt – to taste

Black pepper – to taste

Directions

Place a parchment paper on the kitchen slab.
Cut the beef into slices. Take each slice and place it onto the paper and top it with another parchment paper.
Pound the beef till its flattened.
Place the arugula on a plate and take out the beef slices, decorating them as per your liking.
Top it all off with seasoning and parmesan.
Serve.

Third Course

Grilled Skirt Steak and Peaches with Grilled Portobello Mushrooms

Wine Pairing: Black Locomotive

Serves 4

Ingredients

Skirt steak – 1 ½ pound cut into 4 pieces

Garlic cloves – 2

Bay leaf – 1

Small shallot – 1

Jalapeno – 1

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

Soy sauce – 2 tbsp

Thyme – ½ tsp

Canola oil – 1 cup and 1 tbsp

Salt – to taste

Ground pepper – to taste

Dijon mustard – 1 tbsp

Boiling water – ½ cup

Honey – 2 tbsp

Cinnamon – ½ tsp

Ginger – 1 ½ tsp

Peaches – 4

Directions

Place the bay leaf, shallot, lemon juice, soy sauce, chopped thyme, and lemon zest in a blender. Blend the ingredients to perfection.
Add half a cup of oil and keep the blender on till the mixture is smooth.
Sprinkle seasoning on the mixture. Pour some of it onto a baking dish and place the steak on top of it.
Spread some more of the mixture on the steak, and let it rest for 20 minutes.
Add Dijon mustard to the rest of the mixture, and blend it all.
Take a pot, add honey, grated ginger, and cinnamon into it. Mix it all well. Pour it into a medium-sized bowl along with the remaining ingredients.
Remove the rest of the marinade from the skirt steak. Season the meat and grill it for 6 to 8 minutes.
Grill the peach halves for 8 minutes, until they are charred and slightly squishy.
With a sharp knife, slice the steak and carefully make wedges out of the peaches.
Serve along with the dressing

Ingredients

Portobello mushrooms - 3

Canola oil – ¼ cup

Onion – 3 tbsp

Minced garlic cloves – 4

Balsamic vinegar – 4 tbsp

Directions

Mix oil, chopped garlic, chopped onions, and vinegar in a bowl.
Wash the mushrooms and place their caps on a plate. Remove the stems.
Pour the mixture over the caps and allow them to sit for an hour.
Heat a grill and place the mushroom caps on it for about 8-10 minutes.
Keep grilling till they look brown and ready.
Serve.

Fourth Course

Lemon Blueberry Clafloutis

Wine Pairing: 2017 Sweet Red Wine

Serves 4

Ingredients

Blueberries – 2 cups

Castor sugar– ½ cup and 3-4 tsp

Cubes of cream cheese– 4 ounces

All-purpose flour – ¼ cup

Vanilla – 1 tsp

Eggs– 3

Whole milk – ½ cup

Powdered sugar – 1 tbsp

Zest of 1 lemon

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Combine cubes of cream cheese, half a cup of caster sugar, flour, one egg, and vanilla with a mixer till it's smooth and creamy.
Add the rest of the eggs to the mixture as well. Blend till everything combines together. Pour in milk slowly while mixing at the same time.
Butter dessert dishes and dust leftover castor sugar.
Place half a cup of blueberries in each of the dishes. Add the batter to each dish, topping with some lemon zest.
Bake for 20 minutes or till the desserts become golden. After removing, let them cool, and sprinkle some powdered sugar on top.
Serve.

Shop Featured Wines

There's still time to purchase all your Jenny Dawn Cellars favorites for the holiday weekend.

Come see us at the Tasting Room Thursday and Friday or shop online for curbside pickup.

We hope that everyone has a safe and enjoyable Fourth of July weekend!

The winery will be closed Saturday and Sunday this weekend.

About Jenny Dawn Cellars

Founded in 2016 by Jennifer McDonald, Jenny Dawn Cellars has grown from the dream of an at-home winemaker into Wichita’s first urban winery.

In 2017, Jenny Dawn Cellars established a working partnership with a wine facilitator in Napa, California. In 2019, Jenny Dawn Cellars opened a winery and tasting room in the heart of downtown Wichita located at Union Station. Jennifer now crafts and bottles her wines on-site, with grapes and juice sourced from the finest growers in California and Kansas.

As of June 2020, Jenny Dawn Cellars has 11 handcrafted wines.

Union Station Chardonnay, Black Locomotive Crimson Cabernet, Red Caboose Dry Rosé, 2019 Rosé Wine (Watermelon), 2018 Chardonnay, 2017 Pinot Noir, 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon, 2017 Sweet Red Wine (Cabernet Sauvignon/Syrah Blend), Wichita Passion (Blackberry Wine) and Wichita Moments (Apple Wine).

Jenny Dawn Cellars winery and tasting room at Union Station offers charcuterie and small bites, venue rentals, private wine tastings, wine locker memberships, and Winuecation - a monthly educational class.

We’ve bottled the art of timing.

From the vine to the bottle - we craft our wine from grapes, fruit, and juice sourced from the finest growers in the nation.

From the bottle to the glass - that’s where you come in. When you open a bottle of Jenny Dawn Cellars wine, you open your moment, your reprieve from the business of busy-ness, and your time to bloom.

Jenny Dawn Cellars is inspired by the wildflowers on the Kansas countryside, inviting you to open up, enjoy the breeze, and show your colors to the world. Just like a flower, when Jenny Dawn Cellars wine is shared with someone special, it needs no further explanation – it’s a feeling that is simply understood.

Jenny Dawn Cellars – Let your moment begin.