Craving Vouvray!

Baked chicken with mango and kiwi salsa!

Last week I had this urge to have a wine that used to be more prevalent in the list of wines I loved.  Over the years, reds became much more appealing, thus whites were served less often at the table.  Actually, they were hardly ever served!  While looking through the wines for sale at Vintages Wines and Spirits in down town Colorado Springs, I came across this Vouvray.  Erin, the owner said it was very nice and that it's better than some of the past vintages flavor wise.  So, I purchased this one and decided on a dinner that should complement the wine.  This is very non-typical for me as I usually find a wine that goes good with dinner from the cellar.  Not vice-versa.  Well, I have to say, this turned out to be a perfect match.  Here's what I did:

In a shallow baking dish that has been coated inside with olive oil, place cleaned chicken pieces that have been patted dry with paper towels.  Insure none of the chicken overlaps.  Sprinkle your favorite seasonings, or use the "Slap Your Mama" Creole seasonings as I did over the top.  There is no need to use salt or pepper with the one I used as there is plenty in it already.  There is a kick to it, so be careful if you like mild peppers vs. hot.  Drizzle a bit more olive oil on the top of the chicken.  If you don't have a pour spout on your bottle, place one to two fingers over the bottle opening to create just the right flow of oil that suits your needs.  Cook in a preheated oven of 350 until the chicken is just done.  Do not over cook!  I used chicken strips, so cooking time was only 20-25 minutes. 

While the chicken is baking, remove the skins from two medium mangoes, and two kiwi fruit, slicing them into cubes.  The size of the cubes is up to you.  I went with about 1 inch squares more or less.  Place them in a bowl that is large enough to stir without losing any fruit over the sides. 

Cut half of a small red or sweet onion into pieces, not quite a diced size, and place 2-4 tbsp in with the fruit.  Cooking is partly what pleases our individual pallets, so the amounts of the ingredients you use in many cases is what appeals to you.  I like the fruit flavor best, so my salsa had approximately 2 tbsp of onion. 

Next, slice 2 medium, very nicely ripened tomatoes into quarters, starting from the stem end to the tip or bottom of the tomato.  Remove the seeds use in a salad or in a recipe for later.  slice into small pieces and place in the bowl with the other ingredients.

Salt to taste, and add 1/2 tsp each of chili powder and ground cumin.  Mix all the ingredients together using a careful "folding in" method.  This will keep your salsa from becoming attractive.                         Serve with the baked chicken and a tossed green salad with balsamic and oil vinaigrette.  Cornbread would also work with this meal.

The wine:  Michel Picard, 2007, Vouvray, France.   This wine was clean, crisp, and had lovely tropical fruit flavors.  It was quite impressive how well it went with this meal.  It recieved 2 thumbs up!