It’s time to fill up the wine rack for summer

I was recently at a wedding at a winery in Missouri. It was a lovely night to sit out on the deck and drink a glass of wine.

But, I know that I don’t have to go out of state to find great wine. And, since summer is a perfect time to stock the wine rack, the Cheesekeeper in Belleville has gathered a baker’s dozen, each for 10 bucks or less. You can taste for free from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the West Belleville store, located in the Arcades Shopping Center on West Main Street. Wines featured are global, from Bordeaux and the Rhone in France, Argentina and Chile in South America, as well as Spain, Italy and a couple from California.

ON THE MOVE: After eight years in downtown Lebanon, Fezziwig’s Tea & Gourmet Market will reopen July 7 in downtown O’Fallon in a bigger location at 225 W. First St. The last day of the Lebanon store is June 27.

The new store, just a half block west of the new Peel Pizza & Brewery, will also feature a teaching kitchen, landscaped private courtyard and an historic carriage house for future special events.

Put the chicken pieces on a sheet of parchment paper and sprinkle red pepper flakes on top. Rub the chicken pieces until they are well-coated.

In a large pan over medium high heat, add oil and chicken and cook on each side for 2 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

In the same pan over medium heat, add soy sauce, rice vinegar and honey and cook for 1 minute, until the sauce is bubbling.

Return chicken to the pan and coat on all sides for about 2 minutes, until sauce thickens.

Sprinkle sesame seeds, stir one last time to coat evenly and turn the heat off.

Transfer chicken to a bowl or a plate and top with chopped scallions. Serve immediately with rice.

This is a recipe that has so much potential for change: I like that there are so many delicious summer veggies in this recipe, but I would cut the amount of oil and use some nonstick cooking spray when preparing them. Also, cooking the sausage on the grill is a good option. I think I would experiment with the flavor without the chicken bouillon at first and see how it tastes before adding it. It adds a lot of sodium to the recipe that might not be needed.

I also think you could use any kind of low-fat turkey sausage, in case you don’t like things too hot.

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Place farfalle in pot and cook 8 to 10 minutes, until al dente; drain.

2. Place sausage in a large skillet over medium heat and cook until evenly brown; set aside. Heat 1/4 cup oil in skillet. Stir in garlic and onion, and cook until tender. Mix in zucchini, squash, tomatoes, bell pepper and basil. Dissolve bouillon in the mixture. Season with red pepper. Stir in remaining oil. Continue cooking 10 minutes.

3. Mix pasta, sausage and cheese into skillet. Continue cooking 5 minutes, or until heated through.

Servings: 8, each with 477 calories, 22 grams fat, 38 mg cholesterol, 621 mg sodium, 50 carbohydrates, 5 grams fiber 20.5 grams protein.

*Feel free to use almost any pasta for this recipe.

This story was originally published June 1, 2015 at 11:16 AM with the headline "It’s time to fill up the wine rack for summer."