Another Picpoul Pairing: With Gingered Greens & Tofu

Well, the 2009 Saint-Peyre Picpoul-De-Pinet from the Coteaux Du Languedoc continues to show its versatility as a very reliable food wine for a great price ($9). I previously posted about it as a good match for pesto, tonight I tried it with Gingered Greens and Tofu from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home. While a Gewürztraminer or Riesling might be a more obvious pair for the dish, the Picpoul had enough of a citrusy element to go well with the flavors. And it wound up featuring prominently in the stir fry sauce in my adaptation.

The idea of the posts on this Cookbook Wine Pairing theme is to serve first as a reference for those with the cookbook recipe seeking a wine pairing idea. But this is a pretty simple recipe that you could wing pretty easily based on my recap if that is your style...

Dice a cake of tofu and place in oven safe dish. Make tofu marinade by combining 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/2 cup wine (I used the Picpoul), 1/3 cup rice vinegar (I substituted regular vinegar) and 3 tbsp brown sugar. Stir gently as you bring it to a boil, remove from heat. Pour over the tofu.

Prep to stir fry by chopping a bunch of greens, 2 tbsp ginger (I used garlic instead of ginger this time), a handful of cilantro and quarter a lime.

Broil the tofu for about 5 minutes until it browns lightly. Meanwhile, make the stirfry by heating 2 tbsp of vegetable oil in a wok on high heat, add the ginger for about a minute, then the greens until they wilt, stirring frequently.

Remove the wok from heat. Stir in cilantro and 3 tbsp of lime juice. Stir in the tofu and sauce once the tofu is browned. Serve over rice.

Farfalle with Broccoli & a Sauvignon Blanc

This winter I was cooking a lot from cookbooks it seemed, especially my new favorite, Barbara Lynch's Stir. Noting how few cookbooks suggest wines to go with the dishes, I started my cookbook & wine pairing quest. Busy spring & early summer schedules, plus the warmer weather, have had me leaning toward quicker go-to preparations, and thus not to many new entries for this project.

Tonight I was trying a new recipe from Giada De Laurentiis' Everyday Pasta and it seemed like a good time to try to add another pairing to my compilation. I was making her Farfalle with Broccoli, a quite simple preparation that basically involves cooking the farfalle with the broccoli, and making a quick sauce of butter, olive oil, garlic red pepper flakes and a bit of anchovies--which I generally shun, but I did try adding a smaller portion than called for. Of course, the dish was topped with some Parmesan cheese.

A crisp white or a medium red with a touch of spice seemed like the way to go here. I had on hand the 2007 Two Angels High Valley Sauvignon Blanc and thought I'd give that a try. This Sauvignon Blanc has citrus on the nose, taste of melon and green apple. Enough tartness to give it an edge to go well with food, but not so much that its overwhelming. Well-balanced. The wine comes from High Valley,an AVA in Lake County, California, which is just north of Sonoma & Napa Counties.

It was a good pairing. The pasta sauce had a pretty strong flavor, the wine had enough acidity and structure to offset garlic, pepper and anchovy flavor. I'd recommend something similar to this bottle if you are trying to find a pairing, but would be interested in hearing how a red works out with it--or might have to try it myself.

The dish is easily prepared in 45 minutes or so even while attending to other things such as a thirsty pre-schooler--good flavor, quick and easy, so this will be made again!

Ballpark Pasta

There's nothing like the smell of sausages mixing with onions and peppers outside Fenway Park. We'd already eaten supper, so I passed by the vendors (as I tend to do) as we headed in to hear the Landmark Orchestra give a special concert at the old ball yard. But the sausage aroma lingered, and I had a good sausage on hand, so the next night's supper was Ballpark Pasta. The sausage and the well-suited wine I served with the dish both came from Pairings Wine and Food.

1 large, good quality sausge (I used D'Artagnan Andouille)

1 onion, diced

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

up to 1/2 cup chicken broth

3 tbsp olive oil

handful fresh herbs (I used mix of sage, oregano & basil)

12 ozs short pasta (I used elbow, rigatoni is good option too)

handful of Parmesan cheese, extra to serve

The sausage was pre-cooked, so I started by just browning it a bit in a large skillet, that I'd sprayed with cooking oil. After it was well browned, about 5 minutes, remove the sausage and set aside to cool. When cool enough, slice the sausage first in half lengthwise, then cross-wise to create semi-circles. Start boiling water for the pasta at same time sausage is browning, and cook according to package directions.

Add 2 tbsp of the olive oil in the skillet, heat on medium. Add the onion, saute until it begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the bell peppers and garlic, continue to saute. Add the herbs. Gradually add the chicken broth (or white wine would do too) as need to keep a bit of liquid in the pan. When the peppers have softened, about 5 more minutes, add the sausage back into the skillet to re-heat and let the flavors meld.

Drain the pasta when cooked to your liking, and toss with the remaining tbsp olive oil. Add the sausage/onion mixture to the pasta, stir in well to fully coat the pasta with the sauce. Add the cheese & serve!

Notes: I find many pasta with sausage recipes call for a pound of sausage--which is too much sausage for my liking. On this one and many others I like to follow Thomas Jefferson's advice to use meat as flavoring for vegetables (and pasta--which Jefferson was the first to import to the U.S.). Adding a green with some bitterness would be a nice addition, kale or broccoli rabe come to mind.

Wine Pairing: "Meaty" is the first word that comes to mind for the '07 P. Lesec Costieres de Nimes that I served with the Ballpark Pasta. As someone who likes a good, hearty red wine, that is a complement. In fact, when I first tasted the wine I thought it would go well with sausage, and it did prove to be a good match. The wine has a peppery element which picked up the spicy element in the Andouille sausage. The wine comes from an AOC region in the Western Rhone, and is Grenache/Syrah/Mourvedre blend.

A Stop on the Road to Guacamole Perfection

OK, I don't know that there's such a thing as true guacamole "perfection", but there sure is a wide variation out there in guacamole recipe--which of course results into a wide range of tastes. I tend to consult whatever recipe I happen to quickly get my hands on, to refresh my memory about at least one version of the ingredients and proportions. About the only consistent theme is avocado. Tomatoes, onion, garlic, fresh cilantro, cumin, lime juice and more come and go.

My various guacamole concoctions are always tasty, but some are definitely better than others. I'm now going to try to pay a bit more attention and try to continually improve upon my recipe. I made it two days in a row this weekend to play with the recipe. The first day it didn't have enough kick--and the second day, recapped below had more...needs work, but a good point to build from....what would you add or change?

1 avocado

2 garlic cloves, finely diced

1 tbsp finely diced onion

1/2 tsp cumin

healthy pinch cayenne

1 tbsp lime juice

dash olive oil (helps w consistency)

salt & pepper to taste

Cut open the avocado, scoop the insides and mash in a small bowl. Vigorously stir in the remaining ingredients, mash again, then stir once more. Serve with tortilla chips. Save the peel and scoop the guacamole into it, and serve surrounded by chips for a nice presentation.

Wine pairing: I was sipping on the 2009 Tramin Pinot Grigio from Alto Adige with the guac yesterday. A very good wine ($15), and worked fairly well. But this Pinot Grigio as a taste of the sea in it, and is probably best suited for sea food (I had it first paired with clams cooked in broth made with the wine). Something with a touch of sweetness can go well with guac, a Riesling perhaps. A Gruner Veltliner could also work. And I see from the photo I just added, taken of a past batch of guac, that Picpoul de Pinet also was a nice match we've done for it.