Zinfandel Pairings

 

food that loves having dinner with zinfandel

Mushrooms

Mushrooms and Zinfandel create a fabulous pairing experience. The earthy flavors in mushrooms bring out Zinfandel’s natural fruit and spice. Sauté them in a pan or add a few to a hearty Italian dish to discover how the two complement each other in a delightful deliciousness. Enjoy!

Summer Zinchiladas

  • 1 dozen corn tortillas

  • Oil for frying

  • 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped

  • 1 (4 oz) can chopped olives

  • Two 20 oz cans of red or green enchilada sauce

  • Grated Cheddar cheese (1/2 lb)

  • Grated Swiss cheese (1/2 lb)

  • Small package of Goat or Feta cheeseHeat oil in skillet until hot.

Cooking Instructions

Heat Oil in skillet until hot

Heat enchilada sauce until boiling, then simmer.

Fry tortillas in skillet for about 3 seconds on each side. Use paper towel to soak up excess oil.

Dip fried tortilla quickly in sauce.

Place tortilla on plate.

Sprinkle onions and olives on tortilla.

Add shredded cheese.

Roll up tortilla, place in baking dish.

Repeat with remaining tortillas.

Pour remaining sauce over enchiladas.

Spread remaining Cheddar and Swiss cheese on top.

Sprinkle Goat or Feta cheese on top. Bake in oven at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until enchiladas are thoroughly heated and cheese melted

MORE GREAT PAIRINGS

Pork, Beef, Sausage
Rack of Lamb with Caponata
Barbecue Ribs
Pasta
Pasta Bolognese, Pasta with Sausage
Penne with Tomatoes and Red Pepper, Baked Ravioli

Mexican Food - Tacqueria-style Tacos, Chili

Cheeses - Asiago, Goat Cheese, Pecorino,
Sharp Aged Cheddar, Bellavitano

Seafood: Seared Ahi Tuna, Cioppino, Bouillabaise

Zinfully Good Spaghetti Sauce

  • 1 lb Italian Sausage

  • 1/2 lb Ground Beef

  • 0nion (1 - diced)

  • Bell Pepper (1 - diced)

  • Carrot (1 - finely diced)

  • Button Mushrooms (3/4 - 1 lb, small as possible with closed caps, do not chop or cut)

  • Garlic (1 full bud, about 10-12 cloves)

  • Whole Plum Tomatoes (2 - 28 oz cans in juice)

  • Olive Oil

  • Butter

  • Zinfandel

  • Basil (fresh, chopped)

  • Salt and Pepper to taste

  • Romano cheese (large fresh chunk for grating)

Cooking Instructions
Caramelize onions in a small amount of oil. When nicely browned, add peppers, carrots and a splash of Zin. Steam for a few moments and set aside. Crush garlic cloves with side of a knife and add to a glob of butter mixed with some olive oil. Slowly cook garlic until it starts to brown and the aroma fills the house. Remove garlic with some of the butter/oil and set aside. Add mushrooms to the garlic oil and sauté turning often until golden brown. Crumble the sausage and ground beef into the pan with the butter/oil mixture and brown. Once the meat is brown, add the whole tomatoes, crushing them in your hands to a pulp before they hit the meat. Add the remaining tomato juice from the can. Splash in more Zin and start to reduce the sauce. As the sauce is reducing, add back in the garlic with oil, mushrooms, and onion mixture. Salt and pepper to taste. As the sauce starts to thicken, add more Zin. I usually add at least 1/2 bottle of Zin and if I have the time, I will add the entire bottle and slowly reduce it until it becomes a nice thick meaty sauce. Serve over your favorite pasta, garnish with fresh basil and freshly grated Romano cheese.

Thanks to Dale Roberts for this great recipe.

Cameron's Four Cheese Pizza

This is our favorite Zinfandel Pairing. And you can watch Wolfgang Puck make a simplified version in a video on his website.
• 12 ounces ( 1/2 recipe) Pizza Dough (See separate recipe)
• 2 tablespoons prepared Pesto
• 2 tablespoons Oven-Dried Tomatoes (See separate recipe), cut into thin slices
• 1 cup grated mozzerella cheese
• 3/4 cup grated Fontina cheese (3 ounces)
• 2 Roma tomatoes, ends trimmed and cut into 12 slices
• 2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano leaves
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Pizza Cooking Instructions
Place a pizza stone on the middle rack of the oven and preheat the oven to 500°F. On a lightly floured surface, stretch or roll out the dough into one 10-inch round or two 8-inch rounds. Transfer dough to wooden pizza paddle or lightly-floured cookie sheet. Brush lightly with Pesto and scatter the Oven-Dried Tomatoes evenly around the inner circle of the pizza. Sprinkle with the mozzarella and Fontina cheeses, arrange the slices of the Roma tomatoes, and then sprinkle with the goat cheese, oregano, thyme, and finally the Parmesan cheese. Slide pizza off paddle or cookie sheet onto hot pizza stone. Bake until the pizza crust is nicely browned, 10 to 12 minutes.