So, on Friday night I am hosting a small get together with some family and friends to celebrate the season. I was thinking it would be fun to have a night filled with some of my favorite wines and beers and pair them with food. Over the weekend I went through all my cookbooks to get inspired and tried to come up with a menu filled with food that would please all palates. I love putting together a menu for a party or family gathering. It allows me to try out new recipes or sometimes even old recipes that I've changed a bit.
When planning I always think of what I want it to feel like and for Friday I want my friends to be comfortable and feel like they can rest their elbows on the table! The first dish I know I will make for Friday is a fig, prosciutto and red leaf salad. I love figs and prosciutto together, with the addition of red leaf lettuce, radicchio and Manchego cheese it becomes that sweet and salty dish we all crave when eating. The salad will be tossed with a light sherry vinaigrette. I haven't yet decided if I will be using fresh figs or dried, what the market has available will determine that.
For the pairing part because of flavor profile of the salad I thought a wine like Primitivo would be great paired with it. Primitivo is a dark red wine with bold fruity flavors. It is believed that this grape originated in Greece and it is not known when this particular grape variety was transported to Italy, but the history of this grape dates back many centuries. A fun fact about the primitivo grape is that it is said to be the father of the zinfandel grape, now so popular in California. I love Primitivo because it is low in acid, has a round body and finishes clean on the tongue. I also enjoy the fruit notes of the wine, they are subtle and somewhat savory.
Ok, one dish and one wine down! I will keep you posted on the rest of the menu tomorrow! Enjoy!
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