MMMM-MMM!! Risottooooo! I love risotto. Like pasta, you can add so many things to this versatile dish and the flavour combinations are endless. This recipe calls for red wine. Some people say that you should cook only with the wine that you are drinking with the meal. I can’t help but wonder who these people are. They must be crazy rich people with an endless cellar full of fancy wine. That can get expensive. If I was saving a special bottle of wine that had sentimental value, or was rare and costly the last thing that I would do is pour it into a cooking pan. That being said, you also shouldn’t pour some cheap hooch in the dish that you are slaving over either, or else or dish will taste like cheap hooch. I use wine that tastes good enough to drink (in other words, you shouldn’t wince when you drink it) and is affordable.  So here we have a risotto recipe with red wine and MUSHROOMS, yum!  We need a sturdy wine to balance out the richness of the dish. It sh

In my house pizza is a something that we make several times a month. I make the dough, my husband makes the sauce, the kids cut the toppings (and eat half of them in the process). Then comes the phenomena of the magic hand. For some reason, when my husband assembles the pizza, it somehow looks better and tastes better. There is no scientific reason to explain this occurrence, which is why I call it the magic hand phenomena. So with this magic pizza, we need a wine that is easy to drink with some tannin (but not too much) and a nice amount of fruit, like the Martín Berdugo Joven. It is a young red made from the Tempranillo grape and because of it’s youth it has a lot of fruit but it is also low in tannins. Perfect for pizza.

This recipe was chosen for Walter Buchegger Holzgasse because it's a light and easy wine that needs something light and easy to match. You can throw everything together rather quickly and the ingredients are readily available. And as an added bonus, I made three tasty topping variations. Flammkuchen is not inherently a heavy dish, so it pairs great with this light and happy Grüner Veltliner. 

What should one pair with an easy drinking Grüner Veltliner? How about a delicious gooey French toast with Gruyère cheese and a fat slice of tomato? So yummy it will take you to a higher level of comfort food heaven. Baked golden brown…. I get food coma just thinking about it!

The beautiful pink of rosé wine and the green, green, GREEN of this sophisticated soup is eye-popping! What’s even better is that everything tastes as good as it looks. And the best part is that it is so unbelievably easy you will shake your head in disbelief. I based my recipe off of one originally written by Nigella Lawson, of whom I am an absolute fan. The fresh flavor of the peas pairs perfectly with the bright freshness of the Walter Buchegger Rosé, Pinot & Co . The mild flavor of barlauch with the roasted pine nuts marries perfectly with the Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Zweigelt grapes that are used to make this crisp Rosé.

If you like Paella, you will love Fideua (pronounced: fid-ay-wa). This dish from Valencia is like the little sister to Paella but prepared with Fideus (a small thin Spanish pasta) instead of rice. I decided to pair this recipe with a 2009 Brut Nature Cava, Vendrell Olivella by Mas Goma. The Cava has a nice lingering acidity and a sturdy structure that pairs well with this rustic Spanish dish. I made a vegan version (because, why not?) with roasted vegetables, but if you prefer to add seafood or meat, knock yourself out!  Oh, and it is often prepared in a special earthenware dish called a Cazuela, but I didn’t have one, so I used a paella pan.

Did you know that the cornichon in the picture is completely jealous of the potato that gets to wear the melted cheese version of a fur coat? She was complaining to the pearl onion about it for most of the food photo shoot. But we all know that the real talent in this dish is the cheese. Raclette is a fabulous cheese and a tradtional meal that originated in Switzerland. Technicaly one only needs five ingredients to eat Racclette as a meal: Raclette, cornichons, pickled pearl onions, boiled potatoes, and fresh ground black pepper. No wait! I forgot the wine! Okay, six ingredients. Personally, I like my racclette with a nice Savoie, like Domaine De la Chancelière Chignin Savoie. Why? It has a nice zippy acidity that cuts through the richness of the cheese and a fruitiness that is also complimentary. For me, this is a perfect meal (best enjoyed while wearing pajama pants). 

This recipe grew out of another recipe that my mother-in-law used to make for my husband when he was a child. The original recipe was with emmentaler cheese and chopped ham. I decided to swap out the emmentaler for Goat Cheese because its freshness pairs better with Sauvignon Blanc.

I tried this wine for the first time when I visited Altùn last spring. Alberto and Iker are the two brothers and wine makers, for whom the wine is named, served this lovely wine with careta.  Careta is the face of a pig. Perfectly grilled, the careta had a crispy texture with a wonderful “porky” flavor and it was delicious. However, as I don't have any experience with pig face, I paired this lovely wine with a different tapas that has ingredients that are readily available.  This tapas can be made any time of year and it doesn't have a million ingredients. The Altùn Albiker matches well with the Manchego and Roncol cheeses used in this simple dish. Add some crusty bread and chorizo and you have turned your tapas into a nice little meal. And if you should ever find yourself in Spain, try the Careta.

I love Gyoza! I love their versatility. You can serve them as an elegant appetizer, side dish, and if you put enough on a plate you have a meal. Traditional Gyoza are usually made with pork but I made a vegan version accidentally unpurpose. I was envisioning an elegant cocktail party while writing this recipe, with Air playing in the background, and some good friends. This fuller bodied Cava’s creaminess and perfect balance between fruit and acidity pairs so well with the lovely Gyoza…..  

Some say Coca is the Catalan version of Italian pizza. Like pizza, the topping combinations can be endless but usually don't include cheese. Coca also has a sweet variation that is often served for Spanish holidays. This recipe is for a savory version and just happens to be Joan Vendrell Olivella’s preferred Coca. How do I know? He told me so. The smokiness of the vegetables pair wonderfully with the crisp acidity of the Cava which also shows elegance from its time maturing. Ooh! Ah!