February 2023 Food Pairing

February 2023 Food Pairing

This past weekend we got to enjoy yet another incredible food pairing! The club release this weekend was a 'choose your own adventure', meaning that club members could choose any two bottles as their wine club shipment. This gave Kimari and Tricia free reign as far as food pairings were concerned. Our guests were able to enjoy some excellent pairings with the 2020 Estate Tempranillo and 2020 Estate Zinfandel. These are both great wines to pair with food, but the pairings we offered may not be what you might expect! Below I've shared the recipes so that you can try them with your Shadow Ranch wine at home!

2020 Estate Tempranillo paired with Smoked Gouda Pimiento Cheese and Root Vegetable Chips

This crowd pleaser is easy to make and to serve! A great option for a slightly elevated Super Bowl dip or as an appetizer at any dinner party. The combination of smokiness and fattiness of the smoked gouda were the key to the pairing with Tempranillo. Tempranillo is a naturally more tannic wine, so the fats in the cheese help to mellow out that astringency. The smokiness of the cheese helps bring out the rich oak flavors in this wine, which was aged in french oak for 18 months. We chose to use colorful root vegetable chips as the vehicle for this cheese, but you can use any chips you like or even vegetable sticks!

Ingredients:

1 cup mayonnaise

8oz block cream cheese room temperature

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

½ tsp garlic powder

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

¼ tap cayenne

 7oz jar of pimientos

8oz shredded Cheddar

16oz shredded Gouda

 

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together and refrigerate. It’s that easy.

Enjoy with your favorite chips, crackers, or veggies!

 

2020 Estate Zinfandel paired with Mini Chicken and Waffles with a drizzle of Habanero Honey

Now this pairing really surprised me! Our 2020 Estate Zinfandel has an oakier characteristic than many of the foothill zinfandels available in our area. The hint of spice in the habanero honey really brought out the oaky spices in the zinfandel, making for a great pairing. With mini waffles and chicken tenders this normally large and heavy dish is transformed into an adorable and elegant appetizer! 

Ingredients:

20oz frozen popcorn chicken

1 ¾ cup flour

2 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

3 Tbs sugar

½ tsp salt

3 eggs

1 ½ cups buttermilk

1 stick of butter melted

Honey

Chives finely chopped

 

Directions

Air fry the chicken according to the directions on the package.

For the waffles:

Wisk together all dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Wisk together eggs and buttermilk. Slowly add the melted and cooled butter.

Add dry mixture one scoop at a time until well mixed.

Batter should be thick and a little lumpy.

Using a little more melted butter brush your heated mini waffle maker and start cooking up the waffles.

Assemble and dress with honey and chives.