You may recall that I told you a few weeks ago that I’m trying to learn more about wine, especially how to pair wine with food. Many of you gave me some great resources – Thank You! I also recently received an invitation to attend a Macy’s Culinary Council event featuring Andrea Robinson, renowned Master Sommelier, author and chef. Just what I needed. (I also got to meet Melissa!)

I can say, without a doubt, that I loved Andrea Robinson. She was engaging and warm without an inkling of being haughty.

I really appreciated her “rules,” the first being that there are no “rules” when it comes to pairing food and wine.

it’s not the protein, it’s the prep that you are matching

body with body – to acheive balance

pair intense herbs with intense, big reds

the fermentation element in foods (vinegar, cured meat, etc.) pairs well with the fermentation process that wine undergoes

everything goes with bubbles

In addition to being one of 16 female Master Sommeliers, she is the author of a number of books on wine and food, (I purchased Great Wine Made Simple), chef and most recently, the developer of a new set of wine glasses, The One. She prepared some delicious food to go along with some delicious wines for us to sample!

First was an edamame pesto that I will be making soon, it was delicious and fresh-tasting. The St. Supéry Sauvingon Blanc that was paired along with it was excellent as well. It was delightfully citrusy and refreshing on a 90 degree day. This pairing was an example of the similar fermentation elements between food and wine (ie. the toasted sesame oil and wine both being aged in a barrel)

While the proscuitto & sage crusted pork was very good, it was the last dish she made that I’m still thinking about. Skeptics of the world, the chocolate & chorizo toasts were my favorite of the evening. Salty & Sweet is a combination I’m sure I’ll never grow tired of, but the creamy chocolate with salty chorizo was the ultimate of sweet & salty. I can’t wait to make this again…I’ve just got to find a crowd with an open mind. Any takers?

There are times when I like my salad to have some meat to it. Literally.  And this salad fits that bill precisely.

It is filling and flavorful, an easy way to fit in your vegetables and incredibly easy to put together. When I make salads for lunch I need them to keep me satisfied for a few hours and I also need them to come together in a pinch so I don’t spend hours the night before on my lunch. (Someday I’ll start making peanut butter and jelly) The pulled pork came from Brasa, a local rotisserie, and so any part of this salad that would have taken any time was done for me. The rest required a bit of chopping and I was left with an amazing brown bag lunch.

Cuban Cobb Salad - 2 servings

• 10 cups romaine and baby romaine lettuce
• 2 cups cucumbers, chopped
• 1 cup yellow pepper, chopped
• 1 avocado, mashed
• 1 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup sweet butter pickles, roughly chopped
• 4 slices smoked ham, thinly sliced
• 1/4 pound pulled pork
• dijon dressing, see below

Layer all ingredients over lettuce and drizzle with dijon dressing.

Dijon Dressing

• 1 Tbsp dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tsp honey

Whisk all ingredients together.