The paths to happiness are often closed.....

Remember a few weeks ago when I said that I love wine – and I mean REALLY love wine?  Well, I do – it wasn’t a lie although I know I haven’t talked about wine at all since then.  Well, today is the day for me to talk about wine – a new one we tried tonight (*gasp* on a Tuesday?! Yep, on FAT Tuesday, thankyouverymuch!).  So anyway, I forgot to add to my “things I’m reading now” list the Wine Lover’s Devotional by Jonathon Alsop– I’m sort of reading it…when I can remember that I’m reading it and I’m not still going through all those cooking magazines I have stockpiled.  So anyway, I was reading the Devotional this morning – trying to catch up with lost time – and I came across a recipe.  A recipe!!!  In a wine book!!!  I was beside myself with excitement – especially since the recipe I found went really well with the spaghetti I was planning for dinner!  It was like FATE – food fate!! 

Of course I decided to make the recipe – Oven-Roasted Tomato Sauce – and, well, would it surprise you to know that I felt the need to go in search of the recommended wine pairing?  Of course not!  And, if you were surprised, you haven’t been paying attention.  Anyway, I was really excited because, not only did I get to try a new recipe, I got to go check out the cute little wine boutique down in Pensacola – okay, fine, I’ve been saying I live in Florida and I do, but the area I live in is referred to as lower Alabama.  It’s pretty country without all the hayseeds.  But, my neighbors do have a pony – one of those mini Shetlands or something like that.  But I digress. 

Off I went in search of the cute wine boutique (and search I did!  You see, there's all kinds of construction going on in downtown Pensacola and all the roads that my GPS was telling me to turn on were closed!  I was so disappointed that I thought I might cry!  Instead, I found a parking lot, pulled in and called for help.  Directions followed - AHA, not ALL roads were closed and away I went!) – Aragon Wine Market for those that live in this area – and I was NOT disappointed.  They have some seriously awesome selections and I totally salivated at the window of the room where the really high-end wines were housed.  I was tempted to go in but I’m on a budget.  Okay, I bought 4 bottles (she totally twisted my arm on the 4^th!  I was only planning on 3 bottles but….okay, my arm was starting to twist before she opened her mouth – I was definitely an easy mark and it was Robert Foley wine…I would have been silly to walk away).  Unfortunately, I didn’t find the one I was specifically looking for – the one that was recommended as a pairing for the tomato sauce, a Taurino Notarpanaro from Puglia, Italy– so I used my trusty phone and internet connection and looked up the descriptor of the wine (smoke and wood flavors, with essence of rich, ripe figs and plums) and tried to find something comparable.  Now, not knowing a whole bunch about Italian wines put me at a slight disadvantage but the bonus of small wine boutiques is that the proprietress usually knows LOADS about the wine she carries and can answer many questions.  So, after careful consideration, I decided to bring home a La Lus 2007 da uve Albarossa. 

The Albarossa is a new varietal grape – a hybrid of the Nebbiolo and the Barbera.  The Nebbiolo brings structure and the Barbera brings bouquet, which is winespeak for aroma and flavor.  I made a great choice!  This is a FABULOUS wine!  It was $27 which isn’t inexpensive by any stretch but for a wine this delicious, it’s a pretty darn good price because I’ve tasted other wines just as delicious that retailed at more than $50 a bottle.  Comparatively, this wine is quite reasonably priced.  The Albarossa has a lovely, deep ruby color and smells of cherry and possibly blackberry fruit (okay, I have a little cold and my sniffer is a little stuffed) and smoke and licorice.  I also thought that it smelled of jam – like when you first open a jam jar.  My husband thought it smelled great, smooth, slightly fruity.  I swirled the wine in the glass – this opens up the smells – and offered it to both Things 1 and 2 for a sniff to get their opinions.  No, they didn’t taste – they are just wine sniffers.  J  Thing 2, who has a slightly more sophisticated sense of smell, thought it smelled like a grape Warhead.  I went back for a sniff and totally smelled grape soda!  I love getting other opinions!  How did I miss that before?  I think I was too busy trying to be clinical – don’t do that.  When you sniff a wine, do it for enjoyment.  We adults have too many things going on in our brains at times – sometimes you have to think like a child to really enjoy something.  It’s crazy, I know, but it’s true.

And, BONUS, the wine went spectacularly with my tomato sauce!  (phew!  Tomato sauce can be pretty acidic and it’s hard to match a wine to those flavors.)  I made meatballs alongside the sauce but didn’t throw them in while cooking – I wanted to try the sauce as the recipe called it to be made.  The sauce was delicious!  Oven-roasting the tomatoes really brings out a sweetness that you don’t get with a stove-top cooked sauce.  Yum!  I highly recommend that you give it a try whether you decide to try the wine or not.

Okay, here’s the recipe for the sauce.  Happy cooking, eating and drinking!

Oven-roasted Tomato Sauce

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, diced

7 garlic cloves, minced

1 can (12 ounces) artichoke hearts, drained

1/3 cup pitted black or green olives

1 can (28 ounces) Italian plum tomatoes

½ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon dried basil or 7 leaves fresh basil

½ cup dry white wine

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley, optional

¼ cup grated Asiago cheese (or other good hard, dry Italian cheese), optional (I used parmeggiano-reggiano)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large cast-iron skillet or other oven-safe dish.  Add the onion and garlic, and cook slowly until the onion softens.

Turn up the heat to medium-high, and add the artichokes and olives.  Cook for 2 to 4 minutes, until the artichokes start to brown.  Add the tomatoes, salt, sugar, and basil.  Bring to a quick simmer, and cook for 5 minutes.  Break up the tomatoes by mashing them once or twice with a big fork or potato masher.

Add the wine to the skillet, stir once, then place in the oven to cook for 20 to 30 minutes.  Serve over bread, pasta, or risotto.  Top with parsley and Asiago cheese.

TIP: Watch your sauce in the oven.  If it starts to look too thick, add a little more white wine or a little water.  Also, feel free to experiment with the recipe by replacing the artichokes and olives with other favorite ingredients, such as eggplants and caper berries, or cannelloni beans and roasted peppers.

Served 6 to 8