Wine and food pairing

Braciole messinese, caponata barocca and Rossobrillo Etna wine red DOC

If you are both fodie and wine lover, this column about wine and food pairing is for you!

Certainly, reading these articles, that will be published monthly on our website, you’ll find ideas on how match the wines that we produce with delicious recipes typical of the Sicilian tradition.

In other words, food and wine, are deeply connected. Knowing how to combine wine with a dish, as a result, is very useful, since wine is an integral part of the enogastronomic tradition and we will cook the dishes together step by step.

First recipe of wine and food pairing: the caponata barocca

The recipe that we are going to show you is a secondo dish of meat, accompanied by a side dish of colourful and tasty vegetables, the Sicilia Caponata Barocca! Above all, both dishes will be marched with an Etna red DOC wine, natura wine, without any addition of sulphites, a wraparound , soft and delicate tannin wine: Rossobrillo.

Rossobrillo 2018 is an Etna DOC born from young vineyards of Nerello Mascalese a convivial wine to be shared with friends.

So, come on. Let’s do the deed. Apron, goblet of wine in hand, and everyone ready in front of the stove!

INGREDIENTS OF CAPONATA BAROCCA:

• 4 long aubergines
• 1 white onion
• Tomato paste or tomato sauce
• 2 celery
• 3 potatoes
• 2 peppers
• 2 carrots
• 1 handful of raisins
• 1 handful of pine nuts
• Sugar just enough
• Vinegar just enough
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Modican Chocolate

After washing, peeling and dicing all the vegetables, with a little oil, fry them separately. After that, mix the condiments together and put them back in the casserole. Secondly, brown them adding little by little the tomato paste or suace: let the taste of these ingredients blend together, let yourselves be elated by these good smells. Consequently add two teaspoons of sugar (it Is also fine brown sugar) and blend with the vinegar. As soon as all the vinegar has evaporated, our caponata will be almost ready.

Above all: remember not to keep the flame too high, and always stir, avoiding that the vegetables stick to the bottom of the casserole.

In conclusion, to complete this appetizing dish, we advise you to add some Modican chocolate flakes: they will enhance the flavour, balancing the sweet and sour taste of the vegetables and the strong taste of the chocolate.

As a result, this particular and small variant determines a stronger and more fragrant taste, which gives the dish its name: the baroque caponata (la caponata barocca). The adjective baroque, to clarify, derives from chocolate, which is produced in Modica, one of the baroque cities for excellence of the Sicilian artistic heritage.

Second recipe: Messinese Braciole

In addition, today we combine this delicious side dish with a meat main course, from the province of Messina, the “braciole alla messinese”.

A tasty and quick meat dish, not too complex, that with a young red wine, and delicate tannin like Rossobrillo, blends perfectly with it.

INGREDIENTS:

• 500 grams of Beef (carpaccio or escalope cut)
• 220 grams of breadcrumbs
• 150 grams of nebrodi provola
• 1 tablespoon grated pecorino; 1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
• Half a clove of garlic finely chopped
• Parsley finely chopped
• Oil, salt, pepper just enough

After cutting the provola cheese into cubes, spread the slices of beef on a cutting board. Secondly, put a cube of cheese and a teaspoon of mixture in the middle of the slices. For the quantities, you can adjust according to the size of the slices. Meanwhile, very carefully, roll the slice on itself, and close them: a closed but very soft dumpling will come out.  Subsequently, brush it with some oil, and dip it in the breadcrumb mixture. Thus proceed with all the slices of beef. In short, the braciola messinese is now ready: put the individual rolls in a wooden skewer, separating them if you want with a bay leaf.

In conclusion, cook them in a non-stick pan or on a grill, preheated, over moderate heat. They should cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side, until they are golden brown and ready to eat.

Enjoy your meal!

Here we are at least, ready to taste our superb dishes: caponata barocca, braciole at Messina way, accompanied by Rossobrillo 2018 Etna DOC wine. A riot of flavors that balance each other, for a dinner or lunch in company, jovial, without sacrificing the taste enveloping and persistent.

The look is connected to the way it tastes, so if you really want to amaze your diners, we suggest you to decorate the dish with Etna nocellara olives, accompanied by homemade bread croutons.

Don’t miss our other wine and food pairing recipes. Many tricks and advices await you!