Dinner- Homemade Italian Dinner

I had a group of coworkers over for a nice Italian dinner I decided to make. I work at Starbucks along side four of the girls that came. Two of the girls boyfriends came along with a girlfriend of a coworker of mine who unfortunately had to work this evening. We are a big happy family and enjoy spending time with each other outside of work. I am thankful enough to have such good friends like them here back home while I spend my semester here. On the plus side they were all old enough to join me in my wine tasting for this class! I hosted and prepared everything myself. I started my job at Starbucks in high school and have worked for the company on and off for roughly four years. One thing I've learned from working at Starbucks and taking this class is that tasting coffee and wine has very similar techniques and the descriptors can help me in both scenarios.

 (My house in quaint Hanover, NH. This picture was taken only a week prior. Yes, fresh snow in April here!)

STARTER

For an appetizer I made baked brie that was coated in raspberry preserves and croissant. This is one of my favorites! If you haven't tried it I highly recommend it-it's delicious and easy to make! Take ten minutes maximum. I also had olives and Genoa salami as an option as well.
   
(baked brie and plain crackers; genoa salami; olives; glass of Zinfandel)

The zinfandel without anything tasted of plum and cherry and had a medium for a dark red and fairly juicy on its own. The brie settles the wine and really brings out the raspberry. This made the finish last a little longer. This wine is from San Fransisco Bay, California and runs around 20 dollars a bottle.

MAIN COURSE

I knew red wine went well with tomato and meat sauce so I decided to make this dish following this recipe I found online.  https://www.sargento.com/recipes/italian/6-cheese-italian-sausage-pasta
I was so busy visiting with my company that I almost forgot to take a picture of the food. As you can tell the plates are pretty much empty at this point. This picture below that, I posted is from the online recipe.
  (homemade baked pasta with meat sauce)
(Italian sausage & pasta recipe)  (Shiraz, 2015)

I paired this main course with this 2015 Shiraz, produced in South Africa. This bottle that is about $15 a bottle, was actually brought by one of my friends who joined me for the dinner. The shiraz is a dark red and tasted earthy and had a hint of wood. The pasta brought out the fruity notes of this wine; I personally picked up on cherry and spice with the food.


DESERT

 
(moose chocolate cake accompanied with a pinot noir)

For desert we had a deliciously rich chocolate cake made from a local bakery shop called lou's. Lou's has been open since the 1940s. This chocolate moose cake is a fan favorite. I only ever have it on special occasions but I thought that this night was a good time to have one. I decided to pair this cake with a pinot noir. Smelling the wine before eating or drinking it I picked up on an aroma of fruit and spice. This wine has a long lasting finish with tannin. The cake brings out the raspberry flavor and makes the chocolate linger on the tongue. This Black Mountain Pinot Noir is from Harro Hills, California and 2011 vintage. It is a cheaper wine and I think in the future I would get a more expensive and flavorful pinot noir.


Overall I had a great night with some great friends! It's not often that I get to cook for a lot of people, it's definitely easier to cook for just a couple of people. I wasn't sure what everyone would like so I tried to go with someone I thought would be a crowd pleaser. It was nice to have people together outside of work and talk about our lives and also teach them a little about what I have learned about this class! Many of my friends who came are not avid wine drinkers but I am confident in saying everyone left with a little more knowledge. I would love to do something like this again!