My boyfriend and I had an extra long workday yesterday – I knew he’d come home exhausted and hungry, and on such a hot day, I didn’t have a lot of energy to spend on cooking dinner. I wanted to make something fast and easy that wouldn’t heat up my kitchen too badly, and wanted to set a pretty table outside for our meal.
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Luckily I had a Costco spinach ravioli package on hand. Ravioli takes less than five minutes to cook on the stove, so I could get in and out of my kitchen fast. I wasn’t exactly going to sit around whisking up a homemade alfredo sauce, either, so I confess to just opening a jar of Newman’s Own.
I set out a pretty candle to fancy up the table a bit, but couldn’t light it – the scent would interfere with our enjoyment of the food and wine. A little posy vase holds yellow flowers I snagged from one of our hanging planters, but they sadly drooped in the heat.
I struggled to arrange the ravioli and alfredo attractively on the plate without it looking “gloppy,” and added some fresh basil leaves from my herb garden. A fresh green salad took no time at all to assemble, and I’d fortunately thought to pick up a loaf of Italian bread when I was out doing errands earlier in the day. Salad, pasta and bread is about the most simple dinner ever, but I wish our garden tomatoes were ready to harvest and slice up as an accompaniment.
Next I moved on to figuring out what wine to serve with our meal. I guessed we’d be lounging around on the outdoor chaise this evening, in between moving sprinklers around the garden and lawns.
Most ravioli and pasta wine pairing guides I read recommended white wines to pair with creamy alfredo sauce and cheese raviolis. I wasn’t in the mood for a Pinot Grigio, a Riesling or a Viognier, despite the warm weather. I really was craving a red wine, and felt like rebelling against centuries of common wisdom.
This Italian wine pairing guide suggests Sangiovese works with both tomato based and creamy sauces. Many wine pairing guides for pastas and raviolis specifically mention Chianti. Since Sangiovese is the primary grape used to make Chianti, I thought why not just use a straight up Sangiovese? So I risked opening my 2012 Five Star Cellars Sangiovese. I’d pour a small glass for my beer-drinking boyfriend, but offer him a beer to enjoy with his meal as well.
And you know what? It all worked out. The Sangiovese was as smooth and delicious as I remembered, it paired well enough with the food, and I enjoyed it after dinner was cleared away and we watched our nightly entertainment: dogs wrestling happily in the yard and running away from the sprinklers!
-Carrie
RESOURCES:
Styling:
Cobalt blue wine glasses: HomeGoods Woodinville
“Floreale” serving platter, serving spoon and tablerunner: Sur la Table
Paddywax Lemon and Rosemary apothecary candle: Cost Plus World Market
