Socca (savory chickpea pancake)

Socca (savory chickpea pancakes)

Socca (savory chickpea pancake)

Topped with a Salad of Spring Lettuce
Egg, Feta, Radish, Chili, Olives, Dill, Lemon, Tahini Sauce

Socca, a savory chickpea pancake, is known as Nice’s original street food. Often served au naturel in Provence, cut into shards as snack, pleasantly with a glass of chilled rosé. Socca can also be served with all kinds of toppings for a delightful lunch. It is usually baked on a large round flat copper pan in a wood-burning oven.

In this recipe, nontraditional cumin and smoked paprika added to the batter mimic the smokiness of a wood-burning oven. And a non-stick skillet on the stovetop stands in for the copper pan and makes cooking the socca a breeze.

Socca As A Snack with Rosé

Socca as a snack with Rosé

Socca Recipe

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Strawberry Caprese Salad with Burrata

Strawberry Caprese Salad with Burrata

Strawberry Caprese Salad with Burrata

Not that our favorite Caprese salad (tomatoes, mozzarella, basil and olive oil) needed any improvement, but here, the classic savory summer salad is transformed by adding sweet strawberries & balsamic syrup. The combination is stellar.

Super-juicy and seductively aromatic, strawberries highlight the what is most memorable about this time of year’s produce. Tomatoes and strawberries have a curiously delightful affinity for each other. A light drizzle of aged balsamic vinegar adds a touch of sweet acid that brightens the entire dish. Creamy rich burrata takes the mozzarella to the next level.

By choosing only the best ingredients – fresh picked Italian basil, the juiciest most flavorful heirloom tomatoes, ripest organic strawberries, and high quality olive oil & aged balsamic vinegar – this salad can stand alone as a most satisfying evening meal. Serve with a good chilled rosé, and this dinner more than anything will evoke the pure taste of the season. No better way to enjoy a hot summer evening…

Strawberry Caprese Salad with Burrata Recipe

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rosé salad – a summer dish crafted to complement chilled dry rosé

shrimp, beet, raspberry, radicchio, rose salad

rosé salad
shrimp, beet, raspberry, radicchio, pickled red onion, rose petal salad

Hey summer! Where ya goin’? Not so fast, please! We’re holding on to summer by drinking our favorite pink wines: chilled dry French rosés which are the epitome of summer – light, fresh, and refreshing. This salad is crafted in a way so as to let the integrity of each ingredient shine, taking care not to overdress, but letting the raspberry vinegar and olive oil enhance the flavors. The spectrum of pink colors, fruity and flowery aromas, and range of flavors and textures beautifully complement rosé wines.

rosé salad recipe

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Asian Risotto: Sushi Rice, Shrimp, Thai Basil, Shiso, Yuzu

asian risotto, shrimp risotto

Asian Risotto
Sushi Rice with Rosé & Sautéed Shrimp
Flavored with Thai Basil, Shiso, and Yuzu
Chiffonade of Shiso Garnish

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Wood-Fired Pizza & Pink Wine POOL PARTY

wood-fired pizza

It’s about the heat. With temperatures between 750° and 800°F a wood-fired pizza oven delivers an exceptional pizza that simply cannot be matched by a regular oven. High heat creates flavors and textures that cannot be duplicated when pizza is cooked more slowly. A pizza cooks in under three minutes right on the oven floor. The crust is crisp on the bottom, the cheese is exquisitely melted and slightly browned, and the toppings are cooked to perfection. A thing of beauty, pure pizza bliss.

wood-fired outdoor pizza oven
wood-fired outdoor pizza oven

Our dear dear longtime friends, Chip & Pat, invited us all over for a pizza party. My nephews were thrilled to go swimming in their pool and hang out with the world’s most adorable dogs, Sophia & Luca. We brought along some pink wines to taste as well as ingredients for some pizzas. Chip had already prepared the dough and the pizza oven was heating up. We were looking forward to Pat’s caramelized onion and feta pizza, a perennial favorite…

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