Risotto Portobello, Vegan Wine & More!

A few weeks ago The Vegan Vine sent me a few bottles of their wine to try. I had hoped to throw a little wine tasting party, but with so much on my calendar, I just wasn’t sure I could fit a party into my schedule, or my budget! But, I certainly wanted to try their wine & share it with others. So, on Monday evening, my Mom & I put together a little wine-pairing dinner at her home…

One of the wines I received from The Vegan Vine was their Red Blend, which they describe as having:

Aromas of dark red cherries, raspberries & blackberries. A hint of cedar & vanilla. Bright fruit flavors on the entry with a solid dose of acidity. Medium tannins round out this interesting blend of grapes.

I typically shy away from wines titled “red blends,” either going for a Sangiovese or Pinot Noir, but this was surprisingly a very lovely wine & it paired very nicely with our summer meal.

For our appetizer course, we picked some fresh cherry tomatoes from the plants my Mom has been growing on her patio & made a Fresh Tomato Bruschetta. We followed this recipe but substituted red & yellow cherry tomatoes. We also spread about ½ of the crostini with store-bought edamame hummus (which is highly addicting) before topping with the tomato mixture. It added a nice creaminess & flavor to the bruschetta. For some greens, we both love a simple arugula salad & thought this would be a nice way to add some ruff age to our plate! We topped the greens with a zesty blend of fresh lemon juice & zest, olive oil, garlic, fresh parsley, salt & pepper - one of my favorite ways to dress a salad.

The main course was a Portobello Mushroom Risotto, which was The Vegan Vine’s suggested pairing with their Red Blend. After finding mostly non-vegan recipes, we came up with our own vegan version.

RISOTTO PORTOBELLO

Author: Melissa, Honey Bee Vegan

Recipe Type: Risotto, Main Dish

Cuisine: Vegan

Serves: 6

INGREDIENTS

• 6 cups organic mushroom broth

• 4 Tbsp vegan butter of

• ½ cup minced onion

• 1 large portobello mushroom cap, quartered & thinly sliced

• ¼ cup fresh basil, minced

• 2 cups arborio rice

• ½ cup dry white wine

• 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast

• 1 pinch of saffron threads

• Vegan parmesan for topping

INGREDIENTS

1. Heat the broth & keep it warm. Reserve a half a cup to reconstitute the saffron.

2. Heat 3 tablespoons of butter in the skillet & add onion, stirring until soft, 4-5 minutes. Add the mushrooms & cook on low heat, until soft. Add the rice & stir quickly for a minute or two until translucent & well coated with butter. Stir in the wine & keep stirring until it is almost absorbed. Add the saffron broth & stir.

3. Continue stirring & add warm broth ½ cup at a time for about 20 minutes.

4. After adding the last of the broth, add the other tablespoon of butter, the nutritional yeast, & fresh basil & whip it through. Taste, adjust the seasoning & sprinkle with vegan parmesan if desired.

By the time we finished prepping & cooking the weather had cooled down, so we enjoyed our dinner outdoors in the backyard at dusk. It was perfect. Great food, great wine, & great company. This was so much fun & I was so excited to finally get into that tasty Vegan Vine Wine! I’m looking forward to taking a bottle of their Sauvignon Blanc to share at a “Vegan Garden Dinner” I am attending this weekend. I bet it will be fabulous!