CHEESE PLATE

I love wine.  I love cheese.  I love wine and cheese together. 

So when I didn't have dinner planned, I decided to put together a few key components (protein, vegetable, starch) and call it a tasting!

For this sort of "dinner" or tasting, be creative as you wish.  I had the chance of shopping at Fairway Market last weekend and discovered their extensive cheese shop.  I could have stayed all night sampling cheeses and imagining what wines and snacks would pair well  BUT I didn't have all night and eventually other customers would have come along looking for a try or two.  The shopping trip did inspire me for this dish:

WHAT YOU'LL FIND HERE (left - down - right)

• Hand Cut French Fries-russet potatoes cut into frie shape drizzled with olive oil and seasoned with Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning Salute and a dash of Kosher salt - roasted at 400 degrees (40 min) 
• Trader Joe's Double Cream Brie Cheese
• Fairway English Cheese with Cranberries-drizzled with a touch of honey
• Fairway Moliterno Cheese laced with Black Truffle (warning this is potent but seductively delicious)
• Blue Diamond Nut Thins, Country Ranch Crackers (gluten free of course!)
• Green Grapes
• Edamame sauteed in gf soy sauce and minced garlic
• Trader Joe's Basil Pesto Chicken Sausage and Jalapeno Chicken Sausage
• Dipping Sauces: spicy brown mustard and ketchup infused with hot sauce.

  
WHAT I WAS DRINKING:

Bedell Vineyards Taste White (Long Island): fusion of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Gewürztraminer and Viognier (with a frozen strawberry in place of an ice cube).

Riunite Lambrusco: an Italian semisweet, fizzy red wine served chilled.

ALSO on the table:
Rose Champagne
Prosecco
Jones Winery Harvest Time (Connecticut, blend of apples and pears)
Jones Winery Strawberry Serenade (CT, bubbly)
Garnacha
Temparnillo
Jumilla
Syrah

This sort of dinner is different and can be a lot of fun.  I didn't start this with the intention to pair wines with foods specifically-again I just love wine and cheese!  My best suggestion:  take what you have in your refrigerator and pantry, place it on a large serving platter, pour yourself a glass, or two, (or three...) and RELAX!!