Let me preface by saying this is the easiest meal to make. Depending on what ingredients I have in the fridge, quickly throwing together a bunch of ‘fixins and chopping them up will surely make a happy lunch. I like to pair my salads with our Unfiltered Orange Wine. I feel the dry, gingery notes play well with salad dressings and my famous pickled onions.

Directions

1. Chop everything and throw in a bowl
2. Happily douse with homemade dressing

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Dressing directions: I love making different dressings depending on what salad ingredients I have. A classic dressing is red wine vinegar, our Original Olive oil, dijon mustard, salt and pepper, and if you’ve got one, chopped scallions add a little kick.

This bolognese is a must-make. It does take a bit of effort but it’s totally worth it. I like to pair it with our Syrahvá for rich jammy counterpart, or our Grenache red if I want a lighter mouth feel.

Directions

• Pulse onion, celery, and carrot in a food processor until very finely chopped. Transfer to a small bowl.
• Heat oil in a large pot over medium. Break beef into small clumps (about 1½”) and add to pot; season lightly with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally but not breaking meat apart, until beef is lightly browned but not crisp, 6–8 minutes. It may be gray in spots (that’s okay!) and still a little pink in the center. Using a slotted spoon, transfer beef to a medium bowl.
• Wipe out pot. Cook pancetta in pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until pancetta has released some of its fat and is crisp, 6–8 minutes. Add onion mixture to pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are very soft and beginning to stick to surface, 6–8 minutes.
• Return beef to pot and pour in wine. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, smashing down on beef with a wooden spoon, until wine is evaporated, surface of pot is almost dry, and meat is finely ground, 12–15 minutes. (The meat should be reduced to what looks like little bits. It takes a bit of effort, but you can take breaks.) Add tomato paste, bay leaf, and nutmeg and cook, stirring occasionally and still pressing down on meat, until tomato paste is slightly darkened, about 5 minutes.
• Pour stock and milk into pot; add a pinch of salt. Reduce heat to the lowest setting and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until meat is very, very tender, 2–2½ hours. There shouldn’t be any rapid bubbles at this stage. Instead, the sauce should release the occasional small bubble or two. When finished, the sauce should have the texture of and look like a sloppy joe mixture. If the liquid reduces before the meat is completely tender, add an extra ½ cup stock and continue cooking. Discard bay leaf. Taste sauce and adjust seasoning with salt; keep warm.
• Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water. If using fresh pasta, cook about 3 minutes. If using dry, cook until very al dente, about 2 minutes less than package directions.
• Using tongs, transfer pasta to pot with sauce. Add 1 cup pasta cooking liquid and ½ cup Parmesan. Increase heat to medium, bring to a simmer, and cook, tossing constantly, until pasta is al dente and liquid is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.
• Transfer pasta to a platter and top with more Parmesan.
• Do Ahead: Sauce can be made 4 days ahead. Cover and chill.
  

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This Recipe is for 2 chocolate cakes. It’s the perfect date night dessert. We like to pair it with Claudia’s Rosé or our Unfiltered Natural Rosé. The rosés are dry and fruit forward, which lightly tickles the tongue after a decadent chocolatey bite.

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Instructions

1. Spray each ramekin lightly with nonstick spray.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C) degrees.
3. Coarsely chop 2 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate. Set the other ounce aside. Combine the chopped chocolate and heavy cream in a medium heatproof bowl. Microwave for about 25 seconds. Remove from the microwave and vigorously stir until melted and combined. Reheat in 5 second increments if needed, stirring after each increment. Once melted and smooth, whisk in the brown sugar until no lumps remain. Whisk in the oil, egg, and vanilla until combined. Set aside.
4. In a small bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and baking soda together. Pour into the wet ingredients and fold with a rubber spatula until all of the ingredients are mixed without any lumps. Pour evenly into the ramekins; they should be just around 3/4 of the way full. If you have too much batter (you shouldn’t), make a mini cupcake in a cupcake pan. Cut the remaining 1 ounce of chocolate in half – or use less if you want the cakes to be less gooey. Drop it into the centers of the cakes and use a spoon to fully submerge it.
5. Bake ramekins on a baking sheet for 15-16 minutes, rotating the sheet at the 8 minute mark. If you’re worried they are too underbaked, bake for another minute or two. The centers are supposed to be slightly gooey and there is melted chocolate inside. Serve warm.

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NOTES:

1. Larger Batches: If you would like more than 2 cakes, this recipe may easily be doubled or tripled. If making 6 cakes (tripling the recipe), use two full eggs. 1 full egg is not enough for making 4 cakes (doubling the recipe). You would need to beat 2 eggs and use 4 Tablespoons of egg.

1. Chocolate: Quality chocolate is necessary. Chocolate is the main ingredient, so using cheap chocolate or even chocolate chips can heavily affect the taste and texture. For all my recipes calling for pure chocolate, including this one, I use either Baker’s or Ghirardelli baking bars- both sold in the baking aisle.