El Pair-o del Spano Dinner-o

For those of you who know me, you might recognize that language from a story…. El washo el car-o. Hahaha.

Over the weekend Mr. Lush and I attended a Spanish pairing dinner. It was actually very good and informative. I learned how to make the easiest, most decadent appetizer… I had these wonderful stuffed dates at Modesto. They were wrapped in bacon and that’s about all I knew at the time. They were salty, sweet, fruity….really, very good. Low and behold, I needed a Spanish appetizer for the party- entering from stage left was stuffed dates.
Pit dates. Stuff a smidge of bleu cheese in date. Wrap 1/3 slice bacon around date, secure with toothpick. Cook however you feel like. They can piggy back with another dish in the oven, they can be grilled, or pan-grilled. Just cook until bacon is as done as you like it. Viola. Instant fun, easy, delicious dessert.
As far as the wine, we were a bit in the air with this, but eventually chose cava as the winner. (other contenders were 2 Riojas, a Temparinillo / Garnacha blend and an Albarino)
Another fun thing we tried was trying 2 different Riojas with the sauces. We had a 1998 Gran Reserva Rioja and a 2004 Rioja. Very different wines. We determined the best pairing with the 1998 was a steak topped with a Cabrales Brandy sauce. (cabrales is Spanish bleu cheese) However, the 2004 tasted best with a chimichurri sauce, which was very zesty and had a bit of cilantro in it. 2 very different sauces.
Then, we ended the evening with Flan. I found a fabulous recipe titled “The Perfect Flan”. I shared it with another guest who had never made flan before. They made it and it was fabulous- really very wonderful. I'm excited because my good friend LucyinStLou loves flan and wants there to be more Flan-friendly occasions in life. I actually think finding a great flan recipie might make the Sparkling Occasions list??
We then tried 2 sherries and 3 cognacs. I’ll be honest - I don’t exactly remember which was best with the flan. I think although it wasn't my favorite cognac, the Markow VSOP was the best with the flan. I know, what kind of lush am I? A very happy lush, who had a great meal with good friends and also managed to learn a little something.

Not too shabby, right???