Whole Wheat Pasta with Lamb, Tomato and Cumin

by Stephanie

Shabbat shalom and welcome to our first installment of recipe and wine pairings! This is a quick, yet special Shabbat dinner and here are two great kiddush wine options for you to enjoy with it.

Many food magazines and websites give wine suggestions with their meals, but they never ever suggest kosher wines. And why would they, they’re not kosher websites. But we are!

I bookmarked this recipe a while ago, but it wasn’t easy getting my hands on the ground lamb. I spent an afternoon calling butchers in Manhattan and Brooklyn to see where I could get the best price, and Kings Highway Glatt in Brooklyn won by a long shot; even if i paid for shipping, it would still be cheaper than the Manhattan butchers! I saved even more money by having Jessica pick it up for me. Thanks, Jess!

I cooked dinner and my friends came over for some dinner, wine and manicures. What a fun girls night when David was away!

Whole-Wheat Spaghetti with Lamb, Tomato and Cumin Sauce recipe from Food & Wine
serves 4-6

Ingredients:

  • olive oil to coat the pan
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 pound ground lamb
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 can diced tomatoes
  • pinch of salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1 pound whole-wheat spaghetti
  • handful of fresh parsley, chopped

Directions:

  1. In a large pan, heat the oil over low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes.
  2. Add the garlic and then the lamb. Cook until the meat is no longer pink, about 3 minutes. Stir in the cumin, tomatoes, and salt. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.
  3. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the spaghetti to al dente, according to the directions. Drain and toss it with the sauce, pepper, and parsley.
  4. Serve immediately

 

Wine pairings:

  • 2008 Terra di Seta Chianti Classico – This was the favorite bottle of the two, a blend of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon produced by the only exclusively kosher winery in Italy. Its smooth and fruity flavor is a great complement for lamb. (buy it)
  • 2007 Binyamina Reserve Shiraz – This Syrah from Israel has slightly smoky notes among the berries. We didn’t finish it during dinner, so I had a glass with my homemade pizza dinner the following night, and I definitely thought it benefited from the aeration. (buy it)

 

A big thank you to Gary from Royal Wine Corporation, the largest producer, distributor and importer of kosher wines, for sending me these wines!