Recipes- Food- Wine- Cooking- Guide
to the California Central Coast

Welcome to The Romantic Table, an online magazine about the wine and food of California's Central Coast, featuring wine reviews, California Central Coast recipes, food and wine news and culinary events from the California Central Coast.
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Wine And Food Articles

Cooler Rainy-Season Recipes to Savor for Generations

©2012 The Romantic Table, Bolognese Ragu 2012-12-23 23:53:33:349

2013-01-02 00:40:22 ID=671:1
© 2012 The Romantic Table
by Susan McGourty

We're finally in the midst of our much cooler temperatures and our rainy season! This is my favorite time of year for cooking! After several months of "restrained-cooking" due to the warm temperatures, now that we're in the midst of Winter--and much cooler temperatures, there are "no rules barred" on some REAL kitchen-cooking of all our favorite and most-loved recipes. Wait until you see what new recipes I've got for this time of year!

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The Cooler Weather of October is Here, for Some Fun Fall Recipes!

©2012 The Romantic Table, Apple Risotto Romantic Table Style 2012-10-14 20:26:26:345

2012-10-30 19:52:35 ID=670:1
© 2012 The Romantic Table
by Susan McGourty

FINALLY!!! We have some decent--and much more seasonal cooler weather, so we can start making and enjoying some new fun Fall-inspired recipes to share with family and friends! I know that I, personally, have been "chomping at the bit" to roll up my sleeves and really experiment with a couple new ideas that I've been "kicking around" for the last couple of months. All I REALLY needed was some traditional weather to "put me in the mood," as well as some Fall-favorites to start showing up in the grocery aisles. Well, "my favorites"showed up, and I got to it!

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California Central Coast Wine Value Pick | Beckmen Vineyards 2010 Purisima Mountain Vineyard Grenache Rosé

©2011 The Romantic Table, Beckmen Vineyards 2010 Purisima Mountain Vineyard Grenache Rosé 2011-08-28 13:32:21:300

2011-08-29 01:04:24 ID=649:1
© 2011 The Romantic Table
by Larry McGourty

Beckmen Vineyards 2010 Purisima Mountain Vineyard Grenache Rosé is a dry Rosé style wine which pairs well with Mediterranean style cuisine and robust Pacific Coast style seafood dishes.

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How to Truss Poultry

©2009 The Romantic Table, trussing poultry 2009-11-16 21:29:57:228

2009-11-16 21:25:06 ID=555:1
© 2009 The Romantic Table
by Susan McGourty

When I was a girl helping my Mother and Grandmother prepare Thanksgiving dinner one of my jobs was to stuff the turkey and sew the cavity shut for roasting. Despite all my efforts, it usually never really stayed closed however, and there was always the problem of retrieving bits of thread from the bird as it was carved. The secret I learned later was to truss the bird.

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California Central Coast Wine Value Pick | Edward Sellers 2006 Paso Robles Syrah

©2009 The Romantic Table, Edward Sellers 2006 Paso Robles Syrah 2009-09-29 16:04:26:204

2009-10-01 15:58:31 ID=511:1
© 2009 The Romantic Table
by Larry McGourty

In this California Central Coast Wine Value Review we take a look at Edward Sellers 2006 Paso Robles Syrah

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California Central Coast Wine Value Pick | Norman Pinot Grigio 2006

©2009 The Romantic Table, Norman Pinot Grigio 2006, Citrus-lemon-tangerine aroma with melon and floral overtones, good balanced acidity and an overall smoothness. 2009-09-21 22:36:17:199

2009-09-21 22:35:44 ID=491:1
© 2009 The Romantic Table
by Larry McGourty

In this California Central Coast Wine Value Review we take a look at Norman Pinot Grigio 2006

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A tip from Sue!

A good cook should control the salt and spices!

Do not use salted butter, garlic powder, or heavily salted canned foods. Instead, if you need butter, use unsalted butter and then add in the salt separately so that YOU control the amount of salt you need. The same goes for spices. Using commercially salted and seasoned products will homogenize the taste of your recipes. When you eat something, you should be able to taste all the individual.flavors of a dish.

This web site is about how to find and enjoy some of the best of the California Central Coast’s Food and Wine bounties. All these California Central Coast Recipes are home-kitchen tested and the photographs are the fully cooked final products. Cooking should be fun as well as an adventure! These recipes are not carved in stone. They’re meant more to use as guidelines. For example, if you especially like a certain ingredient and would like to use more, go ahead and alter the recipe to your personal taste.

Cooking is NOT something that you should dread. It’s very straight forward and logical. It can be really fun and relaxing. I hope that I can pass on to you some of the techniques and “tricks” of my cooking experiences through the years. My recipes have a practicality factor that I’ve perfected over the years so you’ll get the most taste and looks for time spent. I will show you how to make a good-looking as well as good tasting meal in a half hour or so, you can enjoy quality dining every night at home for a mere fraction of the cost of dining out!

Plus we will keep you on top of Food and Wine events that are happening right here under our noses on the California Central Coast, so you can have a lot of fun too.