Saturday, August 8, 2015

A Tawny Port from Portugal served with Grilled Figs topped with Goat Cheese for #WinePW

This month for our Wine Pairing Weekend we are exploring the wines of Portugal.  Christy, of A Culinary Diva, sent out the invitation and it was so lovely I couldn't resist joining in this month. Even though I know absolutely nothing about Portugal, it's food or it's wine.

I did some searching on the internet and found that Portugal is most well known for it's Port although it also has some reds and whites but most of Portugal's wines, it appears, are on the sweet side. I am not a big fan of sweet wines and have never found a Port that I was fond of but I decided to be a good sport and give it another try.

I asked Frank to stop by the wine store on his way home from work one day and to pick up a wine from Portugal for me.  He came home with Tawny Port from Fonseca.  I googled again for foods that would pair well with a Tawny Port and saw that fruits and cheeses were often paired successfully with Tawny Ports.  My son, Chuck, was home on leave from the Navy, so on a quiet Saturday afternoon as we all sat around reading and relaxing, I decided to make us a snack.

I had been to our local International Market earlier in the day and they had some wonderful green figs.  I love figs.  I love them enough to pay a dollar each for them when I can find them in season.  I had bought a case of 12 and was given a "deal" and only charged $9 for them.  I justify spending this type of money by telling myself I pay a dollar for a good piece of chocolate and figs are certainly better for me than chocolate is.


So I put some Prosciutto on a platter, grilled some figs, topped them with a little goat cheese and added them to the platter, poured Frank, Chuck and I each a glass of the Fonseca Tawny Port and we gathered around the table.  

Chuck smelled the Port and made a face saying he had never met a Port that he liked and he could not understand why they were so expensive.  I took a sip and said yep, it's a Port, sweet and raisiny (raisiny is a word...it means it is reminiscent of raisins).  Frank said he was afraid to try it, it smelled musty.  I explained that we weren't being fair and that we needed to try the Port with the food.  Chuck said he had never had fresh figs and wasn't sure he was going to like them either. Frank told Chuck he could not understand why I was so crazy about figs...they were just okay but not like a Honeycrisp Apple or something.  I put on my Mom voice and told Chuck to try them.  He did and he liked them, he especially liked them with the goat cheese.  We again tasted the Port, now with the food.  Frank said it tasted like Cabernet that was turning.  Chuck pushed his glass in front of me.  I thought the second sip was much better than the first and each subsequent sip was better than the last.  I finished my glass and Chuck's glass.  Now, I am sitting with a glass as I write this post.  Frank says it is because the Port is 20% alcohol and I am getting lit LOL.  I am anxious to learn about some of the other wines that our group tried so that the next time I will have a bigger selection from which to choose.


I couldn't let Little Miss Melody try any of the wine but she LOVED the figs and goat cheese.

Grilled Figs with Goat Cheese and Prosciutto

4 fresh figs, halved
2 oz. goat cheese
4 slices Prosciutto

Roll the Prosciutto into rosettes and place on a plate or platter.  Place the figs, cut side down onto a hot grill and cook until warmed through and grill marks are showing. Place the figs around the prosciutto on the platter.  Top each fig with a dollop of goat cheese and serve.  Print Recipe

Here are the other Food and Wine Pairing being shared this month


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22 comments:

  1. Fun story of how you got your family to adopt your open minded spirit! Sounds like you were all glad you did so.

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    1. I am so happy that you started this group David and that I joined up. I am learning so much and expanding my horizons.

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  2. It is so much fun to explore new food, wine and regions and read the experiences about it. I think Fig and Port has to be an exceptional pairing - I have figs I bought for the deal of $4.99 for 4.

    What a nice way to spend the afternoon with your family too. Hope you are enjoying your time with your son home. And that cute little face eating is too much sweetness!

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    1. Thanks Christy, I guess I really did get a deal on my figs LOL

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  3. I love love love figs. My husband likes them cooked but not fresh. There was a house for sale in our neighborhood with a big old fig tree. I was kind of sad when it sold. No more free figs! One of the neighbors had been making fig and port ice cream. It was fabulous.

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  4. I've prepared figs and goat cheese but never thought of grilling the figs first. Can't wait to try this. PS Love your blog. Discovered your blog last year, we both belong to the same CSA and I currently work the City of Warren. Small world.

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    1. Well thanks for stopping by Debbie. Which department do you work for in Warren? I'm sure we know a lot of the same folks.

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    2. I'm a Zoning Inspector in the Building Dept. I'm sure we have many mutual acquaintances.

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    3. Small world isn't it. I'm sure sooner or later we will run into each other at Jackie's or down in the city. Thanks for taking the time to read my blog.

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  5. LOL! You crack me up. I would imagine the wine got better with each glass!! LOL!
    I have never eaten a grilled fig. But it sounds good.

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    1. It is Paula, but then I am a fig nut, after the 3rd day of having figs put in front of him, Frank started moaning LOL

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  6. next time, cut a little slit in the fig and put the cheese in the slit and pass it under a broiler to heat.

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  7. Figs and goat cheese! yum. Don't you just love Google. I googled the S*&* out of Portugal wines to find a good food pairing. Wow. 20% alcohol, that can sneak up on you big time. Enjoyed your post!

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  8. I too love figs. Keep thinking of planting a tree because they're so expensive, even in the farmers' market. Naturally this pairing looks delicious to me. Sounds like you had fun with the theme and that's what #winePW is all about!

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    1. Oh to live in a climate where I could grow figs....I have to settle for apples, pears, cherries and peaches. We always have fun around here.

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  9. I must try your recipe for grilled figs Wendy. I love them too and they must be in season because I've seen them in store. I think I've got a bottle of Port hanging around too! It's so great you're keeping an open mind about your wine experiences. If your wine journey is anything like mine, as one's palate evolves one's opinions of a wine may change...Keep trying different wines I say!

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    1. Oh absolutely Martin. When I first started drinking wine it was Blue Nun Liebfermilch....I'm really dating myself LOL. From there I moved to Chardonnays and eventually to dry reds, preferring Cabs but loving anything dry.

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  10. I've never been a huge fan of port, but I have had some that I enjoyed. I really like the combination of the items you chose. I think they would possibly go well with some other heavier bodied wines of Italy like an Amarone ripasso. Would be interesting to try.

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    1. It would Jennifer and we will as the Port was a bit too sweet for us.

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I enjoy getting comments and feedback from my audience. Please let me know what you think, keeping in mind that we are all entitled to our own beliefs and opinions. I am happy to hear yours as long as they are stated nicely.