Pairings | Pumpkin
10 top wine matches for a vegetarian (or vegan) Christmas
It’s a sign of the times that when I first wrote this post over 10 years ago I said “Vegetarians often get overlooked at this time of year” That’s obviously no longer the case but veggie - and vegan - options are now so numerous and so diverse it can be tricky to work out which wine would work best with them.
For a start it depends whether they’re hot like a Vegetarian Wellington or a whole. baked cauliflower or celeriac or cold like a crunchy salad.
It also depends on the flavours - whether they’re classically Christmassy or zingy and spicy. The kind of food you want to wake up your palate just after Christmas.
I’ve picked 10 recipes from popular cookery writers including Felicity Cloake, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Diana Henry and Meera Sodha.
Hopefully they’ll provide inspiration for Christmas eating as well as drinking ...
Felicity Cloake’s Vegetarian Wellington
The centre of this recipe is a glazed butternut squash surrounded by a mushroom-type stuffing. I’d probably go for a fruity pinot noir from, say, Chile or New Zealand’s Central Otago or a full-bodied chardonnay.
Thomasina Miers baked cauliflower with roast almond and prune mole
Mexican mole is dark and spicy so even though cauliflower is quite a mild-tasting vegetable this is a powerfully flavoured dish with which I’d probably drink a grenache or garnacha or a grenache/syrah/mourvedre (GSM) blend.
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s Vegan Tart
There’s not much in the title to tell you what’s in it but the flavours are quite simple and creamy, designed to fit in, I think, with Christmas sides like the chestnut and prune stuffing for which he also gives a recipe. On its own it’s the sort of dish I’d serve with a Chablis or a chenin blanc with the stuffing a rioja or a Côtes du Rhône.
Diana Henry’s Pumpkin, Chestnut and Stilton tart
You’ll have to get behind the paywall to access this but I think you’re allowed 3 free visits a month. (I’m not a Telegraph reader but I DO love Diana’s recipes). On its own I’d probably go for a rich chardonnay or a rich southern Rhône red like a Vacqueyras or Séguret - probably the latter if you make her potatoes with smoked butter and mushrooms on the side. A southern Italian red like a nero d’avola would also be good.
Melissa Clark’s Wild Rice and Mushroom Casserole
I’m thinking pinot noir with this or a barolo if you feel like pushing the boat out. Again behind a paywall but it’s worth paying for the New York Times excellent food content.
Anna Jones celebration celeriac and sweet garlic pie
Anna Jones says of this pie, which you’ll also find in her ‘Modern Cooks’ Year’ “It’s everything I want in a pie: a cheddar and winter herb flaky pastry; a creamy filling, sweet with balsamic garlic and roasted celeriac; and a crisp, grated celeriac roof.” I
’m actually thinking of a good artisan cider with this but a merlot would be delicious too.
Sophie Godwin’s vegan Christmas wreath
A light, pretty centrepiece for the Christmas table that includes pops of cranberry and sour cherries as well as spinach and tofu. I’d probably go for a gamay but you could drink an Italian white like a gavi too.
Meera Sodha’s Sprout Nasi Goreng
This is the perfect recipe for after Christmas when you’re taste buds are feeling a bit jaded and you’re craving spicy food. It comes from Meera Sodha’s brilliant book East. With chillies, garlic and sesame it definitely needs an aromatic white like an Australian riesling
and two veggie stalwarts ...
Nut roast
You probably already have your favourite nut roast recipe and I’ve already posted some suggestions for wine pairings but if you’re making it for the first time you might want to trawl through these 10 nut roast recipes that won’t let you down from the Guardian
The trimmings without the turkey
Personally I tend to head for the southern Rhône with my Christmas dinner and would whether it was veggie or not. You need a big rich exuberant red so shiraz would also work well as would a malbec.
Top photo of a roast cauliflower is by Magdanatka at shutterstock.com though not of the recipes in the post
6 perfect pairings for pumpkin pie
if you’re planning to make a pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving here are some great wine and other pairings to serve with it.
Pumpkin pie tends to be very sweet and often a little bit spicy which means that it will overwhelm a lot of lighter dessert wines so you might as well go for broke and serve something equally luscious.
Think fortified wines rather than conventional dessert wines ...
Australian Liqueur muscat
So what could be better than a treacley Australian liqueur muscat otherwise known as a sticky? Stanton & Killeen do a great Rutherglen Muscat or try De Bortoli’s Show Liqueur Muscat.
Aussie ‘port’
The Aussies also make great tawny-port style wines which are a sweeter and less woody than the traditional Portuguese versions. Try the utterly delicious Grant Burge Old Boys tawny (also a great match for Stilton if you’re thinking ahead to Christmas) or Bleasdale’s The Wise One tawny.
Dark cream or sweet oloroso sherry
Delectable raisiny sherry is also a great match for pumpkin pie - and incredibly good value. Your local supermarket should have an own-label one. Sweet malmsey madeiras and marsala dolce will do a similar job.
Sweet riesling
If you find these suggestions just too sweet or if your pie is made in a lighter style like Rowley Leigh’s version here you could go for the contrasting acidity of a late harvest riesling. Or try a French muscat like St Jean de Minervois.
Barley wine
. . .which is not wine but a strong sweet beer - absolutely brilliant with pumpkin pie. Try J W Lees Harvest Ale.
and finally . . . a tot of rich, sweet dark rum
In fact a spiced rums would work particularly well - The Kraken Black Spiced rum would be a great colour contrast for Hallowe’en. Serve in small shot or liqueur glasses.
Here’s my own recipe for a roast pumpkin and pecan pie together with some other suggestions for Hallowe’en entertaining if you’re not having to trick or treat!
Photo ©leekris - Fotolia.com
The best wines to pair with squash and pumpkin
Nothing proclaims autumn more clearly than squash and pumpkin but what wine should you pair with them?
It depends whether the dish is savoury or sweet obviously but here are a few options that might help
Wines to pair with roast or baked squash
Butternut squash in particular comes in a lot of guises but is fundamentally sweet, especially when you roast it. In general I favour rich whites like oak-aged chardonnay, Rhône varietals such as viognier, roussanne and marsanne and old vine chenin blanc either on its own or in a South African Cape white blend.
If you want a red I’d go for a warming Côtes du Rhône or similar wine made from Rhône varietals like grenache, syrah and mourvèdre.
Beerwise I’d be thinking of a saison or amber ale as I’ve suggested with this fabulous baked squash recipe from Claire Thomson
Wines for pumpkin or squash ravioli
A popular dish in Italy often served with crisp-fried sage and brown butter. Again the wines above would do the trick, but you might want to make them Italian. I’m thinking a good Soave or a rich Sicilian white like a fiano though I’ve also paired a Douro white successfully with pumpkin ravioli. The same advice would apply to butternut squash lasagne and butternut squash risotto too. I’ve also had some success pairing pumpkin gnocchi with gewurztraminer so you could try that with pasta too.
Wine with pumpkin or butternut squash soup
Again I’d be looking out for those smoother richer whites - chenin blanc, viognier and chardonnay - but perhaps slightly lighter-bodied than you’d pick for a roast squash recipe. If it were a spicy soup like this pumpkin coconut and lentil soup I’d go for an more aromatic white wine like the ones below
Wines for butternut squash or pumpkin curry
Butternut squash can handle quite a bit of spice and works well in a curry, especially with coconut milk. I’d choose a pinot gris, riesling or a light, maybe Chilean, gewurztraminer. Or our friend viognier again.
Butternut squash salads
Butternut squash in salads tends to be less about the squash and more about other ingredients such as feta, pesto or pumpkin seeds. Go for a brighter, crisper white such as Italian Greco or a Falanghina.
The best wine pairings for pumpkin pie
As much about the spices that are used as the pumpkin. Personally I like a rich moscatel but consult this post for other options.
Photo by Tatiana Vorona at shutterstock.com
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