The Food and Wine Pairing From Murder Before The Bell

Each of the five books in The Rick Podowski and The Hefty Trio series  contain seven ethnic (Polish, Italian, Irish, Mexican) recipes and information about seven wineries.  A wine is then paired with the recipe. A reader who completes the series will have learned about thirty-five boutique wineries and have thirty-five recipes paired with the appropriate wine.  Four of the  pairings from Murder Before The Bell are presented below. Click on the link to see the recipe.

In Murder Before the Bell, Rick Podowski and the Hefty Trio fight to save their friend accused of murdering the school principal. The story begins when Rick arrives at Central High School and sees the administration building engulfed in flames. Later, the police discover the charred body of the principal and as the police start to gather evidence to frame the acting principal, Rick and the Hefty Trio start their own inquiry.

They discover that their friend and the principal are both involved in illegal activities with a South Vietnamese Colonel who runs a language school on the campus every Sunday. The community loves the Colonel and is unaware that he owns a house of prostitution in the neighborhood and employs a local Mexican gang for security. A rival gang wants part of the action and the excitement begins.

 Irish Leek And Swiss Pie with River Run Vintners Cote D' Aromas  The unique part of this dish is the taste of the creamy leek and cheese custard. At the bottom of the pie is the salty deviled ham. The flavors in the pie blend and are accented by the Cote D' Aromas which is a Rhone Blend. In this wine, the bold fleshy Syrah counterpoints the sweet tones of Grenache as the wine opens.

Rick's Bigos--Hunter's Stew (The Polish national Dish) with Burrell School Syrah. Bigos is the national dish of Poland and is made with sauerkraut, cabbage mushrooms and a mixture of Polish sausage, spareribs, fried pork, cooked ham and pork hocks. Serve the Bigos with pierogi and a green salad to complete the meal.

Rick's Pasta Puttanesca with Villa del Monte's Cabernet Sauvignon Puttanesca was created by the prostitutes of Naples to give them strength and stamina. Red pepper flakes and capers provide a flavorful kick. 

Leti's Mexican Chocolate Pots de Crème with Loma Prieta Merlot This is not your typical chocolate pudding because it contains several ingredients that concentrate the flavor of the chocolate.  These include espresso, cinnamon, cayenne pepper and Kahlua.  You can put these in ramekins as mentioned in the recipe or you can make it in a tart dish and then serve it in wine glasses.  Either way, this dessert is delicious.  If you want to pair this with wine, use a Merlot.  The recipe was adopted from one found in Sunset magazine.

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