eat. drink. PASO! A Paso Robles Recipe Book

Our good friend, Lisa Pretty has published her third…yes, third(!!!) cookbook. It has menus, recipes, and ideas, all paired with local Paso Robles ingredients, wines, ciders, and spirits for your eating and drinking pleasure. Check out our Q&A for a little “taste” of what’s to come…

Matt: Congratulations on getting your third recipe book out for the holiday season. Why did you change the name from “eat this with….Paso Robles Wine” to “eat. drink. PASO!”?

Lisa: When I started the project, I actually planned to make this book the third edition of “eat this with…Paso Robles Wine”. As I began to dig into the book and plan out the chapters, I realized a lot has changed in Paso Robles in the four years since my last book was published. One of the big changes is the number of wineries creating spirits. Then there are also the beer and cider producers. Although this book also has “eat this with” pairings with each recipe (and mostly wine), I decided I really needed to include some other beverages to make it a true representation of Paso Robles.

Matt: What else is new in this book?

Lisa: Well, clearly the book has all new recipes! I also added a chapter for cocktail recipes. In keeping with the format of the previous books, I have a menus chapter with menus that can be recreated by the home cook when entertaining guests for lunch and dinner, featuring local ingredients and beverages. In the past, this was at the back of the book and the menus were from local wineries, showcasing their wines in a multi-course meal. This time I moved the menu chapter up front and in addition to winery specific menus, I have menus from local bloggers, promoters and even a food truck, including “Drinking with Friends”, “FARMstead ED”, “Hoot n’ Annie” (I know you are familiar with that menu!), and “Hurricane Kitchen”.

Matt: Is there anything you find special about this book?

Lisa: I am always surprised and excited about the support I receive from locals for my book projects. Since I am now doing commercial photography, and wanted the book photography to be more consistent, I shot all the food photos myself. I was delighted by how the chefs contributing recipes went out of their way to not only make the recipes for me to photograph, but also did such a beautiful job with food styling. I am so appreciative of all the wineries that pre-ordered the books, sight unseen. The first printing of this book is over 12,000 copies — my largest print run by far. I also have to say, the wineries that have contributed menus in all three books, really make me feel I am doing something right: Cass Winery (Chef Jacob is always so creative), Graveyard Vineyards (they paired up with Chef Ryan from the Paso Robles Inn), Penman Springs (they paired up with Chef Chico from The Catch), and Tablas Creek (they have so many wonderful recipes to pair with their wines). There are also several new wineries who keep things interesting and allow me to explore new wines and pairings.

Matt: Are there any recipe contributors that you want to highlight?

Lisa: There are too many to name them all – and so many great recipes that I personally will make over and over again. The Hatch provided not only a full menu of recipes to pair with Riverstar Vineyards wine, but also a few recipes for the cocktail chapter. I discovered Sundance B & B’s Chef Alma Ayón when she paired up with Brecon Estate for their menu. Also new to me was Chef John Jantz of BoccaBella Farms who contributed an awesome salmon recipe to pair with Lazarre Sauvignon Blanc. One of my favorite photo shoots was for cocktail recipes at Krobar Distillary – not only did Joe Barton knock out a very original recipe, Paso Wine Man, Casey Biggs was also on-site and shared his Negroni recipe.

Matt: Do you have any holiday specials?

Lisa: Yes! I will be offering complimentary gift wrapping from now until Christmas, both in the tasting room and on-line. For those who cannot visit, I’m offering FREE book shipping within the USA, all month long at pscellars.com. I also have a “pop-up” marketplace in the tasting room at P.S. Cellars featuring local products mentioned in the book: BoccaBella Olive Oil, Hartley Farms Jams, Wine Diva Jams, and YES Cocktail Co. mixers. I can help people put together a nice gift basket including the book.

Matt: Where can people find the book?

Lisa: Although I expect it will be available at over 30 Paso locations soon, starting this weekend, here is where people can purchase:

The Pleasant Valley Wine Trail: Obviously at my tasting room, P.S. Cellars (I’ll even sign the books upon request), Graveyard Vineyards, Riverstar Vineyards and Wine Country RV. The Pleasant Valley Wine Trail is holding their annual Holiday on the Trail event December 9 & 10th, so it is the perfect time for a visit.

East Paso Robles: Glunz Family Winery & Cellars, Penman Springs Vineyard

West Paso Robles: Adelaida Cellars, Caliza Winery, Brecon Estate, Vines on the Marycrest

Downtown: LXV Wines, Paso Robles Chamber of Commerce, Seven Oxen Estate Wines (at Thomas Hill Organics), Spice of Life