The Wine to Die For.

Hailing from Armida Winery in Healdsbug California, brothers Steve and Bruce Cousins have been producing wines in Sonoma County for twenty years. Some of their most coveted wines include Maple Vineyards Pinot Noir, Durell Vineyard Chardonnay, and Gold Mine Ranch Zinfandel. 

Well, from their seven acre estate comes a wine that's simply to die for. Packaged in a hand etched and hand painted bottle complete with wooden coffin, PoiZin is the Cousins brother's 2011 hand-crafted Zinfandel. An intense and deep maroon color, this full-bodied wine features a nose of plums, raspberries and blackberries. The mouthfeel is sharp, but never overbearing with flavors of red-vine licorice, anise, mocha, strawberry and red currants just bursting to connect with your taste buds. The Petite Sirah and Grenache grapes lends black pepper spice, pungent acidity, and pastoral charm to the slightly spicy flavor generally associated with the typical Zinfandel varieties. Aged for eleven months in equal parts American and French oak, it's moderation contributes to it's smoky nuance and long vanilla finish. 

Perhaps what I love most about this wine is it's fun bottling, slightly unorthodox blend and brooding personality that shows that the Cousins brothers aren't afraid to take risks and have fun - even with their wines. 

This medium-bodied wine is diverse and pairs well with a wide variety of foods including roast meats, lamb and beef dishes, as well as wild game or a tomato based pasta sauce. Stored best at room temperature, and cooled for 15-20 minutes in the fridge before serving, enjoy this supple, velvety wine. And for only $25 it could easily be yours. Enjoy with caution however, because this wine truly is to die for.

Vineyard picture courtesy of Armida Winery and wine bottle image courtesy of total wine.

Happy Birthday Bo!

Happy birthday to one of the sweetest, goofiest, lamest, and most intelligent people I know! I can't believe we've known each other for six years now, and no matter how much I change, you can still read me like your favorite book. I hope your day is filled with love, laughter and lots of smiles because no one deserves it more than you. So celebrate, because even though you're the youngest you're ever gonna be, you're getting old. 

Happy 24th birthday. I love you kid!

xo

Angel Chicken Pasta.

I've never understood how people do those low and no carb diets. To each his own, but I love bread, rice, and pasta entirely too much to ever be able to give them up for good. Not too long ago I happened upon an amazing chicken pasta recipe, and it was just too good not to share.

Ingredients: 

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

¼ cup/59ml butter

1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix

½ cup/120 ml cup white wine

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed golden mushroom soup

4 ounces/113 grams cream cheese with chive and onion

1 pound/450 grams angel hair pasta

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 325°F (165°C)

2. In a large saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Stir in the package of dressing mix. Blend in wine and golden mushroom soup. Mix in cream cheese, and stir until smooth. Heat through, but do not boil. Arrange chicken breasts in a single layer in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Pour sauce over. 

3. Bake for 60 minutes in the preheated oven. Twenty minutes before the chicken is done, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a rolling boil. Cook pasta until al dente, about 5 minutes. Drain. Serve chicken and sauce over pasta. 

This recipe is not only simple, it is delicious as well. I realized the only thing that could make this recipe better would be bacon bits (because bacon can make anything delicious). The flavors are wonderful and compliment each other beautifully. So grab a friend (or lover), light some candles, pop in a movie and enjoy a quiet night in for two. 

Capote.

Good morning and happy Monday people of internetland! I hope you've had a beautiful weekend and a wonderful 2014 so far. Over the weekend we've had one of the first notable losses of the new year. Academy Award winning actor Phillip Seymour Hoffman passed away at the tender age of 46 from a drug overdose. An incredible actor, Hoffman was fearless with his role choices as well as ambitious and awe-inspiring as one of the greatest actors of the generation. So for today's Monday movie, I've chosen one of my favorite Hoffman flicks based on the life of one of my favorite authors.

Movie poster courtesy of imp awards.

Based on Gerald Clarke's autobiography and originally opening on September 30, 2005 to coincide with what would have been Truman Capote's 81st birthday, Capote follows the events leading up to the writing of his best selling novel, In Cold Blood.

After the murder of the Cutter family, Truman Capote travels to Kansas with best friend (and famed novelist) Harper Lee, to begin work on what would be his most famous novel. In the beginning Capote only intends to interview those people involved with the victims. However after making nice with Alvin Dewey, the lead detective on the case, he gets the inside scoop on the case and even begins making visits to see the murder suspects. He develops an unlikely relationship with one of the suspects, Perry Smith. Smith's story intrigues Capote, who eventually gets the material he needs to write his iconic novel. Check out the trailer for Capote below:



They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but more often than not biographic movies with major potential end up a sad parody instead of an inside look into the life of a legacy. Phillip Seymour Hoffman's portrayal of Truman Capote was less a cheap imitation and more a channeling of America's great nonfiction writer, a man whose oddities conceal immense intelligence and deep damage. Hmm, maybe Hoffman was more like Truman Capote than any of us could have ever imagined.

Capote is a film of extraordinary insight regarding a man who stopped at no means to get the scoop of the century, and in the process loses all sense of self-awareness.

Capote is now available on blu-ray and DVD. 

Spicy Black Bean Soup

Are you guys on Pinterest? I recently joined and I am already addicted. It's such a great way to keep track of recipes to test out, crafts to try, and I've even got a board full of tattoo inspiration.

I'm a fan of all things spicy, so I pinned this recipe to try during Lent when I wasn't eating meat. I substituted shallots for onions, red jalapeño for green, and decided to add red bell pepper on a whim to give it a little color. It was absolutely delicious.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon/15ml olive oil
1 shallot or onion, roughly chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 green jalapeno, seeded and roughly chopped
½ teaspoon/2ml cumin
2 cups/473ml cooked black beans
2 cups/473ml vegetable stock
lime juice, to taste
¼ cup/59ml non-fat Greek style yogurt
2 tablespoons/30ml chopped cilantro for garnish

Directions:

1. Heat a large pot over medium high heat

2. Add the oil and sweat the onion (or shallot) for one minute

3. Add the garlic, jalapeño and cumin and continue cooking for one minute

4. Add the beans, vegetable stock, and yogurt and bring to a simmer (I'm not a fan of Greek yogurt, so I didn't add any to my soup, but use the Greek yogurt to tame some of the spiciness of the jalapeno.)

Please excuse my stove and cookware, everything in my apartment is super old.

5. Let simmer for five minutes and transfer soup to a blender

6. Working in batches, puree the soup until smoothness desired and return to a medium sauce pot on medium heat

7. Season the soup to taste with salt, pepper, and lime juice

8. Ladle the soup into serving bowls, drizzle some yogurt over the soup and garnish with the chopped cilantro.

This recipe alone made me fall in love with Pinterest. Being able to easily share photos, upload recipes and borrow ideas from people all over the world is amazing, and shows just how much social media has grown over the years. If you love spicy food like I do, this recipe is amazing! And even if your taste buds can't handle it, just add the Greek yogurt to tame it down. If you're on Pinterest, let me know in the comments, and find me: Matilda Makes!

Seven Psychopaths

Happy Monday beautiful people of the internet. I hope everyone had a fun filled weekend, I know I did. It wasn't really eventful; I just spent a lot of time reading, doing homework, and playing with the puppy. I love my Wilfred. We have a very special (although sometimes bordering on the psychotic) relationship. After school I race home to greet him, and I can't imagine living my life without him. So at the recommendation of a close friend, I decided to scare myself and check out a movie in which I hope I am never put in the circumstances of.

Movie Poster courtesy of IMP Awards.

Seven Psychopaths is a British crime comedy written and directed by Martin McDonagh, the Academy Award nominated writer of 2009's In Bruges. Seven Psychopaths stars Colin Farrell as struggling screenwriter and alcoholic Marty Faranan. He dreams of finishing his screenplay "Seven Psychopaths", a violent movie about love and peace, but so far he's only got the title. With the help of his best friend Billy (Sam Rockwell), an out of work  actor who kidnaps dogs for a living, they come up with the stories of the seven psychopaths. When Billy and his partner Hans (Christopher Walken) steal the wrong gangster's Shih Tzu and Marty gets caught up, he suddenly finds that he's living in his movie. Check out the trailer for Seven Psychopaths below: 



Martin McDonagh has done it again with Seven Psychopaths. The dialogue is excellent, the action is fantastic, and the acting by the ensemble cast is top-notch. This movie is hilarious, action packed and a little heartfelt. I've never cried during a movie, and without giving too much away I will say that Christopher Walken's performance almost brought me to tears. Seven Psychopaths is a movie that will make you laugh, cry, leave you on the edge of your seat, and even give you something to think about as you leave the theater.

Seven Psychopaths is now available on blu ray and DVD.