This minestrone is dead easy and will make enough for you to keep revisiting over a busy week. Of course, the process is all the more enjoyable with a glass of vino in hand, but that's up to you. Ingredients: Glug of olive oil 1 brown onion, diced 2 carrots, diced 2 sticks celery, diced 2 cloves garlic, crushed 1 large rasher bacon, chopped (bacon bones can also be used) 1 tin cannellini beans, rinsed 1 bunch kale, roughly chopped 2 fresh tomatoes, diced 1 tin diced tomatoes 200mL red wine 500ml vegetable stock (if you prefer a different stock, use it - I use vegetable for less salty interference) A couple of bayleaves Salt and pepper [caption id="attachment_2064" align="alignnone" width="625"]

Tuscan Minestrone.[/caption]

Vegetarian Lasagne

A vego twist on an Italian favourite; a hearty panful for those opting out of the moo/baa/oink variety.

Ingredients

1kg jap pumpkin, peeled, cut into 1cm-thick slices 1½ tablespoons olive oil 1 medium brown onion, finely chopped 2 garlic cloves, crushed 1 medium red capsicum, chopped 2 medium zucchini, halved, sliced 200g button mushrooms, thickly sliced 400g can diced tomatoes 1 teaspoon mixed herbs 100g baby spinach 30g butter 2 tablespoons plain flour 2 cups milk 250 g grated mozzarella cheese 125g dried lasagna pasta sheets

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Arrange pumpkin, in a single layer, on tray. Drizzle with 2 teaspoons oil. Bake for 20 minutes or until tender. Set aside. 2. Heat remaining oil in a heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, capsicum, zucchini and mushroom. Cook, stirring, for 10 minutes or until vegetables are just tender. Stir in tomato and

Winter Oxtail

Soft, buttery stew in a bath of Shiraz. Sure to chase the deepest winter chill out the door.

Barossa Valley, SA

Just 60km northeast of Adelaide, the Barossa Valley is one of Australia's oldest wine regions. Warm and dry, it is renowned for producing the distinctive Barossa Shiraz, a full-bodied red with notes of chocolate and spice. The valleys and sloping hills create several temperature ranges. But in summer, take it from us: it's just plain hot.

The soils range from clay and loam in the cooler areas to the classically South Australian sand and red-brown loam in the valleys. Irrigation is often required, but with water supply an increasing problem, many growers are practicing dryland farming, relying on what falls from the sky and clings from night fog. Couple this with the number of very old vines in the region (which produce limited quantities of grapes), and the result is fruit with deeply concentrated flavour which quickly ripen. A great foundation for some of the world's most acclaimed reds.

History

Shiraz

Shiraz (which is essentially Syrah) is a dark-skinned grape grown throughout the world and used primarily to produce powerful red wines.

Wines made from Syrah are often powerfully flavoured and full-bodied. The variety produces wines with a wide range of flavor notes, depending on the climate and soils where it is grown, as well as other viticultural practices chosen. Aroma characters can range from violets to berries (usually dark as opposed to red), chocolate, espresso and black pepper. No one aroma can be called "typical" though blackberry and pepper are often noticed. With time in the bottle these "primary" notes are moderated and then supplemented with earthy or savory "tertiary" notes such as leather and truffle.

"Secondary" flavor and aroma notes are those associated with several things, generally winemakers' practices (such as oak barrel and yeast regimes).