Menu: A Spanish-Inspired Tomato Feast

This meal, an over-the-top paean to August's bounty of ripe tomatoes, is one for lingering over late into the night. Spanish cuisine is particularly reverent towards the tomato: acidic, sweet, and full of the flavors of summer, the market's end-of-season beauties are employed to best effect in traditional dishes like gazpacho, pan con tomate, and a briny seafood paella.

The Menu

More About This Menu

No matter what kind of paella you're making, the basic steps are the same. It's easier than you think: the key is to build flavors from the bottom of the pan up. Follow our six simple steps for making paella »
A paella pan is helpful in cooking paella, but not essential: a wide skillet will work, too.
Spanish Red Wine Spritzers are perfect for sipping before dinner, but when the food comes out you'll want to switch to something less sweet, like Txakolí, an effervescent wine from Spain's Basque region. This zesty, food-friendly wine compliments the range of flavors in this menu, and goes especially well with seafood. See a list of our favorite bottles to try »
Add some summery seashore flair to your dinner party table by arranging flowers inside of sea shells with this DIY guide from GARDEN DESIGN »
Tomatoes, as an ingredient, can shine in many ways. For more tomato-based recipe inspiration, see this article »