The 21th Annual Abilities Wine Tasting & Silent Auction, the Tampa Bay area?s longest-running and most prosperous wine tasting, is set for March 6, 2010 at Tropicana Field ? Home of the Tampa Bay Rays. This award-winning event features hundreds of wines, dozens of gourmet restaurants including Salt Rock Grill, and scores of auction items. The Abilities Wine Tasting was named ?Best Wine Tasting? by Creative Loafing for five consecutive years.

?Our wine events have helped us raise more than $3.3 million over two decades,? said Abilities Foundation president and CEO Frank De Lucia. ?That?s enabled us to help thousands of people with disabilities obtain jobs and affordable housing. Achievements of this magnitude don?t happen, however, without the generous and longstanding support of Raymond James and Bright House Networks, and distributors, restaurants, sponsors, and patrons.?

The tasting begins with a VIP reception from 6-7 p.m., followed by the Grand Tasting & Silent Auction, which runs from 7-9 p.m. For ticket information, contact Frank DeLucia at 727-538-7370, Ext. 345 or fdelucia@abilities.org. Patrons may purchase tickets online at www.abilitiesfoundation.com.

Proceeds benefit the Abilities Foundation, a Clearwater-based 501c3 nonprofit that has helped thousands of Floridians with disabilities obtain mainstream jobs and affordable housing. For information visit www.abilitiesfoundation.com . 

FEATURED RECIPES

Seafood guanoatto (a seafood Ceveche)
8 oz of med Shrimp diced
6 oz squid cleaned and chopped
1/2 cup chiffonade of cilantro
1/2 cup red onion - matchstick sliced
1/4 cup red bell pepper matchstick sliced
1/2 cup of both ( believe it or not )Orange soda and tomato catsup salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients and toss, adjust salt & pepper and finish with a sprig of cilantro

Balsamic strawberries

1 lb washed and halved strawberries
1 1/2 cups balsamic vinegar
1/3 to 1/2 cup granulated sugar
whipped cream

Heat balsamic vinegar and sugar until sugar is dissolved.
Then move to refrigerator to cool completely while cooling, wash, stem and halve your strawberries when cooled mix strawberries and vinegar and place in appropriate glass ( martini ?) top with whipped cream and garnish with sprig of mint