Thanksgiving 2011 - Well in advance for Thanksgiving 2012

I realize this post is a little behind schedule, but with a rather charged schedule at the end of 2011, the first day of 2012 has proven to be my first opportunity to finish up this post I began shortly after Thanksgiving.

Thursday, 24 November 2011,  marked a Thanksgiving to remember at the Bothe household. The affair this year, which occurs annually on the final Thursday in the month of November, brought out not only the elite of the Upper Valley, but also hosted several VIPs hailing from Boston, London, Paris and Orleans. The evening kicked off with top entertainment as guests mingled and enjoyed savory delights, including a full-flavored Fougeru, Mediterranean green olives and pistachios, as well as popped corn garnished with rosemary-infused olive oil and sea salt. 

Dinner was an elaborate buffet presenting neo-classical Thanksgiving fare. Le piece de resistance was an 18-pound turkey, which was prepared and roasted in the following manner:
The fresh turkey was removed from refrigeration about 1 hour before it was prepared, at which point the liver, neck and gizzard were removed. It was then given a gentle bath under cold running tap water and towel-dried before being rested on its back for a quick brush of butter and a seasoning of salt and pepper.



Next the bird was turned over, breast-side down, on an aluminum coated roasting rack set in a large roasting pan, and it was stuffed with a simple mirepoix of chopped carrots, celery, onion, lemon, and rosemary. Another brushing of butter and seasoning of salt and pepper left the bird ready for the oven, which had been preheated to a comfortable early roasting temperature of 425 degrees Fahrenheit.




 One cup of water was added to the roasting pan in order to provide moisture for the cooking process, and the pan and bird were placed into the oven. It was 11:30 when the bird went into the oven, and by 12:30 it had finished its initial roast so it was removed from the oven ready for the next stage of preparation.




This second stage commenced with the turkey being carefully turned over onto its back again with two pot holders- so as not to cause joint splitting to the bird or first-degree burns to the turner. The oven temperature was then reduced to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. The bird was returned to the oven and roasted for a further 2 hours until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh read 170 degrees Fahrenheit. At this point the guests had not arrived, so the turkey was removed from the oven, and allowed to rest beneath a blanket of foil until it was ready to be carved.

 

The accoutrements to the turkey included house-made cranberry sauce and pan gravy, pommes de terre purees, Harvard beets, delicately spiced pearl onions, roasted Brussels sprouts, and of course a 100% house-made stuffing. The main portion of the dinner finished with a dressed autumn salad of kohlrabi, apple, carrot, dried cranberries, and walnuts. Although all the dishes were worthy of further explanation, for the sake of time, space, and convenience only the preparation method for the stuffing and gravy will be elaborated upon.

For the stuffing, a large loaf of home-made sourdough bread was chopped into one-inch cubes, and left to sit on an uncovered baking sheet over night. As the turkey was roasting the remaining components of the stuffing were prepared. First bacon was added to a hot pan and sauteed until it just began to turn crispy. Celery and onion were added and cooked until the onion turned translucent. This mixture was transferred to a bowl with the bread cubes, diced peeled and roasted chestnuts, and diced apple. Finally the turkey's liver was diced and flash-fried in a hot pan and added to the mixture.

The final step of the stuffing preparation was the adding of the liquid, which consisted of two whole large eggs, and 2 cups of freshly prepared turkey stock - this made for a less moist stuffing, but one that had lots of crisply toasted bread. The mixture was divided between two shallow baking dishes and baked for a total of 60 minutes.

The preparation of the gravy began with simmering the neck and giblets of the turkey in about 4 cups of water with a bay leaf for about an hour. Once the turkey finished roasting and was sitting beneath its blanket of foil the roasting pan was set over high heat, and deglazed with a half cup of white wine. The deglazed drippings were then removed to a fat-separating gravy boat and the fat was poured into a large saucepan set over medium high heat. An equal quantity of flour was added to the fat then the deglazed liquid and the hot turkey stock were added a cup at a time and the gravy was left to simmer to a rich robust sauce.

A Taste of Vermont

Over the years, as many of my friends and family well know, I have developed a deep-rooted affection for Vermont and all the glory it has to offer. It is the single place I have ever been able to call home and believe it. However the more I become acquainted with this notorious state, the less I feel like I truly know it. Sure I've taken the half dozen or so trips to the Ben and Jerry's factory, and visited different nooks and crannies from time to time, but I don't yet have a good picture to put with more than the towns and villages within my general vicinity. More importantly I have yet to have a taste to associate with more than a handful of eateries and food-related establishments that take advantage of this great State's culinary specialties - the bountiful agriculture, the artisan cheeses, the superior maple products, etc, etc...

Thus, with the help of a three-day weekend, and the motivation of an article by Larry Olmstead of Forbes, I decided to do a little Vermont sight-seeing and tourist-ing of my own. Although hurricane Irene threatened to be an impediment to hassle-free road travel, I was as determined as ever to set out and explore.

Trap Door Bakehouse and Cafe

I started out heading West on Route 4 despite knowing full well that I would be diverted once I reached Woodstock. I figured that I was bound to stumble upon some other West-bound route just as long as I kept my bearings. Plus choosing Route 4 allowed me to pass through Quechee and of course Woodstock, which are certainly two Vermont destinations not to be missed. I made the point of stopping en route at a little bakery called the Trap Door Bakehouse and Cafe, which benefits not only from a beautiful view of the Ottauquechee River, but also from its "fresh classic pastries and savory delights". Being in a pastry mood myself, I ventured in at about 9:30 on thise dreary Labor Day morning, and treated myself to an "Escargot" - a flaky pastry wrapped in snail shell-like fashion around a filling of raisins, chocolate, and hazelnut. Yes, I made an crumby mess of my driver's seat, but it was so worth it especially because I would find myself ceaselessly navigating the back roads of central Vermont for the next two hours.




Fortunately my persistence of maintaining a general track West paid off, and I found myself retrieving route 131 West to route 7 north shortly before noon. I made my way quickly through Rutland, which is certainly worth a stop especially right now because it being the locale of the Vermont State Fair. Knowing full well that my little detour had cost me some stopping time, I opted to bypass Rutland and instead continued North to my intended destination, the New England Maple Museum.

Museum Tour Guide

Here I was pleasantly greeted in a shop abounding with Vermont
products, and offered a $2.50 self-guided or audio-guided tour of the museum, which I graciously accepted. The tour itself was not long, it certainly encompassed all one could possibly want to know about the history of maple, and included both a slideshow of a real live maple producer as well as a tasting of a variety of maple products - a perfect finish to the light lunch I had packed. I toured the shop briefly and was happy to see a display of Fox Mustard.

One of My Favorite Condiments

Retaking the wheel I continued to head North with the intention of hitting Middlebury next. Here I took the opportunity to breath in some fresh air while the rain held a slight drizzle. I meandered my way around the quaint downtown area browsing at shop and cafe windows and taking looks at and pictures of the swelled Otter Creek. Towards the end of my stroll I stopped in at a little boutique clothing store simply intending to browse. Unfortunately I found items that I would have very much liked to have purchased, but shopping and using my credit card not being the purpose of my trip, I had to make a quick getaway and back on track.

The Threat of Otter Creek

A Fierce, Post-Irene Waterfall in Middlebury

The Foamy Remnants of the Fall

A Pedestrian Bridge Almost Near Floating

Vines in Vermont

Next up was Charlotte Village Winery, which honestly was more for the (cheap) thrill of seeing signs with my name being associated with a winery than anything else. Nevertheless when I was offered a tasting upon entering the small production facility, I could not refuse. I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised by the Pinot Grigio and Merlot varietal and blend, but I will snobbishly add that a fermented beverage made with any other fruit besides grapes should not perhaps be classified as a wine. Sure, the Semi-Dry Blueberry "Wine" had the promise of being turned into a strong liqueur, but I would suggest more aging and/or fermentation to stand up to such a title.

After the tasting and a little pause to refresh, I returned to Route 7 North up through Burlington. By now I was looking at a time of after 4:00, which gave me two hours to head towards Waterbury for a brief tour of this town's culinary hot spots before moving on to friend "C's" home where I had generously been invited to dinner - I will just make the point here that with a light packed lunch, my day eating around Vermont cost me no more than $3.77, inclusive of a fresh hand-made pastry and cider doughnut.

So Proud!

The cider doughnut came from the Cold Hollow Cider Mill in Waterbury, which was recommended to me by colleague "S". I had been especially encouraged to try the freshly prepared doughnuts on my vi sit as well as to view the cider-making process live. Unfortunately I seemed to be too late to enjoy the factory at work, so naturally I had to take advantage of the warm doughnuts sitting by the exit begging to be savored. I did so as I toured the rest of the mill's premises and made note of the King Arthur Flour cookbook sitting amongst the display of other culinary publications.

With just a quarter of an hour left I made a last minute decision to stop at the Cabot Annex and the Lake Champlain Chocolates stores where I enjoyed an aperitif of a tasting of Snow Farm Winery products and a plethora of different cheddars.

Next stop Montpelier for a quick view of the Capitol, and meal amongst friends and of course my favorite four-legged friend!

Rice Cooker Pasta

So I discovered something pretty cool this evening, and although in my excitement I inevitably forgot to take a picture, I felt that I should share a post about my newest favorite kitchen appliance: the rice cooker. I myself have never been much of a rice eater or cooker as I always found the stove top cooking process to produce a starchy, gooey mess at the bottom of the pot. Thus, I would usually divert the rice cooking task to my mother -particularly whenever she would make her Veal Blanquette - and succumbed to the belief that rice and I would never really get along in the kitchen. It was a co-worker who mentioned a deep affection for her rice cooker, and it was then and there that I decided that such an appliance would be the ultimate solution to my rice dilemma.
Since my procurement about four weeks ago I have cooked rice exactly twice. Tonight however, as I debated what starch to eat with my organic chicken sausage and eggplant saute I was forced to note that my one and only pot and one and only pan were both in use. Thus, I pulled out the lonely rice cooker that was sitting next to the less-lonely toaster, but low and behold I had no desire for rice as an accompaniment for the simmering sauce in front of me. Pasta was definitely my preferred option, but would it work to cook it in a rice cooker, and moreover would it be ready quicker than by the standard method of boiling 4 times as much water than pasta. I proceed to measure out a cupful of mini pasta shells, adding it to the cooker with a pinch of salt and two cupfuls of water. I hit the button for cook, and would you believe that approximated 7 minutes later I had almost perfectly cooked pasta - if anything is was almost too cooked as I tend to prefer a little bit of bite to my pasta. An extra bonus was that there was just a slight amount of cooking water left in the cooker, so that when I added it to my sauce, it thickened it to the perfect consistency
Incidentally this discovery had me so excited that I proceeded to cook another quick round of pasta for my roommate's (M's) lunch tomorrow. And yes it has probably classified me as a rather eccentric culinary enthusiast;)

An Inspiring Week in Review

Well, there certainly was quite a lot to be inspired by this week, beginning with the above salad I composed for my Saturday night dinner. It was a true testament to leftovers going a long way - not to mention fresh, local produce. I was feeling a little under the weather on this particular evening and had little reason to leave the comfortable condo where I now reside. Thus, I popped the leftover chicken schnitzel from my Barnard Inn dinner into the oven to reheat alongside some quickly made garlic bread, and proceeded to chop up a massive Asian-inspired salad to replenish my store of vitamins and minerals.

The next day, Sunday, after I had slept like a champ through the night, I felt ready and happy to prepare a dinner for my parents and friend "C" at my parents' place. My mom had some wild cod that she was ready to remove from the freezer, so despite my slight distaste for large white fish, I accepted the proposal that it be the main course for the evening.I had soaked a large quantity of Canellini beans over night in anticipation of needing a back up protein source for the week, and was planning to cook them that day. Since I also had some leftover ratatouille - the recipe for which I will share later on - I decided that the cod would bake up quite comfortably on a bed of the beans and ratatouille mixed together. Then to give it even more of a Mediterranean flair I chopped up some lemon zest, parsley, and garlic as a gremolata garnish. The bean and ratatouille base topped with the piece of cod fillet went into a 350-degree oven. Unfortunately because our little fish friend was still slightly frozen, the baking took a good 25 to 30 minutes, when ordinarily I would have counted on 15 to maybe 20 depending on the thickness of the fillet. No matter, we were quite happy to chat and catch up with friend "C" and sip our cocktails. We therefore also had time to admire "C's" creation - note that she always brings us some new and extraordinary pastry creation each time she joins us for dinner. This one, pictured and the one we thoroughly indulged in on Sunday was composed of an Amandine pastry base, which was layered with a pistachio sponge and beautifully garnished with fresh fruit and glazed. The white and dark chocolate embellishments were just things she "whipped together" au dernier minute - in other words this lady is a chocolate/pastry master.

So, now on to Thursday evening, when I again ventured over to Barnard to experience for myself the incredible-ness that is Fable Farm. As their blog will show, this is indeed where food, culture, and community come together in such a way that I for one could not help but become enraptured by the whole experience. Their Thursday evening dinners are just one of the ways whereby the farmers reach out to their community. The events start at 5:00, so by the time I arrived at 6:30 the farm was well populated with locals as well as some "outsiders" - for lack of a better word. People were milling about the garden, sitting with friends and family, and of course eating and drinking the stone-fired handmade pizzas and farm-made mead. I was kindly given a tour of the garden, and then put my order in for a pizza and got a mug of mead. There was a slight delay on the pizzas as they had lost one in the oven, and had to wait for its remnants to burn away. In the meantime I was quite satisfied with my drink, company, and scenery and so did not mind the wait at all. The pizza I had chosen, out of the four they had on offer, was the "beetnik", which I will be sure to attempt to replicate some day. The toppings consisted of homemade pesto, goat's cheese, thinly sliced rounds of beet, and arugula. Unfortunately I did not get a picture of it, as I was too tempted to dig in straight away - and let's be honest, the mead had probably started going to my head a little. Needless to say, I was impressed, and despite a little bit of char adhering to the bottom of the crust, the pizza was certainly better than any pizza-shop creation far and wide. I will definitely be going back to enjoy more pizza, and I hear there are community pot lucks too!

And that brings us to today's trip to the Norwich Farmer's market, which always satisfies my ceaseless need for fresh and local produce however I can get it. Truly the market is a small haven where I can almost feel like I'm frequenting a Marche en France. Straight away, knowing I had a Killdeer Farm, stashed away in the produce drawer at home, I selected the rest of the ingredients to make what is probably my favorite summertime dish, the aforementioned ratatouille. Thus from Luna Bleu I picked up a mouthwatering-looking eggplant/aubergine, and a nice plump and juicy tomato. I then headed to the Hurricane Flats stand, where among a host of other fresh veggies, I picked up a crisp green pepper and made out like a bandit! After a couple more stops, I headed home, and after picking up our new dining room table and finishing off some chores, I set to work on my ratatouille. It made a wonderful lunch with a poached egg on top along with a crusty piece of bread.

Ratatouille
1 onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 eggplant
1 zucchini
1 green or red bell pepper
1 large tomato, or several smaller ones
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 bunch fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 teaspoon Herbes de Provence - it is better to use fresh rosemary and thyme here, but I have yet to have access to such herbs at home, so I relied on my stash of dried herbs I brought back from France - shhh don't tell border patrol!
salt and pepper, to taste

1) Thinly slice the onion and cook with the olive oil until translucent.
2) Meanwhile dice all the vegetables and tomato into roughly an even size. Add the eggplant, zucchini, and pepper to the pan, and allow to cook with the onion for 5 minutes. Then add the finely chopped garlic, parsley, other herbs, and seasoning. Stir everything together, reduce the temperature to low, cover the pan, and allow the ratatouille to cook slowly for 45 minutes. The vegetables will be tender, but still have some form.

 

 This is also a great dish to have with grilled meats:)

 

P.S. This may provoke laughs from my French family, as I feel that the dish is something any French person is born knowing how to make.

Barnard Inn and Max's Tavern

Yes, once again it has been too long since my last post, so it's time to make up for some lost time.
To begin, last night I had the pleasant experience of enjoying a meal with an old/new acquaintance at Max's Tavern at the Barnard Inn. This was a first-time visit for me, and I was very impressed with all aspects of the evening: the ideal company, the friendly waitstaff, the liveliness and conviviality of the locale, and of course the tasty "eclectic"-ness of the food and drink menus.
Fortunately my company had the right sense to make a reservation, as the relatively small tavern was filled with the lively chatter of locals and out-of-towners alike. Although audibly this made for increased effort to be heard on our parts, I tend to find a full dining room to have both a positive effect on atmosphere as well as a positive sign on what lies ahead. We were seated at our table and given two, two-sided menus consisting of the house-made drinks, the specials of the day, the more standard dishes, and the after-dinner temptations and other beverages. We first endeavored to sort out our drink wishes. Because we had originally planned to do a little cocktail hour boat excursion, which, thanks to a passing downpour, was postponed, we each decided on a mojito. I opted for one flavored with mango and "T" went with the traditional, but both were made with fresh, probably home-grown mint. We also had the choice of several different raspberry-infused cocktails thanks to the local harvest.
Turning towards our food menus, there was certainly a variety from which to choose, including a special duck breast dish with whipped potatoes a pulled pork sandwich with melted VT cheese and chipotle mayo, and their "Famous Chicken 'Wienerschnitzel'". Being a local himself, "T" had an advantage of being familiar with the selection, and highly recommended the schnitzel, which I was happy to select while he went with the pork sandwich. The downpour inspired him to start with the tomato bisque and although I tend to favor a dessert over a starter, I felt a basket of house-baked focaccia might round out my meal. Little did I know that the basket would be brimming with the bread that had a nice crispy exterior as well as a soft interior and was the perfect medium for the house-made pesto with which it came. "T's" soup arrived piping hot with a layer of melted Cabot Vermont Sharp Cheddar Cheese. He was gracious enough to allow me a taste, and suggested my bread as the utensil. The soup was unctuously creamy and had just the right tomato-y sweetness. I had just the time to savor the flavors of the soup lingering in my mouth before our waitress brought us our very substantial entrees. The pulled pork sandwich was more a mound of saucy shredded pork meat sitting between soft buns. The chipotle mayo came on the side along with a pile - that was taller than the sandwich mind you - of sweet potato fries. I would have been jealous had I not had my own dish in front of me loaded with two pieces of tenderized, crisply breaded chicken breast and smothered in a sauce of melted butter, capers, and onion. Though this is not an entirely traditional way to serve schnitzel, what dish isn't enhanced by a rich pool of butter perfectly accented with an occasional burst of tangy-ness from a pickled caper. The garnish included smooth and creamy whipped potatoes, and an edamame bean salad - definitely eclectic, but definitely tasty. After only getting through about half of our main courses, I had to ask the dessert question, was "T" a dessert-person or not??? With his yes came the doggy bags and the dessert menus. With my partiality to British-inspired puddings I scanned straight to the "Warm Dark & White Chocolate Bread Pudding w/Butter Pecan Ice Cream, Caramel & Chocolate Sauce" and "T" went with the raspberries and cream. I didn't manage a bite of the local raspberries sandwich between layers of freshly whipped cream, I took "T's" polishing of the dish as testament to its greatness. Meanwhile my bread pudding was a thoroughly satisfying rendition of the mouthwatering classic, having a crispy, just-fried exterior, and a custard-y rich interior. My one preference would have been for a less densely-packed pudding, but that certainly did not detract from my eating the whole thing and wanting to lick the plate, and let's be real, had I been in a less public setting I probably would have! Thank you Max's Tavern and "T" for an ideal Vermont evening.

So after a prolonged leave of absence, I simply could not wait much longer to try to garner inspiration for a new post. Of course there could be no better source of inspiration than fresh, local, and seasonal products available at this time of year. If I'm completely honest though I would have to admit that what provided for today's encouragement was a necessary organization of the freezer, which seemed to have accumulated a phenomenal variety of local meat products, including but not limited to a rack of lamb, grass-fed ground beef, ox tail, calves' liver, chicken liver, and so on. Although any of these proved tempting I had half a recollection that somewhere buried amongst this selection were a couple of pound of Hogwash Farm's baby back ribs. As it was still morning at this point, I knew I had hours ahead of me before dinner needed to be on the table, so I seized the opportunity to suggest slow-cooked baby back ribs. At this point it was just a matter of determining a side for the ribs, and as we were still in the pre-market hour of Saturday, we had an abundance of local options to choose from for a veggie accompaniment. I decided upon coleslaw, as I'm always partial to salad-type sides especially at this time of year, and much to our pleasure Hurricane Flats was our go-to stand for a juicy, crisp green cabbage. However as I'm not such a fan of the mayonnaise variety, I went with vinaigrette. Incidentally the flavors I added to the cooking marinade for the ribs, comprised the same base for my vinaigrette. And because who doesn't love a good french fry from time to time, we opted for pomme frites as our starchy second side. For dessert, perfectly ripened and sweetened first-of-the-season strawberries from Killdeer Farm.


Ribs 
2 lbs baby back ribs
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Preheat the oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
Set the ribs in a glass baking dish, combine the remaining ingredients and pour over as much or as little of the marinade as you like - leave enough for the coleslaw dressing if you're making the side. Cover the baking dish with a piece of foil, and put the ribs in the oven. Bake for 3 1/2 to 4 hours until the meat could fall off the bone.
 
Coleslaw
1/2 green cabbage, chopped finely
1 large carrot, grated
1/2 shallot, chopped finely
Up to 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Add  the vegetable oil to remaining marinade ingredients so that the vinaigrette is to your taste. Combine the vegetables together in a large salad bowl, and add the dressing when you're ready to serve. Toss to combine.

Twin Farms and the B.E.E.S Dinner

Monday, March 21, 2011 hosted the arrival of the first full day of spring, winter storm number who-knows-what, and the Barnard Educational Endeavor Society's annual dinner. The event was provided for by a generous, dedicated, and welcoming team at Twin Farms Resort and Spa located in Barnard, Vermont; and it was thanks to a fellow foodie friend of mine, who had kindly told me about the benefit dinner, that I became one of its 60 attendees.
Though I had passed by the Twin Farms grounds many times back when I used to commute between South Royalton and downtown Barnard, this was my first visit onto the premises. The resort is gated and tucked away from public access, specifically to give it that sense of a destination for a true escape. Driving into the courtyard was wonderfully enchanting with white lights lining the path up to the elegant country-inspired entrance. After stripping off our winter layers my friend and I  proceeded into the establishment's adjacent rooms and were greeted by two more friends, two flutes of Champagne, and two delicate canapes. Both the curried turkey skewers with cranberry chutney and the carrot and ginger soup tantalized our taste buds and gave us a hint at the flavors that awaited us behind the dining rooms' closed doors.
Arriving at our table in a Champagnly chattable mood, we met two local couples who were to be our dining companions for the evening. Shortly we were joined by two baskets of house-made bread, which included delectably wholesome squares of Beidler wheat soda bread, a crusty walnut miche, slices of baguette, supremely soft Port Salute pepper rolls, and tangy and spicy Togarashi buttermilk biscuits - all accompanied by Vermont Butter and Cheese "Cultured" as well as Cabot butters, and an herb oil. Next we were graced with the pouring of wine number one, a 2005 Syrah of Novelty Hill with dark aromas and a lengthy finish, which paired well with an equally powerful dish of slow-cooked PT Farm beef with garden polenta, spinach, roasted cipollini, goats cheese, natural jus, and black truffle froth. Though I'm not ordinarily a fan of elaborate cooking methods - such as frothing - I certainly did not object to having a hint of truffle in every mouthful of tender beef and creamy, tangy polenta. The dish worked remarkably well, despite being perhaps a bit too powerful to kick off the meal, and the meat being a bit too dry. Sticking with the same glass of Syrah, the next course of wild mushroom and roasted garlic soup with chive oil and spelt croutons served to remind us just how purely succulent and creamy a pureed soup can be. Supplementing the perfectly smooth soup were the oil, croutons, and lightly sauteed whole mushroom, which each had their own way of bursting with flavor.
Our third course was preceded by a pouring of Raphael Sallet's 2008 Les Maranaches, which I eagerly tapped into, as Burgundy Chardonnay tends to be the only version of that varietal that I find palatable. With our glasses newly filled, out came an elegant plate of hot-smoked salmon with red cress, marinated potato, pickled sunburst squash, pink peppercorn emulsion, and olive oil potato crisps. The combination was again well-thought out and the smoky, flaky salmon enjoyed the company of a crunchy alternative pickle and the firm starchiness of the marinated potato. The emulsion carried the richness of a mayonnaise, and the potato crisp added a crisp dimension to each bite - a near carnival on a fork.
We quickly moved on to the third wine of the evening, a 2007 Rutherford, Provenance Cabernet Sauvignon - a Bordeaux - that was exceptionally spicy and full of body. This we had to accompany a course of sherry-glazed duck breast and confit leg served with local pepperoni lentils, roasted cauliflower, baby carrot, thyme broth, and Vermont alfalfa sprouts. The two pieces of duck were both phenomenally well prepared with the breast ideally rare but still with a tenderness that allowed it to melt in the mouth, and with the confit leg so flaky and moist. I would have preferred the dish without the pepperoni as I felt that it masked the more delicate flavor of the duck and lentils, and certainly over-powered the scent of thyme in the broth. Nevertheless the quality of the meat's preparation did surpass the authority of the pepperoni, and our palette cleanser to follow - a Fable Farm tomato sorbet with an 'Old Chatham' yogurt "Cheese", and a honey, plum and Lapsang jam - certainly provided the necessary essence to prepare our taste buds for the dessert portion of the meal.
Our cheese course was a selection made by four different Vermont producers, and were joined by a glass of a 2003 late-bottled vintage Taylor Fladgate Porto, some house made wheat crackers, and selection of accompaniments. Woodcock Farm's Humble Pie was featured with a plum and muscat jam, VT Shephards' Queso with salt and pepper almonds, Consider Bardwell Farm's Rupert with chile-glazed local popcorn, and Bonnieview Farm's Mossend Blue with apricot and artisanal membrillo. While I had tried each of these cheeses on individual occasions I thought the selection was nicely complementary and playful, with none of the cheeses overpowering another and the addition of accompaniments respectively.
The sweet portion of the meal came in two courses: first we were presented with a plate of four individual desserts including a 'Maracaibo' pots de creme with a Smuttynose 'Robust Porter' foam and smoked Maldon salt, a huckleberry ice cream sandwich with 'Edelweiss' mousse, and citrus crystals, an EVOO chocolate cake on tart cherry compote with gilden nibs pistachios and paint, and a burnt butter financier with tamari caramel caramelized banana peanuts and mint oil. Now to me this seemed like way too many flavors on one plate, and while I appreciated the effort on the chef's part to give us a well-rounded dessert experience and an experimental one at that, I found that my enjoyment of all four of the desserts at once was diminished by the shear quantity of tastes to experience. Regardless, the overall winner of the desserts was definitely the ice cream sandwich, which resembled a French-style macaroon with a filling of a sweet and tart creamy sorbet. Certainly the flavors and textures of the sandwich dessert were the most complementing of each other. In the other desserts the porter seemed too bitter for the dark chocolate mousse, the mint oil was hardly discernable on the palette next to the distinct caramel flavor of the financier dessert, and perhaps all the chocolate cake required to complete it was a small drizzle of an intensely chocolatey. In any case, dessert when it is prepared with care will always fare well with me, and I assure you that my plate was clean when it left the table.
Our second sweet course was a selection of petits fours, a very nice idea and I did my best to take full advantage of the bite-sized treats to round out our meal. We were treated to a currant pate - like a jelly - pecan sandies, grue truffles, pink peppercorn macaroons, chocolate chip cookies, beetroot toffee, and lemon marshmallows. These latter morsels proved to be my favorite as their lemony flavor and light-as-air texture were the ideal finishing touch for my taste buds.
The satisfaction I obtained from the whole experience was definitely attributable to the meal itself, but I must add that the people with whom I shared the night and from whom I received the perfectly hospitable service were themselves a most crucial component. So to the team at Twin Farms, to the B.E.E.S., and to Phyllis, David, Helene, Sarah, David, Mark, Margaret, and David I say thank you for a splendid occassion on a very confused first day of spring!

A Tribute to VT Maple

This weekend was Vermont's maple open house weekend, and the weather could not have cooperated more. Although I missed excursions to the sugar houses, I did decide to try my hand at a completely invented maple desert on my part. The recipe is below, along with a not-so-nice picture of my finished product. I really should not be in charge of decorating and leave that bit to artistic folks!

Maple Swirl Cheesecake Tart

Crust
9 whole graham crackers, broken into pieces
1/4 cup maple sugar
1/3 cup butter, melter

1) Pulse the graham cracker pieces with the maple sugar in a food processor. When you achieve fine crumbs add the melted butter, and process again until the crumbs begin to stick together on the sides of the bowl.
2) Turn out the crumb into an 8-inch tart pan and press them into the bottom and sides of the pan so that the crust is of an even thickness and covering the whole pan.
3) Bake the crust in a 350-degree oven for 7 minutes and allow to cool once removed.

Filling
8 oz cream cheese (we were low on this ingredient so I used yogurt to cover the remaining of the weight)
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup sour cream
3 gelatin leaves, soaked, squeezed, and melted in microwave
1/2 heavy cream, whipped until stiff

1) Combine the cream cheese and maple syrup together in a mixing bowl and whisk together. Add the sour cream and whisk again. Then add the melted gelatin and whisk just until it is even incorporated.
2) Fold the whipped cream into the bowl, making the filling as light as possible.
3) Pour the filling into the cooled graham cracker crust.

Maple Syrup Caramel
1/4 cup maple sugar
2 tblsp butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp rum

1) Heat the maple sugar with one tsp of water in a heavy bottom pan set over medium high heat. Once the sugar has liquefied, add the butter and swirl the pan to mix it in. Next add the cream and bring the mixture to a low simmer and allow it to cook for about 5 minutes. Finally add the rum and allow it to boil to cook off the alcohol.
2) Allow the caramel to cool slightly and then pour it over the filled tart as desired. I tried to be artistic using the tip of a knife, but as so often happens with my little experiments, the art turned very messy. Nevertheless the end result was tasty and a good toast to VT's Maple Open House Weekend.

P.S. The aromas that linger after making this tart might make you think of pancakes;)

The Flapjack - AKA The Energy/Muesli/Granola Bar

When I worked in England, I discovered the flapjack - also known as muesli bars - or what seemed like to me a less healthy, baked version of a granola bar. Although many of the packaged flapjacks I tried were quite tasty, they never really seemed like an appropriate alternative to a dessert for me - especially when I had an alternative of sticky toffee pudding, bread and butter pudding, or another similar warmed and gooey dessert. This was the case until I endeavored to make my own flapjack-like creation. I initially began with a recipe from my boss' Hummingbird Bakery cookbook and soon realized just why the bar was loaded with so much fat and calories. With butter pulling much of the weight in the recipe and a syrupy sugar mixture pulling the most, it was no wonder that the fat and calorie content of the granola bar look-a-like was comparable to a spongy custardy pudding. Needless to say these flapjacks were wonderful and they instantly became one of my favorite things to make because they were so easily adaptable. However a part of me couldn't help but gulp every time I added the 325 grams of butter and the near 500 grams of both golden syrup and brown sugar.
When I returned to the states, I soon forgot about the flapjacks/muesli bars. I have only just recently begun to think about them again thanks to my continuous endeavor to be able to accommodate some of today's dietary restrictions and preferences. Anyways, these bars quickly popped into my head during my attempts to develop some healthier alternatives to desserts, but that didn't compromise on their taste and texture factor. The flapjack seemed like a perfect adaptable concoction, but it definitely needed modification. Thus I did a bit of exploring and research and this is what I came up with after a couple of goes. It might be better suited to be the title of energy bar because it really could be that healthy, and therefore maybe I have swayed too far from the flapjack. I call them "muesli bars" because to make them I do actually use a store-bought, albeit organic muesli with raisins, hazelnuts, quick rolled oats, and wheat flakes.

Note: Any of the seeds, nuts, and dried fruit can be substituted with any other and you can easily play with flavors in this.

Muesli Bars
1 cup muesli - you could also substitute rolled oats
1 cup unsweetened desiccated coconut
3 Tblsp wheat germ
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1 cup hazelnuts
1 cup raisins
1/3 cup flax seeds
2 tblsp butter
2/3 cup honey

1) Prepare an 8x8" square baking pan by greasing it and lining it with parchment paper.
2) Heat a large frying pan over medium high heat, and add the muesli/oats, coconut, wheat germ, and sesame seeds. Toast the mixture for about 5 minutes while stirring occasionally. Transfer the ingredients to a large mixing bowl to cool.
3) Next add the hazelnuts to the pan and toast them shaking the pan from time to time. After about five minutes remove the hazelnuts to a paper towel or a dish towel and rub the nuts between the towel and each other so as to remove their skins. Roughly chop the hazelnuts and add them to the mixing bowl with the raisins and flax seeds.
4) Finally reduce the heat to medium and add the butter and the honey to the pan. Stir the butter and honey to combine then allow to simmer in the pan for 3-5 minutes without stirring.
5) Pour the hot mixture in with the dry ingredients and toss everything together until the ingredients are evenly combined.
6) Transfer the contents of the bowl to the prepared pan and set a piece of parchment paper over the top. Press the mixture down evenly into the pan.

You can allow the pan to cool at room temperature, but as I tend to want to cut into the bars sooner rather than later, I put the pan into the refrigerator and weigh it down with various items for about an hour.

Hogwash Goulash

Yucky day #3 and the promise of March's winter Norwich farmer's market this coming Saturday, had me rummaging through the freezer for inspiration for tonight's dinner. I came across a roughly 2-lbs boneless pork shoulder that I had procured from Norwich's very own Hogwash Farm at February's farmer's market. I decided to pull it out and allowed it to defrost for the first half of the day, still vacuum-packed, in a container of room-temperature water. In the meantime I went about my usual research process of sourcing ideas for preparation. I had come across a spicy pork goulash about a month ago, and liked the sound of that minus the heat. Thankfully we keep a good stock of sweet paprika at home as well as some other dried herbs and spices that can often be found in goulash variations. Bingo.
With my pork cut no longer resembling a block of ice, and with the herbs and spices at the ready, I began my process. The first step was to cut the meat into cubes, and the rest follows below in pictures and words. I must first note however that according to Wikipedia, in a traditional goulash - meaning soup - flour should never be used, and instead is ideally thickened with potato that is added to the dish at its outset. Nevertheless, as I wasn't necessarily going for authenticity, and prefer to have whole potatoes with my meat and sour cream rather than as a indiscernible component; I decided to opt for dredging the meat in flour to achieve the viscosity for which I was hoping. Here we go!

Hogwash Farm Pork Shoulder Goulash:

Ingredients:

1 tsp caraway seeds
1.5 tblsp vegetable oil, or other neutral oil

~2 lbs boneless pork shoulder (Boston Butt), cut into large cubes

1/3 c. flour

1 tsp each salt and ground black pepper

3 tblsp paprika
1 onion, sliced thinly

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 tblsp cider vinegar

1 tblsp dried marjoram

12 oz lager

1 tblsp molasses

Method:

1) Heat a heavy-bottomed pot/dutch oven over medium high heat. Meanwhile combine the flour with 1 tblsp paprika, and the salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Toss the pork cubes in the flour until they are completely coated.

2) Add the tsp of caraway seeds to the pot and allow to dry toast for 20-30 seconds or until they become fragrant. Add 3/4 tsp of the oil and when the seeds start to sizzle add 1/2 of the meat, so as not to overcrowd. Allow the meat to sear and then turn so that each side cooks evenly. Remove the first batch of meat, add the remaining 3/4 tsp of oil and the remaining meat. Repeat.

3) Once all the meat has been removed from the pan add the onions and saute until they become transluscent. Pour in the cider vinegar, scraping the bottom of the pan as you do so as to remove all the borwned bits. Add in the chopped garlic, the remaining 2 tblsp of paprika, and the the marjoram. Stir everything to combine and top with the meat.

4) Pour in the lager and enough water so that the liquid comes up high enough to cover all the meat. Finally add in the molasses, stir, and bring the liquid to a simmer.

5) Reduce the heat to medium low and allow the dish to cook for 1 and 1/2 to 2 hours, or until the meat reaches your desired tenderness.

I chose to serve my goulash not so traditionally with some paprika baked potatoes and sauteed spinach.

Lapin a la Moutarde

For those of you with a fondness for Thumper, Bugs Bunny, or Peter Rabbit, I might suggest that you not reader further. However, for those of you whose palates have been graced with the tender and gamey yet mild and sweet rabbit mead then hopefully you will enjoy this post.
My mom and I ventured to the Lebanon Farmer's Market this past weekend in search of what is left to find of winter's bounty in the Upper Valley. Although as far as produce was concerned we only managed to come away with a pound or so of yellow onions, we were excited by a new-to-us lineup of vendors. When we were nearly finished with our loop we came to a vendor with a sign for Dunrovin farm in Claremont, NH. What grabbed our attention at this particular stand, which looked similar to the rest with its array of coolers holding a variety of frozen meats, was its sign claiming to have whole rabbits. Immediately our European genes demanded that we stop, and thankfully the farmer still had rabbits to sell. We quickly snatched up one of 3.9 lbs, and left extremely proud of our snag.
Throughout the day as my parents and I discussed our preferences for cooking the animal, I also began to think about who in our circle of acquaintances would be wholly appreciative of sharing the meal with us. I quickly arrived at the names of two former co-workers of mine, and rang them with an invitation to dinner the next evening.
After much deliberation and the pulling out cook books and the searching of the internet, my parents and I finally settled on Rabbit with Mustard - a simple French peasant dish that had each of us in salivation mode. The next day I set to work, and I must say that the results were ideally suited for a meal of good food and good friends. The following recipe is one I took from a French recipe site: gourmandines.fr, and while I did do some tweaking I felt it best to stick to the simplistic nature of the original. I did choose however to cook the rabbit for about twice as long as the recipe called for simply because of my preference for the utmost tenderest meat possible. This is of course not necessary as rabbit meat is already fairly tender, but I would suggest it if you want a deeper flavor.

Lapin a la Moutarde

Ingredients
1 tblsp butter
2 tblsp olive oil
1 rabbit (3.9 lbs is slightly large, but it allowed us to feed 5 people with a tiny bit leftover)
4 tblsp Dijon mustard - I substituted 1 tblsp with grain mustard
salt and pepper
1 tblsp tarragon
3 shallots, roughly chopped
1 cup white wine
2 cups rabbit stock - I used the rabbits backbone to make this quantity of stock, but you could just as easily use chicken stock
2 tblsp heavy cream



1) First it is necessary to cut the rabbit into 8 pieces. You could have a butcher do this for you if you are lucky enough to have one handy, but otherwise the process is not too challenging. I began by cutting off the hind legs by slicing through the flesh and joint where they join with the middle portion of the rabbit. Next I removed the fore legs, by cutting right along the bottom the rib cage and then using a cleaver to remove the backbone from the center of the rib cage. Finally I chose to cut the sadde of the rabbit into three relatively equal pieces, so as to provide a tasting portion for those who would want it.

2) Next you may want to rinse each piece, as some fine little hairs might still present in some places. After drying the pieces proceed with seasoning each first and then applying an even coat of a mixture of 2 tblsp of Dijon mustard and the 1 tblsp of grain mustard to one side of each piece.

3) Heat a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat with the butter and oil. When the butter has melted and begins to foam add the rabbit pieces one by one with the mustard-side facing down. Sear the pieces for about five minutes and in the meantime sprinkle the upward-facing side with the tarragon. Turn each piece over and allow to cook on the other side for another five minutes or so. Evenly distribute the shallots over the top of the pieces.



4) Add the cup of wine and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for 10 minutes to reduce the wine slightly and concentrate its flavor, and then add enough stock so as the rabbit is almost completely submerged.

5) At this stage I allowed the dish to simmer and cook for a good hour and a half, but 40 minutes should be all it needs to cook through and achieve a diserable tenderness. Whenever you feel that the rabbit has cooked long enough, remove the pieces from the pan temporarily to a clean surface. I did this so as to avoid too much of a mess when adding the remaining tblsp of mustard and the 2 tblsp of cream. Plus this allows you to reduce the sauce as much or as little as you like without jeopardizing the quality of the meat. Return the meat to the pan and rewarm in the sauce as necessary.

We served our Lapin a la Moutarde accompanied by fresh homemade paparadelle pasta, and crusty King Arthur Flour baguette; followed by a green salad, and a selection of local cheeses, and finally an Italian-inspired hazelnut cake with a strawberry salad. We drank a white wine following our Kir cocktails, but you could easily enjoy this dish with a mellow and refined red.

Bon Appetit my food friends!