Austrian Wine-Buying Trip: A Lesson in Food, Hospitality, and of Course Wine

Austria:

 

Terroir

 

 

 

 

 

Bread 

 

Pork

Pastry

Wine

 

And More Things Nice

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.