Archive for February, 2010
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Growing Together: Chef Tostrup and His Farmer Partners
We caught up with Jason Tostrup of the Inn at Weathersfield yesterday. The acclaimed chef wasn’t too concerned about the snowstorm. “We have a generator and there’s plenty to eat.” He’s encouraging weather-affected locals to come by and dine. “Eat local every day” is our motto around here. Good local foods don’t have to be special-occasion foods.” The Black Watch Burger on the Lucy’s Tavern menu is proof of that. It’s the best in town, if not the best in New England.
Inn at Weathersfield Chef Jason Tostrup
The Highland beef cattle at Black Watch Farm, just down the road from the Inn, don’t mind the snow either. These animals with their thick hides and shaggy coats “are happier living in the cold,” says Tostrup. Five years ago when Tostrup came to Weathersfield, he connected with Frank Manafort at Black Watch Farms as a source for natural beef and pork. “Frank was one of my first farmer partners here at the Inn. He was the catalyst for me to better understand the relationship needed between chef and farmer.”
The connections just keep coming. The Inn works regularly with more than a dozen different area farms, each one with a major commitment to doing consistent business. “Working together and supporting one another has allowed the Inn and its supplier to both grow together, and that in turn supports the local economy.”
Guests staying at the Inn can get to know these farmer partners through a unique self-guided tour system that’s been programmed into a GPS unit. After a day of food and farm tourism, they can savor a farm-to-table menu in Chef Tostrup’s signature ‘Verterra’ restaurant or enjoy casual fare at Lucy’s Tavern.
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Braised Black Watch Beef Short Ribs
from Chef Jason Tostrup at the Inn at Weathersfield
Black Watch Farm raises Highland cattle on its farm near the Inn in Weathersfield, Vermont. Chef Tostrup loves the bold, salty-sweet flavor of this very lean beef. Start the recipe a day ahead of serving to allow the ribs to marinate.
4 pounds bone-in beef short ribs
4 cups red wine
3 tablespoons tomato paste
24 slices thick-sliced bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup chopped onions
½ cup chopped carrots
1 medium leek, sliced
3 bay leaves
1 sprig thyme
1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups cold water or stockIn a bowl large enough to hold the ribs, combine the wine, tomato paste, bacon, onions, carrots, leeks, bay leaves, thyme and garlic cloves. Add the ribs, cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 24 hours prior to cooking.
Preheat the oven to 325ºF.
Remove the ribs from the marinade. Strain off the liquid, saving the liquid and veggies separately. Season the ribs with salt and pepper.
Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed skillet over high heat. Place the ribs meat-side down and brown on both sides. Once browned, remove the ribs and add the bacon and vegetables reserved from the marinade to the pan.
Cook the vegetables until browned and lightly caramelized. Return the marinade to the pan and cook until all the liquid has evaporated.
Add the water or stock to the pan and slip the ribs back in. Bring to a simmer, cover the pan then transfer to the oven to braise until the meat is tender and just falling off the bone, about 3 hours.
Serves 8-10
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One Big Block Party
Move over Crescent City. It’s Burlington’s turn to let les bons temps rouler. The Magic Hat Mardi Gras Celebration in downtown Burlington, Vermont, opens with music at Higher Ground on Friday night. On Saturday, live bands on Church Street will fill the air with Cajun/Creole sounds as pubs and cafes will serve up tasty New Orleans fare.
The King & Queen of Mardi Gras Costume Contest begins at noon outside City Hall. Winners are each awarded $500 and will help lead the Grand Parade with Magic Hat’s Alan Newman and Mayor Bob Kiss. The event, now in its fifteenth year, will benefit the Women’s Rape Crisis Center.• If you go, keep in mind: Smart revelers park their cars at Magic Hat HQ on Bartlett Bay Road in South Burlington or Burlington High School and take the free Mardi Gras shuttle into town.
• Buy your beads to throw at the Magic Hat Mardi Gras Headquarters located in the old Maplehurst Florist shop on Church Street in Burlington. Sales benefit the WRCC.
• It’s going to be chilly! Fingerless gloves are best for catching the beads, authentic Louisiana moon pies and Lake Champlain chocolates as they fly from the floats!
• Families with children under 7 years old are welcome to catch the parade from the Little Jambalaya Viewing Zone, on the corner of Main Street and South Winooski.
More Regional Events
(All events take place in Vermont unless otherwise noted.)
Thursday, February 25
Ron Krupp, local author of Lifting the Yoke: Local Solutions to America’s Farm and Food Crisis offers up practical actions for Vermonters. 7 to 9 pm at Kellogg-Hubbard Library in Montpelier. Free. -
Brandade
from the FarmPlate Kitchen
Here’s one for slow food fans—the salt cod needs soaking for 1 to 2 days. After that, however, the recipe takes only about 20 minutes to prepare.A note on salt cod: Most of the cod fisheries in the Atlantic are too fragile to be considered sustainable, but Pacific cod is a different story. The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) just last month certified two important Alaskan cod fisheries as sustainable. Some of that harvest makes its way to Brazil and southern Europe to be turned into salt cod. Look for the MSC sustainability label whenever you buy salt cod.
1 pound salt cod or smoked haddock
Nonfat and whole milk from your favorite Vermont dairy
2 bay leaves
½ cup olive oil
6 to 10 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
2 large baking or 4 to 5 medium all-purpose potatoes
1 cup grated Swiss-style cheese, such as Blythedale Farm Green Mountain Gruyère or Thistle Hill Farm Tarentaise
Vermont Common Crackers, Westminster crackers or crostini, to serveSoak the cod in cold water for 1 to 2 days, changing the water every few hours. Smoked haddock does not need soaking.
Place the piece of fish is a small saucepan. Add the nonfat milk to just cover the fish. Add the
bay leaves to the pan then bring the milk to a gentle simmer and cook for 3 minutes. Cover the pan and remove from the heat. Set aside until the fish is cool enough to handle.In a small saucepan, slowly heat the olive oil and garlic until very hot but not bubbling. Remove from the heat and set aside to infuse.
Peel the potatoes and cook in boiling salted water until soft. Drain and mash, adding just enough whole milk to make the potatoes smooth.
Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
Remove the fish from its poaching liquid. Flake the fish, checking carefully for any bones. Place in a mixing bowl. Add the mashed potatoes and combine well with a fork. Add the garlicky olive oil in a stream, beating the mixture quickly with electric beaters until supple and smooth. Transfer the brandade to a small gratin dish. Sprinkle the top with the grated cheese.
Bake the brandade until heated through and the cheese is melted, about 12 minutes. Serve with plain crackers or crostini.
Serves 8 as an appetizer, 4 as a main course
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Sea Fare for Hungry Revelers
Mardi Gras v1 took place early last week for most people. Not so for those revelers north of 44 degrees latitude. Mardi Gras v2 comes to downtown Burlington, Vermont, this weekend. The annual pre-Lenten blowout is sponsored by Magic Hat Brewery and includes great music, great food and great beer plus one absolutely awesome parade at 3 pm on Saturday.
Long ago in Catholic countries, the period after Mardi Gras meant seven weeks of meat-free meals. Butcher shops closed until Easter Saturday while fishmongers took up the slack, selling boatloads of salt cod to the faithful. It’s that salt cod tradition that inspires today’s recipe for brandade, a rib-sticking cod-and-potato classic from southern France. You’ll find it’s the perfect warming dish to serve after spending the afternoon outdoors catching beads and moon pies thrown by the kings and queens of the Mardi Gras parade.
Brandade
from the FarmPlate Kitchen
Here’s one for slow food fans—the salt cod needs soaking for 1 to 2 days. After that, however, the recipe takes only about 20 minutes to prepare.A note on salt cod: Most of the cod fisheries in the Atlantic are too fragile to be considered sustainable, but Pacific cod is a different story. The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) just last month certified two important Alaskan cod fisheries as sustainable. Some of that harvest makes its way to Brazil and southern Europe to be turned into salt cod. Look for the MSC sustainability label whenever you buy salt cod.
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Wyoming’s Food Freedom Act Gains Momentum
Wyoming’s proposed House Bill 54 known as the Wyoming Food Freedom Act could exempt food producers selling “cottage foods,” or foods prepared in home kitchens, from state licenses, certifications and inspections when selling directly to consumers. Sue Wallis, a Republican member of the Wyoming State House of Representatives is sponsoring the bill.
Last year, Wallis worked to pass state legislation that made it legal to sell non-hazardous home-produced foods like jams, cookies and bread at farmers’ markets and stands in Wyoming without regulation. The bill was enacted on July 1, 2009. Prior to that date, homemade foods made in a non-licensed kitchen could only be sold at church or charity events.The proposed Wyoming Food Freedom Act would no longer ban potentially hazardous foods, including dairy, canned foods and sauces, produced in uninspected, non-licensed kitchens from being sold direct to consumers.
Those in favor of the Wyoming Food Freedom Act say it will make it possible for small farmers and food producers to sell direct to consumers without allocating the disproportionate amount of capital required to get proper certifications—a financial burden that can put small farmers and food producers out of business.
Others say the bill poses great risk to the consumer. Bob Harrington, the Casper-Natrona county health department executive director told the Casper Journal that without being able to inspect the kitchens where food is being prepared, the customer is no longer safeguarded against problems arising from unmonitored personal hygiene standards and the level of cleanliness of the environment in which the food is prepared.
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Montpelier’s Meeting Place
Since 1977 the Capital City Farmers Market has served as a favorite Vermont gathering place for local producers and devoted foodies on Saturdays from May to November. Come December, market junkies used to have to go cold turkey. But not anymore.
Now in its third season, Montpelier’s winter market welcomes eager shoppers on the first and third Saturdays of each month. Fresh meats and cured sausages, farmhouse cheeses, still-warm artisan breads, irresistible baked goods, maple products, micro greens, root veggies of every color and shape, fiber arts, conga drums, one-of-a-kind t-shirts . . . the list goes on and on. More than 25 central Vermont food producers and craftspeople will set up their stalls in the Vermont College of Fine Arts Gym at tomorrow’s market.
Randy George will be there, unloading fragrant loaves of artisan breads, rolls and pastries. Randy is the owner of Red Hen Bakery in Middlesex and is also on the market’s board of directors. He knows the market rules well—producers must be at their stands at least 50% of the market days. “I wouldn’t miss it,” he says.
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The New Last W-O-R-D for Gardeners
Some Vermonters will be TIVO-ing next Tuesday’s Olympic curling and hockey coverag
e so they can head to Montpelier to hear the latest from Ed Smith, Vermont’s gardening champion. For more than a decade, Smith’s Vegetable Gardener’s Bible has inspired countless gardeners to follow his W-O-R-D to produce bountiful harvests of organic vegetables using the Wide rows, Organic methods, Raised beds, Deep soil method.Gardener and author Ed Smith will be at Bear Pond Books to sign the just-released revised and updated second edition of his VG Bible, which includes coverage of 15 additional vegetables, a section on extending the growing season into the winter months and much more. Tuesday, February 23 at 7 pm.
More Regional Events
(All events take place in Vermont unless otherwise noted.)
Friday, February 19
Social Media Seminar: Joe Mescher of Social Media Commando delves into Internet marketing tools such as Facebook and Twitter. 8 to 9:30 am at the Vergennes Opera House on the Green in Vergennes. -
Heart Healthiest Sweet Potato Salad
from the FarmPlate Kitchen
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into large cubes
½ cup orange juice
1 tablespoon olive or canola oil
1 tablespoon honey
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 large tart apples, such as Newtown Pippin, Rhode Island Greening or Granny Smith
¼ cup very thinly sliced red onions
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (Chapin Orchard’s Cider Vinegar is excellent)
Dash of ground mace
½ cup broken walnuts, lightly toastedPreheat the oven to 375°F.
Put the sweet potato cubes into a baking dish. Combine the orange juice, oil, honey, salt and pepper and pour over the potatoes. Toss to coat. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
Cut the apples into wedges, then cut the wedges into thick slices. Place in a salad bowl along with the red onions. Sprinkle with the vinegar, mace and a little pepper. Add the cooled sweet potatoes and their cooking juices. Toss to mix. Sprinkle the walnuts over the top. Serve at room temperature or chilled
Serves 4 to 6
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Health on the Menu
February is American Heart Month, which somehow makes sense given all the hearts that have decorated shop windows over the past couple weeks. But it’s also National Sweet Potato Month, which seems peculiar given that sweet potato
farmers across the country are looking out at snow-covered fields. There is one strong connection however.Sweet potatoes are a wonderfully heart-healthy food. The orange tubers are high in vitamins A, C and E as well as fiber and potassium, a mineral that’s key to keeping blood pressure under control. While North Carolina, Mississippi and California are the country’s top producers, New England gardeners can grow them here. (Vermont Bean Seed Company [located in Wisconsin!] offers slips of early-maturing varieties for northern gardens.)
New England’s apple orchards are a source of another heart-health powerhouse. Apples are packed with fiber and most of that fiber is pectin, a soluble fiber that helps reduce bad cholesterol.
The recipe below offers one of the tastiest, heart-healthiest combos we know. It’s great after an afternoon of invigorating cross-country skiing when served alongside Stonewood Farm turkey sausage.
Heart Healthiest Sweet Potato Salad
from the FarmPlate Kitchen
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into large cubes
½ cup orange juice
1 tablespoon olive or canola oil
1 tablespoon honey
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 large tart apples, such as Newtown Pippin, Rhode Island Greening or Granny Smith
¼ cup very thinly sliced red onions
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (Chapin Orchard’s Cider Vinegar is excellent)
Dash of ground mace
½ cup broken walnuts, lightly toastedPreheat the oven to 375°F.
Put the sweet potato cubes into a baking dish. Combine the orange juice, oil, honey, salt and pepper and pour over the potatoes. Toss to coat. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
Cut the apples into wedges, then cut the wedges into thick slices. Place in a salad bowl along with the red onions. Sprinkle with the vinegar, mace and a little pepper. Add the cooled sweet potatoes and their cooking juices. Toss to mix. Sprinkle the walnuts over the top. Serve at room temperature or chilled
Serves 4 to 6
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