cali primitive meets cooking celebrity

[franksolich]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=236x68861

Oh my.

Hot times in small-town Vermont.

cali  (1000+ posts)        Mon Sep-14-09 04:38 PM
Original message
 
Last night I met Emeril. He's in my tiny town doing a show on the local organic agriculture and food product boom that's taking place here. I was in Claire's, our local and localvore restaurant having dinner with my kid and the bartender (a friend) introduced me to him. I've never seen Emeril on TV but he seemed like a really nice guy and he's way into what we're doing here. He has a crew of 25 with him. Pretty exciting stuff for a little town in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom.

Here are some of the businesses he's visiting/filming:

http://www.clairesvt.com /

http://www.jasperhillfarm.com /

http://www.hardwickagriculture.org /

http://www.vermontsoy.com /

http://www.highmowingseeds.com /

You know, for reasons unknown to me, this "Emeril" guy was a frequent topic of discussion on America On-Line's "college football chat" about ten years ago.

elleng  (1000+ posts)        Mon Sep-14-09 04:58 PM
Response to Original message
 
1. Great news!

Did you invite him to your place? What's on the menu at the moment?

cali  (1000+ posts)        Mon Sep-14-09 05:18 PM
Response to Reply #1
 
2. we're a seasonal business. our last day was September 6, but Don introduced me as the chef at the Brickhouse Cafe and Emeril said he'd heard great things about it. I immediately told him I"m not a chef just a cook and he laughed at that.

On the last day I served a white wine potato, leek and Cabot Cheddar soup with a salad of garden greens, a caramelized onion apple and Bayley-Hazen Blue Cheese Tart, Curried garden squash soup, roasted veggie sandwich on homemade french bread and a vegetarian salad nicoise. Also did a ginger pecan shortcake with caramelized plums and homemade ginger ice cream.

Hmmm.  Not exactly proletariat chow, there.

One's starting to suspect the Vermontese cali primitive's an elitist, what with these $30 "pots of tea".

elleng  (1000+ posts)        Mon Sep-14-09 05:25 PM
Response to Reply #2
 
3. Thanks for the info, Cali.

So you're resting up?

cali  (1000+ posts)        Mon Sep-14-09 05:30 PM
Response to Reply #3
 
4. well, not yet, but thanks for asking

it's all about cleaning and putting things to rest for the winter for the next week or so. After that, I'm going to catch up on my reading and put my garden to bed, go to Maine for a few days. I'm looking forward to it.

elleng  (1000+ posts)        Mon Sep-14-09 05:43 PM
Response to Reply #4
 
5. What will you do in Maine?

(Pardon my asking; interested in travel!)

When will you open again?

Uh, Maine is a few minutes' stroll from where the cali primitive is; it's hardly "travel."

Grandma, who wants a chest-style freezer for Christmas, but it's doubtful whether her skinkflint tightwad husband Scrooge is going to get one for her:

hippywife  (1000+ posts)        Mon Sep-14-09 07:30 PM
Response to Reply #2

6. Oooh! Did someone say  bleu cheese tart? Would you care to share, m'dear?

cali  (1000+ posts)        Mon Sep-14-09 08:03 PM
Response to Reply #6
 
7. Why certainly.

I make a butter crust- for one 11 inch tart use 1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour, a quarter teaspoon salt, one stick unsalted butter and a few tablespoons of ice water. I do it in the food processor. For the tart filling, slowly cook 4 to 5 medium size onions for 40 minutes until golden and meltingly soft. Add two thinly sliced granny smith apples. Cook until they're soft. Add salt, freshly ground black pepper and a bit of freshly ground nutmeg. In fully prebaked tart shell, put onion/apple mixture. Top with a cup and a half of crumbled blue cheese- Maytag would be great. I use Bailey-Hazen because it's made down the road and it's fantastic. Bake for 15 minutes in a 350 oven. Serve warm.

[DumbAss Tanker]

The closing night menu sounds like something I'd cross the street to avoid.

[franksolich]

The closing night menu sounds like something I'd cross the street to avoid.

You'd save big bucks by not doing that, when looking at the prices.

Like I said, the Vermontese cali primitve doesn't cater to a very proletariat clientele.

[YupItsMe]

Hardwick, VT.  Wow!   The joke about Hardwick is if a husband and wife get divorced in Hardwick, are they still brother and sister?

[bijou]

Frank! I can't believe you missed the most egregious thing of all.

roasted veggie sandwich

   

[franksolich]

Frank! I can't believe you missed the most egregious thing of all.
   

It was very early in the morning in the Sandhills of Nebraska when I overlooked that, madam.

[lastparker]

The closing night menu sounds like something I'd cross the street to avoid.

Actually, it sounded delicious to me except for the nicoise, because I hate tuna.  But as frank points out, I could never afford it in this Obonomy.

[debk]

have to say I was curious about the onion/apple/blue cheese tart....thanks for the screen shot of the recipe Frank....

thinkin' it would be good with a pork loin roast....

[bijou]

have to say I was curious about the onion/apple/blue cheese tart....thanks for the screen shot of the recipe Frank....

thinkin' it would be good with a pork loin roast....

Accompanying a pork roast would be good because the recipe looks as if it would come out rather sweet. That is a personal prejudice because I don't like sweet flavoured vegetables like parsnip and squash etc I occasionally make a goats cheese and red onion tart which is delicious.

[debk]

Accompanying a pork roast would be good because the recipe looks as if it would come out rather sweet. That is a personal prejudice because I don't like sweet flavoured vegetables like parsnip and squash etc I occasionally make a goats cheese and red onion tart which is delicious.

I found a recipe the other day, that had sweet onions, new potatoes, and sage on a cookie sheet (with sides) roasted, then a pork loin put on a rack over them so the juices dripped into the veggies. Then the last half hour or so add sliced up Gala apples to the onion/potatoes and continue to bake.

Thought it sounded really good, and was going to try it, but I like the idea of the tart instead. Not sure how the leftovers would be of the other one. I always like to have leftovers, with our work schedules, we tend to eat at different times and having something in the refrig to zap in the microwave makes life easier.....

[bijou]

I found a recipe the other day, that had sweet onions, new potatoes, and sage on a cookie sheet (with sides) roasted, then a pork loin put on a rack over them so the juices dripped into the veggies. Then the last half hour or so add sliced up Gala apples to the onion/potatoes and continue to bake.

Thought it sounded really good, and was going to try it, but I like the idea of the tart instead. Not sure how the leftovers would be of the other one. I always like to have leftovers, with our work schedules, we tend to eat at different times and having something in the refrig to zap in the microwave makes life easier.....

If you had leftovers I think the best way to use them up would be a fritata or Spanish-style tortilla.

[debk]

If you had leftovers I think the best way to use them up would be a fritata or Spanish-style tortilla.

Leftovers in our house, consists of M walking to the refrig and what's there that he can take out of a container and either turn into a sandwich or zap in micro whenever he wants to eat... He gets up at 5:30, goes to Mass every morning, eats lunch early and snacks a couple of times. I get up between 8:30 and 9:30, if I don't have reports to do, and usually don't eat until around 1. We usually eat dinner at the same time.

[DumbAss Tanker]

Actually, it sounded delicious to me except for the nicoise, because I hate tuna.  But as frank points out, I could never afford it in this Obonomy.

I love tuna.  The soup does sound okay if a bit overdone - I am definitely not a fan of wine in cooking, to my palate it generally leaves the dish worse by making it taste like someone got a bit too much vinegar in it and then dumped some cheap cologne into the mix in a misguided attempt to mask the vinegar.  The combination of apples, onions and bleu cheese (the last of which is about as appealing as sucking dirty feet to me) sounds positively revolting, and I totally fail to see the attraction of ginger ice cream.

[NHSparky]

Strange that a search of the eating establishments in and around the area mentions nothing of this place, being the egalitarian type of place which would surely draw droves of flatlanders to be overcharged for what they could far more easily obtain at home.

[franksolich]

Strange that a search of the eating establishments in and around the area mentions nothing of this place, being the egalitarian type of place which would surely draw droves of flatlanders to be overcharged for what they could far more easily obtain at home.

Where the cali primitive cooks for the non-hoi polloi:

http://www.conservativecave.com/index.php/topic,32008.0/

[NHSparky]

IOW, much the same "mom and pop" backyard cookout type stuff, sans meat.  And yeah, $25.95 for a pot of friggin tea?  Seriously?

And no steak anywhere on that menu.  That just ain't right.

[lastparker]

I love tuna.  The soup does sound okay if a bit overdone - I am definitely not a fan of wine in cooking, to my palate it generally leaves the dish worse by making it taste like someone got a bit too much vinegar in it and then dumped some cheap cologne into the mix in a misguided attempt to mask the vinegar.  The combination of apples, onions and bleu cheese (the last of which is about as appealing as sucking dirty feet to me) sounds positively revolting, and I totally fail to see the attraction of ginger ice cream.

When she opens back up in the spring, we can go together.  You can have tuna, and I'll have everything else.  Then we go somewhere else for beer and nachos.

[DumbAss Tanker]

When she opens back up in the spring, we can go together.  You can have tuna, and I'll have everything else.  Then we go somewhere else for beer and nachos.

Or just cut to the beer and nachos!

 

[bijou]

IOW, much the same "mom and pop" backyard cookout type stuff, sans meat.  And yeah, $25.95 for a pot of friggin tea?  Seriously?

And no steak anywhere on that menu.  That just ain't right.

$25.95 is a lot for a cream tea which is usually tea, a couple of scones (biscuits) clotted cream and jam. Even in London - the most expensive place on the planet - I'd balk at paying that price. Perhaps they have a number of extras because the ingredients of a cream tea are not that expensive.

[DumbAss Tanker]

$25.95 is a lot for a cream tea which is usually tea, a couple of scones (biscuits) clotted cream and jam. Even in London - the most expensive place on the planet - I'd balk at paying that price. Perhaps they have a number of extras because the ingredients of a cream tea are not that expensive.

Maybe if it was served by strippers...

 

[NHSparky]

Maybe if it was served by strippers...

 

DUmmy strippers?  There's 300 lbs of sad hanging off that pole right there...not a pretty visual.

[Karin]

"Curried squash soup" sounds revolting. 

I'll never forget Cali's brochure where it says that if you're on a budget, "Not to worry, just order a pot of tea."   

Lazy good for nothing, closing up a seasonal business on 9/6.  I have a seasonal business too and we're going till the snow flies. 

[DumbAss Tanker]

DUmmy strippers?  There's 300 lbs of sad hanging off that pole right there...not a pretty visual.

Hey just 'cause they have a DUmmy head cook doesn't mean they couldn't hire strippers to justify prices like that!  Of course what it does probably mean is that the place is full of Massholes and other Leftist pukes who are paying for all the quaint atmosphere, and walking into the place would probably make me feel like Clark Kent wandering into a Kryptonite mine.

[debk]

"Curried squash soup" sounds revolting. 

I'll never forget Cali's brochure where it says that if you're on a budget, "Not to worry, just order a pot of tea."   

Lazy good for nothing, closing up a seasonal business on 9/6.  I have a seasonal business too and we're going till the snow flies. 

I make a pumpkin soup that has a wee bit of curry in it ( about 1/8 of a teaspoon).....I guess it would sound snazzier called "curried squash soup"...

[GOBUCKS]

Localvore? One who dines on locals?