Sunday, November 30, 2008

Sunsets and spelt...

We have had the most beautiful sunsets lately, even if they are coming at the absurd hour of 4:30 p.m.! The view from Caterpillar Hill, here caught by Julie Jo Fehrle, is always spectacular, always. And now there's a sweet trail just below the scenic pull-off and a great gallery at the very top, and even mini golf just down the road. And El El Frijoles is a short drive away.

I love the New York Times on Sundays. When I'm in the city, I love sneaking a peek on Saturday or early Sunday morning. In Blue Hill, I have to wait patiently until the papers arrive around 10:30 a.m. This week's magazine brought a mention of a local bakery, the Tinder Hearth. Tim Semlar and Lydia Moffet and their delicious artisanal spelt-flour breads were mentioned. I suppose the band wasn't mentioned because it was in the food column, The Way We Eat, but that was a tremendous oversight on the part of Heidi Julavits, the Maine-born author. (Read her famous essay, in which she suggests reviewers shouldn't be so mean, here.)

The music of the Living Daylight, a collection of local--and some bread-baking--musicians who play myriad instruments and all to a very danceable beat, is as delicious as any spelt product (Shine on Your Darkness is my fav).

I also have to wonder if Heidi has had the Barncastle's spelt-crusted pizza? Delish as well.
At the inn we have our festive wreathes up, this year made by us in the big kitchen. The Cape House, next door to the inn, now has two spaces for rent year round so we've been able to say yes to more guests. The newest space, the Cape House Studio, has a kitchenette and sitting area, a bedroom with a four-poster king-sized bed and arm chairs, and a full private bath. It's a more modern accommodation than rooms in the inn but is a comfortable combination of antiques and modern conveniences. In the kitchen area, photographs by Terrell Lester adorn the walls, whereas in the bedroom, it's artwork by my aunt, Ky Wilson (daughter of the man who painted the sunflowers and kitchen scene in the breakfast room of the inn).

I hope you're enjoying your sunsets and sunrises, too. It's the perfect time of year to catch them both.

Friday, November 14, 2008

Those incredible candy cookies

When I took over the inn in July 2007, it came all set up as an inn. In fact, the guests were the previous owners' responsibility in the morning and mine in the afternoon. The inn was "turn key" which means that it came ready to go, equipped with everything needed--beds and towels and cookbooks, like the Silver Palate. One of the author/illustrators, Sheila Lukins, had signed it for the inn in 1995. It is a well worn cookbook. At the inn, we often make the coffeecake on page 321 (it's so decadent! don't be put off by the recipe on the facing page: sauteed chicken livers with blueberry vinegar) peach cake (p. 300), and lemon black-walnut bread (p. 252).

This fall, head o' kitchen Matt had been using the chocolate chip cookie recipe on page 262 as a starting point. The results were amazing. In addition to the pecan mini muffins (recipe included in the October 4, 2008, blog entry), I offered these to visitors to the Foliage Food and Wine Festival. I was very popular!

Here's the basic recipe. Matt likes to add all sorts of extras like white chocolate chips, toffee chips, butterscotch chips...

1/2 pound sweet butter (2 sticks), softened
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F for giant cookies; for regular cookies heat to 350. Grease a cookie sheet.
2. Cream butter and both sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well.
3. Sift dry ingredients together and stir in, mixing thoroughly. Add chocolate chips to batter [and any extra delicious bits]. Form cookies [they suggest making giant cookies. I always tell Matt, "Smaller, smaller" so that you can try a small one to see if you like it and so you can always have a guilt-free mid-afternoon treat. We bake lots--there are always more]. If you're making giant cookies, use an ice cream scoop and, with a wet hand, splat the dough into a 5-inch round.
4. Bake on the prepared cookie sheet, on the middle rack, for 15-17 minutes for giant cookies; 8-10 minutes for regular cookies. Remove from oven while centers are slightly soft. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to rack to cool completely.

Bake these and you will be o so popular, too.

The Foliage Food and Wine Festival was a fabulous weekend of deliciousness. From events at the Arborvine, the Wescott Forge, the Barncastle, the Co-op to our collaborative dinner with El El Frijoles and Maxx, from the Blue Hill Wine Shop, to the food and wine extravaganza on the final day, we nibbled and sipped our way through the weekend. Fairwinds Florist even featured a foliage-inspired treasure hunt. If you want to join us next year, plan now. We are sure to book all our rooms and our Friday night dinner event.

I hope your fall is as gorgeous as ours here in Blue Hill. If it isn't, call us up--we have our two Cape House units available all fall.