There's a Moon Out Tonight

With the Labor Day holiday weekend behind us, summer vacationers are retreating back to the chill proof confines of their urban dwellings and folks are back to corporate demands while children reluctantly schlep back to school.  Soon the cooling breezes will carry colorful foliage to coat the ground with a crunching cover where hikers shuffle though.  All of this ambience officially ushers in the fall season and the Harvest Moon.

The full moon that occurs closest to the autumn equinox is dubbed the Harvest Moon.  It was so named by farmers who appreciated its luminescence, which enabled them to carry out their harvesting duties for hours after the progressively earlier setting sun.  Due to the position of the earth at this time of year, the moon rises earlier and thus provides the shortest period of true darkness.   Because it rises even before the day's sun has set, the Harvest Moon takes on a slightly orange cast from the twilight sun.  This year's Harvest Moon occurs on September 19.

Celebrate your local farmers by hosting a Harvest Moon dinner for your family and friends, showcasing the foods and beverages that are produced locally in your area.  Here on Long Island, that's easily accomplished if you reside in central or eastern Suffolk County, a geographical advantage for which I am perpetually grateful.  Many other areas across the United States feature weekend farmer's markets where local growers sell their goods from vending stalls.  With the continual surge of cooking popularity and a quest to eat local, whole foods, the wares go beyond seasonal fruits and vegetables.  Local artisans are producing cheeses, wines, meats, baked goods, honey, salsas, jams, craft beers and jarred pickled goods.

For my fellow Island dwellers, take a round trip across the eastern north fork, where you will run into so many opportunities to procure the makings for every course of the meal.  Farm stands line the main route, offering the last of the summer's vegetables and peaches as well as the first autumn harvest.  Fink's and Lewins farms is one of the north fork's iconic farm stands.  Consider assembling one last heirloom tomato salad platter for a first course and creating a side dish with the season's premier golden butternut squash or ruby red beets.  You may opt to bake one final peach pie, or you might take a break and purchase one of Briermere Farm's famous, luscious homemade pies instead.   While you're there, purchase some freshly baked bread to accompany dinner or to slice and toast for an appetizer.  Catapano Dairy Farm is the answer for your appetizer course, offering an array of award-winning cheeses.  Long island's east end history once hosted duck farms all over the north fork.  Today, Miloski's Poultry Farm provides fresh duck for an elegant entree.  They also peddle a selection of other local poultry, Polish sausages and local eggs.  Woodside Orchards sells an impressive selection of apple varieties as well as their own hard apple cider.  On the subject of libations for your guests, Long Island is home to over fifty vineyards to fulfill all your wine sipping needs.  When you reach the village of Greenport, be sure to stop in at Greenport Harbor Brewing Company for a growler or two of excellent craft brews for the beer aficionados on your guest list.  This only begins to scratch the surface of all of the locally produced edible gems that Long Island has to offer.  For those who reside elsewhere, do a little sleuthing online for your area.  While the selection may be on a smaller scale, there are likely similar offerings that beckon your sampling.

Now that you have brought home all of the ingredients to make your Harvest Moon dinner, set up some outdoor comforts such as logs for the fire pit, blanket throws for late night conversations in the cooling breeze, settings on the table and glassware for cocktail sipping.  Program some tunes and light a few candles.  Patio decoration can also be obtained at the farm stands, which are now bursting with colorful potted mums and brimming with pumpkins, gourds, hay bales and Indian corn.  Rustic wooden bowls of peaches and baskets of apples perform double duty as they decorate tables and provide healthy snacking options.  Hollowed out acorn squash rinds can serve as bowls for nuts or olives.  Orange napkins add a pop of autumnal color to neutral place settings on the table.

What's for dinner?  Whatever you and your guests like.  My menu would consist of:

·      Goat cheese, fig and walnut crostini (recipe below)

·      Autumn punch (recipe below)

·      Grilled boneless duck breasts a honey, orange and sage glaze

·      Roast butternut squash purée

·      Grilled red and gold beets

·      Grilled herbed potatoes

·      Roast Brussels sprouts (recipe here)

·      I would offer a couple of local wines and a local craft seasonal beer, and dessert would be a couple of locally baked pies and cookies.

What if it rains?  Don’t sweat it.  Place all of the seasonal décor indoors throughout the mingling, conversational and dining areas.  Swap out the grilled duck and potatoes for roast duck breasts with garlic, rosemary and fennel instead, and serve that over mashed potatoes.  You can roast the beets and either serve them as is or incorporate them into a warm beet salad. 

Goat Cheese, Fig and Walnut Crostini

Ingredients:

1 loaf of Italian bread, bias-sliced thin

Extra virgin olive oil

32 ounces fresh goat cheese

2 pints fresh figs, stems removed, cut into quarters

2 cups walnut halves

¼ cup chopped rosemary leaves

Black pepper

Honey

Preheat oven to 350-degrees.  Arrange bread slices in a single layer on baking sheets and brush with olive oil.  Place in the oven and toast until very lightly browned.  Remove from the oven and set aside.  Meanwhile, place the walnuts in a nonstick frying pan over medium heat and toast them until very lightly browned and fragrant.  Remove from the pan and set aside.  In a mixing bowl, combine the goat cheese and figs until the two are incorporated, then mix in the cooled walnuts.  Spread two tablespoons of the goat cheese mixture onto each toasted slice of bread.  Lightly drizzle half of a teaspoon of honey over each, and then sprinkle with freshly cracked black pepper and a pinch of rosemary. 

Autumn Gewurztraminer Punch

Ingredients:

1 bottle of Gewurztraminer wine

1 cup apple juice

1 cup cranberry juice

2 teaspoons whole cloves

2 apples, halved, cored and sliced

3 plums, halved, pitted and sliced

2 cups green grapes

Selzter

In a large serving bowl or punch bowl, stir together the wine and juices.  Place the cloves in a tea leaf ball or in a mesh sac made from cheesecloth and closed with string.  Add this to the bowl.  Allow the flavors to meld for a few hours in the refrigerator.  At serving time, place some assorted fruit into each glass (I recommend pilsner glasses for this one!), then ladle the wine mixture to fill each glass three quarters.  Top off each with a splash of seltzer, give a light stir and serve.

Whether hosting this festive affair outdoors or in, be sure to raise your glasses and gaze up at the impressive Harvest Moon and remember to give thanks to all of your local growers and artisans who made this dinner possible.

Long Island's Vines

Fall is in full swing here on Long Island, with fall festivals a plenty every weekend from now through Halloween.  Unfortunately, the traffic is proof of that.  Pumpkin pickers and folks looking to get lost in a corn maze flock to the east end – hence the reason why we buy our pumpkins at our neighborhood farm stand and wait until after Halloween to reclaim our favorite east end haunts.  Once the ghoulies, goonies and gremlins make themselves scarce after Halloween, spend some relaxing weekends in November touring some of the vineyards.

As you take the leisurely drive east toward Long Island’s north fork, the idyllic scenery is peppered with beckoning farm stands bursting with colorful bounty and flora.  Interspersed among those farm stands you will pass acres of lush grape vines, standing like soldiers at attention as they await their deployment to the winemaking facilities that are so abundant in this area.

New York State is the third largest wine-producing region in the United States.  Long Island’s seaside climate and soil quality provide favorable conditions for growing and producing wine.  Since the establishment of Long Island’s first vineyard in 1973, the east end winegrowing region continues to expand nearly forty years later, boasting over fifty wineries to sip from.  While a vast array of varietals and blends are produced, Long Island’s most respectable achievements gravitate toward Bordeaux blends such as Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.  Most of the east end wineries are located on the north fork, many of them along the two main roads of Sound Avenue (County Rout 48) and Route 25. 

To visit the oldest winery, which was founded in 1973 by the Hargrave family and sold in 1999 to an Italian prince by the name of Marco Borghese, you will find Castello di Borghese nestled on Sound Avenue in Cutchogue.  For a reservation and modest fee, their ‘Winemaker’s Walk’ will take you on a guided stroll along the vineyard, a tour of the wine-production facility and barrel rooms and concludes with a tasting of several of their wines.  This popular touring option is available on Saturdays from November through May, and on Thursdays and Sundays from June through October, all tours commencing at 1 p.m.  If you opt for a more spontaneous sampling venture, the tasting room is open daily from May through December and on Thursday through Monday from January through April.  Their velvety smooth Meritage is exceptional and their Pinot Noir is the star of their winning lineup.

Occupying over five hundred acres, Pindar is the largest wine producer on Long Island.  Still under the original ownership of Dr. Damianos, Pindar was established in 1979.  This winery is located in Peconic on Route 25.   Pindar Vineyards prides themselves on their efforts toward sustainable agricultural practices and use of renewable energy, opting for organic composting over chemical fertilizers and pesticides.  In the closing months of 2011, a 100-kilowatt wind turbine was erected onsite and now supplies most of the energy used in the winery’s operations.  The vineyard grows seventy varieties of grapes, which are then crafted into a host of varietals and proprietary blends.  Pindar’s most notable award-winning blend is called Mythology, which I first enjoyed in 1997 and the 2007 Mythology is equally sensational. For white wine aficionados, the Sunflower Chardonnay and the Johannisberg Riesling have reaped favorable accolades, from myself included.  Pindar’s tasting room is open daily all year; complimentary tours are given at 2 p.m. from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend.  Be prepared for crowds, as the longevity of the winery and the variety of different wines make Pindar the island’s most popular winery.

My favorite winery on Long Island is Roanoke Vineyards, located on Sound Avenue in Riverhead, is owned by Richard Pisacano, who has been tending vines and producing world class wines on Long Island for over thirty years.  The mission at Roanoake is to create limited production artisanal wines of premium superb quality.  Winemaker Roman Roth has created three unique and exquisite blends: Blend One, a Cabernet Sauvignon base blended with Cabernet Franc; Blend 2, which is absolute red perfection, showcases Cabernet Franc as the headliner, blended with Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.  Marco Tulio is the other blend in which the three aforementioned grapes come together in perfect harmony. Their staff is very outgoing, knowledgeable and eager to answer questions.  Roanoke’s tasting room is open daily.

Other notable wineries include Macari Vineyards in Mattituck, whose Merlot and Rose are both personal favorites of mine, and Osprey’s Dominion in Peconic, where an all-encompassing variety of wines are offered.  As you explore the area, fifty other wineries await your visit.   You will be able to purchase bottles of their wines, and many also offer decanters, stemware, corkscrews and other wine paraphernalia in their shops.  Some offer the opportunity to join their wine clubs, benefits of which may include discounts off of purchases made in their shops as well as receipt of featured bottles of wine on a monthly basis.  Many wineries feature live music performances and art displays at their facilities, check the winery’s website for dates.  The scenic ambience of their grounds have also made Long Island wineries highly sought-after venues for weddings that are sure to be elegant and sophisticated.

In between wineries, be sure to explore other gems that the east end of Long Island has to offer, from the farm stands and bake shops to the goat cheese farm and you-pick orchards along the way; not to mention a host of epicurean havens at which to pause for lunch.   By the time you turn around to make the return trek home, you will likely have picked up all of the makings of a perfect, Long Island grown dinner, starting with the perfect wine.

Something tells me that I will not get away with posting a blog sans a recipe.  Here’s a recipe for chicken Dijon, which does in fact include wine in the ingredient list.

Chicken Dijon

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

8 chicken pieces, on the bone, skin left on (thighs, legs, breasts or combo)

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 onions, thinly sliced

½ tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped

½ tablespoon fresh sage, finely chopped

½ tablespoon fresh oregano, finely chopped

1 ½ cups white wine*

2 large leeks, thoroughly washed, halved lengthwise, thinly sliced crosswise

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard (I like Maille)

¾ cup heavy cream

3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Sprinkle the chicken pieces generously with salt and pepper.  Brown the chicken pieces on both sides in the skillet, about 7 minutes per side.  Transfer the chicken to a plate.  Add the onions to the skillet and sauté until translucent, then add the garlic and sauté another 2 minutes.  Stir in the rosemary, sage and oregano.  Add the wine, the chicken and any juices that accumulated from the chicken.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer for about 30 minutes.  Stir in the leeks, cover once again and simmer for another 5-10 minutes, or until juices from the chicken run clear when pierced with a knife.  Transfer the chicken to a deep serving platter.  Stir the mustard and the cream into the skillet mixture.  Once combined, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 5 minutes.  Pour the sauce over the chicken.  Sprinkle with the parsley.  Serves four.

* Note: we have all spied the bottles in the supermarket that bear the atrocity of a label that reads “Cooking Wine.”  It comes in red, white, Marsala and even Sherry.  They are usually displayed near the vinegars.  Don’t even think about it!  These concoctions are NOT wine, they don’t taste like wine, they’re loaded with sodium and they will ruin your dish!  I cannot stress this enough.  The rule is simple: if it isn’t good enough to drink from a glass, it is not good enough for the pot either.  Use the same wine that you might drink; if you only need a small amount, open a nice bottle, measure out the required amount and then allocate the remainder to the evening’s wine glasses.  Alternately, you can keep a larger bottle of upper mid-level wine on hand just for cooking and save the best wines for sipping. 

Food for Thought

When one of Brian’s Facebook friends queried whether or not we enjoy wine, Brian naturally voiced his preference for craft beer.  Lest the polling individual believes that we are a stereotypical ‘beer, he said; wine, she said’ couple, let me say this: why can’t I have both?!  As it happens, I do enjoy both very much.  I will admit that wine is my preference, and there simply is not a beer worthy of accompanying an authentic Italian meal, in my humble opinion.  Then again, beer seems the only appropriate pairing for Indian fare.  That said, I love dark, creamy stouts.  I am also enjoying the season’s extensive lineup of pumpkin ales. 

Craft breweries are popping up everywhere.  On Long Island alone we have Southampton Public House, Port Jeff Brewery, Blue Point Brewery, Greenport Harbor Brewing Company and Long Ireland in Riverhead.  Brewing restaurants include Brick House Brewery in Patchogue, John Harvard in Lake Grove and Black Forest Brew House in Farmingdale.  A little further west we have Brooklyn Brewery, and Ommegang Brewery is producing world class Belgian style brews upstate in Cooperstown.

Several of these breweries have produced pumpkin ales.  It seems that every craft beer maker is jumping on the pumpkin ale bandwagon.  Of the two best pumpkin ales that I have imbibed, one hails from Greenport Harbor Brewing Company.  They called it Leaf Pile and the flavor was perfect for a fall refresher.  The number one rated pumpkin ale comes not from New York, but from Delaware: Dogfish Head’s Punkin never disappoints, year after year.  When you relax around the fire pit at your fall barbecues, enjoy some of the many wines and beers that Long Island has to offer.  For those who like neither, there are plenty of other autumn harvest libations to enjoy, including hard apple ciders, apple martinis and cranberry martinis.

Toys In the Kitchen!

Toys!  If you savor wines and look forward to uncorking a bottle each evening that was perfectly matched to your entrée, I recommend investing in the Metrokane Rabbit.  I love my rabbit.  Brian presented me with one as a gift one Easter and it has seen plenty of use ever since.  This device makes quick and easy work out of uncorking all of your wines.  No gourmet kitchen or bar should be without one.

From Farm to Table: Farm Stands and Farmers' Markets

The season of quests for outdoor strolls and indulging in freshly grown local produce is welcomed once again; consider a new game plan for contemplating dinner menus.  While many of us try our hand with cultivating herbs and vegetables in our own backyards, what better way to wile away a lazy weekend morning than to take a stroll through your local farmers’ market?  Even the greenest of thumbs cannot present an entire meal solely from his or her gardening plot.  Compliment your own harvest with that of other local epicurean producers who share in your passion for fresh foods.

Nothing beats provisions that are locally grown and prepared by dedicated farmers and artisan culinary creators.  There are a couple of ways in which you can support these local producers.  One, if you live in an area where such businesses are abundant, is to take a leisurely drive and visit several of these locales, selecting the most appealing bounty that each establishment has to offer that day.  Here on Long Island, the entire North Fork is a local food Mecca to which residents make regular pilgrimages.  Two main roads run the length of the fork, each flanked on both sides by local farm stands, pick your own fruit orchards, wine vineyards, cheese makers, bakers and the like.  Many of the farm stands offer jarred products that are produced locally as well, such as honeys and jams.

The other way to partake in one-stop local grocery shopping is to frequent a farmers’ market.  To drift off of my home turf briefly, I recently experienced a pleasurable couple of hours at a farmers’ market down in Marietta, Georgia.  The open-air market sets up for business every weekend in Marietta Square, in the old village adjacent to a picturesque park.  The market boasts dozens of local farmers and vendors peddling their wares which range from locally grown fruits and vegetables, locally produced cheeses including goat cheese, jams, condiments, pies, artisan breads and other baked goods, sausages, and other delectable delights to delve into.  There were even representatives from a few of the local restaurants offering flavorful introductions to their establishments.  Most vendors offered samples of their highlighted merchandise for that week, so one can try a nibble of something before committing to bring home a sack full.  Live music serenades browsers, dog owners lead their faithful companions as they shop, and a beckoning fountain in the park welcomes picnicking on any tasty eats that you just cannot wait to take home before indulging.  Some weeks also feature local arts and crafts vendors as well.  The market was bustling and its popularity clearly demonstrates that this is a highly coveted thing to do on a Saturday or Sunday morning.  My first and only trip here yielded purchases of several cheeses for an after dinner cheese course that evening, some croissants for the next morning’s breakfast and a jar of jalapeño-raspberry jam that I knew Brian would enjoy.  I could have bought so much more if I had been facing an extended stay in that area. 

Upon returning home, I did some Internet browsing to find that there are indeed several weekend farmers’ markets throughout the summer on Long Island.  With the extensive array of locally produced foods here, I thought it shocking that I had yet to encounter such markets.  There is one in Greenport that looks like it warrants immediate exploration.  Some of the farmers’ markets appear to be quite small with only a few vendors.  Luckily, I do have the advantage of a very local and friendly farm stand that I can frequent any day of the week for fresh produce and a few locally produced gastronomic gems.

During the summer months, make the weekly trek to a farmers’ market and/or farm stands.  Go into this with your eyes and imagination open, ready to plan that evening’s dinner solely around the freshest seasonal bounty that you happen to find.  A simple drive along that North Fork here can result in a fresh local duck from Miloski’s Poultry Farm, locally grown seasonal vegetables from numerous farm stands to toss on the grill as well, some locally produced cheese from the Catapano Dairy Farm to nibble on before dinner, a local bottle of wine from any of over forty vineyards to have with dinner, a locally baked bread to accompany the meal and a locally baked fruit pie to conclude it, both available at Briermere Farms.  Add a jar of locally produced jam to have on hand, and some fresh picked strawberries or peaches to enjoy with breakfast the next day.  You will reap the benefits of incorporating fresh, natural foods into your diet and support your local growers as well, a combination that makes me feel good both physically and mentally with every meal that results from these purchases.

Here are two of my recipes for a spinach salad.  One rendition contains bacon and eggs, plus mushrooms, green bell pepper, olives and Brian’s honey mustard dressing.  The other contains goat cheese as the protein source, and different ingredients.  As long as you keep the spinach, go ahead and swap out other ingredients in favor of whatever seasonal veggies and even fruits are in the spotlight.  If asparagus is abundant, for example, go ahead and cut the spears into one-inch lengths and then blanch them.  Once chilled, toss them into the mix.  Have fun with it.  If strawberry season is past and blueberries are coming into their own, use those instead.

Spinach Salad with Bacon

Ingredients:

6 cups fresh spinach leaves *

1 pound bacon, cut into 2 inch lengths

4 eggs, hard boiled, cooled, peeled and chopped *

1 large green bell pepper, cored and cut into one inch squares *

10 ounces white mushrooms, sliced

1 cup black olives

Fry the bacon in a frying pan over medium-high head until jut starting to crisp.  Remove the bacon from the pan with a slotted spoon and combine with all remaining ingredients in a large salad serving bowl.  Serves four.

Spinach Salad with Strawberries, Goat Cheese and Pecans

Ingredients:

6 cups fresh spinach leaves *

1 pint strawberries, hulled and halved *

1 yellow bell pepper, cored and cut into one inch squares *

10 ounces white mushrooms, sliced

1 cup pecan halves

1 cup goat cheese, crumbled *

Place the pecans in a single layer in a frying pan and toast over medium heat until aromatic.  Remove from heat.  Combine all ingredients in a large salad serving bowl.  Serves four.

Both of the above recipes are best served with Brian’s honey mustard dressing:

Ingredients:

1 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup Dijon mustard

¼ cup honey *

1/8 cup white wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients with either a wire whisk or in a mini food processor.

* Denotes ingredients that can typically be purchased locally from a farm stand or farmers’ market.  Accompany the salad with a bread and pie from a local artisan baker or farm stand, and a locally produced bottle of wine and you have a meal that is fresh and one that you can feel good about.