Oh my that's pie!

Snow, snow, snow. We got a Nor'easter today, in fact it is still happening as I write this. We should get a foot of the fluffy white stuff before it is over tomorrow.
Everyday at the Round Barn inn we serve afternoon "snacks", what some inns might call "tea" we prefer to be a bit more relaxed. Every afternoon when the guests are arriving back to the inn from their busy day; whether at the slopes, shopping, or just sight seeing, we love to offer something to come home to. As I mentioned, it was snowing (and still snowing!), so in light of this, I thought, hearty, warm, and comfort food. Now of course don't get me wrong, the snow is great for the snowshoeing, skiers and riders (and everyone else), but this little story is about pie, not snow, not skiing, just pie - chicken pie.

Did I mention it was snowing? I think I also mentioned that I decided I to prepare something a bit heartier for our guests in case of being snowed in (hmmm, sounds pretty good to me), this is when I tell you of the chicken pot pie.
It used to be that dishes like pot pies, stews and the like were a good way to utilize leftovers or lesser used cuts of meat. So, I had some Misty Knoll Chicken legs and thighs, I seasoned them well, seared them, braised them and then I picked the meat, mixed it with some roasted root vegetables, in a rich creamy chicken gravy and let it cool. Next, I made the shell.

2 1/2 cups all-purpose King Arthur flour
1 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted Vermont butter, cut into small pieces
2 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
5 tablespoons cold water

Pulse flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor to combine. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. Add yolk; pulse. With machine running, add cold water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube; process until dough just holds together (no more than 20 - 30 seconds). Empty the processor onto counter, and finish kneading the dough by hand using the heal of your hand, do not over handle, and make the dough warm. Shape into a disk about 1 inch thick. Wrap in plastic, and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Preheat over to 400 degrees. Roll out dough to about 1/8 inch thick (well a bit thicker) Line your sprayed pie dish with the dough. I like to have the dough hang out considerably, so that I can double over (under actually) the crust for crimping it gives a big bold regal like appearance, and when your crust is tasty, why not? Next, you dock the dough, that's where you take a fork and make holes in it, like a cracker. Line the crust with parchment paper, or wax paper, or foil if need be, line with pie beans, or whatever pie weight you like. What we are doing here is called blind baking. The shells are now ready for the oven, bake at 400 degrees for about 4 minutes then turn the heat down to about 325 and continue to bake about 15 more minutes, watch your crust edges to be sure they do not brown too quickly and watch the center to be sure it bakes. The center of the shell should not brown, it should just "firm up".
Roll out more dough and cut into 1/2 inch x 10 inch strips about 8 strips. When the shell is cooled fill with the pot pie mix and make some nice lattice work on top with the dough strips, brush with a beaten egg (just the strips). Now your pie is ready to be baked and served, you will need to bake at 300 degrees for about 40 minutes or until the center of the pie reaches 160 degrees.

Fresh Pot pie. Perfect. Comfort food at it's finest.
The beauty of the dish is, you can hold it for a day (or two if you have to) and finish baking later. Isn't winter wonderful?
Thanks for reading, and remember, Cook from your heart!

Traditionally

A long time tradition at the Round Barn Farm Inn is the Farm House Dinner. The Dinners were originally named Friday night dinners, as a welcome dinner to our guest as they arrived to Waitsfield for the weekend. Now, our guests come for the week, the weekend and everything in between. This past week the Farmhouse dinner took place on a Saturday, which was a nice opportunity for the guest to not only have dinner at the Inn, but avoid the busy, hectic restaurants, and rest for a night before a big day of skiing at Sugarbush, Mad River Glen or just snowshoeing around the farm . I won't bore you with this stuff, here's the menu (with some "pretty good" pictures of some of the night) and try and imagine Big Joe Burrell playing in the background...

1st course
Carrot Ginger Soup with Cashew Cream

The entree choices
Mustard and Herb Encrusted Sirloin of Lamb with Roasted Root Vegetables and a Rosemary Demi-Glace

Chicken Pot Pie
Misty Knoll Chicken with Roasted Vegetables, Fresh Herbs Under a Golden Dome of Puffed Pastry

Braised Kale and Chick Peas with Lemon, Garlic, Salt and Pepper Toast and Served with Jasmine Rice

There was dessert too
Vermont Cranberry Meringue Pie With Round Barn Ice Cream and Kumquat-Ginger Compote

Oh, I forgot something didn't I?
We actually started the night with an amuse bouche of Seared Ahi Tuna with Wasabi Mayonaise and Gingered Shoyu, just a taste to start the evening...

Perfect for warming the soul and body, carrot-ginger is always a crowd pleaser. Andrew is a young guy I have worked with for years now, he is my sous-chef and a constant source of knowledge and inspiration. Here is his interpretation of this traditional snowy evening soup.

Andrew's Carrot Ginger Soup

8 large Carrots, washed and chopped 1 inch chunks
1 small Butternut squash, cut in 1/2- remove seeds
1 Granny Smith Apple, cored sliced, peel on
1/4 cup Ginger, minced on Microplane
1 Large Onion, chopped roughly, but small
2 oz Canola Oil
3 oz Butter
1 quart Vegetable broth
2 cups Heavy Cream
Nutmeg
Salt and White Pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Oil the carrots and place on baking sheet. Oil the 2 halves of the squash and place those on a separate baking sheet open side face down with a small amount of water in the pan and place in the oven. After 30 minutes place carrots in the oven, roast about 20 minutes, the squash should be close to finished at this time as well, both squash and carrots should be very tender.

In a 6 quart or larger soup pot, one with a heavy bottom, over medium heat add butter to melt. Once butter is melted add onions and once the onions have cooked for a minute add the ginger (reserve a few pinches for adding at the end), add the apple. Once the onion is translucent and the apple has become soft, add the roasted carrots. Scoop the Butternut squash from it's skin and add the "meat", discard the skin. Mix well in the pot, add the broth, bring to simmer. Allow to simmer for 20 minutes (stirring often), add cream. Transfer to a blender (or use a hand-held immersion blender) puree till smooth. Adjust consistency with more cream if needed. Adjust the seasonings with salt, pepper and a few scrapes of nutmeg, and the couple of pinches of ginger if you like.

Andrew made an interesting garnish for the soup, which we might make again, and we'll talk more about it then, but it went something like cashews, water, and lemon...

Thanks for reading, and I hope to see you at the next Farmhouse Dinner at the Round Barn Farm!
for reservations: 802-496-2276 or Lodging@theroundbarn.com http://theroundbarn.com

And remember, Cook from your heart!

Am I qualified for this?

Well, here I go again. Seems just when I get a break, I sign up for some more. So, here I go, into the world of blogging. I hope to share with you a slice of life from here; our little corner of Vermont, a slice from the Round Barn Farm. Speaking of slices, there will be recipes, stories and of course a pictorial journal of life on the farm.

Please subscribe to my blog, let me know you're out there, and I will (try to) keep up my end.
Just remember, Cook from your heart!