Filtering by Author: Stephanie Webster
Sono Baking Co: 5 Tips for Perfect Pie Dough
Ingredients Features Bakery Norwalk Recipe Dessert
Pie baking is a both a science and an art, and John Barricelli of Sono Baking Company knows all the tricks. John has been baking the old fashioned way at Sono Baking Company since the very beginning, no short cuts, just fresh ingredients and skill that comes from a lifetime covered in flour.
As part of our Invites program, John Barricelli hosted two "Pie & Dough Making" classes for aspiring bakers. Guests arrived donning aprons and toting rolling pins. Here's what we learned:
5 Tips for Perfect Pie Dough
Tip #1: Calibrate your oven's temperate & make sure that your oven is level.
Dressing Room's Chef Vaast @ The James Beard House August 13th
Events
CT chefs have had a rather strong showing at New York City's prestigious James Beard House this summer and the good times just keep on coming. On Monday, August 13th @7PM, Chef Jon Vaast, Executive Chef at Dressing Room in Westport, will be delighting James Beard guests with a seasonal farm-to-table menu that looks exceptionally delicious. Roasted Littleneck Clams with Bacon and Duck Fat Beurre Blanc, Smoked Sunburst Trout Mousse with Trout Caviar, Corn Chowder with Skillet Corn Kernels, Caramelized Shallot Custard (also served at the recent CTbites happy hour event with great success), Grilled Eggplant with Jalapeño–Tomato Fondue, and Heritage Pork Duo are a few of the dishes to be presented during the course of the evening, each course thoughtfully paired with wine. This is an event not to be missed. View the complete menu below or get your tickets here. Craft Butchery "Pig On The Plaza" Event July 22nd
Join Craft Butchery on Sunday, July 22, 2012, from 5-7 pm for the First Annual Pig on the Plaza event, held in front of the shop. They will be cooking one pig in a traditional smoker, and roasting another in a “La Caja China” box. Beer and wine will be provided by Saugatuck Grain and Grape.
Details
- Cost: $15 per person
- Advanced purchase required (see below)
- No cancellations, no cash back.
- Rain date: August 12th. In the event of very bad weather on July 22nd, we may need to postpone the event. If this happens, we will offer an exchange for merchandise in the shop should you be unable to attend. Unfortunately, we cannot offer refunds.
Tickets (online purchase available for July 22nd event only)
Saugatuck Craft Butchery 575 Riverside Ave Westport, CT 06880 (203) 226-MEAT
The Winner of The Dressing Room Cocktail Contest Is...
King's Kitchen @ Southport Beach: Beyond Beach Fare
Southport beach-goers will be donning their swimsuits with extra zeal this summer with the addition of King’s Kitchen emerging on the shoreline restaurant landscape. Every six years the beach concession at Southport Public Beach comes up for lease, and this year a team of young entrepreneurial brothers, Carter and Hunter King, won the hearts and stomachs of Southport officials with their vision for local, organic beachfront cuisine.
King’s Kitchen is housed in a tiny pastel hued beach shack, with public picnic tables serving as the “dining room,” but the bright bold flavors and farm fresh ingredients are casually inspired and downright delicious. Sure there’s still a hot dog (Doggy Style) on the menu, but there is also a Lobster BLT and an exceptional Pulled Berkshire Pork Sandwich with grilled pineapple on Wave Hill Ciabatta. This aint your average beach shack. Shopping farmers’ markets almost daily, King’s Kitchen’s commitment to using only the best local ingredients, and the menu’s creativity elevates casual beach fare into something crave-worthy.
2012 Guest Chef Lineup @ The Westport Farmers' Market
Ingredients Farm to Table Farmers Market
You've waited all Winter. You've been patient. You've eaten produce flown in from countries far away, and had daydreams involving fresh blueberries. But now, your wait is over. It's time to rejoice with fresh local farm fare. The Farmers' Markets are back in session. And there's more good news. The Westport Farmers' Market is hosting 24 guest chefs this season, who will demo seasonal recipes and prepare tasting samples for Market guests. Wait till you see the lineup: Elm, The Boathouse, le Farm, Match, Sugar & Olives, Barcelona & more. CTbites will bring you continued coverage on the upcoming market chefs. and you can view the complete schedule below:
Napa & Co. in Stamford Offers Early Bird 3 Course Prix Fixe
Restaurant Farm to Table Stamford
Napa & Co in Stamford is offering a great program this summer for diners who like to eat on the early side. For reservation or walk ins seated before 6:30PM, Napa has created a 3 course menu paired with some excellent wines that can be enjoyed for $53/pp. The menu will change throughout the summer based on what's in season, but this is a great way to sample everything Napa & Co. has to offer at a very attractive price. We've included their current menu below to whet your appetite.
SoNo Restaurant Week is Back: June 17-22nd
Sono Restaurant Week is back with very attractive dining opportunities during the week of June 17th - 22nd. Come for lunch or dinner for great deals at all your favorite Sono restaurants including: Bacchus, Barcelona, Coromandel, Match, Red Lulu, Sono Baking Co and Strada 18. View the complete list of participating venues below:
CT Invasion: CT Chefs Cook The James Beard House
Restaurant Chef Talk Events
For a chef, one of the most coveted cooking spaces in American is the tiny kitchen that sits in the belly of The James Beard House on West 12th Street, NYC. The ancient copper pans, the elegant dining room, and the chef's whites that hang on the wall bearing the signatures of accomplished chefs from around the world, carry with them a lineage that celebrates the prolific food writer, cookbook author, and teacher, James Beard. Today, The James Beard house provides culinary inspiration, education, and scholarships, but at the heart of this narrow townhouse is a “performance space” for visiting chefs, the gold standard for any culinary career. Last week, six Fairfield County chefs paid The Beard House a visit, and the meal that resulted was a celebration of CT talent, seasonal ingredients and camaraderie.
BONDA En Plein Air Dinners @ Greenfield Hill Grange
Restaurant Events
BONDA Restaurant takes dinner to the outdoors this July with BONDA En Plein Air at Greenfield Hill Grange #133. BONDA will host a one week series of magical and intimate evenings dining in the open air, “en plein air” from July 11th – 15th @ 6:30 pm nightly. Following a cocktail hour, guests will be invited to a four course dinner (with wine of course!) artfully curated by Chef/Owner Jamie Cooper – all enjoyed in the sweet summer air with a background country orchestra of crickets and birds
Price: $150 per person all inclusive of tax and gratuity, non refundable but transferable, rain or shine.
BONDA will begin taking reservations Monday, June 11th at 10:00 am Call 203.292.9555 or email bondarestaurant@hotmail.com
The Winner of The Sun BBQ Fest Giveaway Is.....
We are pleased to announce the winner of the Sun BBQ Fest Giveaway. Craig Dolphin has landed himself 2 free passes for this grill-tastic event as well as a spankin new Weber Grill. Thanks for sharing your recipe for Catalina Shrimp on a skewer Craig. Eat some tasty food on our behalf.
Stay tuned for our next giveaway.
Opening Day @ The 2012 Westport Farmers' Market
Ingredients Restaurant Farmers Market Local Farm Specialty Market Westport
CLICK ON IMAGE ABOVE TO LAUNCH PHOTO GALLERY
The Westport Farmers' Market opened today with an official ribbon cutting ceremony attended by members of the Fairfield County community who came to show their support for the market and "living local." First Selectman Gordon Joseloff and State Representative Jonathon Steinberg brandished their scissors with vigor as market shoppers applauded the start of the Westport Farmers' Market season. Also poised for the big day was Chef Jon Vaast of Dressing Room, one of the 23 guest chefs who will be appearing at the market throughout the season doing recipe demos and tastings (more on that later). The crowd was packed with people enjoying their Skinny Pines Pizza, Raus' Cold Romans, Boxcar Cantina Tamales, and Du Soleil Fine Foods...and the rain held out. VIEW PHOTO GALLERY HERE.
WIN a Weber Grill & Free Tix to The Sun BBQ Festival
CTbites & Mohegan Sun are giving away for TWO PASSES to any one day of the SUN BBQ FEST @ Mohegan Sun on June 1 - 3, 2012 + a Weber Smokey Joe grill.
TO ENTER: Post your favorite BBQ dish in the comments section below.
1 lucky winner will be chosen at random.
Good luck!
Memorial Day BBQ & Party @ Barcelona Fairfield
Restaurant BBQ Events Holiday
Join Barcelona Wine Bar & Restaurant’s first barbeque blowout of the season. This Memorial Day, May 28th, have fun in the sun on Barcelona Fairfield's patio or enjoy some cocktails in their newly renovated bar. This fun-filled family event will feature: live music from the Jason Spooner Trio, beer tasting from Berkshire Brewing Company, kids events include face painting and a magic show as well as a lemonade, popsicle and ice-cream stand.
For only $20 a person ($10 for kids) you can enjoy a delicious buffet of the best from their grill and kitchen. From beef, chorizo & cochinita sliders and suckling pig to grilled vegetables and assorted salads, there’s something for everyone.
The Schoolhouse's Millstone Farm Summer Dinners on Sale May 16
Restaurant Farm Dinner Local Farm Wilton
The 3rd annual "Farm 2 Fork" dinner series will officially begin on Wenesday, June 20th at Millstone Farm, 180 Millstone Rd., Wilton, CT. Those of you who have enjoyed these wonderful communal dining experiences in the past, are likely already drafting that email for reservations. For newbies, here's what to expect. A tour of the beautiful 75 acre Millstone Farm will begin at 6:00PM followed by a pristinely farm fresh, family style dinner beginning at 7:00PM. The cost is $100. per person with a featured wine. BYOB is welcome. Tax & gratuity is excluded.
Space is limited so I would suggest you act quickly. Reservations will be taken by email starting this Wednesday, May 16 at 10:00AM.
Terrain Home, Garden, & Cafe Opens Today in Westport
Restaurant Local Farm Westport Lunch
It takes quite a bit to impress this native New Yorker when it comes to home design stores, but Terrain opened its doors in Westport tonight, and I have to say...I’m impressed. This breathtakingly beautiful space is quite literally a gallery for impeccably sourced home, garden, specialty food and gift items. The use of indoor/outdoor space and broad skylights makes this store feel like a walk through an elegant English garden. And in the middle of this green space is a coffee bar boasting Counter Culture beans, well trained baristas and baked goods, as well as a restaurant with a local, organic menu that will reflects the cycle of the seasons and the local Westport community.
