Waiter? There’s an iPad in My Soup!

Posted by Warren Rojas / Friday, March 11th, 2011

(Image: Meshelle Armstrong)

Perky Myriad font on the Apple website cheerfully describes how the advent of the iPad2, with its dual cameras and dual processors, will allow us to integrate office documents and make gorgeous, intuitive business presentations and …

Zzzzzzzzz ….

Ooops. I fell asleep thinking about all of this boring business duality.

If Apple really wants to get my—I mean our—attention with today’s iPad2 roll out, may I humbly suggest shoving all the tedious business talk down the disposal and do what Apple does best: yack about fun stuff.

Like getting messy in the kitchen.

And that’s not just my personal bias talking.

Gastronauts who enjoy their comestibles with a side of technology are fast becoming a demographic of which techies should take stock. The National Restaurant Association’s 2011 Industry Forecast indicates that food-focused consumers tend to be more technologically savvy, and that frequent restaurant customers are more likely than the general public to use various forms of technology on a daily basis. The report states, “81 percent of frequent full-service and quick-service customers, and 77 percent of frequent off-premises dinner customers said they frequently used the Internet, compared with 72 percent of all adults.” The same survey also states that 13 percent of restaurant customers use mobile apps compared to 8 percent of the general public.

And it’s not just consumers who live at the intersection of mobile technology and gastronomy.

Culinary professionals from food writers and publishers to restaurateurs and chefs have long been niche users of mobile and interactive technologies that are the cornerstone of devices like the iPhone and the iPad.

Lorena Jones, publishing director at San Francisco-based Chronicle Books, is responsible for digital initiatives in her publisher’s food and drink portfolio.

“We have long believed that many of the authors we work with have a depth of knowledge that is not entirely captured in a 3-D book,” Jones related. “Food is a category that just lends itself to visual stimulation and interactive engagement.”

And even though the model has yet to be fully tested, the potential for revenue from apps on tablet devices to breathe life into a sickly print publishing industry also makes the interactivity and mobility of tablets and smart phones appealing as a complement to offline ventures. “We’re highly motivated to generate another revenue source for our authors,” Jones said of the growing e-publishing realm.

Chef and restaurateur Cathal Armstrong (pictured above) has been a devotee of Apple products for years, and was a quick adopter of the iPad when it debuted.

“It’s a powerful tool that’s fun to use,” Armstrong said, estimating that his iPad has become as indispensable as a loyal and capable sous chef. Unlike outdated desktop computers, the web-ready tablet moves WITH Armstrong—an invaluable feature for a leader who often finds himself juggling supplier calls, customer-related queries from employees and general back-of-house issues, all while in the middle of choreographing his award-winning dinner service.

“We’re always connected,” Armstrong said of his ability to reach general manager Todd Thrasher or his wife/business partner Meshelle Armstrong on their own iPads with just a few keystrokes. “If we have a guest that loses something we need to be able to communicate with each other 24/7. That’s just part of the service if you want to work in a four-star restaurant.”

Multi-platform food scribe Michael Ruhlman sees a lot of potential in devices like the iPad, not only as a practical cooking tool, but also as a community builder.

“Devices like the iPad aren’t changing the way people cook yet, but I think that the iPad and the tablet devices that follow it are going revolutionize cooking, Ruhlman suggested. “And I want be a part of it.”

Ruhlman has been not only a very early adopter of this technology, but also a producer. Ruhlman’s Ratio app, a digital companion to his book, has been downloaded at least 8,000 times ($4.99 on iTunes).

“I get great feedback from people who use [my app] all the time. People often tweet that they are using Ratio for pancakes this morning or whatever,” he said. “I see a lot more interesting stuff happening. I see a way that cooks can share their experiences with one another, a way to keep a sort of a running diary on what they’re doing. All kinds of things are possible and we’re just now discovering the potential. I mean, it just started and the possibilities are, at least now, they feel endless.”

Endless possibilities, indeed.

Like, instead of a dual camera, I would settle for just one camera–AND a device that wouldn’t fall victim to cookie dough smudges or cake batter mishaps.

Are you listening, Apple?

–Amy Loeffler

Humane for the Holidays

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009

If you’re considering something special for the holiday table this year, seeking out a “Certified Humane Raised and Handled ®” ham, rib roast or turkey may just fit the bill for the celebratory season.

My own turkey this past Thanksgiving was a heritage breed bird, humanely raised on terra firma with plenty of room to poke around the outdoors, access to drinking water and a smorgasbord of bugs; he was “processed”  a mere two days before we ate him.

Some have come to the certified humane movement simply because the meat they purchase from producers who practice humane farming make a product that is more flavorful.

But increasingly foodie consumers who want to see how local they can go are taking living la vida  locavore with fruits and vegetables to the next level, and finding out where and how their meat is processed as well.

Adele Douglas is chief executive officer of Humane Farm Animal Care, the only farm animal welfare and food labeling program in the United States whose job it is to certify farm practices as “humane” and bestow the trademark “Certified Humane Raised and Handled ®.” She cooks a certified humane turkey every year for the holidays.

“The certified humane turkeys are raised and fed what turkeys are supposed to eat, they exercise… If I ever thought of not buying one for Thanksgiving, my children and grandchildren would rebel,” Douglas suggested.

The certified humane designation specifically means that the producer has given his or her farm animals “ample space, shelter and gentle handling to limit stress; ample fresh water and a healthy diet of feed free from antibiotics or hormones” according to Humane Farm Animal Care’s web site.

Many of the regular trappings of factory farming are forbidden accoutrement of certified humane meat producers such as cages, crates and tie stalls. In other words, animals must be able to enjoy the outdoors and exhibit natural behaviors—pigs must be able to root and play, chickens must be able to roam and spread their wings, and cattle must be able to chew their cud in a pasture all without the hormones or antibiotics that are the staples of a factory-farmed animal’s diet.

Indeed, many consumers come to the certified humane movement not only for a more flavorful food experience, but because they oppose the methods of factory farming. The humane farming movement occupies a strange philosophical intersection at the moment, however. The push towards more responsible farming is bemoaned by hardcore vegetarians as just another psychological device to make ourselves feel less guilty about murdering an animal for meat, while farm animal activists champion the practice of humane farming as an enlightened path to the future of animal husbandry—a guilt-free pass to let us have our cake and eat it too, so to speak.

Certifiable

If you’re considering buying a piece of meat for the holidays from a farm that practices humane farming, like Ayrshire Farm, you might be taken aback by the cost to play food philosopher.

Ayrshire founder Sandy Lerner runs an agricultural operation that is a rare combination of certified organic, humane and predator-friendly farming practices that don’t always necessarily co-exist on the same property. Even the cats at Ayrshire Farm are part and parcel of their “organic” designation, since the felines keep pests like rodents under control without harmful chemicals.

The turkey I purchased from them this past holiday was under 10 pounds and cost $97. I can currently go to Giant’s web site and order a complete turkey dinner for four for $39.99.

Though I utilized my God-given right as an American to vote with my designer knock-off wallet against factory farming, my turkey was about three times what I would pay at a regular grocery store.

Higher prices for humanely raised meat are justified as the “true” cost of what meat should be sold for at your grocery store.

According to Lerner, “There are no other hidden costs such as the environmental clean-up of the air, land, and water, associated human health issues, degradation of antibiotic effectiveness, hormone effects through the food-chain, etc.  I leave the air, land, and water in better shape each year than I found it, and the food is just food—no drugs, chemicals [or] hormones.”

The simplicity of Lerner’s explanation belies a system that actually makes it difficult to operate a for-profit farming operation when raising animals for food. It’s actually much easier to farm in a way that depends on antibiotics, produces harmful environmental byproducts, and considers animals commodities, like widgets.

Large-scale operations such as North Carolina-based Smithfield Foods is the largest hog processing operation on the planet, and produces inordinate amounts of excrement with damaging consequences to the environment. In fact, Smithfield was fined $12.6 million in 1997—the largest fee in Clean Water Act history—for polluting the Pagan River.

In an effort to illustrate the scale of factory farming versus family-owned farming such as Lerner’s, consider that Jonathan Safran Foer pegs Smithfield as processing approximately 31 million pigs annually (up from the 27 million animals per year Jeff Tietz touted in his 2006 Smithfield expose for Rolling Stone) in his new book, “Eating Animals.” This translates to upwards of 500,000 animals per week or roughly 84,000 animals per day. A lot of pig excrement to be sure, but consider that a slaughterweight hog on average is 250 pounds and processing that many animals is surely impossible to do in a healthy, let alone humane manner.

Ayrshire processes a whopping four pigs per week.

For the animals, humane farm practices translate to a much less stressful existence.

Don Schneider of Ayrshire Farm informed journalists during the farm’s Second Annual Beef tasting in October, “I think keeping that stress low gives us a good product.”

Low production does not only equal low stress, it also means that from a food safety perspective, animals on this farm can be more easily tracked. The ability to track an animal is no small achievement in an era of deadly e-coli outbreaks and other illnesses the general public is subjected to due to poor animal processing practices.

“I can tell you when [a specific] cow was born,” Schneider said. “It gives us a lot of control to maintain our quality.”

What does certified humane mean for your holiday table? “This helps farmers create a better product, it benefits consumers,” Douglas said. “We are a food-producing country. We should be producing the Rolls Royce of foods.”

‘Angelic’ Beef

If you’ve sampled one of the heavenly hamburgers from Local SixFortySeven (Derek Luhowiak, Local SixFortySeven’s roving chef, used to cook at Ayrshire), you’re acquainted with Angelic Beef.

Doug Linton said he and wife, Debbie, embraced cattle rearing “because we were disgusted with what we were eating in the grocery store.” And although they lack Ayrshire’s certified humane stamp, Angelic Beef farm does apply humane methods to their stocks:

“They’re may be some folks who think we’re over the top on what we do, but we’ve seen the difference in the animals,” Debbie said of their horses and 1-copy (i.e., one parent) Piedmontese cattle.

While Doug Linton claims the primary motivation for his cattle ranching was to improve the food supply, it’s clear he has a relationship with his cattle a factory farmer never could, or perhaps would want to.  (At one point, he shares a worry about one of his bulls; he thinks the problem could be burrs on the animal’s penis, and he is going to have to figure out a way to pick them off.)

One of the other things that happens on the Linton farm that would never happen in a factory farming environment is the ability of the calves to choose when they are weaned. Linton points out a couple younger cows that actually made their way back to their mothers after he had moved them to a different pasture. Instead of forcibly separating mother and calf for a second time, he let them be.

According to the Lintons, treating the animals emotionally is just as important as treating any physical ailments they might have.

“With homeopathy there is always an emotional piece,” Debbie said. “As far as the cattle, my part is figuring out what we need to give the cow. Even handling them can be stressful [for the animals].”

Debbie is a registered nurse and now currently works as an equine dentist. She often uses flower essences and other homeopathy to treat animals (both cows and horses) on the farm, which Debbie maintains greatly reduces the need for the use of antibiotics (all Angelic-raised animals are hormone-free). While she doesn’t eschew traditional veterinary medicine, Debbie said she has seen the effectiveness of nontraditional medicine on the animals she cares for, and this is why some of the Linton cows and horses are treated by medicinal herbs that many humans have yet to experience.

According to Debbie, homeopathy and flower essences bolster the animals own healing abilities, speeding them back on the path to wellness. She recalls an instance recently of a heifer that had bruised her shoulder and was dragging her arm around. Debbie administered hypericum, or St. John’s Wort as it is commonly known, and the heifer recovered nicely. Cows who experience difficult births also receive a flower essence product called “Rescue Remedy” which is marketed to women for its “calming and centering energy.”

As one last act of compassion, Doug lets his cattle remain in the pasture the night before they are harvested. He can do this because his slaughter facility is only four miles away.

As I leave they tell me they are expecting an acupuncturist around three that afternoon—for one of the horses.

Relationships are the reason we gather at the holidays with family and friends. And as you plan your holiday menu, consider that purchasing a humanely raised animal may be the perfect representation of the farmer-consumer relationship.

“The holidays are traditionally a time to reflect on one’s own blessings and to reach out to those less fortunate,” Sandy Lerner said. “Animals in factory farms are among the most miserable souls on the planet. I see an increased consciousness across-the-board for the welfare of farmed animals. ”

Indeed, I would also include the animal in that relationship.

–Amy Loeffler

Repurposing Thanksgiving Leftovers

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Thursday, November 26th, 2009

You’ve done it again and made enough Thanksgiving dinner for an army when a small battalion would have sufficed.

Lucky for you we queried some chefs from Northern Virginia to find out their remedies for elegantly disposing of all those mashed ‘taters, piles of turkey, and ad infinitum pies. Gut Check Heads, prepare to wave the worn-out post-Thanksgiving turkey sandwich goodbye.

Since the family has come and gone,  invite some friends over for a little more relaxed holiday togetherness with Fyve’s Amy Brandwein’s three-course tasting menu as the centerpiece.

Image: Courtesy Amy Brandwein

Soup and Bread Pudding

Take your leftover root vegetables (celery root, carrot, celery, squash, etc); add stock and simmer. Puree and serve with a bread pudding made of stuffing. For the stuffing: for 4 C. stuffing, add 3 beaten eggs, ¼ c. half n half and fresh chives. Line ramekins (ceramic or foil is fine) w/non stick spray, butter or oil. Bake in oven at 350 degrees until set.

Gnocchi with Turkey, Wild Mushrooms, Rosemary, Gravy

Take left over turkey and shred a bit with your hands. In a sauté pan, sauté wild mushrooms, add chopped rosemary and a knob of butter. Add cooked gnocchi, a bit of the cooking water and add left over turkey gravy. Toss well; garnish with chopped parsley and parmesan (If you cannot make gnocchi, you can use store-bought egg noodles.)

Cranberry Granita

Last year, I had leftover relish, so I froze it and it became granita – which is similar to sorbet, but it is more like shaved ice. Just put the relish in the freezer and fluff it with a fork when frozen. Serve it in a martini glass. Recommended wine pairing: Barbera

Too many mashed potatoes? Chef Hump Astorga from Chrysalis Vineyards gave us this recipe for Croquetas de Bacalao that turns your leftover spuds into a refined main course.

Croquetas de Bacalao (Salt Cod Croquettes)

INGREDIENTS

2 C left over Thanksgiving mashed potatoes
1 lb Salt Cod
TBS Italian parsley, finely chopped
1 TBS fresh mint, finely chopped
2 TBS fresh thyme, finely chopped
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 extra large eggs, separated
2 TBS Sherry
Kosher salt to taste
Canola Oil for deep-frying

INSTRUCTIONS:

Two days before making the croquettes, soak the salt cod in cold water. Change the water six times during this period.

The day you are making the croquettes, bring the leftover mashed potatoes to room temperature two hours ahead.

Drain the cod and rinse it well under cold running water.

Cover fish with fresh water in a saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until cod is soft and flaky.

When the cod is flaky, drain it thoroughly and remove the skin and bones.

Shred the cod with two forks.

Add the mashed potatoes, parsley, mint, thyme, pepper, sherry, and egg yolks. Mix thoroughly.

Whisk the egg whites until stiff, and then fold into the cod mixture. Adjust seasonings.

Preheat deep fryer to 375º.

Take 2 TBS of the mixture, and mold it in your hands to make a 2” x 1” cylinder shape. Deep fry in 375º oil until crisp and brown all over. Drain on paper towel and serve hot.

Note: You can accompany croquettes with a good quality whole-grained mustard or your favorite remoulade sauce.

Recommended wine pairing: 2008 Chrysalis Vineyards Albariño

And we got some differing opinions from area pastry chefs as to what to do with that leftover pumpkin pie.

David Guas of Damgoodsweet Consulting and Bayou Bakery suggests, “If you don’t want to stare at it for days, freeze it and then chop it up and serve it over ice cream.”

Chris Ford of Trummer’s on Main in Clifton has a recipe for leftover sweet gourd, too:

Pumpkin Brulee Bread

INGREDIENTS:

Image: 2911 Productions

3 cups sugar
1 cup good quality butter
1/2 cup creme fraiche
3 large eggs
2 cups pumpkin pie (scraped from the crust, already baked)
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
raw sugar, for the top of the batter.

Preheat oven to 350°F and butter loaf pans. Combine cream, sugar and butter in large bowl, then mix in eggs and pumpkin, add creme fraiche. Sift flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt and baking powder into another large bowl.  Slowly fold in the pumpkin mixture to the flour mixture, combining completely.  e using  Stir into pumpkin mixture in 2 additions.  Divide batter equally between prepared pans. Sprinkle the raw sugar on top of the batter evenly. Bake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Transfer to racks and cool.

The raw sugar adds a crisp texture on top after baking, as if it has been bruleed and  the creme fraiche adds great moisture.

Recommended wine pairing:  A 10-year old Madeira

Where pies are considered, Michelle Poteaux of Bastille is from an opposing pastry school of thought. If there is one thing you should do, she says, “Defintiely don’t save the pie.”

–Amy Loeffler

Going Rogue: Uncommon Thanksgiving Wine Pairings

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

Chalk it up to the economy, or just a sense of derring-do, this year wine writers and local proprietors are giving the go-ahead to change up the Thanksgiving set list and step out-of-bounds in the wine department. Dave McIntyre of the Washington Post even puts his blessing on an entire Thanksgiving meal of sparklers (he suggests beginning the revelry with a light Prosecco and finishing with a rich, creamy grower Champagne).

Image: Kybecca Wine Bar

Whatever your motivation, there’s no reason to limit yourself to the holiday’s well-worn wines.  “I could give you a list of 50 different wines, and each one would be good with turkey for different reasons,” says Mike Carroll of the Leesburg Vintner. If you’re looking to keep things domestic and “Amurikun,” he champions Virginia’s own headliner grape, Viognier, with the yard bird this year for its floral quality and notes of tropical fruit and peaches.

Rebecca Thomas Snyder of Kybecca Wine Bar in Fredericksburg is really going rogue this Thursday with some wines from small producers in France and Washington State. “We went out on quite a limb this year,” she says of her Thanksgiving selection. One of her picks is a Mondeuse from the region of Bugey in France, and likens the 2006 Peillot Mondeuse Bugey to a richer version of the better-known, Thanksgiving-friendly Pinot Noir.

Another twist on the traditional is a sparkler made from the Gamay grape, a varietal which is usually associated with Beaujolais Nouveau. Thomas Snyder suggests kicking things off with this pink rendition of Gamay, Renardat-Fache Bugey Cerdon NV.

On this side of the Atlantic and in a white, she recommends the 2008 Kung Fu Girl Riesling from the Columbia Valley in Washington State. “For the money it’s incredibly well done with a tiny bit of sweetness,” she says.

All of the recommendations Carroll and Thomas Snyder offered do have one thing in common: high acidity that pairs well with food, especially the fatty gems that are going to dot the holiday table.

So there you have it folks, going rogue at the Thanksgiving table isn’t as tough as you think.

If you still need ideas, the following establishments are offering wine tastings up until Thanksgiving Eve:

Grape and Bean, 118 South Royal Street, Alexandria; open Thanksgiving Eve ‘til 10 p.m.

Planet Wine, 2004 Mount Vernon Avenue, Alexandria; Thanksgiving Eve tasting, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Norm’s Beer and Wine, 136 Branch Road, S.E., Vienna; open Thanksgiving Day, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

–Amy Loeffler

Students and Chefs Make Sweet Pairings at Life Is Sweet 5

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Thursday, November 19th, 2009

Patrick Bazin and his Chef Buddy, Cameron Graham. Image: Amy Loeffler

Student Cameron Graham and Chef Patrick Bazin of Bazin’s on Church are old hats of the Life Is Sweet annual fundraiser for Best Buddies Virginia. They have been a team since the event’s inception five years ago and they embody the mission of the organization founded by Anthony Kennedy Shriver to foster friendships and employment opportunities for intellectually and developmentally disabled individuals. Cameron works the crowd while I pepper Bazin with questions. When I ask to take a photo of the two of them Cameron prompts me to wait and says, “Oh let me take off my glasses,” like a seasoned media pro.  She is clearly in her element flitting from family member to passer-by. “She’s happy,” says Bazin smiling proudly.  “And chefs” says Bazin,”like to make other people happy.” 

According to Bazin the Life Is Sweet event gives students like Cameron a sense of comraderie and boosts self-confidence by allowing them to interact with culinary professionals and the public at large.  This year she and Bazin collaborated, as they do every year, on what to make for the gala one month beforehand. They settled on a pumpkin mousse in a chocolate shell sprinkled with praline topping as a riff on pumpkin cheesecake. In fact collaborating on what they are going to serve is just as much of a ritual as the event itself. “We always discuss what we’re gonna make,” says Bazin. 

Former White House Pastry Chef Roland Mesnier has spearheaded the fundraiser every year for the past five years and proved to be a raucous emcee. At one point he spontaneously put himself on the silent auction block for a lucky bidder to win his culinary expertise (and masseur skills!) for one evening of gastronomically induced revelry. 

 

No need to be sad when the chips are down if life is as sweet as a tray of Chris Ford’s deconstructed chocolate chip cookies. Image: Amy Loeffler

While pastry chefs donate their time, materials and effort for this Who’s Who gathering of area pastry toques,  many chefs at the event on Tuesday voiced that they receive a lot in return for participating. Chris Ford, pastry chef at Trummer’s on Main, recently relocated to the area from New York. He says the event was a good opportunity for him to become familiar with the flour and butter goings on as a relative Northern Virginia newbie. “I meet other pastry chefs and get my name out there,” he says of the event.

Michelle Poteaux of Bastille in Alexandria would agree that the event for her was initially an opportunity to network, but changed once she was paired up with her Chef Buddy, Max Douglas. “Part of [the appeal] of this event for every pastry chef is to promote yourself,” she says. “That soon quickly goes by the wayside once you meet your partner. It’s not just a group, it’s this person Max.”  She explained that she and Max even did an inpromptu T.V. appearance for the event.

Chris Ford of Trummer's on Main and Andrew Roberts.

–Amy Loeffler

Squash That Vine: Sour Grapes in NoVA Wine Country

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Thursday, November 12th, 2009

Let’s play a wine version of the game of Life: Spin the white wheel, move your car full of pink and blue plastic pegs the appropriate number of spaces and let out a Homer Simpson “Woo Hoo!”

The space says, “Congratulations! You’ve just inherited property in the hills of Virginia! Proceed to Virginia Wine Country and collect $1,000,000 to plant vines, purchase fermentation tanks and a grape crusher.”

But spin the wheel again and that whirring disc may cause you to stop on a space that says this: “Pay $200,000 to the bank. Your neighbors have complained about noise and your winery only operates during limited hours now” (cue wah, wah, wah sound effect).

If you think the above scenario is ridiculously oversimplified, the dramatic, roller-coaster turns of a board game are not far from the political situation Virginia winemakers have been wrangling with for the last 10 years. This past fall, however, things began to get particularly hairy for some farm wineries in Northern Virginia due to clashes with local governments over zoning laws.

The number of wineries in the Commonwealth has increased at a steady clip over the last decade, and currently there are 154 wineries in the state of Virginia.  In 2007, Virginia was one of the top 10 states to experience significant growth in wineries and added 20 to its roster that year, according to Wine and Vines Magazine. And this steady growth has certainly added fuel to the zoning debate fire as rural communities increasingly become home to agricultural enterprises that depend on evening activities to boost revenue.

Both Fairfax County and Fauquier County have experienced clashes with local zoning authorities that have intensified over the last few months. While Fairfax County celebrated the advent of its first winery, Paradise Springs, this year, the county did not exactly roll out the welcome mat for Kirk Wiles and his mother Jane Kincheloe, the owners of the property. Concerns from neighbors and county zoning officials about traffic and noise originally barred the winery from opening due to county zoning codes.

Hop over two counties to Fauquier, and the same political battle rages.  While the Virginia ABC played a vital part in the Paradise Springs’ victory (as well as Del. David Albo’s (R-Fairfax) bill limiting local regulation of farm wineries) by invoking laws that fall under the state umbrella regulating wineries, these same laws have remained untested and ultimately impotent in Fauquier County.  Some in the wine industry believe Fauquier County officials are taking advantage of unprecedented, unchallenged legislative authority.

Specifically, winemakers in Fauquier County have expressed anxiety over an ordinance in the legislative hopper that has the potential to significantly curtail revenue from many farm wineries by limiting the wineries’ hours of operation.

“Counties are trying to test their limits” and “overstepping their regulatory authority,”says Matt Conrad of the Virginia Wine Council. “They are putting structures in place that are not in place anywhere else,” he says.

Repeated calls from Northern Virginia Magazine over the last two months to Peter Schwartz’ office at the Fauquier County Board of Supervisors, the sponsor of the legislation, were left unanswered.

Fauquier Zoning Administrator Kim Johnson is satisfied that there are legislative tools in place for wineries to continue holding after-hours events such as fundraisers and wine dinners and that there is no reason for wineries to not continue conducting business as usual. “We’re actually loosening our ordinance,” claims Johnson. Currently wineries must apply for a special event or special exception permit to hold events.“We have to change it [the current legislation] because we have to allow some events by-right and we have to amend the current law.”

“We’ve arrived at a really sad point,” says Brian Roeder of Barrel Oak Winery in Delaplane, located in Fauquier County. Vineyards are the only ag business in the state that is growing” and that the zoning ordinance will, “undermine the desire to invest in the county.” Indeed, many winemakers in the county think that ordinance could potentially choke economic growth of both existing and future wineries in the county. In Roeder’s opinion, the most egregious part of this ordinance is telling wineries what their business hours are.

Despite assurances from the Zoning Commission about the ability to hold events under the proposed legislation, Barrel Oak Winery has already curtailed some its evening activities because of the spectre of this ordinance passing. Some of these events included opening their space for local organizations to hold fundraisers. Annually he estimates Barrel Oak Winery helps organizations generate about $20, 000 in fundraising dollars. Further the winery has not renewed a contract with a local food cart because having the food cart on premises constitutes having an event for which he would need to get a special permit. Roeder quickly adds that any other private citizen could elect to have this food cart on his or her property and no special permit would be required from the county.

“Many wineries will go out of business because of this legislation and many wineries will go out of business fighting this leglislation,” cautions Roeder.

Three Fox Vineyards also located in Fauquier County is concerned about the legislation as well, not because of the effect it will have on their operating hours, but because of what the passage of this legislation could mean for colleagues within the county and beyond. “My concern is the county needs to follow state law in several areas and that this may be a model for what happens elsewhere,” says John Todhunter, owner and operator of the vineyard.

Even as the ordinance continues to evolve, the lobbying arm of the wine industry claims that there is no legal basis for the local regulation of farm wineries under Virginia state law. The Zoning Commission, however, views the language of the law differently and points to the county’s legal right to regulate wineries because of the substantial impact to the health, safety and welfare of the public.

“Is there potential for substantial impact? Absolutely,” says Zoning Administrator Johnson. “That’s really what the ordinance is trying to do. If they [the wineries] don’t hit that level of impact, then they are allowed by-right” to host events.

At this point the Zoning Commission has made its recommendations to the Board of Supervisors and the board will begin to hear from its constituents regarding the ordinance. A public hearing regarding the ordinance is scheduled in the Warren Green Building Meeting Room at 10 Hotel Street in Warrenton tonight at 7 p.m. Proprietors of area wineries have been invited to attend. The debate over the zoning ordinance will likely go on for many months longer than this evening however.

“I am certain that the wineries will prevail because the code of Virginia is clear,” states Matt Conrad.

Should the legislation pendulum swing in the opposite direction some winemakers in Fauquier County may face exhaustive legal battles to prove their point. Says Conrad,“Until legislative action is brought by one of the over-regulated wineries, there’s no enforcement mechanism.”

–Amy Loeffler

Lucinda Scala Quinn: Taming Appetites, Feeding the Soul

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

Image: Indiebound.com

After seeing Lucinda Scala Quinn on the Today show I have the impression that she gets some anti-feminist flack for the title of her new book Mad Hungry: Feeding Men and Boys. Mostly because Ann Curry feels the need to chime in something about “feeding the gals too” at the point of the segment when the rest of the crew joins in to nosh on vittles from the day’s celebrity chef demo.

Gender stereotypes aside, Mad Hungry is loaded with recipes for any size appetite, and you don’t have to have males in the family to make good use of this cooking tome.

“This book is for anybody who wants to eat well,” says Scala Quinn.

And if you happen to have a gaggle of men and boys to feed, so much the better.

Scala Quinn is herself well versed in taming voracious, man-beast appetites. Growing up with brothers, and feeding a perpetually hungry husband and three sons, she has had her share of experiences feeding males of all ages. So when she says things like, “Guys are not pretense. What they need is what they ask for,” she is speaking less through a pop culture filter of gender stereotypes, and more from her own objective experiences raising a family.

From where she sits, the title Mad Hungry is an apt description of the male quest to satiate hunger pangs . “It’s almost like when you have more than one male whose hungry, it becomes an urgent situation,”  she explains.  And this is the perspective from which she wrote Mad Hungry.    

The book itself goes far beyond mere recipe recitation (although if you’re a recipe hound no doubt you’ll find some instant classics here) and lays out some very basic menu planning methodology for readers before they even attempt to turn on the gas stove.  For example, feeding a ravenous family requires shopping ahead, and in some cases prepping ahead, she cautions. If you put off thinking about the dinner hour until the 5:30 p.m. meltdown, you’re already behind the eight ball. For some that may be elementary and obvious, but for those who find the dinner hour daunting, this is an example of how her book delivers the handholding when necessary.

Though chefs of all skill levels will find something to pique their interest, the recipes in Mad Hungry lead even the most novice of cooks by the hand at times. The simplest thing like frying an egg properly is not above description. “I decided it was better not to alienate anyone for lack of knowledge,” she says.  Case in point: Scala Quinn remembers once after an art director watched her  filet a snapper in a studio kitchen, she incredulously commented, “Oh, that’s where those come from,” in refrence to the bodiless filets. 

You may also find Mad Hungry helpful in conquering age old culinary battles such as the Kids vs. Vegetables. Scala Quinn  decries the impossibility of getting a kid to eat vegetables. Around her own family table she always included veggies in some form by throwing them down without a fuss next to all of the other meat and starch dishes. For Scala Quinn the proof is in the proverbial pudding : ”Now I have vegetable eaters who ask for vegetables when they come home,” she says of her older sons who are away at college or busy with high school. 

Lastly this culinary tome is really a celebration of creating a space where families are nourished body and soul. Says Scala Quinn,”The riches from eating well extend beyond the physical, they are spiritual and emotional as well.”  

–Amy Loeffler

NoVa Food Photography Gets Up Close and Personal

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Thursday, November 5th, 2009

Image: Dan Currier

If you’re a foodie and a photographer you’ll definitely be interested in a coinciding workshop the Art Institute is conducting with faculty member Dan Currier on food photography. Participants can geek out on nifty insider tips like how to make those dew droplets behave so well on set with fruits and vegetables, and capture that elusive splash in a glass.

“The workshop talks about some of the tricks of the trade,” and is for “basically anyone interested in photography,” says Dan. His class will be hands on and focuses on using lighting and point of view to achieve a stunning still image.

“When we eat food we look at it for a brief second,” he says. The point of food photography is to “show the audience a different point of view,” than the usual looking-over-the-plate perch we see when we eat and “enhance the experience of the viewer.”

 After all, taste is just one of the five senses.

Majestic’s Overmiller Ready for Her Close-Up

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Thursday, October 29th, 2009

Sounds like Bravo’s casting folks may have blown into town a bit early (open auditions are scheduled for next Wednesday at the Occidental) to chat up Majestic toque Shannon Overmiller. Gut Check blogger Amy Loeffler was dining there this evening when she spotted camera crews tracking the Maryland native’s every move. Her curiosity piqued, Loeffler flagged down a server and inquired why Overmiller seemed to be getting the Hollywood treatment. “She said Shannon was being interviewed for a possible spot on Top Chef,” Loeffler reports. No word from Overmiller’s bosses over at Restaurant Eve as to how far along their protege might be in the Top Chef vetting process. But confidence is high “Red” would add a terrific splash of local color to the Season 7 cast.

Yes, there were cameras rolling last night at The Majestic.

But management now insists the puzzling media display beheld by Gut Check blogger Amy Loeffler on Thursday night wasn’t for Bravo’s benefit.

“[Chef] Shannon [Overmiller] was being filmed, but, not by Top Chef,” Meshelle Armstrong assured us.

Both Overmiller and Armstrong remained mum on who was doing the filming.

Local toques looking to make the leap into reality TV should make their way down to the Occidental next Wednesday for the Top Chef Season 7 casting call.

–Warren

How ‘Bout Them (Candied) Apples

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, October 27th, 2009

Photo: concessionstands.com

Candied and caramel apples are the quintessential fall-time treats. Though it seems like it would be a no-brainer to whip up a batch of fruit with candy coating on the outside, the process can be deceptively simple, even treacherous, territory in the kitchen.

“Most people don’t take the wax off the apples,”says Kate Baltren of the Butcher’s Block in Alexandria. Seems simple enough, but who among us has attempted to make candied apples only to have our culinary efforts thwarted by a little wax?

If you want to unravel the secrets to making viscously sweet goo stick to your apples, make it a pre-Trick-or-Treat event and head over to an apple dipping demo with Chef Kate this Friday beginning at 5:30 p.m.  Kate will be using Honey Crisp apples since they are in season right now, but at home you can use any variety you like.

Samples will be widely available of the apple confections, too, including your basic caramel and candy apple recipes, along with more adventurous adult versions like red wine caramel. And speaking of wine, there will be a lot of that kind of sampling too.

How ’bout you folks out there? Any candy apple horror stories you can share?

–Amy Loeffler