To kick-off a healthy New Year, Whole Foods Market will be giving away healthy pantry staples for a year as well as several of their $50 Pantry Stock Ups. You can enter on the Whole Foods Blog until January 31st.

I am also giving away a $50 gift certificate to the Whole Foods Market in Durham on this blog. Read the original blog entry here for details. Because I didn’t have the time to blog all the recipes this week, I am extending my give-away until February 7^th. Please keep following this blog and commenting about your favorite healthy pantry staples for a chance to win.

As pork is a household favorite, especially when served alongside rice and beans, I decided to try some Cuban recipes I came across while perusing recipes on the internet. The black beans came out perfectly, and the added cilantro at the end gave them a wonderful herbaceous quality that married perfectly with the citrus and garlic marinated pork. A side of steamed brown rice rounded out the meal.

A little bit about Cuban food:

Cuban cuisine has been influenced by Spanish, French, African, Arabic, Chinese, and Portuguese cultures. Cuban cooking relies on a few basic spices, such as garlic, cumin, oregano, and bay leaves. A sofrito, onion, green pepper, garlic, oregano, and ground pepper quick-fried in olive oil, is the base used when cooking black beans and stews and is what gives the food its flavor. Meats and poultry are most often marinated in citrus juices, such as lime or sour orange juice, and then roasted over low heat until the meat is very tender. Heavy creams and sauces are rarely used, instead most of the food is sautéed or slow-cooked over low heat for the flavors to develop.

Cuban Black Beans

(www.eatliverun.com)

serves 6

Time: 2 hours, not including overnight soak time

Ingredients:

1 lb bag black beans, rinsed and picked over

1 T vegetable oil

1 yellow onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp salt

1 bunch cilantro, minced

water

Directions:

Soak the beans overnight in a large pot. In the morning, drain the water and set beans aside.

In a large Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the onion and sauté for about six minutes, until soft and translucent. Add two cloves of the garlic and continue cooking for another thirty seconds.

Add the beans to the onion and garlic mixture and enough water to cover everything by an inch. Bring beans to a boil then cover (leaving a small crack open), reduce heat and simmer for one hour.

After an hour, stir the beans and add the remaining two garlic cloves and minced cilantro. Return to a simmer and cook another hour until beans are tender and the cooking liquid is thick. Stir occasionally while cooking.

Once cooked, add salt and additional minced cilantro if desired. Serve beans over rice, puree and serve as black bean soup or save for additional uses.

Cuban Pork

(Sadly I can’t find the website this recipe came from but will pass it along when I do)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. boneless pork loin–cut into 1-inch cubes

6 garlic cloves–crushed

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. dry oregano

1/2  cup sour orange juice–or 1/4 cup orange juice and 1/4 cup lime juice

1/4 cup olive oil

Directions:

Place pork cubes in a self-sealing plastic bag; mix together remaining ingredients and pour over pork cubes; seal bag and refrigerate overnight. Remove from marinade, discarding marinade, and place pork cubes in a shallow baking pan. Roast in a pre-heated 350*F oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until pork is tender. Remove to a serving platter and serve hot.

Happy Eating!!

$50 Whole Foods Market Pantry Staple List

Courtesy of Whole Foods Market

• 1 lb black beans
• 1 lb lentils
• 1 lb quinoa
• 2 lbs brown rice
• 3 (32-oz) boxes vegetable broth
• 1 (32-oz) box chicken broth
• 1 lb rolled oats
• 2 cans cannellini beans
• 1 lb orechiette pasta
• 1 lb pasta, your favorite kind
• 1 can black beans
• 1 jar unsweetened applesauce
• 1 (32-oz) box unsweetened soymilk
• 1 (32-oz) box unsweetened almond milk
• 1 (5-oz) can tuna
• 3 (15-oz) cans diced tomatoes
• 1 package no-oil sundried tomatoes
• 1 jar pasta sauce

About Gabrielle Kassa:

Gabrielle is a partner in Succotashed. At Succotashed, our personal chefs offer in-home culinary education and event catering. Our mission is to create inspired, seasonal cuisine with simple, real, and delicious foods. Learn more about workshops and events. Read our blog for delicious recipes, insightful articles, and helpful cooking tips.

When she’s not in the kitchen, Gabrielle enjoys writing, photography, and adventuring with her partner, Bill, and son, Noah.

And as always, being a great friend to all who know her! Thanks Gabs =)

Remember, Whole Foods Market will be giving away healthy pantry staples for a year as well as several of their $50 Pantry Stock Ups. You can enter on the Whole Foods Blog until January 31st.

I am also giving away a $50 gift certificate to the Whole Foods Market in Durham on this blog. Read the original blog entry here for details.

Recipes

Cranberry Almond Quinoa

Quinoa is an amazing grain in both culinary and nutritional terms. Its mild, nutty taste makes it a perfect canvas for a diverse group of flavors. It can be used as a substitute for rice in many recipes, and can even be cooked in your rice cooker! (Use 2 cups of water to 1 cup of quinoa for perfect quinoa in your rice cooker.)

But unlike rice, quinoa is a complete protein source.
It’s a healthful addition to any diet, but it can be especially beneficial for vegans and vegetarians as plant-based protein source. Quinoa is also gluten-free and pairs beautifully with many traditional pasta sauces, so it can be a wonderful substitution for pasta for those who are avoiding gluten.

In our house, we generally use quinoa as a savory side dish. For this dish, I went in a different direction. I love fruit and nut oatmeals and granolas, so why not fruit and nut quinoa?

We always have quinoa, nuts, and dried fruit in our pantry, so this is definitely a pantry meal for us. You could substitute any nuts and dried fruit of your choice- I think pecans and dried apricots would be fabulous!

This dish was delicious, filling, and so comforting on a cold winter
morning. It’s a welcome new addition to our breakfast line-up! I’m also excited to serve it as a savory side (minus the honey and cinnamon) with our next pork roast- I think the cranberries and apples will pair beautifully with the pork.

Cranberry Almond Quinoa
inspired by Hot Breakfast Cereal recipe by Ancient Harvest

Serves 2
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup of quinoa

2 cups of water

3 Tablespoons of dried cranberries

3 Tablespoons slivered almonds

1 small apple, diced (I used a Fuji- it was delicious!)

Cinnamon and honey, to taste

Directions:

Bring water to boil. Add quinoa. Allow water to come back up to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Stir in cranberries, almonds, and apples. Continue to simmer until all water is absorbed.

Fluff quinoa with a fork before transferring to serving dishes.

Serve immediately. Top with cinnamon and honey to taste.

Nutritional info per serving: Calories: 445; Total fat: 10.8 g; Saturated fat: 0.4g; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Sodium: 2.6 mg; Total Cards: 75.1 g; Dietary Fiber: 9.8 g; Protein: 14.3 g

I use the SparkRecipes Recipe Calculator to calculate nutrition
information for my recipes.

Lentil Chili

This chili is a super fast, super versatile dish. It can be tailored to your particular tastes as well as whatever you happen to have in your pantry that day!

We love lentils not just for their variety and flavor, but for their quick cooking ability. Unlike beans, lentils don’t have to be soaked before cooking. From start to finish, you can have a pot of delicious lentils in 35 minutes or less!

We keep lentils, canned tomatoes, and canned beans in our pantry as each item can be the basis of a healthy but fast dinner. This recipe uses all three. I’ve used black beans here, but you can use whatever you like best.

I can think of loads of variations on the lentil/bean theme- for example, red lentils, cannellini beans, and caramelized onions would make a beautiful and tasty “chili”! This chili can be used as a side dish (we’re having it as an accompaniment to a beef roast tonight) or on its own as a hearty vegetarian main course.

This recipe makes plenty, so you can cook for a big crowd, or enjoy leftovers the next day. It can easily be halved if you would like to make less.

Lentil Chili

Prep: 5 minutes

Cook time: 30-35 minutes

Serves: 8 as main course, 16 as side dish

Ingredients:

2 cups of dried green lentils

8 cups of hot water

2 15 ounce cans of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes

3 Tablespoons of cumin

3 Tablespoons of chili powder

2 Tablespoons of olive oil

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1/4-1/2 cup of water (or vegetable stock)

Directions:

Combine lentils and hot water in a large saucepan or stock pot. Simmer gently with lid tilted until desired tenderness is reached (about 15-20 minutes. Lentils can still be slightly firm, as they will be cooked additionally later). Drain the lentils and set aside.

In a large saucepan or stock pot, sauté the minced garlic in the olive oil. Add beans, tomatoes, spices, and the drained lentils. Stir well to combine, adding 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water or vegetable stock if necessary. Simmer until heated through, about 10-15 minutes.

Serve topped with cilantro. Other toppings could include sour cream, sharp cheddar cheese, diced fresh jalapeños, or bell peppers.

Nutritional info per serving (for side dish portion- double for main dish portion): Calories: 106; Total fat: 2.1g; Saturated fat: 0.3g; Cholesterol: 0mg; Sodium: 113.5mg; Total Carbohydrates: 16.2; Dietary Fiber: 4.8; Protein: 6.0g

I use the SparkRecipes Recipe Calculator to calculate nutrition information for my recipes.

$50 Whole Foods Market Pantry Staple List

Courtesy of Whole Foods Market

• 1 lb black beans
• 1 lb lentils
• 1 lb quinoa
• 2 lbs brown rice
• 3 (32-oz) boxes vegetable broth
• 1 (32-oz) box chicken broth
• 1 lb rolled oats
• 2 cans cannellini beans
• 1 lb orechiette pasta
• 1 lb pasta, your favorite kind
• 1 can black beans
• 1 jar unsweetened applesauce
• 1 (32-oz) box unsweetened soymilk
• 1 (32-oz) box unsweetened almondmilk
• 1 (5-oz) can tuna
• 3 (15-oz) cans diced tomatoes
• 1 package no-oil sundried tomatoes
• 1 jar pasta sauce

HAPPY EATING!!

The original recipe was from All Recipes, for a bruchetta appetizer. Instead I served it as a salad, with grilled baguette on the side. Either way, this was quick and easy, and a totally satisfying lunch.

Whole Foods Market will be giving away healthy pantry staples for a year as well as several of their $50 Pantry Stock Ups. You can enter on the Whole Foods Blog until January 31^st. I am also giving away a $50 gift certificate to the Whole Foods Market in Durham on this blog. All you have to do is subscribe to my blog, leave a comment that you have done so and tell me what healthy pantry staple you can’t live without. Deadline to enter is January 31^st and the winner announced Feb 3rd. All comments from each blog post are eligible to win. Read the original blog entry here.

Chicken, Sun-Dried Tomato and Spinach Salad

Marinated chicken, spinach, feta, and sun-dried tomatoes are tossed with dressing for a healthy light dinner any time of year!”

Ingredients:

2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

1 1/4 cups Italian salad dressing, divided

4 cups fresh spinach, torn

1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

8 sun-dried tomatoes, packed without oil, chopped

1/4 cup toasted walnuts or pecans (this was my addition to the recipe, I love a salad with nuts)

Directions:

Place the chicken and 1 cup salad dressing in a bowl. Cover, and marinate at least 3 hours in the refrigerator.

Preheat the grill for high heat.

Lightly oil the grill grate. Discard dressing used for marinating, and grill chicken 7 minutes per side, or until juices run clear. Cool and shred.

In a large bowl, mix the cooked chicken, spinach, feta cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, walnuts or pecans and remaining dressing.

Place desired amount of salad on a plate with grilled baguette on the side.

Eat and Enjoy!

Whole Foods Market $50 Pantry Staple List

• 1 lb black beans
• 1 lb lentils
• 1 lb quinoa
• 2 lbs brown rice
• 3 (32-oz) boxes vegetable broth
• 1 (32-oz) box chicken broth
• 1 lb rolled oats
• 2 cans cannellini beans
• 1 lb orechiette pasta
• 1 lb pasta, your favorite kind
• 1 can black beans
• 1 jar unsweetened applesauce
• 1 (32-oz) box unsweetened soymilk
• 1 (32-oz) box unsweetened almondmilk
• 1 (5-oz) can tuna
• 3 (15-oz) cans diced tomatoes
• 1 package no-oil sundried tomatoes
• 1 jar pasta sauce

Whole Foods Market priced these from their 365 Everyday Value® line and the list came in around $50

Disclaimer: Whole Foods Market provided me with the pantry staples.

Courtesy of Whole Foods

I too have committed to the healthy pantry challenge and will be spending this next week posting some of the recipes I’ve prepared  using the Whole Foods Market Pantry Stock-Ups.

As part of the promotion, I will be giving away a $50 gift certificate to the Whole Foods Market in Durham, NC. All you have to do is subscribe to my blog, leave a comment that you have done so and tell me what healthy pantry staple you can’t live without. Deadline to enter is January 31^st and the winner announced Feb 3rd.

So let’s kick-off the New Year with a commitment to eat healthy and affordably.

Whole Foods Market $50 Pantry Staple List

• 1 lb black beans
  

  Courtesy of Whole Foods

• 1 lb lentils
• 1 lb quinoa
• 2 lbs brown rice
• 3 (32-oz) boxes vegetable broth
• 1 (32-oz) box chicken broth
• 1 lb rolled oats
• 2 cans cannellini beans
• 1 lb orechiette pasta
• 1 lb pasta, your favorite kind
• 1 can black beans
• 1 jar unsweetened applesauce
• 1 (32-oz) box unsweetened soymilk
• 1 (32-oz) box unsweetened almondmilk
• 1 (5-oz) can tuna
• 3 (15-oz) cans diced tomatoes
• 1 package no-oil sundried tomatoes
• 1 jar pasta sauce

Whole Foods Market priced these from their 365 Everyday Value® line and the list came in around $50

Now that you have a well-stocked pantry, just add fresh ingredients, herbs and spices to be able to cook all of these recipes:

• Simple Black Bean Soup
• Beef and Quinoa Meatballs
• Zesty Quinoa with Broccoli and Cashews
• Lentil Chili
• Brown Rice with Chicken and Broccoli
• Oatmeal-Apple Pancakes
• Overnight Oatmeal
• Tuscan Tuna Salad
• Mexican Taco Stew
• Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe, Sundried Tomatoes and White Beans
• Almond Brown Rice Pudding
• Learn to Cook: Brown Rice
• Learn to Cook: Quinoa
• Simple Oatmeal

“Some of these recipes make six servings and some make four. Altogether you’ll get a total of 66 servings with some leftover ingredients for future recipes.”

Disclaimer: I was given the $50 Pantry Staples Stock-up and the $50 gift certificate to give away as part of the promotion and to help spread the word.

By: Kelsey Snell

Esse quam videri. To be rather than to seem.

The North Carolina motto printed on the front of Scratch Bakery’s t-shirts is a pledge of pride to the Old North State. It’s also the food and drink philosophy of Phoebe Lawless, Carolinian to the core and owner of year-and-a-half old Scratch in downtown Durham. Lawless would prefer her pies taste good than seem to, so you won’t find shiny fruit and bland top-crust lattice coming out of her kitchen. Of course, I’ve never seen a sea salt and bittersweet chocolate crostata at Scratch look bad.

Scratch isn’t all pie stands, cider-glazed donuts and savory frittatas. Wafts of brewing coffee and fresh grinds mingle with breakfast-time aromas inside the café’s cozy exposed brick and blue walls. Oversized latte-brimmed bowls look like a meal by themselves and plain ol’ drip pairs perfectly with the persimmon bread pudding that was just called from the kitchen or the poached egg and kale plate coming up next. Locals and people across the country know Scratch’s pies, but Scratch coffee is long overdue for the spotlight. Pie lovers, meet your match—Scratch coffee.

Scratch coffee boss Karen Caffrey used to be a barista at 3CUPS café and trained with Counter Culture’s customer rep Lem Butler to compete in the 2009 Southeastern Barista Competition. Her passion for southern coffee excellence and seeing the Triangle’s coffee culture gain recognition continues to grow with the coffee program she backs at Scratch.

Caffrey says southern coffee culture is “a whole different monster” from caffeinated cities like Seattle or New York City. The southern hospitality standard doesn’t leave much room for the cold-shouldered barista, and different from the busy Manhattan café, customer service anywhere below the Mason Dixon Line is pivotal to a coffee drinker’s café experience. “People here expect the warmth, and you have to embrace it,” says Caffrey. “You don’t throw that away.”

So why would a local-loving and locally-loved southern bakery serve coffee from a coffee roaster in the Midwest? Scratch served hometown-roasted Counter Culture Coffee until Nov. 1 when Lawless and Caffrey decided to make the switch to renowned Chicago roaster Intelligentsia Coffee.

“We wanted to introduce something new and fresh to the area,” says Caffrey. “It was an opportunity to stand out and bring more coffee excellence to the Triangle.”

No matter the roaster, whether neighborhood Counter Culture, Portland’s Stumptown Coffee or Intelligentsia, coffee isn’t grown locally. These “big three” roasters source from some of the same coffee farms abroad, but which plots they bid on and the way they roast the beans is what sets them apart. “Comparing Counter Culture and Intelligentsia is like saying a Cabernet is different from a Riesling,” says Caffrey who chose Intelligentsia’s soft, sweet espresso because she felt its flavor profiles fit Lawless’s ingredients and customers best.

Intelligentsia Coffee has three cafes in Chicago and three in Los Angeles. Although their coffee is new to many in the Triangle, Caffrey says Scratch is able to brew up a little taste of home for some patrons from the Windy City and the West Coast—even one of their own.

Scratch barista Curtis Cushman grew up in Durham but moved to Chicago to study art history and illustration at Columbia College Chicago where he began working at Intelligentsia. Cushman worked for the café for a year and a half before returning to Durham in January 2010 and later applying to work with Caffrey at Scratch. “I feel like a kid in my coffee life. I’m playing with the toys I used to play with,” he says.

Like the seasonal ingredients Lawless combines in her recipes, Caffrey and her baristas concoct signature drinks to pair with the ever-changing menu. This summer, Lawless crafted honeysuckle chess pie and lemonade inspired by the blossoms on her own bush, and the coffee team was up for the challenge to try their hand. Lawless came up with the name, “Sweet Child of Mine,” and Caffrey made a honeysuckle-infused syrup that was the bottom layer under a level of cold milk that was topped with two naturally floral espresso shots to taste like a North Carolina summer.

“I have some fresh bay. Can you make a drink with that?” Lawless asked Caffrey. This was the beginning of the current signature drink, “Sippin’ on the Dock of the Bay,” which is an 8-ounce latte with simple bay leaf syrup and dark chocolate. And up next? Chestnut flour and coffee—hello holidays.

Caffrey says these signature drinks are just a part of getting people excited about coffee— a win for everyone in the Triangle coffee scene. “All boats float in a rising tide,” she says. With Counter Culture’s training center and monthly latte art competitions, Morning Times’ cuppings, 3CUPS tastings and Carrboro Coffee Company’s coffee introduction classes, the local coffee tide is rising. Raise your mugs, and ride it out.

Scratch coffee events are in the works, from barista Olympics to classes on coffee basics, and the pie pairings, which featured a single-origin pour-over coffee with a hand-paired pie, might be making a comeback. Follow Scratch at @scratchbake and Scratch coffee at @ScratchCoffee to find out the latest or make a recommendation.

Kelsey Snell graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill on Sunday with a degree in journalism and will be home in Southern Pines, N.C. for the holidays.

Follow Kelsey on Twitter at @kelseysnell.

By: Kelsey Snell

As you read this, I’m either preparing to take my final exam of college at UNC-Chapel Hill, right smack in the middle of it or out celebrating my freedom on Franklin Street. Although my priorities on Sunday were eating brunch at Acme in Carrboro, then studying for the day at Open Eye Café next door, here’s a few photos and stories from my study-free Saturday. Geared with my camera, pen and an empty stomach, I went out on the towns (Chapel Hill and Durham) for the love of coffee.

Here’s five photos of five hours of five things coffee people love:

1. Manual coffee

I started at 3CUPS in Chapel Hill for barista Matt Souza’s tasting series of Aida Batlle’s Grand Reserve peaberry coffee. Batlle (@aidabatlle) is a leading lady of coffee who grows her coffees on three hillside farms on the Santa Ana volcano in El Salvador. The steady trickle of customers picked up hand-crafted pour-over, syphon and French press tastes of Grand Reserve roasted by Counter Culture Coffee, and Souza took orders for the limited 8 oz. tins of the blend. Customers and Souza talked about the fruity notes and acidity gleaned from each manual method as they slurped, and John Esposito, a doctoral student at UNC-CH, asked Souza to try the Grand Reserve from a press pot. He and his wife agreed it was their favorite because of the flavorful finish.

2. Peaberries

Batlle’s Grand Reserve is a blend of coffee peaberries from her three farms: Fincas Mauritania, Los Alpes and Kilimanjaro. Coffee harvesters, believing peaberries were defected or mutated beans growing as singles instead of a cherry pair, used to throw out these little guys until they realized their trash was treasure. “It’s cool to talk about this mutation that happens and then actually taste it in a cup,” Souza says. From the coffee cherry she markets for ultra-caffeinated cascara tea to the peaberry, Batlle wastes not. Peaberry coffee is a good change for your daily cup, boasting intense fruit flavors, so stop by 3CUPS this Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon for a second chance to try.

3. All things German: Stollen samples

Peaberries are great but far from filling. Next stop: Stollen. The German Christmas Market at Durham’s Guglhupf Bakery & Café was full to the brim when I arrived. Powdery chunks of their famous holiday stollen loaves littered platters on the patio and inside the bakery; I had three. Not quite full and still in my beloved breakfast mode, I resisted the heavy German sausage and sauerkraut on bretzel buns and waited in the bakery line to pick up cranberry walnut biscotti and a müsli roll. Overwhelmed by the crowd, I ended up retreating to my favorite Durham escape—Scratch Baking (@scratchbake)—just in time for barista Curtis Cushman’s lunch break. The bright yellow table in front of the café was lit by the sun and calling my name, so with a double espresso and in good company, we enjoyed the mid-December sunshine.

4. Craft fairs in dive bars

Winding up East Franklin Street, back in Chapel Hill, I cut over to Rosemary Street for Nightlight’s holiday craft fair. Nightlight, local grunge bar and venue, had me at alleyway. The hand-scrawled sign on the street was an appropriate teaser to the eccentric beauty going on inside the windowless room down the graffitied pink bricks of the entrance. Scott Conary, inside man of Open Eye Café, Caffe Driade and Carrboro Coffee Company, was quietly setting out bags of his roasts, and barista champion Michael Harwood poured tastes of their Cup of Excellence-winning coffee for market goers from a Clever and Chemex, other manual-brew favorites. I browsed the hand-knit ear warmers, vintage clothing and pottery before grabbing a ginger-infused, poppyseed-drenched truffle from Durham power couple Leon and Areli of Cocoa Cinnamon and bikeCoffee.

5. Pottery (and beards)

Matt Smith, art teacher, potter and Carrboro newcomer, is a breath of fresh air on the local pottery scene. Moving from Indiana nine months ago, Smith said he’s trying his hand at the hand-held with his Four-legged Flamingo Ceramics. It’s just as hard for me to resist good pottery (and a great beard) as resisting good coffee, so I gave in and bought two of his humble-priced pieces. “I’ll take these two,” I said. “Well, I won’t take them. I guess I’ll pay you.” I see many more Matt Smith pieces in my coffee-loving future.

Kelsey Snell is graduating from UNC-Chapel Hill on Sunday with a journalism degree. She worked at the Daily Grind Espresso Café during her last year at UNC and is excited for the next adventure. She hopes to move north to D.C. or New York City after the holidays, but knows her roots grow around the Triangle.

Follow Kelsey on Twitter at @kelseysnell.

Forget the fruitcake and treat yourself to classic stollen

By Jill Warren Lucas

Susan Lueck stood patiently on line with a contentedly optimistic look on her face, not unlike a good-all-year child on the night before Christmas.

“Oh, I wait for this moment all year,” admitted Lueck, who used to live near Guglhupf Bakery, Pâtisserie & Café in Durham before relocating a few years ago to Camden, S.C. “Driving three hours to get their stollen is totally worth it to me. We send these to friends all across the country.”

Lueck carefully recounted her order – 24 large loaves and 20 small – before her husband toted several paper sacks to their car for the drive back home.

“You can’t imagine how happy this makes me,” she said. “I’m of German heritage and I used to bake them myself, but it’s a long process. Bar none, these are the best I ever had. They’ve very addictive. Once you start eating them, you just can’t stop.”

Guglhupf owner Claudia Cooper is used to such expressions of devotion. “We’ve had people in tears when they try our baked goods,” she said, welcoming the line of customers that filled the shop and stretched up the outdoor patio steps. “Sometimes there are the most delightful meltdowns in here.”

There are other holiday specialties available at Guglhupf this time of year, but none command the singular adoration of the Dresden-style stollen. The bakery may produce as many as 4,000 loaves this year – each one made by baker Chris Astraikis.

“It sounds like a lot, but a good bakery In Dresden might make that many in a week,” Astraikis said as he worked the lustrous dough, which he said contains “just enough flour to hold the butter together.”

Astraikis figures that each large loaf contains about two-thirds of a pound of butter, along with enough rum-soaked golden raisins, slivered almonds and candied citrus peel to ensure that each delicious bite is colorfully studded.

“Not bad,” he agreed with a grin after sampling a slice. “There are hundreds of recipes for stollen, but this is the one we’ve used at Guglhupf for years. People like knowing they can count on it, and it’s something that gets better with time. If you like it now, you’ll really love it in a few weeks.”

Stollen’s inherent durability makes it the ideal long-distance gift. Encased in clarified butter and two coats of sugar – first granulated, then snowy powdered – the cake is resistant to spoilage and matures over time to reveal even greater depth of flavor. If kept in a cool dark cupboard, they can last for months – though that’s not very likely.

Making stollen is a multi-day process, and Astraikis handles every detail himself. The batch he processed last Sunday – starting with dough and marinated fruit and nuts prepped hours earlier — yielded 45 large loaves. But they wouldn’t be ready for customers until they had an overnight rest and a final dusting of sugar.

Astraikis was a blur of energy that morning. Between kneading and resting the stollen dough, he cut dozens of zimtstern, small six-pointed-star cookies made from ground almonds and egg whites with a lush coat of cinnamon-infused royal icing. The scraps go back into the mixer with more ingredients to make the next batch.

“If you’re not careful,” he said, being just that as he measured in ingredients, “you can wind up with thousands of these.”

Astraikas, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America’s prestigious baking program, has been baking professionally for about 20 years, the last dozen at Guglhupf. The dark, fragrant spices that flavor many German cookies strike him as a magical blend, and he finds a sort of serenity in working with dough. Also, it’s pretty good exercise.

“There’s a reason you don’t see a lot of overweight bakers,” quipped Astaikas, who appears to not indulge in many of the sweets he bakes. “I probably handle a thousand pounds of dough every day, and often a lot more. It’s hard work, but it’s really satisfying.”

Astraikis takes the compliments of customers to heart and knows that many, like Susan Lueck, travel far to buy the traditional delights that he and colleagues produce daily. He knows it’s especially true of the stollen, which generates a lively mail-order business this time of year.

“I’ve heard a lot of people say they don’t like stollen, but they love ours,” he said. “It’s not like the fruitcake that gets passed around. People who get these keep them.”

Astraikis works the portioned dough quickly and thoroughly, folding and stretching pieces to develop glutens while tucking in fruit to minimize surface scorching. The last touch before going into a steam-filled convention oven is to fashion the classic lumpy shape, which is meant to suggest the rumpled cloth that swaddled the baby Jesus.

Though only one batch was baked this day, Astraikis said he typically has three going at once in various stages of progress. “I’ll be working pretty much every day until Christmas, but I don’t mind,” he said. “I think about people having them on their holiday table. It makes me want to make them really nice so they are enjoyed.”

Stollen will be available through the holidays in three sizes: the large loaf for $22.50, the small for $13.50, and a personal star-shape mini-loaf for $5.25. If you’d like Guglhupf to ship these treasures to loved ones in time for Christmas, be sure to place your order by Dec. 16.

Lucas blogs at Eating My Words. Follow her at @jwlucasnc.

I’m Dreaming of a Filet and a French Chardonnay

By Leigh Powell Hines

While most of you may be dreaming of a white Christmas, I’m dreaming of a melt-in-your-mouth Filet and a French Chardonnay this holiday.  I owe these sweet and savory dreams to Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar, who invited me to their restaurant last week to sample some of their 100 wines by the glass and new small-plate appetizers.

Yes, I said 100 wines by the glass.

Just look!

Yes, Fleming’s offers 100 wines by the glass

OK, I’ll let you get off the floor now and catch your breath.  I’ve never seen that many wines by the glass in one restaurant, either.

I had no idea that this little gem of a wine bar was adjacent to one of Raleigh’s premier shopping destinations, Crabtree Valley Mall.  Holiday shopping now takes on a whole new meaning for me with this newfound knowledge.

Last Wednesday evening, I hired a sitter and did something I never do with my husband.  We ate in a very nice restaurant on a school night.  Food expert and blogger Johanna Kramer, who authors Durhamfoodie, joined us, along with her fiancé.  We met for the first time that evening, and I feel as if I’ve always known her.  We definitely hit it off.  She’s currently writing a food guide for the Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill area.

Raleigh Fleming’s operating partner Rebecca Blake and wine manager Jim Soffe also dined with us to talk about new menu items and wines for the holidays.

Fleming’s Chef Ron West, Jim Soffe, Rebecca Blake, The Hines, Johanna Kramer, and her fiance, David Jung

I had never been to Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar before last week, and it’s been open in Raleigh for three years.  Why not, you ask?  It’s not that I’m stuck in my house and never eat out.  As a reader of my blog, you know I eat out frequently.  I spend as much money in a year in restaurants as most people spend on designer duds, especially when you factor in sitter costs.

Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar in Raleigh, NC

I think I had never eaten here because — with two children — our time is limited, and I wasn’t well-informed on what the restaurant offered.  Before last week, I had the perception that most high-end steakhouses were only for special occasions due to the expense.  It’s not that I was choosing other steakhouses over this one; I was choosing different types of restaurants altogether for our nights out.  Since I’m not much of a shopper, I don’t find myself at any traditional mall very often.  If I am at a mall, it is usually at 10 a.m. when it first opens, and I have a toddler in tow.  I’m not scoping out restaurants for dinner.

I quickly learned at this dinner that I could throw my preconceived notions out the window.  Fleming’s is elegant, just as you would find in a fine dining restaurant, but it is warm and inviting. It’s perfect for casual conversations and impromptu dinners.  It’s not reserved for just special occasions.  With awesome specials, like the “5-6-7” bar menu, featuring five tempting appetizers, five premium cocktails and five distinctive wines by the glass — each priced at $6 and served 5 to 7 p.m., you could walk in any given night of the week and have outstanding food at a great price.  

Rebecca and Jim designed a delicious menu for our dinner in order for us to sample the new small-plate section of the restaurant’s menu.  In my opinion, the small plates make a perfect-sized entrée, especially when paired with a salad and the restaurant’s scrumptious family-style sides.

We sampled five popular small-plate entrees, and Jim paired five wines for each dish. 

I’m usually not a Chardonnay girl, but Jim wowed me with this moderately priced wine from France.

He paired Joseph Drouhin, Macon-Villages France, 2010, with Jumbo Shrimp Scampi Skewers with Chimichurri dipping sauce and an avocado citrus salad.  This was my favorite white wine of the night.  The shrimp was fantastic, and the duo together made a wonderful gastronomic combination.

We tried our red wines via Fleming’s Wine Flights.

Enjoy a trio of wine with Fleming’s Wine Flight

This is an ideal way to try three different wines with a 2-ounce serving each.  Jim picked a Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Zinfadel for us to taste out of his extensive 100-bottle collection.  Eighty discriminating wines out of the Fleming’s 100 can be found nationally, but the remaining 20 wines are carefully selected by local wine managers to reflect personal guest preferences, regional tastes, and special wine-buying opportunities available only on a limited scale.

Four out of the five wines we sampled, Jim specifically selected for Raleigh’s Fleming’s.   I generally prefer red wine over white wine, so it’s not really a surprise that I thought all three in the flight were great, but what was a surprise is that I adored the French Chardonnay.  It was my favorite for the night, followed by the Twomey, Merlot Napa Valley, 2006.

This showed me that with a little education about the wines, and the freedom to try a variety, I like white wines more than I realize.  This alone made me want to go back to Fleming’s because you can sample a few selections before deciding on what to put in your flight.

As for the food, I enjoyed every small-plate entree that chef Ron West put in front of me, but two were my personal favorites.

Ahi Tuna Skewers

The Ahi Tuna Skewers with a wasabi aioli, sweet tomato vinaigrette, and homemade wontonentrée of the evening.  The sweet tomato vinaigrette paired perfectly with the seared medium-rare tuna.  It was simply delicious.  I could eat a whole bowl of the vinaigrette, and that may be partly why this dish is so memorable to me.  It was good.

No doubt, though, the star attraction was the Sliced Filet Mignon on shiitake risotto, chili oil, and drizzled with porcini butter. It melted in your mouth at each bite.  I loved the tuna, but once I took a bite of the filet, then this dish won top honors as the “best of the night” for me.  I have to admit that tasting this one entrée really made me want to go and try the New York strip or 6-ounce filet.  I think my husband and I will do it before the year is out.  I may be going to the mall a lot now with my main purpose to eat and not shop.

Sliced Filet Mignon on the Small Plate Menu

So yes, my recent outing has me dreaming of a Filet Mignon and a French Chardonnay. Jim, of course, did pair red wine with the steak, but he did tell me as I kept sipping my Chardonnay that when it comes to wine, it is important to drink what you like.  The good news is, with a wine flight trio, I can have a blend of whites and reds to go with a variety of small plates.  That just makes the meal fun.

Fleming’s waiter, Curtis Workman, poses with us on a tour of the private dining room.If you go to Fleming’s, tell  Curtis hello.

Johanna and I had a blast on our dinner adventure.  Fleming’s feels like dining with family. We all had such a great time together.  Chef Ron, Rebecca, and Jim take such pride in this restaurant.  I immediately bonded with Rebecca, who is a mom my age. I learned that Baby Diva and her son were born the exact same day, in the exact same hospital, and within the same hour.  That was some great dessert conversation over a seasonal bread pudding.

Want to Go: Fleming’s is located at Crabtree Valley Mall, just north of the Raleigh Beltline at 4325 Glenwood Avenue.  There are numerous Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar locations throughout the U.S.  The restaurant is also very conscious of dietary restrictions and has a gluten-free menu for its guests.

Disclosure: Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar and McKeeman PR and Marketing invited me to dinner as their guest. As always, my opinions are my own and are not influenced by the company.  

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Keep up with Leigh’s dining and travel adventures on Hines-Sight Blog and Twitter @Hinessightblog

By: Kelsey Snell

Tuesday night was nothing but Southern. Downtown Raleigh’s Beasley’s Chicken and Honey supplied the Mason jars and fried chicken, and three good ol’ boys from Kinston, N.C. poured the beer from a cooler. Mother Earth Brewing offered tastes of their new coffee stout, Silent Night, as a sneak peak before the beer was officially released in hometown Kinston on Wednesday.

It’s a good thing that Mother Earth’s head brewer likes good beer, but, for the sake of this new holiday stout, we’re glad that Josh Brewer appreciates good coffee too.

“When you blend the two together, it’s a beautiful marriage,” said Brewer, who roasts his own coffee. His home roasting hobby was actually what began the partnership with Durham roaster, Counter Culture Coffee, who specially tailored their 1922 Mocha & Java blend for the coffee stout. The final product is a smooth balance of coffee and molasses finished with that must-have bourbon barrel punch.

Just like Mother Earth’s Silent Night, the Triangle boasts the right balance of good beer and good coffee, so it makes good sense that local brewpubs would marry the two.

Tobacco Country’s new addiction

At the start of 2011, Durham was named one of the New York Times’ “Top 41 Places to Go in 2011” because of the foodie reputation that’s growing from a barren tobacco country past. “I remember when it used to be ‘Top 41 Places to Die,’” said Jason Cole, beer aficionado of Carrboro Beverage Company & Bottle Shop on Main Street in Carrboro. Downtown Durham’s preserved American Tobacco Historic District, the Lucky Strike cigarette factory turned glistening city center, epitomizes the rebirth of Bull City.

Tyler Huntington, proprietor of Tyler’s Taprooms and opening the newest restaurant location in Raleigh’s Seaboard Station this week, used to be a brewer for Red Hook Brewing in Seattle, a front runner in craft beer. Huntington was a part of the development of Red Hook’s Double Black Coffee Stout in 1995 which was one of the first coffee stouts and made with coffee from Seattle neighbor Starbucks. Although the brewery stopped making their coffee stout in 2000, the Double Black was back for a limited time in 2009 and only on tap in Seattle.

Cole said that North Carolina has one of the fastest growing beer markets in the country, if not the fastest. Most of the Triangle’s top breweries recognize the complementary nature of beer and coffee and have developed their own dessert-worthy stout and porter concoctions. Chapel Hill’s Carolina Brewery and Bull City Burger and Brewery in Durham teamed up with Counter Culture to create limited time coffee stouts. Carolina Brewery uses Counter Culture’s Jagong Sumatran roast for their Jumpin’ Bean stout, and Bull City is experimenting with their Watts Oatmeal Stout, adding chili powder and Counter Culture coffee. Carrboro’s Jessee’s Coffee & Bar roasts their own house blend called The Kind Coffee, and owners Jon and Chyenna Jessee worked with Kind Beers, a microbrew newcomer in Charlotte, to create their coffee oatmeal stout that was recognized in the 2011 Carolina Championship of Beer. Raleigh-based Big Boss Brewing Company and Larry’s Beans paired up to brew the Aces & Ates winter stout (Johanna’s current favorite). If you’re mountain bound, look for coffee stouts from Highland Brewing and Black Mountain’s Pisgah Brewing Company.

Courtesy of Kelsey Snell

“People who drink great coffee drink great beer”

Cole leaned on the counter with a few empty tasting cups littering the top and took a break from unpacking a new shipment of singles and six-packs. “Craft beer and the coffee revolution go hand-in-hand,” he said. “It’s all about natural ingredients and taking a brewed beverage that’s fair trade and embracing the culture.” Cole said the craft beer beginnings harked back to the Northwest—the same stomping grounds of coffee culture.

“A lot of people who drink great coffee drink great beer,” said Lydia Ianetti, Counter Culture customer relations representative. She worked with Brewer through the roasting and tasting process and went to Mother Earth on Silent Night brew day to try brewing something other than her average morning joe.

Microbreweries and home brewers make coffee stouts and porters many different ways, and it all comes down to one question. When do you add the coffee? Brewer said that after the hops were added to the Silent Night malt and the beer was whirlpooled, he steeped straining bags of the course-ground coffee for an hour and a half before fermentation. He said when you add the coffee on the hops side of the process, the subtle flavors balance out as opposed to throwing in strong-brewed coffee at the end of brewing or during a secondary fermentation.

Beer is tasted and coffee is cupped, but taste sensitivity is refined the same way with each one, searching for body, balance and sweetness whether it’s a sip of beer or shot of espresso.

Barista to butcher

Coffee is an irresistible ingredient for experimental and exotic foodies from the barista to the butcher. Escazu Artisan Chocolate’s Goat’s Milk bar (Another of Johanna’s favorites) was recently named a finalist for the 2012 Good Food Awards, along with other local companies including Counter Culture Coffee, Miss Jenny’s Pickles and Farmer’s Daughter Brand. Escazu infuses cascara, or the coffee plant’s outer cherry, into a ganache. The fruit is dried and can be steeped to make tea, but just like its inner coffee bean, the fruity flavors from the cherry perfectly compliment dark chocolate.

Coffee and chocolate might not be much of a surprise, but espresso and steak might be. Cafes aren’t displaying cuts of meat in their pastry cases, but that might not be such a bad idea as espresso rubs gain popularity. Whether in the fine dining realm or at a backyard barbecue, coffee and red meat make a good-looking couple. Like most dry rubs, the blend of herbs and spices infuse the meat, but with an espresso rub, the silky grounds caramelize and create a moisture-locking crust. Order a coffee stout and a slice of dark chocolate cheesecake to top it off, and you’ll be in a food coma before you pay the bill.

If you’re not ready for an espresso-crusted cut, stick with a simple classic. The Silent Night coffee stout is nothing fancy— just good coffee in good beer. The easy-going brew cultures of craft beer and coffee were bound to join hands, barista with brewer, for a favorite tap.

Kelsey Snell is graduating from UNC-Chapel Hill in two weeks with a journalism degree. She works at the Daily Grind Espresso Café in Chapel Hill and hopes to move north to D.C. or New York City after the holidays.  

Follow Kelsey on Twitter at @kelseysnell.

Courtesy of Jubala Village Coffee

From Liege With Love: Jubala Village’s coffee and waffles

By: Kelsey Snell

All you’ll need is yeast, flour, eggs and butter. Oh, and pearl sugar imported from Sweden. Also, a 220-volt waffle press from a street vendor in Liege, Belgium.

I know you’re the DIY-type, but you might be better off heading to Jubala Village Coffee, a café in North Raleigh serving one of the Triangle’s best-kept secrets. When Jubala opened nearly eight months ago, a modest café menu was part of the plan, but the turkey, apple and brie sandwich didn’t stand a chance. The made-to-order Liege waffle, sticky sweet without syrup and pressed from a morning-made house recipe, would win every time.

Courtesy of Kelsey Snell

Deciding less is more, Jubala nixed the food menu idea from the start, and customers are greeted by hand-scrawled chalk board menus divided into three basic categories: coffee and tea, espresso, and waffles. If it’s your first time at Jubala, just go ahead and choose all of the above. Coffee ‘n waffles for the main course with a shot of espresso for dessert.

Jubala’s waffle dough, made fresh every morning and set to rise with the sun, is what separates these moist Liege waffles from the traditional Belgium waffle from Brussels, said manager Daniel Faucette. When moving from the fork to the cup, patrons pick from a rotating selection of locally roasted Counter Culture Coffee single origins, then choose their hand-brewed method of choice: Bonmac pour-over or French press? You won’t find any drip coffee airpots in the café because, like each tailor-made waffle, Jubala’s coffees and espresso drinks are hand-crafted for customers too.

Made in Belgium

Although you may feel like you’re in Liege when you first arrive at the shiny European retail development that Jubala calls home, don’t be misled. Jubala, which got its name from a Swahili word meaning jubilation, has a warm, modern vibe with golden walls with exposed brick, long family-style tables, high ceilings and a back yard. The cafe began as a distant dream ten years ago for owner Andrew Cash after visiting Kenya and making friends with his coffee-farming translator. At the time, Cash was working in pharmaceuticals, but it wasn’t long before he was designing his farmer-focused café, practicing his latte pour and importing an old school waffle press from a Liege street vendor. “I had to do a pretty scary wire transfer through Western Union,” he said. The waffle maker cleared U.S. Customs, and has been introducing the Triangle’s coffee culture to the Liege street food scene ever since.

Courtesy of Kelsey Snell

‘Tis the seasonal

This less than four-dollar piece of waffled perfection compliments a coffee conversation, sweet tooth or good book, but most of all, the waffle toppings pair perfectly with Jubala’s coffees. Just like the rotating coffee offerings, Jubala pledges allegiance to the season when it comes to waffle toppings. The summer waffle was heaped with strawberries and blueberries, and the apple cinnamon and honey pear fall flavors are soon to be seasoned out by holiday staples. (There’s been rumor of gingerbread, fig nut or chai, oh my…)

The same way coffee roasting brings out subtle flavor notes in the green coffee beans, such as chocolate or citrus, the waffle toppings can bring out the hidden tastes in your pour-over or Americano. Believe it or not, waffles go with coffees the same way red wine goes with a sirloin or white with fresh sea bass. For example, a fruity coffee such as the Ethiopian Idido would pair best with a fruity waffle with banana and the summer’s North Carolina blueberries. It’s hard to beat scallop skewers and a glass of Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc, but I’d take a cup of coffee with a mouthful of waffle any day.

Courtesy of Kelsey Snell

Press pairings

So, which Belgian press will go best with your French press? Jubala’s Cash and Faucette made a few recommendations for coffee and waffle pairings, and I threw in a few of my own.

• Holiday Blend 2011, Ethiopia (Chocolate, caramel) with a chocolate chip waffle
• Finca Mauritania, El Salvador (Butterscotch, pastry and chocolate) with a Nutella-drizzled cinnamon waffle with darker fruit when available
• Haru, Ethiopia (Lemon cream, clover honey and sweet black tea) with a seasonal apple cinnamon waffle
• Baroida, Papa New Guinea (Spices, dried fruit and molasses) with a simple cinnamon waffle or seasonal honey pear
• Evening in Missoula loose-leaf herbal tea from TeaSource (Anise, wild cherry bark, mint, raspberry, ect.) with a chocolate chip and banana waffle

How about a sugar plum holiday waffle with Cinco de Junio’s toffee, green apple and plum notes? Foodies know their favorite holiday flavors, so leave a comment with your waffle suggestions, and we’ll be sure to get them over to the guys at Jubala. Tweet ideas directly to Jubala at @JubalaCoffee.

Kelsey Snell is graduating from UNC-Chapel Hill with a journalism degree in 21 days, but who’s counting? She works at the Daily Grind Espresso Café in Chapel Hill and hopes to move north to D.C. or New York City after the holidays.  

Follow Kelsey on Twitter at @kelseysnell.

Happy Waffles & Coffee

Johanna