Finally, an update on last weekend, which was spent at the lovely L'Auberge Provençale Bed and Breakfast in White Post, Virginia. The place was amazing, the innkeepers were amazing, and food was AMAZING. I ate so much. Seriously, listen to all the things I ate:
Dinner on Friday Night: First they brought out olives and baby radishes with herb butter. Then bread. Then the first course, which for me, was Orchard Vanilla Poached Asian Pear with Baby Lettuce, Warm Goat Cheese and a House Red Wine Vinaigrette. My second course was Provencale Baby Potato Salad with Wisteria Gardens Red Oak Lettuce, Soft Poached Egg, followed by apple sorbet. My third course was Savory Polenta with Sun-dried Tomatoes, Wild Mushrooms, Garden Vegetables, Black Summer Truffles and Sunny Side Up Quail Egg. Dessert was an apple souffle. Then they brought a tray of pastries. Wow!
Breakfast on Saturday Morning: To start, we had yogurt with honey, fruit, and homemade granola. Croissants and cheese biscuits. The entree was an egg, potatoes, eggplant, and tomatoes with rosemary. Dessert was bread pudding in a homemade caramel sauce.
Gourmet Picnic Basket on Saturday: Veggie and cheese sandwich for me, crab and salmon sandwich for Dave. A tray of cheese, bread, and figs. Two kinds of salad, butternut squash risotto, two desserts, fruit. It was pouring, so we had the picnic on the floor of our room.
Breakfast on Sunday Morning: Yogurt with honey, fruit, and homemade granola. Croissants and muffins. The entree was a zucchini boat with ratatouille, saffron potatoes, and an onion tartlet topped with an egg. Dessert was cantaloupe and watermelon in some sort of syrup.
Other wonderful things about L'Auberge Provençale: apple cider and cookies in front of the fire in the cozy main house on a rainy afternoon, exploring the gardens and their tiny little orchard (with quince trees!), the aromatherapy steam shower, food cooked with herbs and vegetables right from their garden and local farmers, the softest sheets in the world.
Some photos from around the inn:
On Sunday, we went to Stribling Orchard in Markham to go apple-picking, which was lots of fun. Here are some pictures:
After that, we headed home and almost immediately got to work on some homemade roasted applesauce. Here's the Martha recipe we used:
Roasted Applesauce
Ingredients (we doubled everything):
Makes eight 1/2-cup servings
- 1/4 cup water
- 6 tablespoons packed light-brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- Pinch of coarse salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 3 pounds small assorted apples, such as Gala, McIntosh, or Fuji (about 10)
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
- Pinch of ground cloves
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine water, sugar, lemon juice, and salt in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
- Scatter butter pieces over mixture, and top with apples. Roast until apples are very soft, 30 to 40 minutes.
- Working in batches, pass apple mixture through the medium disk of a food mill and into a bowl. Stir in spices. Serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled. Applesauce can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
And while I'm posting recipes, here's the recipe for the delicious Maple Cupcakes with Maple-Butter Frosting that I took to work yesterday:
Maple Cupcakes
Ingredients:
This makes 18 cupcakes, but I did 24.
| 2.5 cup(s) all purpose flour | |
| 2 teaspoon(s) baking powder | |
| 1 teaspoon(s) baking soda | |
| .5 teaspoon(s) salt | |
| .75 teaspoon(s) ground ginger | |
| 1 stick(s) unsalted butter, softened | |
| .5 cup(s) light brown sugar | |
| 2 large eggs | |
| 1.25 cup(s) maple syrup | |
| 2 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract | |
| .5 cup(s) buttermilk | |
| .5 cup(s) walnuts or pecans, finely chopped |
Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ginger. Set aside. Beat the butter and sugar together using a mixer set on medium speed in a large bowl until fluffy. Beat in the eggs, syrup, and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture by thirds, alternating with the buttermilk. Stir in nuts. Fill 18 lined muffin cups and bake until a tester comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool completely. Ice with Maple Butter Frosting.
Maple-Butter Frosting:
| 1 cup(s) unsalted butter, softened | |
| 3 ounce(s) cream cheese, softened | |
| .667 cup(s) dark-brown sugar | |
| .25 teaspoon(s) salt | |
| .75 cup(s) maple syrup | |
| .75 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract | |
1 cup(s) confectioners' sugar Directions: Beat the butter, cream cheese, brown sugar, and salt in a medium bowl with a mixer set on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Continue beating, and add the maple syrup and vanilla. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar, increase the speed to high, and beat until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Chill for 1 hour before using. For extra maple flavor, create a dimple in the frosting and fill with maple syrup. |
I think I succeeded in doing every Fall-themed thing I wanted to do this month. I went apple-picking, made my own applesauce, had countless cups of cider, grew a (successful!) pumpkin patch, saw a ghost-y play, played in a corn maze, organized a fall celebration at work with great decorations, planted mums, ate many yummy fall dishes, saw beautiful foliage on the drive home from Virginia, participated in a pumpkin decorating contest at work, watched The Great Pumpkin (and You're Not Elected, John McCain...errr...I mean, Charlie Brown). I am ready for November, which begins the period of trying to fit in every holiday-themed thing humanly possible. Hooray!
