Check out the July foods edition of Natural Awakenings magazine for a Fresh Fun Foods recipe, some announcements and our calender. Our full class schedule can be found at Fresh Fun Foods.com.
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We have been
living near Lansdale for about 27 years now, moving up from Fairmount in
Philadelphia after hearing ourselves tell the kids what to do WHEN they heard
gunshots. While the city had many
advantages and we were sorry to bail, the schools were (and still are) mostly terrible
and there were far too many mean junkies living in the jungle gym near the Art Museum. Little Maggie called them “campers.” Additionally, we thought that maybe it would
be safer to live in a place where the kids did not have to hit the floor a
couple times a week, dodging someone’s stray expression of their 2nd
Amendment rights, while ignoring their responsibilities.
So we moved
from a hardcore row house urban area three blocks below Girard, to an aging
rental on a horse farm in Mainland. The
house was the original Clemens farmstead.
They are the founders of Hatfield Meats, which explained why the garage
windows all had foot-thick hinged windows like on an old school walk-in
refrigerator. There was a wood out back
with deer, foxes and owls. There was a
barn with a hayloft. An early 19th
century market mill stood across the street and there was a creek, wide enough
for a little guy to skip rocks across, shallow enough to see all the fish. The silence made us crazy and Cathy was sure
that every sound out there in the night was an escaped prisoner coming over the
hill from Graterford.
The best
restaurant in the area was The Mainland Inn.
In the beginning, they served moderately pricy, creative twists on
standard American fare, duck, stuffed flounder, steaks. Eventually it became a place where you would
be able to get an exciting meal that was always well prepared, using local
ingredients. Unfortunately, the bypass
bypassed their front door, making the restaurant difficult to get to find. They closed a couple years ago and are sadly
missed and fondly remembered.
The drop off
from the Mainland Inn to the next best place was steep. Maybe Nadia, in Lansdale, was it, run by an
acolyte of Kamol Phutlek, who made his name at Allouette off South, mashing up
Thai and French cooking. I worked for
Phutlek briefly after my apprenticeship, discovering that his “secret” was
making a French sauce, then adding Tabasco and lemon juice. Combined with an Asian style presentation,
Phutlek’s food was just different enough in the 80s to make a splash. Nadia never made it for me. While the food was interesting and the
presentations precious, the portions were never a value for the price. There were a couple of country clubs that
people liked and if you want Flintstones portions of prime rib, those would be for
you. As far as ethnic restaurants, not
too many had been successful, since folks out here wanted Pennsylvania Dutch
diner food. Tex Mex in North Wales made
passable border food and pours a numbing margarita. A big exception, a place that has been
successful selling Lebanese food to Dutchmen after more than 30 years, is
Oasis. I first heard about the place in
a Rick Nichols Inquirer rave about 1984.
A solid place, ignore the cranks on Yelp. Chong's is the place for Chinese dumplings and pork pancakes. I’ve never warmed up to Golden City
Chinese. Maybe it was that the bartender
didn’t try to hide the coke he was selling across the bar or that each soup had
its own personal cockroach. Maybe I’m
just too particular.
All that has
changed in the past 5 years. There are
numerous BYOBs doing good work. Maize in Perkasie is setting
the bar high. I used to work at a crappy
diner/ice cream place in Ambler that touted their “farm to table”
aspirations. I had to explain to the
owner that farm to table meant that the Sysco truck couldn’t be pulling up
twice a week. Maize is not astroturf
local sourcing. They list their partners
on a blackboard just inside the door to their small, 28 seat dining room. They have developed relationships with area
producers and get food fresh and in season, kind of how it should be done. I smiled when I called at 1:00 pm for a
reservation the guy on the line had no idea what the evening’s specials would
be explaining, “The Chef isn’t back from the farms yet.” I like this note on the bottom of their on
line menu “ Menu
subject to change at any time.” Yet, even with the extra
hassle this approach presents, portions are good and prices are fair, $11-$15 for
first courses and $19 to just below $30 for dinners. There are 3 and 5 course tasting menus
available. That’s what we will go the
next time.
While
waiting for the meal to begin, every table is served a great hors d’oeuvre,
savory popcorn with olive oil, parsley and capers. Fun, inspired stuff. You will wait. Do not plan to rush at Maize. Our meal took just under 2 hours. Everything is prepared to order by the small
staff and sent out when it is perfect.
And why would you want to hurry?
The room is nice and the service is helpful and engaging.
Cathy’s
first course (Veal Leg, Mushroom, Asparagus, Local Parmesan, Veal Jus) had a
full flavor. The mushrooms and asparagus
were a nice pairing. The veal was cooked
as it should be, tender, properly peppered and attractively presented. My scallops (Seared Scallops, Asparagus,
Prosciutto, Vermouth Sauce) were the highlight of the evening. Too often scallops suffer in the hands of
unskilled cooks. Maize served three
perfectly seared scallops, a generous portion.
The center was just firmed up, with a crisp exterior. The prosciutto bundled asparagus were a
flavor and texture contrast to the velvety sauce and sweet scallops. Well done!
The main
courses were also expertly prepared.
Cathy’s halibut (Halibut, Apricot, Spinach, Amaranth, Pistachio Sauce)
was playfully presented and perfectly cooked.
I went with buffalo loin, which was served precisely rare as
ordered. It came with Swiss chard and Parmesan
mashed potatoes that were full of flavor.
My only criticism of the night was that the cheese added perhaps a
little too much salt to the dish. The
sauce was a simple jus, something that is not really all that easy to make. It was hugely flavored and gelatinous enough
to hold the plate. This kind of sauce is
where the skill of the kitchen comes through.
Improperly done jus is
insipid. Maize shows off a bit here,
bragging that they can do something that might appear easy, unadorned, but with
great depth of character. In a way, I
was reminded of when I was a
brewer. I was most proud of my pilsners,
because there was not much in the way of ingredients. Any mistakes in the crafting of the beer
would jump out of the glass. Our
hazelnut semifreddo dessert was a nice end to an interesting, enjoyable meal,
properly crispy, crunchy, sweet and pleasant.
Plan to go
to Maize when you are looking for a special night out. Go there often. We need to support the local chefs and the
farmers who supply them with rare, fresh ingredients.
The chefs at
Maize are expert at searing scallops. It
is a technique you should learn. Today’s recipe is for scallops provincial. It is a traditional dish, but I’m going to
ask you to make a little change in the cooking.
Instead of cooking the scallops in the sauce, where they tend to
toughen, try searing them and serving them on top of the sauce. You can always wash them in the sauce as you eat them. This way, the scallops will stay crunchy and
tender and the sauce will benefit from all the caramelized bits left in the
pan after cooking the scallops.
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Scallops
Provencal (to serve 4)
16 large,
dry scallops (avoid the water added type)
1/3 cup
flour
4 tbs. olive
oil
2 tbs. parsley, chopped
2 tbs.
basil, chopped
2 cloves
garlic, chopped
20 oz.
petite diced tomatoes, fresh is best if in season. If not, canned.
1/2 cup dry
white wine
4 slices of
Italian bread, 1/2 inch thick, warmed
salt and
fresh black pepper
Heat a large
sauté pan, add 2 tbs. of olive oil.
Dredge the scallops in flour, shake off any excess then sear them in the
olive oil on the top and the bottom to develop a crispy crust. Lower the heat slightly and continue to cook
the scallops until they are firm, but not hard.
Remove them from the pan, season with salt and pepper, hold them warm with
the bread as you quickly make the sauce.
In the same
pan where you sautéed the scallops, add the remainder of the olive oil. Toss in the garlic, then immediately deglaze
the pan with the wine, scraping up any caramelized bits that stuck to the
pan. Reduce by half. Add the tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, stir
then reduce to a thick consistency.
When the
sauce has thickened, remove it from the heat, stir in the basil and
parsley. On a warmed plate, put one
slice of Italian bread, then top it with 1/4 of the sauce. Transfer 4 of your seared scallops to the top
of the sauce. Serve immediately.
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