Fall Bites 2015

Colder temperatures definitely call for comfort food, as if that wasn't enough of an excuse to indulge in a few extra calories. Here's a look back at some of our favorite fall bites:

Cider Sunday: Ninepin Ciderworks organized a PYO apple and cider festival at Samascott Orchards. It featured a delicious pig roast by Lovers Leap Farm complete with sweet potatoes and and corn right from the farm and an icy glass of fresh pressed cider and apple cider doughnut for dessert.

Things got pretty meta when we started drinking in the orchard. Nine Pin sources a majority of their apples from Samascott and it was pretty awesome drinking in the very place where the fruit comes from. 

Twin Peaks Coffee & Donuts: We found ourselves at a doughnut shop while exploring the Catskills and its beautiful foliage. On a whim we stopped by this charming place in Tannersville for hot old-fashioned cake donuts. Each batch is fried to order by a donut robot and freshly glazed as it comes off the conveyor belt . Couldn't go wrong with the maple bacon but it was the Boston creme and samoa doughnuts that had us devouring half the order. 

TC Paris Bakery: Our favorite French bakery is back after a brief hiatus. You can now find them inside the Pavilion Grand Hotel serving breakfast and lunch daily alongside their decadent confectionaries. For the ultimate comfort food duo, go for the buttery mac 'n cheese made with imported gruyere and aged cheddar and a to-die-for ham and cheese croque monsieur made with a rich and creamy bechamel. Oooey gooey cheese hits the spot. Be sure to leave room for a macaron or two. 

Bees Knees Cafe: After Supper Club, I knew I wanted to return to Heather Ridge Farm during the daylight to not only enjoy the fall foliage but the weekend brunch. The menu changes every weekend and on this particular day we enjoyed a farm-fresh egg breakfast plate with and house-made corned beef hash and Irish bangers braised in cider with local potatoes and side of brown bread to mop it all up. Flavors were so fresh and knowing the meats were made from pasture-raised and grass-fed animals right from the farm made the experience even more special. 

Cafe Capriccio: I can't believe it took me 8 years to finally make it here. This Capital Region institution has been serving regional Italian cuisine for more than a quarter century and and we only recently made it here for THE BEST plate of pasta. Handmade tagliatelle is tossed in a robust ragu made with tender, melt-in-your mouth wild Icelandic lamb, root vegetables, garlic, cabernet, and tomatoes. The fresh pasta was a wonderful canvas for the sauce. Each bite unfolded layer upon layer of flavor. You'll be seeing us carb loading into the winter months at Cafe Capriccio. 

A Chopsticks Optional Wedding

It wouldn't be a Chopsticks Optional wedding if food wasn't the focus of it all! Not too long ago, we got married on the family farm in the Hudson Valley. Not only did we have a beautiful venue but we had free reign on all aspects of the wedding. In the early stages, the challenge was finding a local caterer that could meet our wildest dreams. We've long been fans of brunch at Sweet Sue's, who else would be up to the challenge! 

First we had this crazy idea of gauchos walking around with churrasco swords but playing off my own cultural traditions, we decided to have a pig roast instead. The idea evolved into four different marinated suckling pigs to reflect our blend of cultures and favorite global flavors: an Asian 5-spice pig; American brown sugar bbq pig; Hawaiian pineapple pig; and a Cuban mojo pig because Chef is our favorite movie. 

The rest of the menu was a combination of traditional and non-traditional sides that would complement the Asian/American pigs: lettuce wraps with noodle salad :: papaya salad :: cornbread and tortillas :: quinoa tofu salad :: black bean, corn, and cilantro salad :: chilled watermelon and fruit salad with mint :: jicama cole slaw :: mac 'n cheese :: grilled chicken and shrimp skewers :: pickled fiddleheads and grilled vegetables.

Lunch at TC Paris

I cannot tell you how lucky you are Saratoga Springs to have TC Paris in your backyard. We miss having them in Albany dearly but have seen them grow and evolve into such a fantastic shoppe over the past couple of years. It's no longer about the macarons, albeit the best ones we've had in the Capital Region, but Chef Paul and crew are churning up more and new exciting things every time we get chance to get our butts up there. Things are getting savory and tres delicieux! We checked out their new Lunch in Paris menu:

Croque Monsieur: Not your typical lunchbox ham and cheese. This sandwich is grilled with a generous amount of butter and lovingly layered with carefully picked ingredients--European Ham from Niman Ranch, imported Gruyere, on "Pan de Compagne" bread. It's topped with a luxurious, creamy bechamel sauce spiked with thyme for added layer of flavor and broiled until brown and bubbly. A light spread of mustard adds just enough zip to cut through the richness of it all. How cute are the teeny tiny cornichons served alongside?

The Remy: The french baguettes at TC Paris remind me of the ones at home in Montreal. For me, the flavor and texture of the bread is very nostalgic with just the right balance of a crisp crust to chewy innard. Add some sweet fig jam, salty prosciutto, creamy St. Andre cheese, and some peppery arugula and you've got yourself another winning sandwich.

Mac 'n Cheese: What's so French about macaroni and cheese? Well the same buttery bechamel sauce adds a wonderful creaminess with a dash of nutmeg and imported Malaysian black pepper. But a simple but generous amount of cheese, both Gruyere and aged Canadian cheddar, add a very comforting and familiar taste. It's a well-made classic dish but somehow tastes more sophisticated.

Be sure to polish things off with a fleur de sel caramel. It's salted caramel taken to a whole new level with a deep bruleed flavor. For good measure, take an opera cake or Isphan macaron home too. What a treat to have a taste of Paris without a passport! 

currently snacking on...

...the Isphan Macaron from TC Paris Bakery aka the best macaron I've ever tasted in my life—giant raspberry macaron filled with rose water and lychee flavored white chocolate ganache and fresh raspberries. It's heavenly!