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The Weekly Newsletter |
Menus and Stories for February 28 - March 5, 2005
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| Muffins - headed for the oven |
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We're now open at 9AM! |
We couldn't keep this lovely spot to ourselves any longer. Starting in March please be our guest earlier in the morning. We'll have freshly-made Morning Sweets (muffins, scones, that sort of thing) for you to enjoy.
Our coffee is terrific, by the way. Shade Grown, which preserves migratory bird habitats. The people who grow the coffee are treated well and get a decent amount of money for their labors. All of that is good - and, by the way, the stuff tastes great too.
Come and bask in the southern sun, read the paper or do the crossword puzzle or have a small meeting or - well, YOU think of something! |
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| Martha's "Twang" - to-go |
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Have you tried Martha's Mountain Twang sauce? She came up with the recipe some time back and periodically makes up a batch and bottles it for you. We call is "pleasantly spicy" - won't knock you over or anything, you know.
Try some on a Burrito, with scrambled eggs, mixed into some sour cream for a quick dip, or, drizzled into your salad dressing. (We have individual portions too if you want' to taste before committing.) |
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The nightly dinners for the week (Call 252-1500 to order) |
Dinners come with a freshly-made green salad, salad dressing of the day,
and made-right-here bread of the day. We take reservations until noon or so.
Please order by phone (252-1500), by FAX (252-02002)
or stop in to speak to one of us in person.
Dinners are ready at 4:30 and can be picked up until we close at 6:00 pm.
Tuesday March 1 Maple Thyme Roasted Chicken w/ Parmesan Risotto 10.25
Wednesday March 2 Baked Snapper Newburg 10.00
Thursday March 3 Grilled Flank Steak with Roasted Vegetables 10.50
Friday March 4 Crabcakes with Vegetable Slaw 11.50
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Laurey's (yum!) Catering and Gourmet to Go |
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| The Casserole of the Week |
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Casseroles are made each Wednesday.
Call to order on Tuesday if you can.
Orders will be ready on Wednesday between 4:30 and 6:00.
Wednesday, March 2
Braised Chicken Marinara with Lemon and Olives
Whole 33.00
Half 16.50
Order a full pan for 9 (or so) or a half pan for 4 or 5.
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Richard's Sweet Potato Salad |
| This is how it looks before Richard turns his spuds into the marvelous salad. Did you know that he almost threw the first batch away, thinking he'd burned it? On a whim, he bit into one charred piece and, finding it good, he played around and came up with the by-now HIGHLY popular salad. If you have a convection oven, you can try making this at home. But really, isn't it just as easy to come here? |
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| And - his recipe |
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Ideally made in a convection oven, this can also be prepared in a cast iron skillet.
Ingredients:
2 Sweet Potatoes
1 medium sized Bermuda Onions
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Granulated Garlic to taste
Olive Oil - 2 tablespoons
Honey – 1 tablespoon
Lemon juice – 1 tablespoon
Here’s what we do:
Peel the Sweet Potatoes, quarter and then cut into 1/4” slices. Toss in olive oil to coat and season to taste with kosher salt, ground pepper and granulated garlic.
Peel and slice the Bermuda onions into wedges. Toss in with sweet potatoes.
At this point you can spread the whole mixture on a baking sheet and roast on high (375 or 400) degree temperature in a convection oven until the potatoes are beginning to burn along the edges.
Transfer hot potatoes to a large bowl and toss with lemon juice, sourwood honey, and chopped parsley. Allow to cool and serve!
If you are using a conventional oven you may not get the crispness that comes with a convection oven, but the result will certainly be edible. And if you are using a stove top method in a cast iron skillet, simply toss potatoes and onions in well-oiled skillet until the potatoes are done and starting to crisp up, as you would with home fries. The time in this method will depend on the heat of the burner, the thickness of the potatoes, and other highly variable factors.
This salad is terrific as an accompaniment to Fried Chicken, Ribs, and any picnic fare. It will last a day or so, but not much longer than that!
(copyright Laurey's Catering) |
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A look at the vegetables - ready for roasting |
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| A Note from Laurey |
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Good morning.
I write to you this morning from Seattle. Thanks to the miracle of frequent flier points I am here for the weekend. Ain't life grand?
This morning - a bit later - I get to go to The Pike Place market. Chris is here working, and I get to tag along. She'll be guiding a group through the stalls and stands and will finish up by doing some sort of cooking demonstration - based, I guess, on whatever she finds intriguing. Should be fun - for me, especially. Most of the time when I see her she is on my turf, which mostly means that she is digging in the garden or reading on my porch while I come and go to work and meetings and obligations. Here, in contrast to all that, SHE is the one who is working. I get to pad around in my scruffy duds, hang in the background, and enjoy being a visitor for a little bit.
Actually, we've started talking about having one of our "Delicious Expeditions" out here at the end of the summer. Some of your have asked and so, part of this trip is to scout for that one. You might know that my partner (in Delicious Expeditions) Monroe and I lead small group culinary tours to Italy and France. We'll be going to Italy at the end of this month and are planning a second jaunt in the fall - right in time for the olive oil pressing. At one point, a number of years ago, we put together a series of trips around the United States: Seattle, New York, Chicago, New Orleans. Things were different then. It was easier to travel to Europe. The financial markets were better, people had more time, and the idea of these shorter, more local trips, didn't pan out. People came with us to Europe, but no one was interested in domestic travel.
Now, however, with things a bit tighter in all quarters, we thought we'd revitalize these jaunts.
This one, for starters, would last about 5 days and would include a weekend. We'd come out here and spend the days learning about the cuisine of the Pacific Northwest - guided by Chris. (For those of you who might not know, Chris is Chris Keff, chef and owner of Flying Fish Restaurant www.flyingfishseattle.com) She'll introduce us to her friends and colleagues in the food world out here. We'll have an insider tour through the Pike Place Market, of course. We'll visit local shellfish farms, local coffee joints (maybe a guided, bean-to-cup tasting at Starbucks - out here they are a local company, after all.) We'll have a cooking class or two with Chris. Dinner at her lovely restaurant. A sunset sail, perhaps. And time to explore this beautiful city on the sound. Interested? Farms and gardens and glass are also possibilities too. Interested? Let me know. We'll probably keep this to 12 or 14 guests. (We hate those mass tours with megaphones and big buses...!)
I hope to get to see some glass out here this time too. Now that I have started blowing glass on my own, I have a whole new interest in this city. I am going to buy my first real tool this time which is wildly exciting in a cute sort of way. I called a fellow who makes tools by hand and was pleased to get a personal call back from his wife telling me where I could go to find some. These are not things you can get at Home Depot, and it is hard to test a tool by looking at it in a catalog - so I'm excited to get to hold the thing before making the purchase. Little by little it is all coming together. Maybe next week if all goes well, I'll be able to take a picture for you of something I made with this new tool. I hope so!
Okay - I'll stop here. The sky is beginning to lighten and its time to get going here. Markets open early and we hope to get the first look at the onions, you know.
By the way - things are in full bloom here! Last night, driving in, I could see daffodils and flowering trees all over the place. Makes me particularly excited that we'll have that to, pretty soon.
I'll be in touch next week.
Cheers,
Laurey |
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Emily takes a turn in the kitchen |
| Emily usually takes care of things back here in the office. She's great on the phone, keeps track of all the papers and schedules and details. AND, when needed (many of the shopsters were at a training this morning) she jumps in up front. Thank you Em! |
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Contact Info: |
Laurey's (yum!) Catering
Gourmet-to-Go (and to stay!)
67 Biltmore Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801
828-252-1500
Hours:
Monday - Friday 10:00 - 6:00 pm
Saturday 10:00 - 4:00 pm |
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