Whetstone Station, Brattleboro, Vermont

I've been meaning to stop at the Whetstone Station for several years now, so my visit was long overdue. The Gepetto Milk Stout was truly delicious—smooth and creamy and brewed with plenty of chocolate malt! A tasty bowl of Prince Edward Island mussels with a side of fries seasoned with parmesan cheese rounded out lunch!

Definitely stop in next time you visit Brattleboro. You can savor the wonderful views of the Connecticut River while you have a bite to eat!

36 Bridge Street

Brattleboro, VT 05301

802-490-2354

BBQ Chicken with Peaches and Whisky

This is adapted from one of Ree Drummond's recipes. It sounded super delicious, but a tad sweet for me, so I reduced the amount of jam in the recipe. Also the original recipe calls for cooking it in the oven for about 1 1/2 hours, but I wanted to arrive home to a feast, so I used the slow cooker instead!

2 TBsp olive oil

2 TBsp unsalted butter

2 lbs chicken thighs

1 1/2 yellow onions, chopped into chunks

1 1/4 cups whisky (I used Black Velvet)

1 1/2 C barbecue sauce

1 C water

2 TBsp Lea and Perrin's

5 garlic cloves, peeled

1/2 jar of apricot or peach jam

1 lb frozen peaches (or 3 fresh ones)

bunch of spring onions, sliced for garnish

Heat the olive oil and the butter in a large pan, and brown the chicken pieces in batches, then set them aside.

Add the chopped onions and cook for a few minutes until they turn golden. 

Pour in the whisky and deglaze the pan. Add the barbecue sauce, water, Lea and Perrin's, jam and garlic cloves.

Add the chicken back in to the pan, and finally add the peach slices.

Pour the chicken and sauce mixture into a slow cooker and cook on the low setting for 6 to 8 hours.

Serve with rice or mashed potatoes and a green salad. Garnish the chicken with the spring onions. I think it's a keeper!

Sour Cherry Crumble

Last summer I went cherry picking in Shelburne, Massachusetts! Collecting sour cherries is definitely a labor of love, as you have to climb up a ladder to reach the gorgeous fruit at the top of the cherry trees. I cleaned, pitted and froze them, and then forgot all about them until yesterday. Sour cherries certainly do have a fabulous intense flavor—this recipe is definitely a keeper!

 

Fruit filling:
4 to 5 C of pitted sour cherries
1/2 C plus plus 2 tsp sugar (or more to taste)
3 Tbsp tapioca (I used seed pearl, but I think instant would work really well too!)
1/4 C melted unsalted butter
1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp almond extract
pinch salt

Crumble topping:
1 1/4 C flour
1/4 C butter, well chilled, grated
4 TBsp brown sugar
1/4 C sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees.
To make the fruit filling mix the cherries, sugar, tapioca, butter, lemon juice, almond extract and salt. Mix gently and set aside.
To make the crumble, sift the flour into a mixing bowl and add the grated butter. Rub the butter into the flour so that you have a coarse crumble texture. Add the brown and white sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg, and stir gently.
Pour the fruit filling into a casserole dish and then gently spoon the crumble mixture over the top.
Bake for about 5 minutes at 475 degrees, then lower the heat to 375, and bake for about 40 minutes.
Serve with some nice big dollops of whipped cream. Enjoy!