UNDER THE BERRYVILLE SKY
Dine with us
The drive from Leesburg to Berryville, VA is scenic, pleasant, & particularly comfortable. On this July day, we left the steamy summer afternoon from “Old Town” & headed towards the mountains where the sunset & cool breeze met us at the entrance of the home of our host, Justin Carasco. This idyllic location is not just his humble abode but also his place of business where he owns & operates, Chilly Hollow Farm. Now, if you’ve been to Neighbors before then you have certainly caught a glimpse of his crimson logo on various bags of greens, fragrant bunches of young garlic, & of course on the jeweled summer tomatoes.
His home/business is everything that you would expect, & so much more! My senses were on overdrive as I made my way through the grounds deciding where to cook & dine. As soon as there was mention of the possibility to cook over the firepit, that was it… I knew the night would be inspired by the perfect farm paella.
There is something so whimsically primitive about cooking over these magnificent embers. Although the flames do not “catch” you the heat still manages to challenge the cook against the fire, melting your fingertips into the flavorful union that is taking form. Innocent laughs & giggles from the kids in the background weave into the sounds of wine glasses being filled to the sound of a bluesy guitar. Tonight, the dinner has doubled in guests, opening the way to longer conversations & more dishes to be filled. As with all my gatherings, I like to always start the night with an option for guests to graze on as they arrive, filling their nervous bellies so that they may have the courage to partake in the dreaded small talk… necessary when it is everyone’s first time meeting. The “Chilly Hollow Farm Board” consists of a bounty of the day’s harvest surrounding a beautifully, velvety homemade chicken liver pate, liver courtesy of Long Stone Farm, paired with the perfect salted butter from South Mountain Creamery. The muted colors of pate “greige” & the creamy yellow butter are enlivened by the rainbow assortment of carrots, radishes, & cucumbers. Spread across various platters, these boards are accompanied by a playful spin on the traditionally crisp, Campari Spritz. This summer afternoon aperitivo was made by adding Cappelletti to two scoops of Dolcezza’s Campari Sorbet to chilled glasses & then topping it off with a classic Topo Chico before garnishing with a beautiful lemon slice, meant to add to the colorful sunset in a glass that is this refreshing drink. This drink. Those boards. & the sounds of new friends meeting… it was evident that the night was off to a great start!
Now, I don’t know about you but as soon as the days get a little bit longer, I crave my first summer “BLT,” but since this was very early in the summer those ‘maters weren’t perfectly plump & sweet, yet, to properly satisfy this craving. BUT the green tomatoes were just seeking the attention to be picked and prepped so that they could transform into another Southern summer staple, “Fried Green Tomatoes.” After these viridescent slices were quickly fried, forcing them to evolve to a more golden color, they were sprinkled ever so slightly with some Sal Gris, kissed with a dollop of Clark & Hopkins Florida Hot Sauce, & then garnished with a briny anchovy filet. I cannot express how rapidly these slices were devoured. The textural component of crispy & velvety was the perfect compliment to the bright heat that lingered on the palate after. There was no “washing down” of flavor after sipping on the refreshingly light Pilsner that is Utica Club. This combination quickly became a new summer staple & crowd pleaser.
At this point the beer is flowing, the guests are now friends, the kids are roaming around the land with a freedom that we should all be so lucky to experience, & the playlist is jamming away in the background. Justin & his team (Kent, Julia, & Jesse) have kindly harvested such a glorious number of vegetables that, although I will be using much of it, there was room for yet another side to be made. Normally, paella is the star of the evening not needing any support from additional plates, but how could I not play with these other ingredients? How many times does one strike magic to cook under tie-die summer skies, over an open flame, on a working farm that has so graciously given you permission to roam? I would say… not often. & so, while friends were helping with the food prep for the paellas to come, I quickly sliced, halved, & bathed purple cauliflower, fennel bulbs, & sprouting broccoli in olive oil & salt, tossing them directly over the grills so that the flames would charr & bestow them a wonderful smokiness while the heat slightly worked its way through, tenderizing them slightly. Now we were ready for the main event.
As Mollie was underway, opening the bottle of the Kiki & Juan Vino Bianco, I went to work prepping our paellas. Camden & Ally did a wonderful job preparing the vegetables, which meant it was time to heat up the oil to start cooking down our spring garlic, fennel, bell peppers, & onion with bay leaves, paprika, & salt until they became a perfectly translucent sofrito base. As the diced beginnings of the dish dance & sizzle on the paellera, the communal aspect of the evening has certainly unfolded. I must tell you that the Kiki & Juan was so perfectly clean & bright for this hot summer night, that after adding the “bomba” rice (you could also use arborio) to the sofrito to quickly toast & begin to soak up the flavors, I thought that this was the perfect liquid to scrape up the bottom flavors of the pan while also adding a hugely complimentary flavor. Paella is such an amazing dish for a variety of reasons. It is an obvious crowd pleaser as the “wow” factor of seeing such a dish unfold over a large pan & then being served directly at the table as is… is a stunner. I mean some people really play up this factor by going the extra mile to find the largest paellera pan possible (trust me, they can be humongous). But what I particularly love, in addition to the allure & ease of hosting, is the fact that the recipe can be made to be as “traditional” or as “adventurous” as you’d like! From a rabbit-noodle base to seafood with black ink rice, to the widely popular “mixto” recipe that has both seafood & chicken, or even full-on vegan… this dish can do it all! This Wednesday evening, I went with two recipes: a vegetarian one & another with Long Stone Farm’s spicy chicken chorizo & chicken breast. Both began the same way, with the exception that the chorizo & chicken one had the protein added to the beginning, prior to adding in the ingredients for the sofrito so that the proteins would have additional time to brown & cook. This was the only difference in making them, as once the rice is added, seasoned, flavored with the wine, & stirred, all that was added after was your final cooking liquid (water, broth, stock, wine) before covering & simmering away slowly. Now, it was finally time for this chef to take a break from the fire, mingle, & possibly enjoy some of the last pieces of the grazing board.
No less than 30 minutes later & we are finally able to eat under the stars. As everyone has already made their way to their preferred seats, on this most gorgeous farm table surrounded by the smells of sweet fennel & broccoli flowers, I have help from our hosts to lug these very heavy paelleras to the table. We are ready to share this meal as new friends who will recall this night for a lifetime. As the glow of the bistro lights hang over us in a warm glow, everyone comfortably shared conversations as quickly as they share the various plates spread across is vast table. The glasses are clinking away in the background as they are being filled with either a gorgeous Riesling (Max Forbes “RS3”) or a full-bodied Rouge (Jerome Balmet “Barbie Rousse”) … & we all wish we didn’t have to get up early the next day. Somehow, we pull through and completely throw any schedule out the window, especially once the mulberry galettes arrive at the table! I mean, honestly… no one is getting up anytime soon. So, we finish this meal & continue the conversation over wonderfully flakey crusts which have now sopped up the pool of creamy, melted scoops of Dolcezza’s Berries and Mascarpone gelato. It is now close to midnight, & I think we have justified keeping the kids up this late, long enough tonight. But as we drive home, we are pleased knowing that we have offered our children, our friends, & ourselves an experience that many could only dream of… & yes, we are still contemplating selling everything and moving out to a large farm. But for now, these dinners & weekends out in the country shall satisfy that craving. But NEVER… say never!
RECIPE: Chicken Liver Pate
(yields 2 cups or 24 servings)
½ Lbs. Long Stone Farm Chicken Livers
1 Large, Sweet Onion
4 Heads of Shallots
1 Bunch of Parsley
1 Bay Leaf
4 Tbsp. Grassfed Butter, (i.e. Kerrygold Irish Butter)
2 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 Tsp. Grated Nutmeg
1 Tbsp. Salt
½ Tbsp. Pepper
1 Cup Dry White Vermouth
Rough chop your onions, shallots, & parsley. Take this time to also check your livers & remove any tendons still attached or rinse them thoroughly if they have not yet been cleaned. Pat dry after.
In a large pan, begin to melt your butter & olive oil together, over medium high heat. Once mixture has begun to melt together add in all your chopped ingredients & sauté until past translucent but not yet caramelized.
Now add your chicken livers, making sure to coat with the mixture well. You don’t really need to break them down further since the entire mixture will be pulsed together in the food processor.
Season with salt, pepper, bay leaf, & nutmeg. Allow to sauté until the livers have seared to a matte grey color & the mixture has begun to dry out.
Deglaze your pan with the Dry Vermouth. Bring the heat down to a simmer & add another pat of butter to assure that your livers won’t dry out too much. Cover.
Remove from heat after 5 minutes & allow to come to room temperature prior to adding to the processor.
Once the mixture is warm but not hot to the touch, remove the bay leaf & transfer contents to a food processor & pulse together until you have reached a mousse like consistency. Should your mixture be too dry you will notice as it will become thick and chunky. But should your desired texture be that of a velvety, creamy pate, then I recommend that you add either a drizzle of melted butter or of olive oil. Make sure to not add too much liquid or to over pulse because then you risk it becoming too runny.
Now you are ready to transfer your mixture to a ramekin type vessel or mason jar or any other airtight container. You do not want to have too much space between the top of your container & where the pate begins so that air may not get trapped inside, reducing the life & taste of your pate.
At this stage you also have the option of adding a protective layer on top of your pate, which will prolong the life & add an additional layer of taste. You may choose to add melted butter, fig jam, or an aspic. Regardless of what you choose, make sure to enjoy your hard work with crackers, crusty bread, preserves, & your beverage of choice!