The new Blue Ridge cookbook: authentic recipes from Virginia's highlands to North Carolina's Mountains

307 Pages·2010·33.622 MB·English

by  Wiegand, Elizabeth F

More than 100 recipes, both old and new,
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celebrating the regional foods of e
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the Blue Ridge Mountains d

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America’s legendary Blue Ridge Mountain region is known for its rich history and culture and, not least, its
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traditional cuisine. But much of what’s cooking there is new: From the southern edge of North Carolina up
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to central Virginia, the Farm to Table movement is thriving, and so—once again—are small farms and
artisanal food providers. Caring about where food comes from, how it is grown, and how it is prepared, they
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have transformed the culinary scene for newcomers and old-timers alike.
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The New Blue Ridge Cookbook takes a fresh look at local, seasonal foods and honors efforts of sustainability,
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as well as the area’s rich culinary history. It presents new approaches by chefs, farmers, and others in the
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know. Recipes include:
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Blackberry Cobbler $ Sweet Potato Pancakes $ Smoked Mushrooms with Creamy Polenta
Heirloom Tomato and Zucchini Tart$ Roasted Beets and Chevre in Puff Pastry i
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Venison Tenderloin with Elderberry Sauce $ Cocoa-Rubbed Pork
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Apple Stack Cake $ Lavender Apple Galette $ Buckwheat Pound Cake e

Elizabeth Wiegand is the author of The Outer Banks Cookbook (ThreeForks). Her articles on food, travel, C
and design have ap®peared in the Washington Post, Southern Living, and Our State: North Carolina.
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A member of the Southern Foodways Alliance, she maintains a blog at carolinafoodie.blogspot.com.
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She lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.
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Cover design by Georgiana Goodwin
Front cover photographs by (clockwise from upper left): Elizabeth Wiegand, US $18.95/CAN $23.95 o
Todd Elliott, Border Springs Farm, and Elizabeth Wiegand
Back cover photograph © Shutterstock o
Printed in the United States of America
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® globe pequot press 75 years
Guilford, Connecticut
of the
www.GlobePequot.com
Parkway !
The New Blue Ridge
Cookbook
Craggy Gardens on the Blue Ridge Parkway near milepost 365 provides not only a gorgeous
vista but also wild blueberries that grow along its ridges. Elizabeth Wiegand
Guilford, Connecticut
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globe pequot press
Guilford, Connecticut
www.GlobePequot.com
®
Copyright © 2010 by Morris Book Publishing, LLC
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic
or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, except as may
be expressly permitted in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission should be addressed to Globe Pequot Press,
Att®n:g Rloibgeh ptse qaunodt pPreersms issions Department, P.O. Box 480, Guilford, CT 06437.
Guilford, Connecticut
www.GlobePequot.com
Wild Mushroom Rugalach is excerpted with permission from Kim Hendrickson, Tastefully Small Savory Bites, Salvia Press,
2009.
Smoked Mushroom with Creamy Polenta and Poached Egg is excerpted with permission from Seasonal School of Culinary
Arts 2008 Cookbook, Asheville, North Carolina.
Chanterelles with Roasted Apricots is excerpted with permission from Seasonal School of Culinary Arts 2007 Cookbook, Ashe-
ville, North Carolina.
Vegetable Timbales is excerpted with permission from Seasonal School of Culinary Arts 2007 Cookbook, Asheville, North Caro-
lina.
Tomato Ramekins with Goat Cheese is excerpted with permission from Seasonal School of Culinary Arts 2008 Cookbook,
Asheville, North Carolina.
Pickled Vegetables in Sourwood Honey Vinegar is excerpted with permission from Seasonal School of Culinary Arts 2007
Cookbook, Asheville, North Carolina.
Images on pages 3, 14, 41 from Shutterstock; pages 63, 115, 123, 137, 147, 181, 207 from Photos.com
Text design: Sheryl P. Kober
Project editor: Julie Marsh
Layout artist: Casey Shain
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Wiegand, Elizabeth (Elizabeth F.)
The new Blue Ridge cookbook : authentic recipes from Virginia's highlands to North Carolina’s mountains / Elizabeth
Wiegand.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-7627-5547-9
1. Cookery, American. 2. Cookery—Blue Ridge Mountains. I. Title.
TX715.W4657 2010
641.59755—dc22
2010001412
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To my father, a farmer
Long-range vistas from the Blue Ridge Parkway allow visitors to see the variety of terrain within this
mountain range, which aff ects the diversity of foods that can be grown. Elizabeth Wiegand
Contents
Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ix
Introduction—Blue Ridge Cuisine: Mountains of Flavor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xi
Chapter 1: Breakfast and Brunch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
Chapter 2: Beverages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Chapter 3: Appetizers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Chapter 4: Soups and Stews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Chapter 5: Salads and Vinaigrettes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83
Chapter 6: Vegetables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
Chapter 7: Pasta, Pesto, Pizza, and Polenta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .147
Chapter 8: Mountain Trout. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .163
Chapter 9: Meats. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .177
Chapter 10: Breads. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .225
Chapter 11: Desserts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Metric Conversion Chart. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
About the Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
The Davidson River tumbles over Looking Glass Falls near the Blue Ridge
Parkway near Brevard, North Carolina. Elizabeth Wiegand
Acknowledgments
How do you describe the passion that farmers have for liter- entertained me with stories of growing up in Burnsville and
ally tilling soil, scooping poop, and sowing seeds too tiny to Lake Tahoma, where she allowed me to stay.
see without reading glasses, all with the optimism of Ghandi And to Robert Morgan and Kathryn Stripling Byer, two
that the results of their labor will be enough—enough to of North Carolina’s most noted poets, thank you for shar-
eat, to take to market, to sustain them through the winter, ing your hymns of praise to the most humble of Blue Ridge
to buy enough seed for next spring, to add to the herd, to foods.
make the payment on the farm, repair the tractor, send the My father died as I was completing this book. A life-
kids to college, much less enough to keep them and their long farmer, he taught me how to work hard, stick to a task,
dreams going? I am in awe of the devotion and enthusiasm and to love the land and farming. And so, in many ways, he
of the farmers, especially, who shared their lives with me for influenced this book. Thanks to the editors of Globe Pequot
this book. No matter their hardship, they were optimistic. Press for understanding my family obligations and extend-
They care about the land that hopefully will continue to sus- ing deadlines.
tain them. They care about their chosen lifestyle, one that My biggest debt of gratitude goes to my eldest daughter,
balances self-sufficiency and interconnectedness to other Kate, who patiently and accurately transcribed more than
farmers and loyal customers. To them, I am grateful for their 200 recipes scribbled on diner receipts or with scrambled,
stories, recipes, and the “fruits of their labors.” long lists of ingredients, as well as organized my computer,
I am most grateful to the chefs who not only shared files, and permission forms. And she tested recipes, served
their wonderful recipes that feature local, seasonal foods, as food stylist, and photographer. This book would not have
but also for their passion to bring the best of the Blue Ridge come together in a timely fashion without her help. The
to their tables. These chefs are on a mission, and I am grate- supportive words of her sisters, Emily and Rebecca, were
ful to have heard their preaching and partaken of their encouraging. And to Steve, thanks for always being there to
offerings. And to the talented cooks who also shared their taste and experience with me, and for carrying my bags and
favorite or traditional family recipes, thank you for that my baggage.
honor. Janet Burhoe-Jones gave me terrific leads to local
farms, restaurants, and businesses in the Asheville area, and —Elizabeth Farabow Wiegand
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