Author: John Fladd

Blackberry Holstein

Let’s do a deep dive to the back of your kitchen cabinets.

Behind five or six half-full boxes of pasta, three different brands of canned diced tomatoes, and that bottle of Champagne vinegar you’ve always meant to use but never have, you will find a couple of truly surprising items that you have hazy memories at best of ever buying:

Three packets of fried chicken-flavored ramen noodles

A tin of smoked oysters

A vintage (but still unopened) jar of grapefruit marmalade

Some of us have a similar situation going with our liquor cabinets. A quick look will show pretty much exactly what we expect to see — a couple bottles of whiskey, maybe some tequila, and in my case about a dozen bottles of rum, because where there’s rum there’s citrus juice, and you have enough problems in your life without risking scurvy.

But in the back, behind the mainstream bottles of expected and respectable spirits, there is at least one bottle — and let’s face it, probably more — of some sort of purple-ish, fruit-flavored alcohol. It might be sloe gin. It might be plum brandy. There is almost certainly a bottle of blackberry brandy you have no memory of buying, using, drinking or even seeing before. It’s like the cocktail elves have paid a visit.

Let’s use a little of that blackberry brandy:

  • ½ ounce blackberry brandy
  • ½ ounce fresh squeezed lemon juice
  • ½ ounce half and half
  • 1½ ounces botanical gin – I very much like Hendrick’s Oasium
  • ¼ ounce simple syrup

Chill a coupe glass with several ice cubes. Set it aside, telling it, “Go think about what you’ve done.” In point of fact, this more or less innocent piece of glassware hasn’t actually done anything, but it’s good to keep it on its toes.

In a cocktail shaker, add ice, the blackberry brandy, lemon juice, half and half, gin, and simple syrup. Shake enthusiastically for 30 seconds or so, until you hear the ice start to break up. Ideally, you’re going to want a few tiny ice chips floating on the surface of your cocktail, so shake until you hear them make an appearance.

Retrieve your coupe glass and discard the ice. Strain the cocktail into the glass. Because it has a stem, this glass will keep your drink colder for longer.

Ask your digital assistant to play a classic banger of a rock song from your youth. I recommend “Hold the Line” by Toto.

Sip your cocktail, and play a little game with yourself. Try to get an overall impression of the flavor. What does it taste like in the aggregate? Pretty good, right?

Now, try to identify each ingredient. Look for the flavor of blackberries. You’ll find it. Ditto with the lemon juice. And the creaminess of the half and half.

There are some cocktails I like to think of as an ensemble cast — together, they create something greater than the sum of their parts. I think of the Blackberry Holstein as a top-notch variety show. Each performer gets a solo.

Featured photo: Frozen Peanut Butter Salad. Photo by John Fladd.

Good eats for a cause

Taste of the Towns raises money for the Nashua Center

The Nashua Center spends the vast majority of its time and energy helping children and adults in the greater Nashua area with disabilities or traumatic brain injuries, but for a brief time each spring some of that energy is focused on Taste of the Towns, an event that brings together the area’s food and beverage businesses and the people of Nashua to raise money and awareness for the Center.

“It’s our signature event,” said Marianne Gordineer, the Nashua Center’s Director of Development. “It brings together local restaurants, breweries, vineyards, etc. — local businesses — and of course, our supporters, who all enjoy great food while supporting the work happening at Nashua Center. I call it dinner by the bite because all of our vendors create amazing [food] for the event and it’s all in tasting portions, so our guests can go from table to table and just enjoy themselves.”

Gordineer said Taste of the Towns is the Nashua Center’s biggest fundraiser of the year. Between fundraising and help from corporate sponsors like Milliard Bank, the Center was able to purchase its building last spring.

“[That] has been so incredibly important for our programming,” she said, “and it gives us a permanent home to continue and grow our services. We’ve been leasing our location for practically 30 years, so we’re happy to say we’re home at last. It’s permanent.”

The restaurants and businesses that participate in Taste of the Towns range from small family-owned businesses to national chains and will include Bellavance Beverage Co., Brickhouse Restaurant and Brewery, The Good Place Cafe, The Imported Grape, In the Mix Bartending, K’sone’s Thai Restaurant & Lounge, Le Gris Charcuterie, Maggie’s Munchies, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Not Your Average Joe’s, Shorty’s Mexican Roadhouse, Soel Sistas, Spyglass Brewing, Tara House Grill, Thon Khao, Tito’s Vodka, Woodman’s Artisan Bakery, YouYou Japanese Bistro and Zorvino Vineyards.

“Tito’s Vodka has been a great partner of ours,” Gordineer said. “They’re also a sponsor of the event, and they’re coming back again with some great drinks…. And another great partner has been K’Sone’s [K’Sone’s Thai Dining and Lounge]. The owner has been participating for many years and just the energy that he brings and his display is spectacular. The Tala House Grill, the in-house restaurant from the Sheraton, makes a really dramatic presentation, too.”

Gordineer said 17 area food and beverage businesses will serve more than 300 attendees this year.

“It’s a really great event,” she said.

Taste of the Towns
When: Thursday, May 7, from 6 to 9:30 p.m.
Where: Sheraton Nashua, 11 Tara Blvd., Nashua, 888-9970, marriott.com
Festive attire is requested. Tickets start at $85 at nashuacenter.ejoinme.org/tasteofthetowns2026.

Featured photo: Courtesy photo.

Sample the state

The Made in NH Expo offers a taste of local products

Christine Carignan is the co-publisher and chief operating officer for Business New Hampshire Magazine, and co-owner of the Made In NH “Try It & Buy It” Expo, which will be held April 17 through April 19 at the Doubletree by Hilton Expo Center in Manchester.

“It’s in its 29th year this year,” Carignan said. “It’s an expo that welcomes people in. We have vendors and exhibitors from all across New Hampshire showcasing their handmade products, their artisan goods. It’s a great way for people to come in and see all of the really cool things that are made here in the Granite State. And one thing that’s new this year is that your one ticket price gets you in all three days of the weekend. If you come on Friday, you can buy one ticket, and as long as you get a wristband from us — we have wristbands available — that will give you entry for the rest of the weekend.”

Nearly half of the vendors at Made in NH this year will be food or beverage businesses.

“This is a Try It and Buy it expo,” Carignan said, “so we want people to be able to come in and sample their way through the show and then, ideally, purchase these great things as well. We kind of run the gamut of different kinds of food and treats that people can try. So we have everything from Greek pastries to a farm that’s bringing in some pork and beef. We have chocolate vendors. We have dog treats as well. You’ll find some jams and jellies, freeze-dried candies, and lots of different bakeries.We also have a couple of beverage people that are going to be there — we have a company that makes lemonade. We’ll also have a coffee vendor there, which everyone loves.”

One area of the Expo, Carignan said, will focus exclusively on producers of alcoholic beverages. “It’s called our “Libation Station,” she said. “That’s where we have vendors with different spirits, beers, wines and mead. They’re sampling and selling in that section. As long as you’re 21-plus and you have your ID, you’re welcome to come through and sample all of the spirits that are available in that aisle; it’s the last aisle, all the way against the wall — the 700 Aisle.”

Each year, the Expo usually has more than 5,000 visitors across the three days of the show, Carignan said, with Saturday generally being the most highly attended. This includes a lot of families. Many of the exhibitors reflect that.

“This year, we have a couple of different rescue organizations that are going to be there,” she said. “So we’re going to have animals that people get to come and visit. We have Live and Let Live Farm, who comes every year, and they usually bring goats and some mini ponies, sometimes some bunnies, some puppies. And we also have Darbster Rescue that also comes and usually brings puppies. One of the great things is we’ve had dogs get adopted right at the show. So there’s chocolate, wine, and puppies. How much better could you get?”

One of the food exhibitors at Made In NH will be Celeste Oliva, a Concord specialty shop that sells premium olive oils and balsamic vinegars. Charla Mayotte is the owner. She said the Expo is an excellent way for new customers to discover her business. “I’ve been there a few years,” she said. “A good amount of people that come through. I have customers who met me at the Made in New Hampshire Expo, which is why I keep coming back. It’s a good way to connect with repeat customers. It’s a way for people to realize how good true extra virgin olive oil is. And balsamic.”

The Made In NH “Try It & Buy It” Expo
When: Friday, April 17, from 1 to 7 p.m.; Saturday, April 18, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, April 19, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Where: Doubletree by Hilton Expo Center, 700 Elm St., Manchester, 625-1000
Admission: Tickets are $8 each, senior tickets are $7, and children under 14 get in free. One admission fee is good for all three days.
More: businessnhmagazine.com/made-in-nh-expo

Featured photo: Courtesy photo.

The Weekly Dish 26/04/16

• Permanent pizza: On April 2 popular mobile pizza oven DeadProof Pizza (deadproofpizza.com) announced on social media that it has found a permanent brick-and-mortar location at 94 Rockingham Road in Derry, the former location of Clam Haven. Details will be forthcoming.

• Bad Brgr in Rochester: A new location for smash-burger chain Bad Brgr will open in Rochester on Saturday, April 18, at 100 Wakefield St. The opening was originally scheduled for April 11 but was pushed back one week. The Bad Brgr team has announced that on Saturday they will hide $1,000 somewhere in Rochester and have a scavenger hunt. The new Bad Brgr location will have live bands and prizes, and the restaurant will donate an additional $1,000 to the local school district to help pay for student lunches. Visit badbrgr.com.

• Cookies and wine: There will be a spring cookie decorating class Saturday, April 18, from 10 a.m. to noon at LaBelle Winery Derry (14 Route 111, Derry, 672-9898, labellewinery.com/labelle-winery-derry). Cookie guru Kelli Wright will guide participants through the process of creating spring-themed cookie designs. You may choose to add on a glass of LaBelle wine and a cheese plate to help with the creative process. After class you’ll leave with a set of four decorated cookies and the knowledge to re-create your designs at home. Tickets start at $59 through the LaBelle website.

• Science fiction, dinner and MURDER: There will be an immersive sci-fi themed murder mystery dinner party on April 18 at LaBelle Winery Amherst (345 Route 101, Amherst, 672-9898, labellewinery.com) from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Step into an evening full of suspense, secrets and unexpected twists as the mystery unfolds around you performed by professional actors. During the event you’ll enjoy a three-course dinner. Tickets are $84 through the LaBelle website.

• “Nothing Gold Can Stay”: There will be a special chef’s dinner presented by The Sleazy Vegan Cafe (205 N. State St., Concord, 877-328-7838, thesleazyvegan.com/concord) Saturday, April 18, at 6 p.m. This dinner will be prepared to reflect local springtime ingredients, as well as the poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay” by Robert Frost. There will be non-alcoholic beverages available; you may bring your own wine or beer to enjoy responsibly during the meal. Tickets are $100 at the-sleazy-vegan.square.site.

• Gourmet festival: The 38th Annual Gourmet Festival and Auction will be held Sunday, April 19, beginning at 4:15 p.m. at the Event Center at Courtyard Nashua (2200 Southwood Drive, Nashua, 952-4536, eventcenternashua.com). Enjoy a sampling of delicious food prepared by 20 local chefs, wine and spirits tastings, Gourmet’s infamous “Golden Brick” raffle, and a live and silent auction featuring more than 100 items to bid on. All proceeds benefit local families at risk of homelessness. Visit frontdooragency.org/events/gourmet-festival-and-auction.

• Drumshanbo dinner: Local Street Eats (112 W. Pearl St., Nashua, 402-4435, local-streeteats.com) will host “A Curious Night in Drumshanbo” Monday, April 20, from 6 to 9 p.m. This will be a four-course dinner inspired by Drumshanbo’s award-winning gins transformed into thoughtfully crafted cocktails paired with chef-curated dishes. Tickets are $103.22 through the Local Street Eats website.

Connecting writers and publishers

Derry Author Fest takes on a practical theme

Elizabeth Ives was a long-time supporter and trustee of the Derry Public Library, and she had a dream, said Erin Robinson, Reference Librarian and coordinator of the Derry Author Fest.

“She was great. She’s since passed away, but she wanted to have an Author Fest that would have MFA-style classes and would be beneficial for people who want to become writers and authors and illustrators. The idea was that they wouldn’t have to jump through a lot of hoops or pay to go to a conference. She wanted it to be free and open to the public.”

“So,” Robinson continued, “year after year we’ve held the Author Fest here at the Library. It was a little messy at first — you know, everything takes a little fine-tuning — but now we have it down to what we really want it to be, which is focused on writing and publication and a very straightforward one-day series of lectures. Each year we have a different theme, and this year’s Fest is Pathway to Publication.”

This year’s presentations will be geared toward the practical steps of producing a book, Robinson said.

“We’re going to have a publishing panel that tells us what happens behind the scenes,” she said. “We have an executive editor from Harper Collins and an agent from Calligraph [literary agency]. We’ll have someone from the Public Relations and Marketing department at Penguin Random House, specializing in young readers. They’re going to demystify the process of publishing for us. We also have a creative panel where people are going to talk a little bit more about just being creative, but also what that entails, how they carve out structure in their day, do they have a day job? That sort of thing. We’ll have an illustrator, a picture book writer, and a YA writer on that panel. We’ll also be talking about niche publishing — what is it like to work with small presses as opposed to going for a big, traditional press? What’s the difference? Finally, Rebecca Allen is going to talk to us about finding a community that can help you succeed, finding critique partners, and how you can encourage each other to make your work better,”

“It’s going to be a full day,” she said.

The keynote speakers will be mother and daughter New Hampshire writers Rebecca and Adi Rule.

“They both have very interesting backgrounds because they write very different things,” Robinson said. “Becky’s writing is very regional. Adi writes children’s, middle-grade and YA fiction. They are going to talk about publishing over decades and generations. That should be a really interesting conversation to kick off the day.”

Robinson said that in past years the people attending Author Fest have been writers in a wide variety of genres.

“It’s hard for us [when we plan the conference], because we have to decide, ‘Do we want to lean more into the adult writers and do we want to get more for the kids? We have a sprinkling of nonfiction writers. We try to even the day out — some people write for adults and some for kids. People don’t have to stay all day, so some people will come and they will stay all day because they are going to gather something from every lecture regardless and they’re happy to be here and learning, but some will pick and choose. During lunchtime we try to split up the groups. If people want to stay and hang out during that block, we have tables where people can gather together by genre or subject or interest, so we have like our nonfiction writers table, or our children’s book writers, and they can all group together and connect. It depends on the year,” Robinson said.

In addition to the day of speakers and panels, the library will host a book sale throughout the day provided by Gibson’s Bookstore, according to derryauthorfest.wordpress.com where you can see the full schedule and links to register.

2026 Derry Author Fest: Pathways to Publication
When: Saturday, April 18, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Where: Derry Public Library, 64 E. Broadway, Derry, 432-6140, derrypl.org
More: derryauthorfest.wordpress.com

Featured photo: Courtesy photo.

Frozen Peanut Butter Salad

From the 1933 recipe booklet Cooking with Cold by the Kelvinator Refrigerator Co.:

  • 1 8-ounce package cream cheese
  • 1/3 cup (90 g) peanut butter — I’m not sure what the peanut butter was like in the 1930s, but I used a mainstream, brand-name, lots-of-sugar-salt-and-stabilizers peanut butter. The kind your kids like.
  • 2 medium-sized jalapeño peppers — the original recipe calls for half a cup of diced green pepper, but this gives it a bit of flavor. Check out the heat level before you use them, but given how mild the jalapeños in New Hampshire supermarkets are you are unlikely to do yourself an injury.
  • ½ cup chopped pimento — this isn’t something you run across every day. I roasted and chopped a red bell pepper instead (see below).
  • ½ cup (about 40 g) chopped celery
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 Tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
  • ¼ cup mayonnaise
  • ¼ cup whipping cream

Roast a red bell pepper.

Place a bell pepper — it can be any color, but red is the most dramatic — on a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper or a silicone mat. (The pepper will release some liquid as it roasts, and this will help prevent a mess in the stove.)

Move one of the racks in your oven to its highest position and set the oven to a low broil. Leave the pepper to completely char, then turn it with a pair of tongs to char the other side. When the entire surface of the pepper has burned to a papery consistency, take it out of the oven and place it in a sealed container — a bowl with a fitted lid will work well for this, or even a regular bowl, with a plate on top.

Now walk away. Leave the pepper to steam for 20 minutes or so. The hot pepper juices — some of which have leaked out onto the baking sheet you were prepared enough to lay down — will loosen up that papery, charred skin. Now you can wipe it away from the body of the pepper with your fingers — which will get sticky and gross. And the actual pepper will fall apart in your hand. You will have to wipe the seeds away, and flick them into the sink — also a little gross. (This is why TV chefs don’t do this on camera.) But you will be left with a beautiful, perfectly roasted pepper that you can chop up for this recipe.

Putting together the rest of this “salad”:

Cream the cream cheese and peanut butter together until they are light and fluffy, then mix in the peppers, celery, seasonings, and lemon juice. Set aside briefly.

Whip the heavy cream and mayo together until fluffy, then fold it into the rest of the mixture. Spoon it into a lidded container, and freeze for several hours, then cut it into cubes and serve it to a confused but impressed dinner date.

Looking at the list of ingredients, at this point, you are probably saying to yourself, “There’s no way.” This seems like a very odd dish. And I have to confess that I have no idea how or why anyone came up with it, but it is — hold on to your hat — very tasty. It’s just very unexpected. If you find that you’ve become jaded and your palate has become numb to caviar, truffles and wagyu beef tartare, this might be a dish that jolts you back to your senses and braces you to soldier on for another day.

Which is not to say that this wouldn’t go super-well with a glass of Champagne.

Featured photo: Frozen Peanut Butter Salad. Photo by John Fladd.

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