Category: Food

Wood-fired deliciousness

OakCraft Pizza opens in Nashua

A new eatery in Nashua is inviting you to build your own wood-fired pizzas, featuring fresh dough, quality cheeses and house sauces cooked in an imported Italian oven.

OakCraft Pizza, which opened Sept. 13 in the Amherst Street Village Center, also has a selection of specialty pies to choose from, as well as starters, salads and several local craft beer options. It’s owned by Hollis native Rick Carvalho and his wife, Taylor, who took over the former Cold Stone Creamery space and began renovating it earlier this year.

Carvalho, whose family formerly owned franchises for four Dunkin’ Donuts stores across Nashua, said pizza making started out as a passion project for him a few years ago. In the spring of 2019, he went on to enroll in an intensive course in Staten Island, New York, where he learned how to make and serve pizzas in a restaurant setting.

OakCraft Pizza’s fast-casual concept, he said, can be compared to that of Chipotle, with completely customizable options on an assembly line before your pizza reaches the end. It’s then ready to be cooked in a Forza Forni wood-fired oven, which came overseas from Italy.

“You pick your sauce, your cheese and your toppings, and we take it from there. The oven cooks your pizza at close to 800 degrees in about three minutes, give or take,” Carvalho said. “So we throw it in our oven and in the time that you’re getting your drinks, it’s probably coming out and you’re good to go. … We really wanted to bring quality to the concept. We have fresh homemade sauces, fresh homemade dough every day, and we’re just trying to make the best.”

Diners start with either regular or gluten-free crusts, and while you can load it up pretty much however you’d like, there are some specialty options if you’re having a hard time deciding. There is the Old World Margherita, featuring fresh basil, mozzarella cheese and red sauce; or the Sunny Side, a breakfast-style pizza with bacon pieces, farm eggs and Parmesan.

“My personal favorite is our Vodka Pie. It’s a vodka sauce that’s made in house, with prosciutto, mushroom, fresh basil, peas and a really good mozzarella,” Carvalho said. “We think our crust is awesome. It has a really good crunch that’s just doughy enough but not soggy. It’s baked right on the stone, so you don’t get that spongy undercarriage.”

Other featured menu offerings include a rotating selection of salads, also with customizable options; starters, like meatballs with red sauce and shaved Parmesan cheese; and sweeter items, like hand-filled whoopie pies that can be rolled in toppings like sprinkles and Oreo cookie crumbles. Wines and local craft beer options are available too.

Online ordering will be implemented through OakCraft Pizza’s website. Carvalho said he also hopes to begin offering third-party delivery services within a radius of a few miles.

OakCraft Pizza

Where: 2 Cellu Dr., Suite 111, Nashua
Hours: Sunday through Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
More info: Visit oakcraftpizza.com, follow them on Facebook and Instagram @oakcraftpizza or call 521-8452

Featured photo: Old World Margherita pizza, with fresh basil, mozzarella cheese and house red sauce. Photo by Matt Ingersoll.

Glendi returns!

Annual Greek food festival to celebrate 42nd year

A three-day celebration of Greek culture through homemade food, music, dancing and crafts, Glendi is making a highly anticipated return this weekend a year after its first cancellation in more than four decades. The 42nd annual festival is happening at Manchester’s St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral, where from Friday, Sept. 17, through Sunday, Sept. 19, a diverse menu of authentic Greek items will be served, from lamb shanks to pastichio, plus dozens of homemade cookies and pastries available and imported Greek items for sale at an Aegean Market.

Originally known as the Harvest Bazaar, a small three-day fundraising event for the church and community center, the festival was renamed Glendi, which means “good times” in Greek, in 1980. The first event as it’s known today was held that year — since then, generations of church members and volunteers have gathered throughout each year to prepare Glendi’s featured dishes.

This will be the first in-person Glendi since the fall of 2019, although the church has presented a series of several “Taste of Glendi” drive-thru events in the interim.

Past Glendi event. Courtesy photo.

“I really do feel that there is a lot of pent up demand out there for events, especially our Glendi,” said George Skaperdas, festival co-chairman and president of its board of directors. “We decided in April that we were going to go ahead with it … and so it was full speed ahead, just doing our part to make sure that people are safe but still have a good time.”

Food preparation has been underway since early June and will continue right up until just days before the festival begins. As with previous years, dozens of tents will be set up on the church’s grounds all weekend, housing the food servings and outdoor dining tables.

“Everything that everybody expects out of Glendi will be there,” Skaperdas said. “The setup is pretty much the same. We’ve got everything to make everybody happy.”

Several returning favorites will be served once again, like the seasoned and marinated lamb that’s barbecued over charcoal; the baked lamb shanks with tomato sauce; the marinated chicken with Grecian herbs; and the pastichio, a Greek lasagna dish with a creamy cheese sauce. Stuffed green peppers with rice and meat, and dolmathes, or stuffed grape leaves with rice and meat covered in a lemon sauce, will be available too. All of these options can be ordered as part of a full meal, which comes with rice pilaf, a salad and a roll, or you can order them a la carte.

Other items will include gyros, served with a blend of beef and lamb; loukanikos, or Greek sausages; and chicken souvlaki that is topped with lettuce, red onion and tzatziki sauce and wrapped in pita bread. There will also be a small offering of non-Greek items like hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy and freshly squeezed lemonade.

Inside the church’s community center will be an assorted display of desserts and pastries, including multiple versions of baklava; as well as loukoumades, or fried dough balls soaked in syrup and sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar, that come in quantities of six, 12 or 20. Several types of cookies are also returning, like finikia, or honey-dipped cookies with walnuts; and kourambiethes, which are dusted with powdered sugar.

The community center will once again have its Aegean Market open for the duration of the festival, where you’ll find items like Greek olive oil, coffees, jewelry and T-shirts for sale. Gift baskets, local restaurant gift cards and certificates, and other items will be raffled off.

Masks and hand sanitizer will be provided to festival attendees. Skaperdas said the state’s mobile vaccination van is expected to be parked at the church each day.

Glendi

When: Friday, Sept. 17, and Saturday, Sept. 18, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. (food services end at about 9:30 p.m.), and Sunday, Sept. 19, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral, 650 Hanover St., Manchester
Cost: Free admission; foods are priced per item
Visit: stgeorge.nh.goarch.org, or find them on Facebook @glendinh
Free parking is available at Derryfield Park (Bridge Street) and at the McDonough Elementary School (550 Lowell St.), with shuttle services to the church that will be available throughout the day on Friday and Saturday.

Featured photo: Past Glendi events. Courtesy photo.

The Weekly Dish 21/09/16

News from the local food scene

• Flavors of Egypt: The annual Egyptian Food Festival returns to St. Mary and Archangel Michael Coptic Orthodox Church (39 Chandler St., Nashua) over three days, from Friday, Sept. 17, through Sunday, Sept. 19. There will be a full menu of freshly prepared items to choose from, including beef or chicken kebab platters, beef shawarma, and vegetarian dishes like falafel and koshari, a popular Egyptian dish featuring rice mixed with brown lentils, chickpeas, macaroni and sauce. For desserts, attendees will have the opportunity to try several types of sweets and pastries, from baklava and fried dough to om ali, a puff pastry-like delicacy with nuts soaked in milk, baked and served warm. According to the Rev. Kyrillos Gobran of the church, a gift bazaar is also planned, as well as live music, face-painting and family-friendly games and activities. Festival hours are from 4 to 9 p.m. on Friday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday, rain or shine each day. Admission is free and foods are priced per item. Parking is available nearby at BAE Systems (95 Canal St., Nashua). Visit stmarycoptsnh.org.

• Pristine poutine: Tickets to the New Hampshire PoutineFest Spooktacular, a special Halloween edition of the popular poutine festival, will go on sale on Saturday, Sept. 18, at 10 a.m. The event itself is set for Saturday, Oct. 23, at Anheuser-Busch Tour Center & Biergarten (221 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack), resuming the friendly competition among local and regional restaurants, food trucks and other vendors for the best poutine dish as voted by attendees. Costumes are encouraged at the festival, which will also feature craft beer, children’s activities, games and a DJ. Tickets are $39.99 for general admission and entry at 12:45 p.m., $49.99 for VIP admission (early entry at 11:30 a.m.), $14.99 for kids ages 6 to 12 with sampling, and free without it. All kids ages 5 and under also receive free admission. Visit nhpoutinefestspooktacular.eventbrite.com to get your tickets.

• Crescent City cravings: Join the Bedford Village Inn (2 Olde Bedford Way Bedford) for a New Orleans dinner on Thursday, Sept. 23, at 6 p.m., the next installment in its summer dinner series held on its Grand Terrace. This five-course dinner will feature options inspired by the city of New Orleans, where executive chef Tina Verville spent three years of her culinary career. Items will include broiled oysters, shrimp and sausage gumbo, andouille jambalaya arancini and more — each course will be paired with a classic handcrafted New Orleans cocktail. Tickets are $125 per person plus tax (the dinner is open to attendees ages 21 and up only), and all proceeds will be donated to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief to help Louisianans affected by Hurricane Ida. Visit bedfordvillageinn.com.

• Soups and chowders: The Collins Brothers Chowder Co. (59 Temple St., Nashua), which offers homemade hot soups and chowders in addition to prepared meals, reopened for the season on Sept. 15. The takeout-only eatery usually features several soups and chowders that are available daily, in addition to different specials that will run depending on the day. Homemade comfort meals to go have also been available, like shepherd’s pie, chicken pot pie and American chop suey. The Collins Brothers Chowder Co. is open Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., usually through the winter and early spring. Visit collinsbrotherschowder.com or follow them on Facebook @collinsbrotherschowder.

Beers that aren’t pumpkin

Because some of us just aren’t ready

It was mid-August when I saw my first pumpkin beer in a local beer store.

Dismayed, I experienced my usual round of indignation and disappointment, followed by a little tantrum: “Stop trying to steal summer with your pumpkin spice!”

But OK, I took a deep breath, tried to collect myself, took a long look in the mirror and just generally tried to get over myself.

Yes, true, I have little interest in pumpkin-anything in August, but it was time I faced facts. Clearly, many people are, in fact, in the mood for pumpkin-this and pumpkin-that, because it is everywhere. And breweries and retailers wouldn’t be selling it if people weren’t buying it.

It’s clearly time for me to get over it and accept that pumpkin is here to stay in late summer.

But that doesn’t mean I have to buy it. I still need a little more crispness in the air. Sorry for the big-twist ending.

Here are four entirely random non-pumpkin beers that I’ve enjoyed recently and that I think you will too.

Sapphire Unicorn American Double IPA by Lone Pine Brewing Co. (Portland, Maine)

Hard to deny a beer with a ridiculous name like this and I’m glad I went for it. Actually, my brother-in-law went for it and I’m glad he did. This is surprisingly smooth with an almost creamy consistency — not exactly what you expect in an IPA. In addition to the interesting consistency, this complex brew is just bursting with sweet tropical flavors and aromas, including maybe a little coconut. This is an impressive brew that begs for sip after sip. Even non-IPA lovers will appreciate this brew.

Suborbital New England Pale Ale by Bent Water Brewing Co. (Lynn, Mass.)

This is another brewery that continues to impress me time after time and the Suborbital was the latest example of that. This supremely drinkable and sessionable pale ale combines the haze and citrus burst you expect from a New England IPA in a much lighter package that won’t leave you bogged down — but that also didn’t leave me feeling like flavor was sacrificed. I had more than one of these on a vacation evening on the beach in front of the fire. I see myself drinking this beer all year round.

American Porter by Stoneface Brewing Co. (Newington)

Speaking of beers you can enjoy by the fire, this porter is just plain delicious and extremely drinkable. Yes, it has big robust flavors of roasted chocolate and coffee, but this is smooth and dry. I love this beer any time, but by the fire pit on a cool evening — absolute perfection. And, did I mention it’s just 5.5 percent? You can have more than one.

Mango Wheat by Blue Moon Brewery (Denver)

OK, don’t throw anything at me. I fell out of love with the wheat beer style a long time ago so it was with much trepidation that I took a sip of my wife’s beer, a mango-flavored wheat beer, but wow, what a pleasantly refreshing surprise. The beer is what it is, but to me, on a screaming hot day, the mango flavor is present but not overpowering. This isn’t too sweet. I found it crisp, bright and refreshing with just the right amount of fruitiness. I didn’t see this one coming. After a long afternoon of yard work, I grabbed this one all on my own.

What’s in my fridge?

Santilli American IPA by Night Shift Brewing (Everett, Mass)
It feels like I’ve been drinking this beer forever, but it’s really only been around for six years or so as Night Shift’s flagship IPA. I had more of these than I’d care to admit during a vacation last month. Also, I want to note I was thrilled to see this in 12-ounce cans. I have no problem with the more prevalent 16-ounce cans that tend to dominate shelves these days, but there’s something that just feels right about holding a 12-ouncer. Also, 12-ounce cans seem to fit in beer fridges better. Cheers!

Featured photo: Suborbital New England Pale Ale by Bent Water Brewing is incredibly drinkable. Courtesy photo.

Healthy spinach dip

When you think about snacking, “healthy” may not be the first word that comes to mind. I understand that 100 percent. Quite often while I’m planning a menu of snacks for a Sunday afternoon I lean toward indulgence: appetizers that are full of calories and deliciousness. However, I also like to keep some balance in my eating, and that is where the healthy appetizer joins the menu.

One of the key mantras in my cooking is that healthy can be just as delicious as indulgent. It’s not always the fat and sugar that makes a dish taste great. You need to maximize flavors from your ingredients and cooking methods.

This spinach dip utilizes ingredients and cooking methods to provide a healthy and delicious snack. Rather than mayonnaise or sour cream, Greek yogurt is the base. It provides all the creaminess you want with a lot fewer calories and fat. If you want to be really healthy, use nonfat yogurt. It’s my go-to and makes for a creamy, thick dip.

To utilize cooking techniques to impart flavor, the garlic is roasted. Roasting garlic mellows the astringent bite of raw garlic while also providing a smooth garlic kick. Sure, you need to allow some time for the roasting and cooling, but it’s worth it when you taste the dip.

“Healthy” may not be the word of your snack menu dreams yet, but this recipe may convince you that it should be.

Michele Pesula Kuegler has been thinking about food her entire life. Since 2007, the New Hampshire native has been sharing these food thoughts and recipes at her blog, Think Tasty. Visit thinktasty.com to find more of her recipes.

Healthy spinach dip
Serves 4-6

1 head garlic
1 1/2 Tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt (whole, lowfat or nonfat)
1 cup frozen spinach, thawed & drained
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place garlic on an 8”x8” piece of aluminum foil.
Drizzle garlic with olive oil and wrap securely with foil.
Roast wrapped garlic for 45 to 50 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow garlic to cool.
When cool, squeeze individual cloves to remove garlic from skins. (Discard skins.)
Combine yogurt, spinach and roasted garlic cloves in a small bowl, stirring well.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Cover and chill for at least an hour before serving.
Serve with crackers, pita chips, carrots or celery.

Photo: Healthy spinach dip. Photo by Michele Pesula Kuegler.

In the kitchen with Jordyn Hotchkiss

Jordyn Hotchkiss of Weare is the owner of The Cat’s Pajamas (catspajamasnh@gmail.com, and on Facebook and Instagram @catspajamasnh), a homestead business she runs with the help of her mother, April, offering freshly baked cookies, brownies and whoopie pies in multiple flavors. Her lineup of baked goods includes chocolate chip and sugar cookies, fudge brownies, classic or peanut butter whoopie pies and peanut butter fudge, all of which are available for sale at the Weare Real Food Farmers Market (65 N. Stark Hwy., Weare). Hotchkiss, who also occasionally takes on special orders, said The Cat’s Pajamas gets its name from her love of both 1920s culture and cat cafes, or cafes in which visitors can also play with cats that may be up for adoption. She hopes to expand her offerings to seasonal items this fall, like pumpkin whoopie pies.

What is your must-have kitchen item?

A KitchenAid mixer. I cannot function without my KitchenAid.

What would you have for your last meal?

For a full meal, probably steak with mashed potatoes, and a grasshopper pie ice cream sundae for dessert.

What is your favorite local restaurant?

I don’t go out to eat a whole lot, but one of my favorites is Putnam’s [Waterview Restaurant] in Goffstown. I’ll either get a chicken Caesar salad, or their steak and cheese. Their chicken tenders are good too.

What celebrity would you like to see trying one of your baked goods?

It makes me nervous, but I would love to have [Food Network’s] Duff Goldman. I would want to know what he would say.

What is your favorite product that you offer?

Either the whoopie pies or the brownies, because I like the way they come out. I have a special brownie pan that I use, so they all come out the same size.

What is the biggest food trend in New Hampshire right now?

In the bakery world, I feel like cake pops are a really big thing. I’ve noticed them come up more frequently in different bakeries.

What is your favorite thing to cook or bake at home?

Chocolate chip cookies. We always have some cookies somewhere in the house for us, just as a family.

Homemade chocolate chip cookies
From the kitchen of Jordyn Hotchkiss of The Cat’s Pajamas in Weare

½ Crisco stick (½ cup)
1 stick salted butter (½ cup)
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
2½ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
12 ounces chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix together the Crisco and butter until creamy. Add in the brown sugar and white sugar. Mix until well-incorporated. Add vanilla and eggs, then gradually add in the flour until well-mixed. Mix in baking soda. Add chocolate chips. Scoop onto a cookie sheet and bake for approximately 12 minutes (baking time may vary depending on the oven and type of cookie sheet). Let the cookies sit on the cookie sheet for a minute or two. Cool on a cooling rack and enjoy.

Featured photo: Jordyn Hotchkiss. Courtesy photo.

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