Category: Q&A

In the kitchen with Valerie Roulo

Valerie Roulo of Raymond is the owner of Love & Joy Vegan Sweets (loveandjoyvegansweets.com, and on Facebook and Instagram @lovejoyvegansweets), a homestead baking business she started in August that specializes in unique vegan desserts. Named after Roulo’s two dogs, Marley Love and Willow Joy, the business offers a menu of sweet treats available for ordering online, like multiple flavors of macarons and truffles, oat hemp seed bars, chewy chocolate chunk cookies, cashew-based raspberry lemon entremets, pecan shortbread bars, and vanilla custard Napoleons. An advance notice of 24 to 48 hours is requested for all orders, which are typically available for curbside pickup at a designated spot. You can also find Roulo’s macarons on the menu at Col’s Kitchen (55 S. Main St., Concord).

What is your must-have kitchen item?

It would be my KitchenAid mixer.

What would you have for your last meal?

Vegan nachos, with salsa, jalapenos, black beans and vegan sour cream.

What is your favorite local restaurant?

I have two. Col’s Kitchen in Concord is one, and then the other would be The Hungry Caterpillar food truck. I like the “plantarella” sticks, which are basically kind of like mozzarella sticks.

What celebrity would you like to bake something for?

[Celebrity chef] Paul Hollywood, from The Great British Bake Off.

What is your favorite thing on your menu?

Probably the macarons, because they are a lot of fun to make and they took me months to master. The shell is an almond-based cookie and then the flavor is whatever you put inside of it, usually any kind of buttercream flavor.

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

People [are] becoming more interested in plant-based meals. I also think the grocery stores are starting to offer a lot more plant-based foods.

What is your favorite thing to cook at home?

I like to make a nice hearty vegetable soup and a crusty bread.

Chocolate chickpea brownies
From the kitchen of Valerie Roulo of Love & Joy Vegan Sweets in Raymond

1 can chickpeas
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
⅓ cup flour
3 tablespoons non-dairy milk
3 tablespoons nut butter of choice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup sugar
½ cup vegan chocolate chips
Nuts (optional)

Drain and rinse beans. Preheat oven to 340 degrees. Grease or line an 8-inch pan. Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor until completely smooth. Spread into pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips (and nuts, if using) on top. Bake on the center rack for 14 minutes, then chill the still underbaked brownies until firm.

Featured Photo: Valerie roulo, Courtesy photo

Be aware

How to help in the fight against domestic violence

How to help in the fight against domestic violence

Bruce Miner is a volunteer for Bridges, a Nashua-based chapter of the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence. With October being National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Miner talked about why raising awareness is so important and how people can join the fight against domestic violence in New Hampshire.

What does domestic violence look like?
[The abuser] is usually an intimate partner — a lover, a dating partner or an ex — who wants to have power and control over the victim. The forms of domestic violence are many. Obviously, there’s physical and sexual abuse, but there’s also economic control, stalking, intimidation and threats, the use of isolation, psychological pressure, possessiveness, the abuse of pets and even the destruction of household items.

How prevalent is domestic violence in New Hampshire?
It’s definitely a problem. Just to give you an idea, in New Hampshire, there are 13 [domestic violence centers], and they handle about 15,000 calls a year, and 9,000 of those calls are directly related to a domestic violence situation.

What is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month about?
It’s … [about] trying to open people’s eyes and bring awareness and attention to the pervasiveness and severity of domestic violence, and then have action taken as a result of the awareness. … It’s also about getting the message out there [to victims]. States do fatality review studies and have found that, in both New Hampshire and across the country, of the women killed [by their abusers], only four percent had availed services provided by domestic violence centers. That’s why it’s so huge that we make sure they know that these centers and services exist, and that they’re totally free and confidential.

What happens when someone calls the Helpline?
First, we ascertain that the person is safe and can talk safely. Then, we ask if there are any injuries, if they need to go to the hospital or if they need emergency services. If they’re in a safe spot and there are no injuries, we’ll have a conversation about what’s going on and discuss and explore what they would like to do.

Has the pandemic made it more difficult for crisis centers to help victims, or for victims to seek help?
It’s been a huge issue. Police departments have had significant increases in domestic violence calls. Women have been more reluctant to leave the house or go to the hospital for fear of catching the virus or bringing it back home to their kids. … We’ve had to cancel fundraisers. We’ve had to postpone training for new advocates. Support groups have had to be done remotely. The impact has been horrible.

What are the effects of domestic violence on the victim?
There are traumatic effects. They have a sense of helplessness, fear, lack of control and despair. Depression is a big issue. It also tends to bring on physical ailments. If a victim has children, the ability to parent becomes significantly compromised as well.

What are the effects of domestic violence on a community at large?
Money is a big one. … I’m talking about medical costs; hospitalization costs; lost wages from time out of work, since it’s difficult for a person being abused to concentrate on work, and they may not show up to work at all; and the cost of the legal system and prosecution. Homelessness is another one. Studies indicate 67 percent of women who are homeless have been victims of domestic violence.

Does domestic violence affect men?
There are situations where the woman is the abuser and the man is the victim, or there’s a man abusing a man or a woman abusing a woman, but it’s a small fraction. Nationally, in 85 percent of domestic violence situations, a woman is the victim and a man is the abuser. In New Hampshire, it’s closer to 95 percent. But we [crisis centers] treat everyone the same and provide services to anyone in a domestic violence situation.

How can [people] help?
New Hampshire chapters can always use additional volunteers to work the support lines. They’ll have to go through very intensive and comprehensive training that allows them to handle those calls, but I can say that, from my own experience, it’s tough to put into words the gratification you get when you can take someone’s tears and despair and turn them into hope and a plan going forward. … Additionally, we have shelters in all 13 chapters, and those shelters can always use household items. They could also use people to work in the shelters.

New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic & Sexual Violence
Crisis centers are located in Concord, Manchester, Nashua, Durham, Portsmouth, Laconia, Berlin, Littleton, Conway, Plymouth, Lebanon, Claremont and Keene.
24-hour Domestic Violence Helpline: 1-866-644-3574; 24-hour Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-277-5570. Visit nhcadsv.org.

Featured photo: Bruce Miner. Courtesy photo.

In the kitchen with Dave Mielke

Dave Mielke of Amherst and his father Harold opened Smokehaus Barbecue (278 Route 101, Amherst, 249-5734, smokehausbbq.com) together in May 2018. The duo joined forces late the year before, completely rebuilding and redesigning the inside of the former Burger Mill restaurant on Route 101 themselves to give it its rustic look. Smokehaus is open six days a week for lunch and dinner, offering a menu of low-and-slow smoked meats available as sandwich or dinner plate options, from beef brisket and baby back ribs to pulled pork and pulled chicken, as well as fresh sides like collard greens, baked beans and coleslaw, and all types of house-made dry rubs and sauces. The eatery also carries regular offerings from several local craft breweries.

What is your must-have kitchen item?

An immersion blender. We make a lot of sauce with it. We probably make around 25 gallons of barbecue sauce a week, so it gets used quite often.

What would you have for your last meal?

My last meal would be schnitzel and German potato salad. My mom makes that for me every year for my birthday.

What is your favorite local restaurant?

Papa Joe’s Humble Kitchen [in Milford]. Those guys are great. In my opinion, they’ve got the best burgers in the entire state.

What celebrity would you like to see eating at your restaurant?

Adam Sandler. If he was in town, I would be absolutely happy with my life at that point. He seems like a down-to-earth guy, plus he’s local.

What is your favorite thing on your menu?

That would be the fatty brisket. We’re one of the few barbecue places that has fatty and lean brisket. You can get it as a sandwich or a plate. My two sides of choice would be the collard greens, which are my mother-in-law’s recipe, and the coleslaw.

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

I really see sustainability itself as a trend. A lot of places opening up are utilizing local farms as much as they can. People are really starting to see how important it is to help our local businesses thrive.

What is your favorite thing to cook at home?

I make a really excellent pho. My son loves it with Vietnamese meatballs.

Sweet bourbon barbecue sauce
From the kitchen of Dave Mielke of Smokehaus Barbecue in Amherst (quantities are for large batches; cut measurements down in half for smaller batches)

8 cans Murphy’s stout
3 cups bourbon
16 cups ketchup
½ cup onion powder
½ cup garlic powder
½ cup red pepper flakes
4 cups brown sugar
1 cup molasses

Combine all ingredients in a large pot. While stirring, bring to a boil until all alcohol is cooked out (roughly 45 minutes). Let cool and enjoy.

Featured Photo: Dave Mielke of Smokehaus Barbecue in Amherst, with his dad, Harold. Photo by Matt Ingersoll.

In the kitchen with Christos Babis and Lexi Griburas Babis

Christos Babis and his wife, Lexi Griburas Babis, of Candia are the owners of Villaggio Ristorante (677 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 627-2424, villaggionh.com), which opened in the Queen City’s North End in 2012. Villaggio is an eatery known for its classic Italian dishes, including those made with chicken, veal and fresh seafood, as well as a full-service bar with wines, beers and specialty cocktails. Other popular offerings include lasagna, housemade potato and ricotta gnocchi, and fresh egg angel hair or fettuccine pastas with your choice of sauce. Villaggio reopened daily for dinner on June 18.

What is your must-have kitchen item?

CB: Definitely tongs, because everything on the menu is made in a saute pan.

LGB: For me it would be a potholder.

What would you have for your last meal?

CB: Octopus with tomato salad, olives, feta cheese and a nice crusty bread.

LGB: Grilled calamari with fresh steamed greens, and then Christos’s chocolate soufflé.

What is your favorite local restaurant?

CB: Mine!

LGB: The Golden Tao [Restaurant in Manchester].

What celebrity would you like to see eating in your restaurant?

CB: Al Pacino.

LGB: Gordon Ramsay.

What is your favorite thing on your menu?

CB: The filet mignon with cognac sauce.

LGB: Frutti di Mare.

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

CB: Made-to-order food that can be personalized.

LGB: We never really had a big takeout business … [but] takeout is so huge right now.

What is your favorite thing to cook at home?

CB: Grilled salmon.

LGB: I like to make all kinds of soups, like bean soups, meatball soups and pumpkin soup in the fall.

Butternut squash soup
Courtesy of Christos Babis and Lexi Griburas Babis of Villaggio Ristorante in Manchester
½ gallon whole milk
1 large butternut squash (cleaned, peeled and diced)
3 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
4 tablespoons butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Bring milk to a boil. Add the squash, followed by the salt and pepper, then the ginger. Boil until squash is soft. Take off heat and blend with a hand-mixer until smooth, then add butter and enjoy.

Featured Photo: Courtesy photo

In the kitchen with Rajen Thapa

Rajen Thapa of Hooksett and his family took over ownership of Cafe Momo (1065 Hanover St., Manchester, 623-3733, cafemomonh.us) in early 2019. Since opening in the early 2000s, the restaurant has offered traditional Nepali cuisine with a modern American flair — featured menu items are the momos (fillings include goat, chicken, buffalo, lamb, wild boar and vegetable) as well as several curries, chilis and stir-fried noodle options. Originally from Lalitpur, Nepal, Thapa came to the United States more than two decades ago. Cafe Momo resumed operations on June 23 after closing in mid-March, using a takeout window out of the restaurant’s adjoining space.

What is your must-have kitchen item?

A frying pan … and a knife.

What would you have for your last meal?

I love all food, basically. … I like a good curry.

What is your favorite local restaurant?

Actually, I’m not really a restaurant … person. I can eat anything, but whenever I’m hungry, usually I come home and eat.

What celebrity would you like to see ordering from your restaurant?

Tom Cruise [or] … Dwayne Johnson.

What is your favorite thing on your menu?

If I’m going to Cafe Momo to eat … I would choose the lamb chili.

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

When people are health-conscious … they always think about fat, and what ingredients are in it, and they might say, you know, ‘don’t put this’ or ‘don’t put that.’ … We are able to do that, because we make it right then, whatever they order.

What is your favorite thing to cook at home?

I like to cook goat curry.

Steamed chicken momos
Courtesy of Rajen Thapa of Cafe Momo in Manchester (makes about 50 momo pieces enjoyed as a meal or an appetizer)
1 pound ground chicken
1 red onion, chopped
1 cup chopped cabbage
1 bunch cilantro
1 tablespoon garlic paste
1 tablespoon fresh ginger paste
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 to 4 tablespoons salt
Flour
Water

Mash the ground chicken with chopped veggies and season with the pastes. Add fresh chopped scallions and salt as desired. Add mixtures of ingredients slowly and evenly. Add a little bit of water so it’s not dry (mixture shouldn’t be liquid, but softer than meatball meat). Knead the flour so it becomes a dough and cut out circular pieces, using a small cookie cutter about the size of the top of a drinking glass. Take the ground meat and veggie mixture and make a small ball with your hands to be placed inside the dough. Make sure that the wrapper is thin in shape and that it is closed tightly — thick dough will take longer to cook and will not give you a consistent cooking temperature for the meat inside. Place the wrapped momos in a three-layered steaming dish with water at the bottom layer. The momos take about 20 to 25 minutes to cook, depending on the size of the steaming pot and the meat consistency (tightly sealed momos with thinner wrapping keep the moisture in, making the taste better). Remove from the steamer and serve with your favorite sauce.

Featured Photo: Rajen Thapa. Photo by Matt Ingersoll.

Pink cars and drive-ins

Change of pace for annual breast cancer fundraiser

The Making Strides Against Breast Cancer movement in New Hampshire is taking a different approach to its fundraising efforts this fall. Instead of its usual community walks, Making Strides will host a series of six socially distanced events, including “Drive-in Experiences” in Nashua, Exeter, Concord/Bow and Manchester and “Rolling Pink Car Rallies” in Laconia and North Conway. Chelsea Paradore, senior manager of community development for the American Cancer Society Northeast Region, talked about what the events will look like, how people can get involved and why fundraising for cancer research is important now more than ever.

What will Making Strides Against Breast Cancer events in New Hampshire look like this year?

We have four drive-in experiences. At the largest one, which is in Concord and will be held in the evening, people can donate luminaries in honor or in memory of someone who has been affected by breast cancer or has lost their battle, and we’ll have those luminary bags lit up as people drive in. There will be a movie screen and a stage set up, so we’ll have a video ceremony; we’ll have survivor speakers; we’ll hear from a researcher; we’ll hear from some of our sponsors and different team leaders; and people will share their stories about how they’ve been affected by breast cancer. Then, after inspiring people, we want to kind of lighten things up and have a little fun, so we’ll have a live band that will play. We’re also asking people to deck out their cars in pink, so there will be prizes for the most spirited car, and we’ll have some other fun games going on throughout the evening. … Then, we have a couple car rallies, which are really more about spreading awareness. … People are asked to decorate their cars in pink and have signs on the outside. … So, it’s not going to be the three- to five-mile walk alongside survivors and caregivers that we would normally be doing, but I think we’ve figured out, this year more than ever, that this isn’t just about a walk; it’s about a movement.

How has Covid-19 impacted Making Strides/American Cancer Society?

It has severely impeded our fundraising activity this year. We’re expecting a minimum of a $200 million shortfall, just in 2020. Essentially, we have gone from a $700 million operating budget to $500 million operating budget, which we had to reduce between personnel and non-personnel expenses. We were sadly forced to eliminate approximately 1,000 staff positions nationwide. The remaining staff have had reduced salaries. Our CEO got a 25-percent reduction in salary. … That’s just the immediate impact; who knows what the next couple of years is going to look like? The scariest part is the impact on our mission. Our hallmark is research funding, and right now that’s in jeopardy. [Covid-19] is going to reduce our ability to fund cancer research by 50 percent in 2020, which is the lowest investment this century.

How does the fundraising work?

It’s actually super easy. When someone registers on our website they get a “fundraising dashboard,” and right from that fundraising dashboard they can email their friends and family, and they can start a Facebook fundraiser, which we know is wildly successful. We also have a fundraising app … which connects them right to their fundraising dashboard. They can take donations by credit card, Google Pay and Apple Pay, and they can take checks, which works just like mobile banking.

How do small community events like these help ACS carry out its mission?

Community events are volunteer-led, so we have a group of volunteer committees at each of these [event] locations in New Hampshire, and they pour their heart and soul into planning these events. Volunteer-led events allow us to save money internally on staffing, and therefore more money is going to the cause. … The awareness piece of it is even bigger, in my eyes. It’s really important to reach people in the community on a local level, to let them know what the American Cancer Society can do, should they ever need to call our number; and to make sure they are getting screened properly, talking to their doctors and taking control of their health.

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer
Drive-in Experiences
• Nashua South High School, 36 Riverside St., Nashua, Sunday, Oct. 4, 3 to 5 p.m.
• FieldHouse Sports, 12 Tallwood Drive, Bow, Friday, Oct. 16, 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.
• McDevitt Trucks, 220 Frontage Road, Manchester, Sunday, Oct. 18, 1:30 to 4 p.m.
• Lincoln Street Elementary School, 25 Lincoln St., Exeter, Sunday, Oct. 18, 1 to 4 p.m.
Rolling Pink Car Rallies
• Laconia Middle School, 150 McGrath St., Laconia, Sunday, Oct. 4, 10 a.m. arrival, 10:30 a.m. start
• Stonehurst Manor, 3351 White Mountain Highway, North Conway, Sunday, Oct. 18, 10 a.m. arrival, 10:30 a.m. start
Find registration information for all drive-in and car rally events on Facebook.

Featured photo: Chelsea Paradore. Courtesy photo.

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