Tag: 210211

Binge-watching and beer

Beer can be a critical component to pair with Netflix

The problem is that when one episode on Netflix ends, you’ve got less than five seconds to shut off the television before the next episode starts. If you haven’t made a conscious effort to have the remote in your hand the second the episode ends, you have missed your chance.

And once the next episode starts, forget about it.

That’s where I’ve found myself over the past couple weeks, cranking out episodes of the show Broadchurch on Netflix as if my life depended on it, as if I were playing a crucial role.

I couldn’t stop. The plot, the characters, those amazing British accents — the show had full control over me. (Did I watch it with subtitles because sometimes, just maybe, I have trouble understanding what exactly is being said with those heavy accents? Maybe. I don’t regret it.) The show first aired on ITV in Britain between 2013 and 2017.

I’m a sucker for murder mysteries, in show or book form, and I just feel that Netflix really takes advantage of me. Every night I’m thinking about how I can maximize my viewing time and considering just how much sleep I really need — or don’t need.

Anyway, binge-watching shows isn’t a new concept but I think it’s safe to say the practice has become more commonplace as we’ve all maintained a heightened state of isolation in our homes over the past year.

I think you need some beer to help you watch. Still, you can’t binge-watch an intense murder mystery show and drink a bunch of beers. Well, OK, you can — I’m not the boss of you — but the characters are relying on you to help them solve the case and you’re no help if your senses aren’t sharp.

I think you do need a little something to help you deal with the intensity. For me, that means a nice, rich stout or porter that I can sip slowly as I try to predict whodunnit. You might be in for a long night so you don’t want something that’s going to just knock you out. You just need something to take the edge off.

If you’re binge-watching something more lighthearted, like, say Schitt’s Creek, I think you can be a little more liberal with your drinking. But, frankly, I don’t think you binge-watch a comedy in the same way you just can’t stop watching something more serious. But that’s really your call.

Here are five beers to support you through your next binge-worthy show.

Smoke & Dagger by Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers (Framingham, Mass.)

This is lighter than you’d expect but it is packed with layers of richly flavored roasted malts. This is perfectly balanced and welcoming.

Geppetto by Schilling Beer Co. (Littleton)

This milk stout brewed with coffee is a decadent brew that hits you with big notes of chocolate and a little bit of roasted coffee too, as you might expect. It’s got a little sweetness as well.

Boneshaker Brown Ale by Moat Mountain Brewing Co. (North Conway)

This is a wonderful brown ale featuring notes of chocolate, roasted nuts and caramel in a fairly light package.

Maritime Lager by Newburyport Brewing Co. (Newburyport, Mass.)

You don’t have to think about this beer; you can just drink it and enjoy the show, and sometimes that’s all you need.

Oatmeal Stout with Honey by Throwback Brewery (North Hampton)

Don’t let the honey throw you off; while this has just a touch of sweetness, this beer is really all about delicious roasted malts and big notes of chocolate.

What’s in My Fridge
Budweiser by Anheuser-Busch Am I allowed to drink Budweiser without people throwing things at me? I’m not sure. It’s been a long time and the Budweiser drinking experience was pretty much as I’d remembered it — crisp, clean, not especially flavorful, but also not at all off-putting. It’s a beer. Relax, everybody, it’s a beer and it’s fine. Cheers.

Featured photo: Photo by Jeff Mucciarone.

Corayma Correa

Corayma Correa’s family launched the Tropical Food Truck (tropical-food-truck.business.site, find them on Facebook) last October, its primary location at 80 Elm St. in Manchester. The truck’s menu combines authentic options native to Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, where Correa’s mother and stepfather respectively are from. Among the most popular items are appetizers like beef and chicken empanadas; alcupurias, or fritters stuffed with beef or crabmeat and veggies; and the french fry supreme, featuring fries loaded with beef, cheese sauce, sour cream, light ketchup and bacon bits. After taking a month off in January, Correa said, the Tropical Food Truck will return to 80 Elm St. on Feb. 18, where you’ll find them most Thursday, Friday and Saturday afternoons and evenings. The truck is also available to hire for private events.

What is your must-have kitchen item?

I would say a nice solid spatula, just because I’m always turning things.

What would you have for your last meal?

A burger, cooked medium, with caramelized onions, barbecue sauce, an egg over easy, American cheese, lettuce and tomato.

What is your favorite local restaurant?

Puerto Vallarta Mexican Grill on Second Street [in Manchester].

What celebrity would you like to see ordering from your food truck?

I’d be flattered to have Adam Sandler stop by, just because he’s from New Hampshire.

What is your favorite thing on your menu?

Our chimis. It’s a Dominican dish that’s similar to a burger. We do them with your choice of beef, chicken, pork or all three, and then they are topped with cabbage and a special chimi sauce.

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

Birria tacos. It’s basically a taco with slow-cooked tender meat, melted cheese … and a sauce that you use as a dipping sauce. I’ve seen it in an empanada too.

What is your favorite thing to cook at home?

We are huge steak lovers at home. A nice warm and juicy steak is all we need.

Pernil (pork roast)
From the kitchen of Corayma Correa of the Manchester-based Tropical Food Truck

1 (8- to 10-pound) bone-in pork shoulder
1 head of garlic, peeled
4 tablespoons sofrito
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons adobo
2 packets sazón

Rinse pork shoulder with vinegar and water, then pat dry. With a knife, make ½-inch stabs all over the pork. Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender and mix together. Fill each slit in the pork with about a teaspoon of the paste. Sprinkle all sides of the roast with the adobo and sazón and rub pork with the spices. Place in a roasting pan that has sides at least two inches deep, cover with foil and refrigerate overnight for the best results. When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Leave the roast covered with foil and bake for four to five hours (approximately 30 to 45 minutes per pound). Pork should read 180 degrees on an internal thermometer and shred easily with a fork. Uncover roast and bake for 15 to 20 minutes to crisp up the fat, or broil at 500 degrees for 10 minutes, watching carefully not to burn. Let cool and serve. The pork can also be refrigerated and used the next day on a panini.

Featured photo: Corayma Correa and her stepfather, Victor Rodriguez. Courtesy photo

Eat organic

NOFA-NH’s annual winter conference returns (virtually)

Whether you’re looking for advice on how to grow your own organic food at home or you want to learn about the state’s many networks connecting consumers to the local food system, you’ll find those topics and more during the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New Hampshire’s 19th annual winter conference. Normally a one-day event with more than 40 workshops, a keynote speaker and a Q&A session, this year’s conference will be held virtually over two days, on Saturday, Feb. 13, and Sunday, Feb. 14, featuring seven sessions on each day.

The theme of the conference is “cultivating stewardship,” with workshops that will cover topics such as soil health, herbalism and immune health, growing organic seeds and more.

“Farmers, gardeners, homesteaders and anyone who’s just interested in organic food and the sustainable food system in New Hampshire can attend,” said Nikki Kolb, operations manager for the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New Hampshire.

Previous conferences have split the workshops into several tracks to choose from. But this time around, Kolb said, ticket holders have access to all 14 workshops — each is an hour long, beginning at 9 a.m. and with 15-minute intervals in between.

Notable speakers will include Maria Noel Groves, clinical herbalist at Wintergreen Botanicals in Allenstown and author of the book Grow Your Own Herbal Remedies. She’ll be leading a discussion about how simple herbs grown in your garden can benefit your immune system. Keith Morris of Willow Crossing Farm in Vermont is on the schedule to talk about growing organic fruit and nut trees, while regenerative farmer and author Acadia Tucker will explore the topic of container gardening at home, both indoors and outdoors.

“The whole conference is going to be livestreamed over Zoom, and each workshop incorporates a Q&A session, so you’ll be able to interact with the speaker during that period,” Kolb said. “Everyone will be emailed a link to access them. … They’ll also be recorded, so ticket holders will be able to go back and view them afterward if they can’t attend all of them.”

The workshops will conclude with a 90-minute keynote address on Sunday at 4:15 p.m., featuring Mukhtar Idhow, executive director of the Manchester-based Organization for Refugee and Immigrant Success, as the speaker. The organization also operates the Fresh Start Farms program, a collective brand of local farms run by new Americans.

An ongoing Green Market Fair is also usually held during the conference, featuring dozens of local craft vendors, demonstrations and other exhibitors. That too is going virtual this year, Kolb said — exhibitors’ listings are available to view on NOFA-NH’s winter conference web page.

“MainStreet BookEnds [in Warner] … has books published by several of the authors that we have speaking at the conference, and they’ve added other books for sale that fit under the umbrella of the discussions,” Kolb said. “Twenty percent of the proceeds of all books sold will go to the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New Hampshire.”

19th annual NOFA-NH Winter Conference
When: Saturday, Feb. 13, and Sunday, Feb. 14; seven one-hour sessions will be held virtually over each day via Zoom, beginning at 9 a.m.; the keynote speaking event is Sunday, from 4:15 to 5:45 p.m.
Cost: $50 for NOFA-NH members, $60 for non-members; includes access to all workshops throughout each day, as well as the virtual Green Market Fair
Visit: nofanh.org/winterconference

Featured photo: Keynote speaker Mukhtar Idhow. Courtesy photo.

Crafty sips and casual eats

Industry East Bar opens in Manchester

Jeremy Hart and Dan Haggerty have around four decades of combined bartending experience across the Granite State. Now the two have gone into business together to open their own craft cocktail bar, complete with a rustic ambience and a unique food menu to match.

Industry East Bar, which opened Feb. 2 just a stone’s throw from Elm Street in Manchester, was in its planning stages well before the start of the pandemic. Hart and Haggerty first came across the vacant storefront on Hanover Street in mid-2019. During continually delayed renovations that lasted more than a full year, repurposed butternut wood was brought in for the bar, as well as additional wood paneling for the walls to give the bar rails a distinctive look.

According to Haggerty, the bar’s name comes from its development as a destination spot for professionals of all types of service industries to enjoy a meal or a cocktail at the end of the work day — the word “east” comes from its being on the east side of downtown.

“Even before we wrote the business plan, we knew we wanted it to be a place that’s super laid back and unpretentious to anyone that comes in,” he said. “We wanted it to be nice, but not too nice where you feel like you need to wear a suit or anything. … Just a super-cool place with high-quality cocktails and wicked awesome food. That was our main goal.”

The bartending duo recruited Jeff Martin, formerly the sous chef at The Birch on Elm, to oversee the food menu. There’s no hood system in the kitchen, so they can’t serve any fried or sauteed items; instead, Martin has been working on a menu of charcuterie boards, flatbread pizzas, paninis, and shareable plates, from duck confit-stuffed popovers to braised short rib toast points.

“We’re also going to be doing things like shrimp cocktail, beef or tuna tartares, ceviche, oysters, some crudos … and gourmet hot dogs,” Haggerty said. “We’ve done a kimchi dog with gochujang sauce and our housemade pickles and sesame seeds. … Jeff is really good at making his own mignonettes, sauces and aiolis and just making everything taste great.”

Some featured desserts that Industry East has introduced right out of the gate have been a brownie sundae trifle with chocolate mousse and whipped cream, and a s’mores sundae with a graham cracker crumble, bruleed marshmallow and chocolate drizzle.

As for the cocktails, that menu combines modern takes on the classics with all kinds of experimental concoctions, all using syrups, juices and other ingredients made in house. The Gentleman’s Choice, for example, incorporates orange and carrot flavors with vodka or mezcal, while the Participation Trophy is a cocktail featuring Branca Menta and vodka, with flavors of strawberry and lemon.

“My approach is … that I never try to think of something,” Haggerty said. “You just kind of play with it and then maybe you add something in or take something out. … There are some things, though, that you just can’t mess with, so we’ll definitely always have the classics, your Old Fashioneds, your Manhattans, things like that.”

Industry East can sit about 20 people at a time with social distancing regulations in place, including nine at the bar and additional tabletop seating. By the spring and into the summer, Haggerty said, outdoor seating will also be available, both right outside the front of the bar and under the adjoining alcove next door.

Industry East Bar
Where: 28 Hanover St., Manchester
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 5 p.m. to midnight (may be subject to change)
More info: Visit industryeastbar.com, find them on Facebook and Instagram, or call 456-7890

Featured photo: Industry East Bar co-owner and bartender Jeremy Hart serves a cocktail. Courtesy photos.

The Weekly Dish 21/02/11

News from the local food scene

• Rally for restaurants: On Feb. 1, the New Hampshire Lodging & Restaurant Association announced the launch of the Rally for NH Restaurants movement, a two-month-long statewide marketing campaign throughout February and March that’s dedicated to informing restaurant customers about the ongoing challenges the industry continues to face due to the pandemic. Visit rallyfornhrestaurants.com for ideas, from the consumer’s perspective, on how to make a positive impact on New Hampshire eateries, from purchasing gift cards and ordering takeout to donating to the New Hampshire Hospitality Employee Relief Fund.

• All about superfoods: Join the Derry Public Library for a virtual presentation on foods that support immune health, happening on Wednesday, Feb. 17, at 6 p.m. Hannaford dietitian Heidi Tissot will highlight different nutrient-dense foods, such as probiotics, prebiotics and antioxidants, as well as the role of vitamin C, vitamin D, zinc and omega-3 fats. She will present a live demonstration of a simple recipe and will leave time at the end for a question and answer session. Visit derrypl.org to register.

• Celebration of chocolate: Ancient Fire Mead & Cider (8030 S. Willow St., Manchester) will host a Valentine’s Day weekend celebration Thursday, Feb. 11, through Sunday, Feb. 14, when it will offer release two new chocolate meads on Thursday, serve complimentary hot chocolate on Saturday and offer a “chocolate lover” snack special on Sunday. “Only the Sexy People,” its first product made with cacao, is a raspberry blossom mead with red raspberries and Haitian cacao nibs, while “Sparks Will Fly” is a Hawaiian macadamia and coffee blossom mead with habanero peppers and Ghanaian cacao nibs. Both will be available for dine-in or growlers to go. Tables can be booked and takeout orders can be placed at ancientfiremeads.com.

Winter trees

Holly, hemlock and more seasonal favorites

I recently asked a few readers, garden friends and tree experts a question: “What is your favorite tree in winter?” It’s not easy to pick just one, any more than most of us would be willing to name a favorite child. I invite you to think about the question, and perhaps, come spring, you will want to plant one if you haven’t already.

Pamela Kirkpatrick of Swansea, Massachusetts, sent me this: “I love the winter landscape, and, next to my family, trees are my greatest love. American holly, which comes into its own in winter, both for its gleanings and the way it reflects light. Beech of any kind, for showing off its muscular trunk when not in leaf. White pine, troublesome as it is with its brittle limbs, because it is home to an owl who returns there every winter and serenades us with his call.”

Lynn Schadd of Cornish emailed me saying, “Amur maackia is for me the best four season-interest tree in the garden. And right now its magnificent bark is stealing the show peeling, curling, showing off plates of designer colors all of which may be easily seen since the tree has no oak-like aspirations of bigness.”

Lisa Lovelette of Waterbury Center, Vermont, wrote, “My favorite winter tree is the pine tree when dressed in white. I am a hobbyist photographer and nothing is more beautiful than a stately pine dressed in white when placed in front of a beautiful Vermont sunset, sunrise, or majestic sky … and a rising bright and bold full moon in the background makes the dressed pine a standout.”

Anne Raver of Providence, Rhode Island, is a former New York Times garden writer. Here’s what she said: “My favorite tree is the scarlet oak, or the white oak, or the red oak, any kind of oak. They support hundreds of species of insects, whose caterpillars feed on the leaves, and who provide crucial food for birds. Also, the red and scarlet oaks turn beautiful colors.”

Donnamarie Kelly of Salem wrote, “By far my favorite winter tree is the hemlock. When snow-laden, the boughs remind me of ballerina hands dipping delicately downward. Hemlocks are full, projecting a sense of being in the ‘woods’ even when in a simple grove of two or three trees.“

Julie Moir Messervy is a world-renowned garden designer and author of many great garden books. She emailed, “Our land in Vermont was an old sheep farm, as were so many. My favorite tree (in winter and also all year long) is a stately white oak (Quercus alba) that may well date from the 1800s. For me, it’s a “cosmic tree” that shades and shields our deck and screen porch from the harsh western sun, while opening its boughs to the cool summer winds. It is home to squirrels, porcupine and at least 13 types of birds in winter….”

Christine MacManus of Narragansett, Rhode Island, emailed, “A favorite winter tree of mine is a neighbor’s Stewartia with its wonderful bark of mottled patterns and colors. I’ve kept my eye on this tree for 40 years and sometimes pull mulch away from the trunk flare. And of course the summer flowers are a bonus too.”

My favorite tree authority, Mike Dirr, author of Manual of Woody Landscape Plants, could not limit himself to just one or two. He emailed, saying, “I love Nyssa sylvatica (black tupelo), Fagus grandifolia (American beech), Quercus alba (white oak), Liriodendron tulipifera (Tulip tree) and Quercus bicolor (swamp white oak) for starters.”

I know Professor Dirr is particularly fond of “majestic trees” — trees that tower over the landscape and last for 100 years or more, and all of those he mentioned can do so.

J.D. Lavallee of Henniker loves blues spruces: “In the winter, I just loved how the snow is caught in their branches forming beautiful white pillows. And light snows simply add a beautiful dusting of their needles.”

Tom Bacon of Hanover emailed, “I love the majesty of the hemlocks in general, but the way they hold the snow is beautiful in the winter and just stunning compared to other evergreens.”

As for me? My favorite is the hybrid Merrill magnolia I planted long ago as a specimen tree in the back of the house. I love its smooth gray bark and the fuzzy buds like pussywillows on steroids. Those buds remind me that spring is coming, no matter how cold the weather now. Of the native trees, I love the hop hornbeam (Ostrya virginiana) in winter. The bare branches are fine and delicate, with tiny buds. The lateral branching patterns are so ornate and beautiful that I hung one on the ceiling above my computer.

One last perspective came from my friend Alicia Jenks of Weathersfield, Vermont. She noted that American beech trees produce a lovely rustling sound on breezy winter days. The young trees hold their leaves until May and provide a quiet symphony in winter. And pines make such a soothing song on breezy days, too. So go outside to look — and listen — to the trees. Pay attention, and your trees may surprise and delight you.

Featured Photo: Flower buds on my Merrill magnolia are like pussywillows all winter. Photo by Henry Homeyer.

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