Betsy Williams of Needham MA will teach Growing and Cooking with Culinary Herbs at The Inn at Weathersfield June 7, 2014
Our culinary weekend adventures are designed to explore Vermont's fresh foods and the surrounding farms, and allow students to learn from, cook with, and dine with culinary experts from around the country.
Perkinsville, VT (PRWEB) May 13, 2014
The Inn at Weathersfield announces an all-new series of hands-on cooking class weekends to be held in “The Hidden Kitchen” Cooking Studio at the classic country inn in southeastern Vermont. Starting June 7, join herb and garden writer, cook and historian Betsy Williams of Needham, MA for a class on Learning to Grow and Cook with Culinary Herbs; and on July 14, From Our Farms to Your Forks: Recipes from The Vermont Farm Table Cookbook and The Connecticut Farm Table Cookbook with Vermont author Tracey Medeiros.
“Our Cooking Class Weekends are designed to explore Vermont’s fresh foods and the surrounding farms, and allow students to learn from, and cook and dine with culinary experts from around the country, while inspiring them to eat healthier,” explains Inn owner and cooking school director Marilee Spanjian.
During the June 7 Saturday morning three-hour Cooking with Herbs class, Betsy Williams, author of the “Mrs. Thrift" herb cookbooks, takes students into the Inn’s organic herb garden to learn about and collect fresh herbs to prepare herb butter, herb salt, herb mustard and her famous “garbage” herb vinegar. Students learn to chop, store and freeze herbs for year-round use, and prepare lemon-herb chicken with herbed greens and herb-mustard dressing for lunch.
A celebrated author, Betsy Williams is an entertaining and highly-sought after lecturer, having appeared on the Discovery Channel, cable television and national radio talk shows, and in The New York Times and Better Homes and Gardens.
Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning, students have the opportunity to tour the display gardens and art gallery at Cider Hill Gardens and Gallery where herbalist and horticulturist Sarah Milek and internationally-known painter and gardener Gary Milek grow and sell herbs, woodland flowers, peonies, daylilies and hostas. Saturday evening Sarah and Gary Milek join the class for a table talk over a multi-course dinner with fresh herbs, prepared by The Inn at Weathersfield’s Executive Chef Jean-Luc Matecat. Each participating guest/couple who spend the night receive a Gary Milek 17.5 x 29” Culinary Herb print.
On July 12, Tracey Medeiros, a food writer, stylist and recipe developer who authored The Vermont Farm Table Cookbook, Dishing Up Vermont and the soon to be published The Connecticut Farm Table Cookbook comes to The Hidden Kitchen to teach From Our Farms to Your Forks. Students prepare and taste five farm-to-table recipes to include Corn Quiche, Baby Spinach Salad with Lavender Dressing, Caprese Sandwich, Sauteed Sea Scallops in Smoked Bacon and Maple Cream Sauce, and Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake.
Saturday evening Tracey Medeiros dines with participants at a private farm-to-table dinner prepared by Chef Jean-Luc Matécat. Optional farm tours are offered Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning.
Cooking Class weekend events are limited to 12 participants and include one night’s lodging, two dinners, two breakfasts, the class with lunch, and the tours. Prices range from $429-$499 double occupancy, with a commuter price of $79 for class and lunch, and $149 with the private dinner.
As part of the 2014 Vermont Cooking Class Weekend Series, The Inn at Weathersfield is also offering Pit Roasting with Executive Chef Jean-Luc Matecat August 2; Not Far from the Tree: America’s Heirloom Apples with NH author and apple/cider expert Ben Watson Sept 13; Celebrate Autumn’s Bounty: Root Vegetables, Fruits and Leaves with VT cookbook author Andrea Chesman October 25; and Drink (and Eat) Like It’s 1699: Colonial Cocktails with NH food and drinks writer Corin Hirsch Dec 6.
Privately owned by Marilee and Richard Spanjian, The Inn at Weathersfield, a former stagecoach stop built in 1792, is now a New England Premier Culinary Destination offering 12 unique en-suite guest rooms, an acclaimed fine dining restaurant and tavern, vegetable gardens and a wedding amphitheater on 21 wooded acres. It is located 20 minutes from Woodstock and Ludlow, VT, around four hours from NYC, 2.5 hours from Boston, and 2 hours from Hartford, CT.
To learn more about the Vermont Cooking Class Weekends at The Inn at Weathersfield, and to register for Culinary Herbs with Betsy Williams on June 7, and From Our Farms to Your Forks with Tracey Medeiros on July 12, contact (802) 263-9217 or visit http://www.weathersfieldinn.com/hidden-kitchen.
