New Vermont Cooking

Feelin' Ducky?

2012-01-23T17:33:00.004-05:00

Local Food: Muscovy duck, raised at Applecheek Farm, is among the most tender and flavorful. Steven slowly sautées the breast to attain the much desired crispy skin and to release some of the luscious flavor from the fat. The duck is finished in the oven, roasted to your desired doneness. Crunchy purple cabbage is marinated in red wine from Shelburne Vineyard, honey, maple syrup from Caledonia Farm, raspberries and apple cider vinegar, along with apples and onions - a sweet and sour zing on the plate. Also served with the duck is spaetzle, translated from German as "little sparrow," which is a tiny, rustic pasta, so called because of its handmade shape. Made with eggs from Sunshine Acres, whole grain mustard and whole wheat flour from Butterworks Farm, the spaetzle is the perfect accompaniment to the moist and rich duck breast.

At the Bar: Remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. Sunday, January 29th we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art, a $4 glass of East Shore Vineyard Traminette or Cabernet Franc. Try our Cranberry Hot Buttered Rum, made with spiced rum, ginger liqueur and Steven's cranberry butter blend, offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: Galaxy Loves You - Share the love at the Galaxy's Bookstore Warming Party on Friday, February 3rd, from 6 until midnight. Come check out the new space, browse the shelves, then dance on over right next door to Claire's for the Heartthrob party. The Galaxy is open for business! Shelves are still being restocked and a grand reopening awaits many other features of the new space - come in now and check back often to see the progress.

Music Notes: Spider Roulette joins us this Thursday, January 26 at 7:00. Check out the trio playing acoustic blues, roots and Americana.

Local Events: Valentine's Day will be here before we know it, so make your dinner reservation now. Tell us why you love Hardwick on the Claire's Facebook page, and you will be entered to win Valentine's dinner for two! Thank you to the many folks who have already participated- we love hearing what you have to say!

With six miles of groomed trails open, now is the perfect time to visit the Hardwick Trails. On Saturday, January 29 from 9:00am to noon, you can borrow cross country skis and snowshoes for free. Just stop by the log cabin behind Hazen Union. If you'd like to borrow equipment on a different day, call 472-6517.

Mark your calendars for our next Heartthrob Dance Party Friday, February 3 from 10-2! DJ Lesson One will be spinning your favorites so bring your dancing shoes and your ID- 18 and over. Creative attire encouraged. $5 suggested donation at the door for music.

Reminders: This year, we will be open throughout January - daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have been able to significantly reduced those fees.

Click on the image above to get a closer look!

Cozy Comfort

2012-01-14T18:00:00.002-05:00

Local Food: In Medieval days, meat often was served on a thick slice of bread - a kind of edible plate called a "trencher" that soaked up the gravy - and this was the precursor to a popular American comfort food. Steven introduces an open face meatloaf sandwich to the menu to provide you with some cozy comfort on these cold nights. A mix of meats and flavors go into the loaf, including beef from Sweetgrass Farm in Hardwick, pork from Sterling College, duck from Applecheek Farm, bacon from Winding Brook Farm, and turkey from Agape Hill Farm. The meatloaf is served open face on rosemary bread from Bohemian Bakery, topped with house made aioli. Steven makes gravy with Vermont's own Whistlepig Whiskey as well as onions, and tops it with a salad of claytonia and sprouts.

At the Bar: Remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, January 22nd we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Riverbend Red. Try our Maple Manhattan, made with whiskey, Urban Moonshine Maple Bitters and Sweet Stone Maple Farm maple syrup, offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: Thanks to everyone who helped make the move to Main Street on Monday! Check out our Facebook page for photos - you don't need to be a Facebook user to check it out. Galaxy is now open next to Claire's. Watch for new books arriving, hours changing so that you can stop in before dinner, and lots of exciting things coming soon. Right now Galaxy is open 9-5:30 during the week, and 10-5 on Saturdays.

Music Notes: Bluegrass trio Freddy & The Weeds join us this Thursday, January 19 at 7:00. Support local music and check out their non-traditional jams mixed with old favorites.

Local Events: The 2012 Hardwick Wellness Expo is this Saturday, January 21 from 2-5 at the Hardwick Inn. This is your opportunity to meet local wellness practitioners: yoga teachers, fitness instructors, massage therapists, aroma therapists, reiki practitioners, acupuncturists and more. There will be an on-going raffle of goods and services- proceeds benefit Open Space, a non-profit movement collective. Contact Kelly Fairchild at kfairchild@vtlink.net.

Mark your calendars for our next Heartthrob Dance Party Friday, February 3 from 10-2! DJ Lesson One will be spinning your favorites so bring your dancing shoes and your ID- 18 and over. Creative attire encouraged. $5 suggested donation at the door for music.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have been able to significantly reduced those fees.

Click on the image above to get a closer look!

Shrub - To Drink!

2012-01-09T11:33:00.005-05:00

Local Libations: As far back as colonial days, a "shrub" was a popular beverage made using vinegar for the preservation of fruit. The odd name, though, has no relation to nature - it was more likely derived from the Arabic word sharab, which is translated as "to drink." With both tart and sweet notes, shrubs today can be a versatile staple at any bar. We make our cranberry shrub with berries from Vermont Cranberry Company, and mash them with raw sugar until they turn into a thick syrup. After a few days, we add raw apple cider vinegar, and the magic begins, as the cranberries bring the sweet and pungent flavors together. When mixed with Green Mountain Organic Vodka and topped with soda water, the refreshing cocktail with its mellowing flavors is slightly reminiscent of Kombucha, but with a kick.

Local Art: Welcome David Smith for an exhibit of his work at Claire's, and explore his interest in the representation of light. The opening reception is Monday, January 16, 4-6 pm. Talk with the artist and enjoy our bar specials as well as a bite.

At the Bar: Remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, January 15th we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art Ridge Runner, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Riverbend Red. Try our Cranberry Shrub, made with Green Mountain Organic Vodka, Vermont Cranberry Company juice and cranberries, offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: The Galaxy Bookshop is on the move! This week you will find the bookstore in the back rooms of the Granite Trust building on Mill Street. The Center for an Agricultural Economy is moving to Mill Street on Monday and Andrew and his crew at Vermont Natural Coatings will be working on the floors on Main Street to get the space next to Claire's ready for The Galaxy. Stay tuned to the move and browse at http://www.galaxybookshop.com/ - or come by to visit - we are still open for business.

Music Notes: Singer/Songwriter Paul Cataldo joins us this Thursday, January 13th at 7:30. Stop by and enjoy a cocktail and what musemuse.com calls "good ol' backwoods hippy-esque Country/Folk!"

Local Events: Our friends at Citizen Cider in Essex are attempting the world's first Community Supported Cidery! When you join you can enjoy delicious cider throughout the year at a discounted rate. Learn more about them here.

Reminders: This year, we will be open throughout January - daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have been able to significantly reduced those fees.

Click on the image above to get a closer look!

Something to Prize

2012-01-02T20:15:00.007-05:00

Local Food: Do you remember ripping through the caramel corn to find the trinket hidden inside the box? With maple instead of sugar, Steven makes caramel corn the prize itself. White Lightning Organic Popcorn comes via Pete's Greens (also available in their CSA share) and is a hybrid variety grown by Loraine and Steve Lalonde just across the border in Quebec. White Lightning has a delicate, crispy and slightly nutty flavor that complements the maple syrup sauce that coats it. The sauce is made by heating syrup from Sweet Stone Maple Farm in Hardwick to a high temperature. The popcorn complements a rich chocolate ganache - made with maple liqueur - and our famous house made maple fluff, though for this plate the fluff is toasted and brings to mind smores around the campfire. The final touch is a salted walnut caramel sauce, creating a landscape of treats for your mouth.

At the Bar: Remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, January 8th we offer a $2.50 pint of Trout River, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Big Barn Red. The French 75, made with Caledonia Spirits Barr Hill Gin, is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: Galaxy is making the move to Main Street this month, in stages. This week you will find Galaxy in the bank building on Mill Street, and while the bookstore is starting to look different in preparation for the move, there are still new books arriving. Beginning on Saturday, Galaxy will be operating from the back of the bank building to make way for the move. Come visit, and remember you can always visit us virtually.

Music Notes: Blue Fox joins us this Thursday, January 5th at 7:00. Check out what Pamela Polston of Seven Days calls his "deep-lazy-growly-sexy" vocals and "ultra-strength" guitar playing.

Local Events: Celebrate the Grand Opening of the Vermont Food Venture Center this Friday, January 6 from 12:00-5:00. The opening is hosted by the Center for an Agricultural Economy and Northern Enterprises, with guided tours, invited guest speakers and a ribbon cutting ceremony at 1:00 with Senator Patrick Leahy.

Reminders: This year, we will be open for all of January. We open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have significantly reduced those fees this year.

Click on the image above to get a closer look!

Wishing You Good Fortune in the New Year

2011-12-26T17:25:00.018-05:00

Local Food: Celebrate the New Year all weekend, with a combination of good fortune and good local food. To mark the arrival of 2012, Steven is starting his menu with foods traditionally considered harbingers of good luck for the new year, like pork, beans, and sauerkraut. But of course he will make unique variations, like the Jacob's Cattle Beans and pork shoulder that comprise a popular plate of good luck also known as pork butt, or a succulent and crispy pork belly melting along with the beans. And nothing says "good fortune" more than Hardwick's The Butterbeans, whose performance crafts a festive atmosphere from 7-9. Make your dinner reservation before noon on Friday, December 30 and you can enjoy two free desserts as a gift from us, and be entered to win the grand prize, dinner for two on Valentine's Day. Our special New Year's cocktail this year is the Caledonia Royale, made with Caledonia Spirits Sparkling Mead and Elderberry Cordial, offered for $8.

We're also open for Blunch and Dinner on New Year's Day. There's no better way to greet the first day of the year (and fortify yourself after the previous nights festivities) than with a good morning or midday meal, which we serve from 11 am until 2 pm. Call ahead to reserve a table!

At the Bar: If you need a bit of the hair, remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, January 1st we offer a $2.50 pint of Trout River, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Riverbend Red. Claire's Cosmo, with Green Mountain Organic Vodka and Vermont Cranberry Company juice, is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: The Galaxy will be open during regular hours this week, and begin the move to Main Street after the New Year. If you were lucky enough to get a gift certificate during the holidays, this is a great week to redeem it. David Budbill's Happy Life, featuring a gorgeous cover by Lois Eby, is an excellent book to keep close by as the New Year approaches. Keep up to date with the move here.

Music Notes: Cosa Buena join us this Thursday, December 29 at 7:30 for acoustic music with a gentle Latin-Jazz feel. Their sound is romantic while at the same time infused with exciting energy to warm the soul.

Local Events: Celebrate the Grand Opening of the Vermont Food Venture Center on Friday, January 6 from 12:00- 5:00. The opening is hosted by the Center for an Agricultural Economy and Northern Enterprises, with guided tours, invited guest speakers and a ribbon cutting ceremony at 1:00 with Senator Patrick Leahy.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have significantly reduced those fees this year.

A Toast to Family and Friends

2011-12-23T17:15:00.002-05:00

We will be closed December 24 and 25 so our staff can celebrate the holidays with family and friends. We'll be back on Monday with more holiday season cocktail specials.

Claire's gift certificates will be available for purchase at The Galaxy Bookshop on Saturday, December 24, from 10-5. Cash or check only please.

Next weekend, spend New Year's Eve with us and The Butterbeans, who will perform from 7-9 pm on December 31. Every reservation of two or more made by Friday, December 30, at noon, will enjoy two desserts as a gift from us, and all our New Year's Eve guests can enter to win the Grand Prize Drawing, a Valentine's Day dinner for two.

On New Year's Day, come in for our signature Blunch from 11 am until 2 pm, or for dinner after 5 pm.

Happy Holidays

2011-12-19T19:37:00.010-05:00

Local Food: Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Happy Boxing Day! Heri za Kwanzaa! Happy Solstice! Bonne Année!

However you celebrate the season, take some time to unwind at Claire's. The cold is finally upon us, and what better way to warm us up than a Cranberry Hot Buttered Rum, made with a spiced cranberry butter created by Steven. Or enjoy a Frothy Nogtini with Strafford Organic Creamery Eggnog and Dunc's Mill Maple Rum to get you in the holiday spirit. Kids can enjoy Eggnog or hot spiced cider. Beef Brisket from Snug Valley Farm arrives just in time to inspire the perfect Shabbat supper on the fourth night of Hanukkah. Celebrate the Solstice or take a break from Christmas shopping and gift wrapping on December 22, and enjoy the sounds of Hazen Union students singing some holiday carols. Stop by on Friday as your family arrives for Christmas weekend.

Spend New Year's Eve with us and The Butterbeans, who will be joining us from 7-9 on December 31. Every reservation of two or more made by Friday, December 30, at noon, will enjoy two desserts as a gift from us, and all our New Year's Eve guests can enter to win the Grand Prize Drawing, a Valentine's Day dinner for two.

We will be closed December 24 and 25 so our staff can celebrate the holiday with their families and friends.

At the Bar: Remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. We will be closed this Sunday, December 25, and will reopen on Monday, the 26th with drink specials including $2.50 Switchback pints, $4 wine and $5 cocktail.

Around the Galaxy: It is the season for eating and giving, and Galaxy has books for both. The Butcher's Guide to Well-Raised Meat will prepare you to make the best of All About Roasting: A New Approach to a Classic Art. Or if you want to sit by the stove and plan for next year's batch of jams, pick up The Fruit Gardener's Bible to make the most of your berry patch. The book is an updated, revised and expanded edition of Lewis Hill's classic Fruits and Berries for the Home Garden, by UVM Extension professor Leonard Perry.

Music Notes: Talented Hazen Union students will be joining us this Thursday, December 22 at 7:00 to get us in the spirit with holiday tunes and more!

Local Events: Get a head start on your garden with High Mowing Seeds. Join their Community Supported Seeds program and receive 10% off seeds for next season! Put your seed dollars towards supporting an independently-owned company committed to meeting your farming needs with high-quality organic seeds. This discount is offered only through December 31, 2011.

Getting Ready for the Holidays: Buy a gift certificate now until New Year's Eve and we will donate 10% of sales to NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program. When you pay with cash or check, get 5% off!

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have significantly reduced those fees this year.

Click on the image above to get a closer look!

Just Off the Grill

2011-12-12T21:16:00.002-05:00

Local Food: While Spanish goats first arrived on America's shores far to our south in the 16th century, they are prized for their ability to adapt to a variety of brush, scrub and brambles, so they require less care than cattle or sheep who need grass. In the Green Mountains, we might be more familiar with "The Lonely Goatherd" than the luxurious soft cashmere and lean meat - particularly succulent when grilled - of Spanish goats. Vermont Chevon Meats in Danville helps us with our first foray into the world of goat meat, and their meat is particularly suited to the deep spices available from the Middle East, North Africa, South Asia, and the Caribbean. For his opening salvo, Steven rubs the goat leg with Vadouvan, a French spice derived from Indian sources. Like goatherders the world over, Steven turns the leg over fire on the grill, and then he braises it overnight in Caledonia Spirits Black Currant Mead, with garlic from Sandiwood Farm and Cipollini onions from Leslie White. The tender meat is served off the bone with a sweet turnip raita, a South Asian sauce made with yogurt from Butterworks Farm , cilantro and honey.

At the Bar: Remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, December 18th we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Riverbend Red. The Apple Cider car, with Green Mountain Organic Vodka, apple cider and Vermont apple brandy, is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: Galaxy recently announced an upcoming swap with the Center for an Agricultural Economy. In January the bookstore will move to locate between Claire's and the Buffalo Mountain Co-op. Look forward to more events in collaboration with Claire's and evening hours to bring two great things - books and food - closer together. Keep apprised here.

Music Notes: Spider Roulette joins us this Thursday, December 15 at 7:30 for their first visit. Check out the trio playing acoustic blues, roots and Americana.

Local Events: This Saturday, December 17 is the Open House at the Hardwick Inn building in downtown Hardwick. Visit local businesses, including S & J Fitness, who are celebrating their 6th anniversary. From 9-5, celebrate with Julie and Steve with door prizes, food and discounts.

Also stop by Vermont Glass Workshop in Hardwick for their 28th Annual Open Studio on Saturday, December 17 from 10-5. You can find ornaments, firsts, seconds, experiments and even a demo by Harry Besett.

Getting Ready for the Holidays: Buy a gift certificate now until New Year's Eve and we will donate 10% of sales to NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program. When you pay with cash or check, get 5% off!

Spend New Year's Eve with us and The Butterbeans, who will be joining us from 7-9 on December 31. Every reservation of two or more made by Friday, December 30, at noon, will enjoy two desserts as a gift from us, and all our New Year's Eve guests can enter to win the Grand Prize Drawing, a Valentine's Day dinner for two.

We will be closed December 24 and 25 so our staff can celebrate the holiday with their families and friends.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have significantly reduced those fees this year.

Click on the image above to get a closer look!

Crab Baked

2011-12-05T18:20:00.002-05:00

Local Food: When the holiday pace is a little too much - instead of getting crabby, try the new crab gratin Steven is preparing. For a gentle pick-me-up, the tender Maine crab meat is mixed with vegetables including sweet potatoes, earthy celery root, spicy red onion from Hazendale, and preserved sweet corn from Pete's, all sautéed in Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc. Steven mixes in a crème fraîche he makes from Butterworks Farm cream, and this adds a slight nutty flavor. A topping of breadcrumbs is mixed with parsley from Hatchbrook Farm and lemon thyme from Steven's own garden. The gratin is baked until crispy, brown and warm. The final touch is a salad of peppery golden frills mustard greens tossed with herb vinaigrette and bacon (which can be omitted).

At the Bar: Remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, December 11th we offer a $2.50 pint of Trout River, a $4 glass of Shelburne Vineyard New World Red or Lincoln Peak Starlight Rosé. The Elderberry Fizz with Caledonia Spirits Elderberry Cordial, Barr Hill Gin and ginger beer, is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: This is a delicious season for cookbooks and books about food. Come in to browse through Essential Pepin or Molly Stevens' new book All About Roasting to whet your appetite. You may have recently heard the interview with Tom Mueller, author of Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil - get a taste in the Google preview and come in to Galaxy for the whole book.

Music Notes: Laslo Cameo join us Thursday, December 8th at 7:30, playing their unique blend of world cultures. Our neighbors Leslie Campos and Randy Bulpin, with their shared desire to play groove-oriented and roots based material will put on a must see show!

Local Events: Our "Glitter Ball" dance party is this Friday, December 9 from 10-2! DJ Lesson One will be spinning your favorites so bring your dancing shoes and your ID- 18 and over. Creative attire encouraged. $5 suggested donation at the door for music.

Vermont Vaudeville's next show is this Saturday, December 10 at 8:00 at the Orleans Municipal Building. They bring community-centered, live entertainment to the theater spaces in Vermont. Their all ages shows provide opportunities for performers and audiences near and far. Help support their mission to revive the spirit of Vaudeville in the Green Mountain State by producing and performing funny, amazing, broadly accessible shows.

Getting Ready for the Holidays: Buy a gift certificate now through the new year and we will donate 10% of sales to NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program.

Spend New Year's Eve with us and The Butterbeans, who will be joining us from 7-9 on December 31. Every reservation of two or more made by Friday, December 30, at noon, will enjoy two desserts as a gift from us, and all our New Year's Eve guests can enter to win the Grand Prize Drawing, a Valentine's Day dinner for two.

We will be closed December 24 and 25 so our staff can celebrate the holidays with their families and friends.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have significantly reduced those fees this year.

Click on the image above to get a closer look!

Cocktail Class is Back!

2011-12-02T12:20:00.004-05:00

Cocktail Class is back at Claire's on Saturday, December 3, featuring vodka and gin with special guests Duncan Holaday and Todd Hardie of Hardwick's Caledonia Spirits. Duncan started Vermont Spirits 16 years ago to make vodka from his maple syrup and from milk. Recently, he turned his expertise to rum, making the Dunc's Mill Maple and Elderflower Rums featured in our last class. He also is the Head Distiller at Caledonia Spirits, where he makes Barr Hill Gin and Vodka, along with Caledonia Spirits Elderberry Cordial. On Saturday, December 3 from 4-5 pm, learn from the master distiller and owner Todd Hardie about the spirits, and how to mix cocktails to bring out the unique flavor of each spirit. Free admission and specials on cocktails and flights are available if you are so inspired.

$8 Flight and Cocktail Special

Flight- 1 ounce each of Barr Hill Gin and Vodka and Caledonia Spirits Elderberry Cordial

Caledonia Royale

Elderberry Fizz

Barr Hill Bite

Barr Hill Vodka Martini

Attend four classes to earn your degree - a gift card at Claire's or The Galaxy Bookshop!

Earn Your Degree in Cocktails!

2011-11-28T18:15:00.001-05:00

Attend four classes to earn your degree - a gift card at Claire's or The Galaxy Bookshop!

At the Bar: Remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, December 4th we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Big Barn Red. Claire's Cranberry Cocktail with Bourbon and Vermont Cranberry Company cranberries and juice, is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: Come to Galaxy on Saturday for the Sirius Reader Party and sale. On December 3, Galaxy celebrates 23 years in Hardwick with a sale on staff picks and other select items all day. Neil and Kristin Urie will be here from 3-5 with cheese, calendars, and other great products from Bonnieview Farm. Galaxy will also be celebrating The Joy of Cheesemaking. The book features Bonnieview and the Galaxy gals will be cooking some great recipes from the book for everyone to sample. Lots of new items from Melissa and Doug, Planet Shari and books galore all day long.

Music Notes: Jay Ekis joins us this Thursday, December 1 at 7:30. Support local music and be sure to catch what Anais Mitchell calls his "infectious" songs that "get in your blood and make their way to the heart before you notice what's happening."

Local Events: Ben Hewitt, Pete Johnson, Bethany Dunbar, Annie Meyers and Julia Shipley will be reading on Friday, December 2nd to benefit the Hardwick Food Pantry in an event called "A Harvest of Words." The reading begins at 6:30PM at the Episcopal Church in Hardwick and is cosponsored by The Center for an Agricultural Economy and Galaxy Bookshop. For more information contact Elena at the Center for an Agricultural Economy, 472-5840.

Support Hardwick businesses this Saturday, December 3rd during the Holiday Happenings Event. Stop by Claire's from 11-3 for free hot apple cider. Gift certificates will be available, with a 5% discount if you pay with cash or check. Also check out the open house at Agape Hill Farm Fiber Shop on the 3rd from 10-3 and get a jump on your holiday shopping. Stop by GRACE, Hardwick Inn Clothing Co., The Flower Basket and many more local businesses.

Mark your calendars for our next "Glitter Ball" dance party, on Friday, December 9 from 10-2! DJ Lesson One will be spinning your favorites so bring your dancing shoes and your ID- 18 and over. $5 suggested donation at the door for the music.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have significantly reduced those fees this year.

Click on the image above to get a closer look!

Gobble Gobble

2011-11-21T19:13:00.001-05:00

Local Thanks: As many of us sit down this week to give thanks for living in Vermont, we'll enjoy turkey (Agape Hill Farm), cranberries (Vermont Cranberry Company), stuffing (Patchwork Farm and Bakery), pumpkins (Ben's Pumpkins), beer (Hill Farmstead Brewery), wine (Boyden Valley), and cocktails (Caledonia Spirits). As everyone at Claire's celebrates, we give thanks for the many farmers and producers in and around Hardwick, the Northeast Kingdom, and throughout Vermont - even a few from just across our border. We couldn't do what we do without you, and we thank you for working so hard to help our community nourish itself around a convivial table. We also send out our thanks to this wonderful community for the support of our friends and neighbors. We will be closed this Thursday so our staff can spend the day with friends and families, and we wish you a healthy and happy day with your family and loved ones. We are open as usual on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and throughout the coming week.

At the Bar: Cocktail Class is back at Claire's Saturday, December 3, with special guest Duncan Holaday of Caledonia Spirits. Duncan started Vermont Spirits 16 years ago and made vodka for years from his maple syrup and also from milk. Now he is the Head Distiller and makes Barr Hill Gin and Barr Hill Vodka. On Saturday, December 3 from 4-5 pm, learn from the master which cocktails bring out the complex flavor of each spirit, and how to mix the vodka and gin with the flavorful produce of Vermont. Free Admission and specials on cocktails and flights if you are so inspired.

Remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, November 27th we offer a $2.50 pint of Trout River, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Big Barn Red. The Barr Hill Bluetini with Caledonia Spirits Barr Hill Gin and Jasper Hill blue cheese stuffed olive, is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: In the spirit of Thanksgiving, Galaxy is gearing up for the Sirius Reader Customer Appreciation and 23rd Anniversary Sale on December 3rd. More details to come; for now mark the date and come by. Many other businesses in the Hardwick area will also be kicking off the holidays on that day so you can have an extra fun day of shopping locally.

Music Notes: We will be closed this Thursday, November 24, but join us on Thursday, December 1 for Jay Ekis at 7:30.

Local Events: Registration for Sterling College's Vermont Table summer program is now open. Vermont's Table is an intensive academic program in sustainable food systems that includes practical culinary experience, frequent field trips, lessons in sustainable agriculture and seminars in food writing and food entrepreneurism. The program is open to current Sterling College students, students from other colleges and universities and adult learners.

Mark your calendars for our next "Glitter Ball" dance party, on Friday, December 9 from 10-2! DJ Lesson One will be spinning your favorites so bring your dancing shoes and your ID- 18 and over. $5 suggested donation at the door for the music.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have significantly reduced those fees this year.

Click on the image above to get a closer look!

A Pork by any Name

2011-11-14T16:48:00.001-05:00

Local Food: Actually the shoulder of the animal, the deliciously tender but seemingly misnamed pork butt originates in the butchery practices of the days before the American Revolution, when the cut was stored in casks or barrels, called butts. Steven takes pork butt from Pete and braises it overnight in Rock Art Brewery Pumpkin Imperial Spruce Stout, spiced with cumin and paprika, and an dollop of maple syrup from Caledonia Farm. To this deliciously tender mouthful, Steven adds sautéed onions, garlic, cayenne peppers and house-preserved tomatoes that enhance the Jacob's Cattle beans. A light salad of tossed yellow beans, cilantro and a splash more maple syrup accompany the pork butt, along with flavorful beer bratwursts from Applecheek Farm. Topped with aged cheddar from Grafton and crunchy bread crumbs, the dish is baked until crisp and served to you piping hot.

At the Bar: Come in to enjoy our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, November 20th we offer a $2.50 pint of Trout River Chocolate Oatmeal Stout, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Riverbend Red. The Maple Manhattan, with bourbon, Green Mountain Organic Maple Liqueur and maple syrup is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: Come wish Rusty DeWees happy birthday at The Galaxy Bookshop on Tuesday at 7PM. Don't miss the cake and the chance to hear The Logger introduce his new book, Scrawlins Too. If you want a hint about what kind of cake to expect, you might want to read the chapter called "Box Cake." Then on December 3rd Galaxy will celebrate a birthday - stay tuned for details and plan to stop by.

Music Notes: Singer/Songwriter Paul Cataldo joins us this Thursday, November 17 at 7:30. Stop by and enjoy a cocktail and what musesmuse.com calls "good ol' backwoods hippy-esque Country/Folk!"

Local Events: Join Chris Hilke, Climate Program Coordinator for the National Wildlife Foundation, for a talk on how climate change is affecting us and what we can do about it on Wednesday, November 16 at 6:30 at People's Academy High School in Morrisville. Share your stories and concerns in an open discussion facilitated by Seth Jensen, Senior Planner for the Lamoille County Planning Commission, and Neshga Leonard, Linkage Coordinator for the Staying Connected Initiative.

On Friday, November 18th at 7PM poets Woon-Ping Chin and Merry Gangemi are the featured poets at Jeudevine Library's poetry series. The event will be at the Hardwick Memorial Building and you can find out more here or call the library, 472-5948.

Reminders: We will be closed Thursday, November 24 so our staff can enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday with their friends and families.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have significantly reduced those fees this year.

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Cranberries - the other little red berry

2011-11-07T13:33:00.002-05:00

Local Food: Thanks to the first of the harvest of cranberries from Vermont Cranberry Company in East Fairfield, Steven makes a zingy jam with the addition of apples and onions as a counterpoint to a luscious chicken liver mousse. You can also find the ruby red jewels sautéed with the crispy pork belly to add a pop of flavor, and in the vinaigrette on the beet salad, along with horseradish and dill. For dessert, Steven spices up the cranberries to top the ricotta and cream cheese cake. And you can enjoy them at the bar as well. To warm you up on these cold nights, try Steven's spiced cranberry butter in our Hot Buttered Rum. Cranberry Bob's cranberry juice is unsweetened, giving a tart edge to our Cosmo, Cranberry Margarita, and Claire's Cranberry Cocktail. At Blunch, we celebrate cranberries on the spiced pancakes, where they are sautéed with apples and dressed with maple syrup and whipped cream. Or try the classic flavors of our bacon and cheddar sandwich with onions, apples and more cranberries.

At the Bar: Come in to enjoy our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, November 13th we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art Brewery Vermont Hop Harvest, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Big Barn Red. The Apple Cider Car, made with Green Mountain Organic Vodka, Flagg Hill Farm Apple Brandy and apple cider, is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: The one, the only Rusty DeWees celebrates his birthday at The Galaxy Bookshop on November 15th at 7PM. Don't miss the cake and the chance to hear The Logger introduce his new book, Scrawlins Too. If you want a hint about what kind of cake to expect, you might want to read the chapter called "Box Cake." Then on December 3rd Galaxy will celebrate a birthday - stay tuned for details and plan to stop by.

Music Notes: Get your helping of Green Mountain soul with The Rustbucket Brothers on Thursday, November 10 at 7:30. Support local music and get down with their rootsy Americana rock and country.

Local Events: Pies for People/Soup for Supper needs your help! Volunteer and make pies, soup and more for our area schools, pantries and community dinners on Tuesday and Wednesday, November 15 and 16. Contact Elena at elena@hardwickagriculture.org or 472-5840 to volunteer or donate.

Reminders: We will be closed Thursday, November 24 so our staff can enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday with their friends and families.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have significantly reduced those fees this year.

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Sweet Potatoes in a Variety of Costumes

2011-10-31T14:28:00.002-04:00

Local Food: Despite the early arrival of winter's snow - conveniently melted away - we still have the flavors of Thanksgiving to keep us cozy. Like sweet potatoes. The versatile root vegetable provides a needed Vitamin A fix, good for healthy skin and vision, and its flavor profile is so versatile that it works in both sweet and savory plates. At Claire's, Steven mashes them with caramelized onions and sage, making the perfect accompaniment to the grilled pork loin served along with kale. Mashed sweet potatoes also accompany the vegetable fricassée, adding a subtle creaminess to the sautéed radishes, fennel, edamame and peppers. Steven mixes sweet potato fries in with the poutine to add a bit of toothsomeness. Look for them on the dessert menu too - sweet potato and dark chocolate make a decadent and healthy end to your meal.

At the Bar: Come in to enjoy our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, November 6 we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art Brewery Vermont Hop Harvest, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Big Barn Red. Our Spiked Celery Cider, made with Green Mountain Organic Vodka, muddled celery and Champlain Orchards cider, is offered for $5.

Music Notes: Audrey Bernstein and the Young Jazzers join us this Thursday, November 3 at 7:30. They present a stylized mixture of vintage and modern sounds, and perform an eclectic mix of jazz standards including ballads, swinging up-tempos and Bossa Nova.

Local Events: Glover artist Ben Barnes paintings of what Darshana Bolt calls "rusty automotive relics, nestled in Vermont landscapes that range from bleak to beautiful, from mountains to Mobil stations" are now on display at Claire's. Meet Ben at the Art Opening on Monday, November 7 from 4-6.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up. Thanks to many of you we have significantly reduced those fees this year.

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Maple Pudding Cake, Back by Popular Demand!

2011-10-24T18:32:00.002-04:00

Local Food: Thanks to multiple requests from people craving the sticky sweetness, our maple pudding cake is ready early this year, with a few new twists. Steven bakes the pudding cake, creating a sweet syrupy pudding sauce under the crispy, chewy cake topping. Pumpkin from Nancy Kish at Agape Hill Farm is added to balance the sweet maple syrup from Caledonia Farm. A cool scoop of eggnog ice cream from Strafford Organic Creamery is a new addition, as are the maple roasted pears, with pears from Provender Farm in Cabot. The resulting combination of flavors makes a sweet and rich finish to your meal. Enjoy it with a cappuccino or Espresso Martini, made with Vermont White Vodka.

At the Bar: Come in to enjoy our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, October 30 we offer a $2.50 pint of Trout River Chocolate Oatmeal Stout, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Big Barn Red. Our Cranberry Margarita made with cranberry juice from Vermont Cranberry Company, is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: Archer Mayor returns for his annual visit on Tuesday, October 25th. Don't miss the ever entertaining Archer, and remember signed books make excellent gifts. Archer's 22nd Joe Gunther mystery Tag Man features perhaps his most intriguing criminal to date. Come to Galaxy Tuesday at 7 to get the latest.

Music Notes: The Littlest Birds, a cello-banjo duo touring from Mammoth Lakes, CA will join us Thursday, October 27 at 7:30. Be sure to catch their blend of old-time, bluegrass and folk sounds.

Local Events: A community discussion on Vermont's health care future will be held at the Hardwick Town House on Tuesday, October 25 from 6:30-8:00. Representatives Lucy Leriche, Linda Martin and Sam Young will host the discussion and use your questions, concerns and ideas as a jumping off point to a lively and informative discussion. The event is a chance to consider all viewpoints, share your thoughts and ask questions. Family friendly and light refreshments will be served.

We are saddened to say goodbye to our neighbors at the Highland Lodge, who recently annouced they have closed their doors after 57 years. We'll miss you!

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Sour Grapes? Make a Graple Collins

2011-10-17T18:02:00.001-04:00

Local Food: Walden Heights Nursery & Orchard, a local treasure just outside Hardwick, grows hardy and unusual fruit and nut trees and vines, including the Arctic Kiwi, Autumn Olive, Black Walnut and over 10 varieties of grape. We like the plump, purple King of the North grape to infuse Green Mountain Organic Vodka for a tart, fresh sweetness. We add Caledonia Farm maple syrup to balance the flavors and add some depth, and a splash of Green Mountain Organic Maple Liquor. And there you have our Graple Collins, served on the rocks and topped with soda water. This refreshing fall cocktail is a delicious way to toast Vermont's enticing agricultural landscape.

At the Bar: Come in to enjoy our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, October 23 we offer a $2.50 pint of Otter Creek Oktoberfest, a $4 glass of East Shore Vineyard Traminette or Cabernet Franc. Claire's Cosmo, with Green Mountain Organic Vodka and Vermont Cranberry Company Cranberry juice, is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: On Tuesday, the 18th, Galaxy welcomes Willard Sterne Randall reading from Ethan Allen: His Life and Times. And then tag, you're it - on October 25th Archer Mayor introduces his 22nd Gunther mystery at 7PM.

Music Notes: Singer/Songwriter Paul Cataldo joins us this Thursday, October 20 at 7:30. Don't miss him belting out original songs about mountains, rivers and roads.

Local Events: Visit Caledonia Spirits & Winery at their Open House this Saturday, October 22 from 10-6. See where Barr Hill Gin and Vodka, Caledonia Mead and Dunc's Mill Rum are being made, at 46 Buffalo Mt. Commons Drive (through Lamoille Valley Ford) in Hardwick.

This Saturday, October 22 at 6:00 is the Indian Dinner and Live Dance performance to benefit Child Haven International at Hazen Union. Check out the Sari Fashion Show, live music and dance performance. Tickets are $14 for adults, $7 for kids 12 and under. Volunteers are needed- call Rachel at 472-5755 to sign up, or stop by the Buffalo Mountain Coop.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Is it Chili Yet?

2011-10-10T15:00:00.001-04:00

Local Food: With Vermont in the midst of a Mexican food renaissance, Steven puts a Green Mountain spin on a favorite from the city of Puebla, the chile relleno. He stuffs a sweet Carmen chili pepper from Pete's with Maplebrook's mozzarella and ricotta as well as Grafton cheddar cheese, adding a mix of cilantro and red onions from Riverside Farm with garlic from Sandiwood Farm. The stuffed sweet chili is battered and fried, resulting in a crispy chili with a melty cheese inside. In keeping with traditional flavors, Steven makes a slightly sweet and tart salsa verde of tomatillos, also from Sandiwood Farm. A light salad of fennel, Valentine radishes and sunflower sprouts from Peace of Earth Farm balances the richness and adds a bite of spice to the mild relleno.

At the Bar: Come in to enjoy our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, October 16 we offer a $2.50 pint of Trout River Rainbow Red, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Riverbend Red. The Cantaloupe Cocktail with Green Mountain Organic Gin, melon and ginger ale is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: Willard Sterne Randall will come to Galaxy to discuss his book Ethan Allen: His Life and Times. This event was originally scheduled in August and cancelled in the wake of Irene. Come to Galaxy to welcome Mr. Randall, Distinguished Scholar in History at Champlain College and Pulitzer nominee, Tuesday October 18th at 7PM.

Shake it Like a Leaf: Celebrate the harvest and shake off all the hard work of summer with a dance party at Claire's! Get your groove on with DJ Nukem this Friday, October 14 from 10pm-2am. Bring your ID and dancing shoes! 21 and over only please.

Music Notes: Bluegrass trio Freddy & The Weeds join us this Thursday, October 13 at 7:30. Their non-traditional jams mixed with old favorites are not to be missed!

Local Events: Enjoy a magical walk through the Hardwick Trails lit by hundreds of pumpkins. Cider, donuts and a very friendly story-telling witch can be found at a bonfire gathering at the half-way point. The Pumpkin Walk begins at 6:00 on Sunday, October 16.

On Saturday, Vermont Vaudeville brings When It Rains It Pours to the Hardwick Town House at 7:30P.M. The show is for all ages and features the world's only Toilet Paper Tightrope! Get the details here.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Get Shorty!

2011-10-03T21:38:00.000-04:00

Local Food: Beef short ribs so tender they melt. Starting from Snug Valley Farm, the ribs are brought to our kitchen where they are rubbed with cinnamon and fennel, then grilled to bring out the smokey rich goodness of the meat. Steven braises the rib with Champlain Orchards apple cider and Otter Creek Oktoberfest. Aromatics like onions from Riverside Farm, garlic from Pete's and celery leaves from Sandiwood Farm add a fresh depth to this fall flavored plate of yummy. The season's start is official with the arrival of root veggies to accompany the short rib, including roasted rutabaga and turnips, as well as fingerling potatoes. Steven's answer to the short rib challenge is perfectly complemented with a glass of Shelburne Vineyard's newest variety, New World Red, made exclusively with Vermont grapes.

At the Bar: Come in to enjoy our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, October 9 we offer a $2.50 pint of Wolaver's Brown Ale, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Riverbend Red. The Cranberry Crush with Vermont Cranberry Company cranberry juice, spiced rum and ginger ale is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: Willard Sterne Randall will come to Galaxy to discuss his book Ethan Allen: His Life and Times. This event was originally scheduled in August and cancelled in the wake of Irene. Come to Galaxy to welcome Mr. Randall, Distinguished Scholar in History at Champlain College and Pulitzer nominee, Tuesday October 18th at 7PM. Also, Galaxy will be at The Lakeview Inn on Sunday, October 9th for the book signing following a panel discussion and dessert with Marialisa Calta, Marian Burros, Judith Jones, Jeff Roberts and Bronwyn Dunne. The topic will be Home Cooking & the Development of America's Culinary Landscape. For reservations contact Bronwyn Dunne at 802-860-5022.

Music Notes: Art Edelstein and Mike Fullerton are the Borealis Guitar Duo, joining us Thursday, October 6 at 7:30. Don't miss their music from the Celtic Lands with forays into American, Scandinavian and Klezmer music.

Shake it Like a Leaf: Celebrate the harvest and shake off all the hard work of summer with a dance party at Claire's! Get your groove on with DJ Nukem on Friday, October 14 from 10pm-2am. Bring your ID and dancing shoes! 21 and over only please.

Local Events: Dine with us this Thursday, October 6 to help support NOFA-VT's Share the Harvest annual event that benefits their Farm Share program. The Farm Share program is a great way that limited-income Vermonters can afford to purchase CSA shares of fresh produce from their local farmers.

Vermont Vaudeville presents "When it Rains it Pours" on Saturday, October 15 at 7:30 at the Hardwick Town House. Be sure to catch their all-ages show overflowing with comedy and music, and featuring the world's only toilet paper tightrope!

Reminders: Beginning in October, we will return to our fall schedule and close on Wednesdays.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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2011-09-26T17:15:00.006-04:00

Local Food: With the autumnal equinox behind us and the weather cooling down, baking and roasting season comes into full swing. Hazendale, Riverside and Mystic Morning Farm grow winter squash, the thicker skinned and cold stored cousin to summer squash like zucchini. When roasted, winter squash like the acorn, butternut, pumpkin, hubbard and delicata (or sweet potato) sweeten and brighten, lending an earthy and bright flavor along with intense color. With just a pinch of salt, the squash speaks for itself when added to the crab cake and scallops. Butternut squash adds creaminess to the baby spinach salad with red onions, Bayley Hazen blue cheese, spiced walnuts and maple balsamic vinegar. Steven halves roasted pumpkins from Riverside Farm, and fills them with crunchy wheatberries and oats from Butterworks Farm and other fall flavors like onions, apples, kale and Constant Bliss cheese and tofu from Vermont Soy.

At the Bar: Come in to enjoy our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, October 2 we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Riverbend Red. The Apple Cider Car, with Champlain Orchards cider, Flag Hill Farm Pomme de Vie apple brandy and vodka is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: This is Banned Books Week and Galaxy is celebrating the freedom to read. Find a great link to challenged books here. Also, start getting some extra sleep now - the 4th Annual Read-a-Thon to benefit Hardwick Head Start begins on September 30th. Stop by Galaxy, look here or call 472-5533 for details.

Music Notes: Rustbucket Brothers return this Thursday, September 30 at 7:30. Support local music and get down with their rootsy Americana rock and country with a helping of Green Mountain soul.

Shake it Like a Leaf: Celebrate the harvest and all of your hard work this summer with a dance party at Claire's! Get your groove on with DJ Nukem on Friday, October 14 from 10pm-2am. Bring your ID and dancing shoes! 21 and over only please.

Local Events: The premiere Fall Open Studio Weekend is October 1 and 2. Support local art and get a view of Vermont's early foliage. Bring us a receipt from a participating open studio, and we'll buy you dessert!

Saturday, October 1 is Hill Farmstead Brewery's 2011 Harvest Festival, celebrating the season. From 12-5 you can sample amazing beer, local food and live music. $10 covers admission and two tasting tickets.

The final Center for an Agricultural Economy farm tour of the season is Thursday, October 20. The tour starts promptly at 10 and will visit area farms and agri-businesses. Please register at least seven days before the tour. Contact Elena with questions at 802-472-5840 ext. 2 or elena@hardwickagriculture.org.

Remember to mark your calendars for October 6, NOFA-VT's upcoming Share the Harvest annual event that benefits their Farm Share program. The Farm Share program is a great way that limited-income Vermonters can afford to purchase CSA shares of fresh produce from their local farmers. Dine with us on the 6th and help us donate a portion of our sales to the program.

Rosh Hashanah begins Thursday, September 29. Best wishes for a good and sweet new year. L'shanah tovah!

Reminders: Beginning in October, we will return to our fall schedule and close on Wednesdays.

We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Steven and the Technicolor Dream Bowl

2011-09-19T17:00:00.004-04:00

Local Food: Despite the ubiquity of its pale cousin, cauliflower in truth is never afraid of color. And neither is Steven. This week, he embraces purple, gold, and a green that dazzles with its spikey, spiral form, along with the more humble white. They are all varieties of cauliflower, including the daring green Romanesco, from Pete's, dished up by Steven in a traditional gratin. The cauliflower soaks up a creamy sauce of Grafton cheddar, Sweet Rowen milk from West Glover, and citrusy Hill Farmstead Brewery Double Citra. Ham adds a smokey taste and a different texture (we can hold the ham if you'd like). The bowl is topped with an herbacious blend of breadcrumbs, and then put under the broiler to crisp up and brown. The end result is a creamy, crunchy, comforting gratin.

At the Bar: Remember our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, September 25 we offer a $2.50 pint of Otter Creek Oktoberfest, a $4 glass of Shelburne Vineyard Whimsey Meadow Rosé or East Shore Vineyard Traminette. The Watermelon Agua Fresca is offered for $5, made with watermelon from Pete's and tequila.

Music Notes: Laslo Cameo join us Thursday, September 22 at 7:30, playing their unique blend of world cultures. Our neighbors Leslie Campos and Randy Bulpin, with their shared desire to play groove-oriented and roots based material are sure to put on a show that is not to be missed!

Around the Galaxy: This Tuesday, September 20th, Beth Kanell will discuss her newest book for teens, The Secret Room. The book is a Vermont adventure set in a fictionalized version of North Danville. Come to the Galaxy to meet Beth and hear her read beginning at 7PM. And start getting some extra sleep now - the 4th Annual Read-a-Thon to benefit Hardwick Head Start begins on September 30th. Stop by Galaxy, look here or call 472-5533 for details.

Local Events: The Buffalo Mountain Co-op's Fifth Annual Harvest Celebration and Clothing Swap is this Friday, September 23 from 3-6 at the Hardwick Farmer's Market. Your second chance to swap is Saturday morning from 9-11. Clothing can be dropped off at Atkins Field after 1:00 on Friday, or on the porch at 144 W Church St. on Thursday evening or Friday morning.

On Saturday, September 24, Moving Planet, a coalition of businesses, non-profits, colleges, universities and individuals concerned about global warming will gather on the statehouse lawn in Montpelier for the largest climate action event ever held in Vermont. Buses will depart from Hazen Union School promptly at 1:00.

Mark your calendars for October 6, NOFA-VT's upcoming Share the Harvest annual event that benefits their Farm Share program. The Farm Share program is a great way that limited-income Vermonters can afford to purchase CSA shares of fresh produce from their local farmers. Dine with us on the 6th and help us donate a portion of our sales to the program.

The Hangman Frame Shop and Gallery will host an exhibit of watercolors by Greensboro artist Wayne Lind from September 24- October 31. A reception will be held Saturday, September 24 from 2-4. For more information, call 525-4405.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Bar Bite

2011-09-12T18:00:00.001-04:00

Local Food: Embracing the best flavors of Fall, this week's bar bite, offered exclusively at the bar, is a rich and earthy chicken liver and apple wrapped in bacon. Steven slowly cooks spicy red onions from Riverside Farm to bring out all their natural sugars, adds a few drops of Dunc's Mill maple rum, and with a bit of time creates a sweet onion jam. A wedge of crispy Duchess apple from Josh Karp in Greensboro is sautéed along with a chicken liver from Pete in Craftsbury. Crispy bacon from Winding Brook Farm wraps the duo, which is perched on Matzoh from Charlie at Patchwork Farm. The onion jam provides just the right amount of sweetness to round out this one bite wonder.

At the Bar: Stop by for our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, September 18 we offer a $2.50 pint of Long Trail Harvest Ale, a $4 glass of East Shore Vineyard Traminette or Cabernet Franc. The Berry Melontini is offered for $5, made with melon from Pete's, strawberries from Hazendale and Green Mountain Organic Vodka.

Around the Galaxy: On Tuesday, September 20th, Beth Kanell will discuss her newest book for teens, The Secret Room. The book is a Vermont adventure set in a fictionalized version of North Danville. Come to the Galaxy to meet Beth and hear her read beginning at 7PM.

Music Notes: Flat Top Trio joins us this Thursday, September 15 at 7:30. Be sure to catch this Bluegrass/Americana group- you might even end up with a free cd!

Local Art: Visit with Montpelier artist Maggie Neale and explore her color musings at Claire's on Monday, September 19 from 4-6. Whether with hand painted silk scarves, large silk hangings, hand woven chenille scarves or oil paintings, Maggie allows color to rule, to flow, and to transform.

Local Events: Bring Vermont history alive with Linda Radtke at the Hardwick Town House on Friday, September 16 at 7:00. Singer and researcher Radtke will be joined by pianist Arthur Zorn to sing the songs that grew up with Vermont from the Vermont Historical Society's collection of sheet music. Call the Jeudevine Library for more information at 472-5948.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Sweet Charentais

2011-09-05T18:18:00.004-04:00

Local Libations: Charentais melons are true cantaloupes, different from the more common muskmelon. The Charentais come from Pete, and are sweeter and smaller. Our melons make their way to the bar this week, where they are puréed and added to silky smooth and crisp Green Mountain Organic Vodka. We add frozen strawberries from Hazendale Farm for another dimension of sweetness and a punch of bright red color. A splash of St. Germain elderflower liqueur and egg whites from Windhorse Farm are the final touch and add a light and fluffy consistency to the cocktail. Served up in an ice cold glass, this sweet and delicate cocktail is the perfect way to send off summer.

At the Bar: Stop by for our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, September 11 we offer a $2.50 pint of Wolaver's IPA, a $5 glass of Shelburne Riesling or award winning Marquette. The Sazerac, a quintessential New Orleans cocktail from the 1800s made with whiskey and absinthe, is $5.

Around the Galaxy: On Saturday, September 10th at 3PM Galaxy offers a writing workshop. Midge Raymond and Wendy Call present "Global Perspectives, Local Stories." Raymond is the author of a short story collection, Forgetting English and Call is the author of No Words for Welcome: The Mexican Village Faces the Global Economy. The workshop is free at Galaxy from 3-5 on Saturday.

Music Notes: Lewis Franco and Dono Schnaber join us Thursday, September 8 at 7:30. Robert Resnik of Vermont Public Radio calls Franco "a brilliant songwriter- one of our very finest." Franco has been a fixture on the Vermont acoustic music scene for many years, entertaining audiences of all ages with clever and occasionally profound lyrics, delightfully tuneful melodies and a fun-loving presence.

Local Events: Highfields Center for Composting is holding an On-Farm Composting 101 Workshop on Wednesday, September 14. This workshop is designed for farmers, their employees and professional agricultural service providers interested in implementing composting practices at their farms or the farms they advise. Registration begins at 8:30, and the workshop goes from 9:00 to 3:30. For more information, contact Tyler at 472-5238 ext. 202 or info@highfieldscomposting.org.

After the Flood: The Vermont Farm Fund is accepting donations to help farmers affected by the flood. Please donate if you can. Stop by Claire's with your donations for our friends at Riverside Farm in East Hardwick, who lost $25,000- $35,000 worth of produce, including carrots, radishes and beets.

For photos of Hardwick during the flood, click here.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Yes We Can

2011-08-29T15:17:00.004-04:00

Local Food: While there's nothing like a tomato pulled right from the vine at the peak of summer, canning draws out the subtle flavors of the fruit with a unique complexity provided in the preparation. Steven starts with Roma tomatoes, which he gets from Pete, because they are an especially good canning tomato due to the small amount of seeds. He roasts them along with canola oil from Maine Natural Oils. The oil is made exclusively from Maine crops, and is added to the tomatoes to keep them moist and provide a bit of flavor. A touch of thyme is also included. Come winter, these tomatoes will provide a welcome burst of flavor in soups and sauces.

We are thankful we made it through Sunday's storm unscathed, and send good thoughts to our friends working to put things back together.

At the Bar: Stop by for our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, September 4 we offer a $2.50 pint of Otter Creek Black IPA, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Big Barn Red. The Blackberry Gimlet is $5.

Around the Galaxy:Willard Sterne Randall, Distinguished Scholar in History at Champlain College and Pulitzer Nominee, presents his new biography of Ethan Allen at 6PM on Tuesday. Please note the earlier time and join us at Galaxy for a new look at the life and times of a Vermont legend.

Music Notes:Bluegrass/country band Honest Thieves join us Thursday, September 1 at 7:30. Come out and support Vermont music!

Local Events: Mark your calendar for the Fermentation Festival on Sunday, September 11 at Wheelock Mountain Farm in Greensboro from 10-4. Workshops will focus on the fantastic foods that can be created and preserved through the art of fermentation. Learn how to make pickles, kimchi, yogurt, cheese, sauerkraut and more. For more information call the Swap Sisters at 533-2296 or email swapsisters@gmail.com.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

Prickly Summer Visitor

2011-08-22T21:00:00.004-04:00

Local Food: Native to Mediterranean climates, the artichoke has a tough time growing in Vermont. But thanks to farmers like Bill Half at Harvest Hill, we are able to enjoy this elusive and sharp edged summer visitor for a few short weeks. Underneath its defensive exterior is a tender heart, and peeling back the leaves reveals soft fleshy pockets of earthy flavor. Artichokes can be steamed and served with butter or mayonnaise, but Steven prefers a stuffed artichoke, cut in half and filled with smooth and tangy ricotta cheese from Maplebrook Farm, and an herbaceous pistou. Each half is topped with crunchy breadcrumbs, and baked to soften the artichoke and meld the flavors. A sauce of grilled peppers from Pete's and tomatoes from Riverside Farm accompanies the artichoke, making a smokey and earthy complement for your dipping delight.

At the Bar: Stop by for our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, August 28 we offer a $2.50 pint of Wolaver's IPA, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Big Barn Red. The Blackberry Sage Martini is offered for $5, made with blackberries from Provender Farm in Cabot.

Around the Galaxy: Galaxy welcomes David Budbill on Tuesday at 7PM. David's new book Happy Life is cause for celebration, so come out for a lively evening of poetry. Next week Galaxy hosts Willard Sterne Randall, author of a new biography of Ethan Allen. This event begins an hour earlier than usual, at 6PM.

Music Notes: Blue Fox returns this Thursday, August 25. Don't miss who the Times Argus Newspaper calls "one of the few authentic blues musicians in Vermont- well worth the listen."

Local Events: Bruce Buckley, Charles McAteer and Lilah Shreeve star in Greensboro Arts Alliance & Residency's take on the Clifford Odets play Golden Boy at the Lakeview Inn. Make a dinner reservation at Claire's and catch the show at 7:30 on Wednesday and Thursday, August 24 and 25.

Remember the Hardwick Farmers' Market every Friday through October from 3-6. You'll find baked goods, honey, soy, plants, crafts and much more, including live music every week.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Cornography

2011-08-15T17:00:00.003-04:00

Local Food: Is there anything better than corn on the cob, pulled right from the stalk and cooked just for a moment so the butter will melt? You've probably already taken a few bites of the sweet and succulent kernels. Steven takes this basic goodness and amps up the volume. The corn comes to us from Riverside Farm, and each cob is roasted and then grilled whole to add a touch of the open fire. Garlicky aioli, with garlic from Rebel Pine Farm, adds a zip, along with a sprinkling of cilantro from Riverside and parsley and sage from Provender Farm. Coomersdale cheese from Bonnieview Farm (recent award winners at the American Cheese Society Competition for their Ben Nevis) is shaved on top of the corn cob, giving you the first sharp kick and a hint of nuttiness.

At the Bar: Stop by for our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, August 21 we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art Whitetail Ale, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Big Barn Red. The Berry Bellini is offered for $5, made with sparkling wine and blueberries from Agape Hill Farm.

Around the Galaxy: Galaxy is gearing up for David Budbill who will appear on Tuesday, August 23rd to read poems from his new book Happy Life. The celebration begins at 7PM and is free and open to all.

Music Notes: Cosa Buena make their long awaited return this Thursday, August 18 at 7:30. Enjoy their acoustic music with a gentle Latin-jazz feel.

Local Events: Kingdom Farm and Food Days, a celebration of Vermont food and agriculture, is this weekend, August 20 and 21. Events include a bike tour of area farms with the Craftsbury Outdoor Center, a pig roast dinner on Saturday at Pete's Greens, a tour of the High Mowing Seeds trials garden, a tasting of some of Vermont's finest produce prepared by the New England Culinary Institute on Sunday, and much more. This community-wide and family-friendly event is free, with suggested donations or small fees to some of the exclusive events.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Rat-tat-touille

2011-08-08T12:52:00.000-04:00

Local Food: Summer's vegetables can shout out their arrival, but Steven coaxes a subtle melody from them with his ratatouille. A dish of sautéed summer vegetables that Juila Child once said "perfumes the kitchen with the essence of Provence," ratatouille is started in our kitchen with squash from Mystic Morning Farm, onions from Harvest Hill, Riverside's garlic scapes, and tomatoes, eggplant and peppers from Pete's. Bright basil and fennel add their pungent aromas. The ratatouille is the perfect companion to a chicken breast, roasted with dill and fennel butter, keeping the meat moist and flavorful. Crispy onion rings and a bit of mashed potatoes round out this flavorful summer dish.

At the Bar: Don't forget our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, August 14 we offer a $2.50 pint of Trout River Rainbow Red, a $4 glass of Fresh Tracks Farm Rosé or East Shore Vineyard Cabernet Franc. The basil lemontini is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: Be sure you have August 23rd on your calendar for an evening of celebration at Galaxy when David Budbill reads from his new book of poems Happy Life. The evening begins at 7PM.

Music Notes: Hillside Rounders join us Thursday, August 11 at 7:30. Support Vermont music and enjoy the mix of bluegrass, country and Americana!

Local Events: The grand opening of the Fiber Shop at The Agape Hill Farm in Hardwick is this weekend, August 12 and 13 from 9-4. See the new store and workshop space and check out fiber products.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Summer, Chilled, in a Bowl

2011-08-01T16:46:00.004-04:00

Local Food: What better companion for a summer day than a bowl of chilled gazpacho? Spanish in origin, gazpacho is the perfect way to enjoy the peak of our summer harvest. This soup is lively and cool because the vegetables aren't cooked. Though a traditional gazpacho holds the red of the tomatoes in its color, Steven's variation ranges from a pale amber to a slightly green hue. He combines Boothby Blond Cucumbers from Provender Farm in Cabot, a sweet and delicate heirloom variety with a creamy yellow color, with massive Beefmaster Tomatoes and spicy jalapenos from Pete's. Onions from Harvest Hill and garlic scapes from Riverside add a bit of bite and complexity to the gazpacho, and cilantro and basil round out the vibrant and tangy flavor of the soup.

At the Bar: Don't forget our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, August 7, we offer a $2.50 pint of Wolaver's Wildflower Wheat, a $4 glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc or Big Barn Red. The Berry Caipirinha is offered for $5.

Around the Galaxy: This week Galaxy features two new books to help you take advantage of summer in Vermont. The Joy of Cheesemaking: The Ultimate Guide to Understanding, Making, and Eating Fine Cheese is written by Jody Farnham and Marc Druart, both from the Vermont Institute for Artisan Cheese. The book is in paperback for just $14.95 and is packed with great pictures, practical information, and delicious recipes including Mossend Blue Cheese Scalloped Potatoes featuring Bonnieview Cheese. After you've had that, you'll be fueled to enjoy the mountains with the latest edition of the Green Mountain Club's Day Hiker's Guide to Vermont.

Music Notes: The Butterbeans are back! Take a break from the heat and enjoy their old timey and jazz tunes as they play the songs that should always be played.

Local Events: S & J Fitness and AWARE will host Healthy Choices Camp for girls grades 6-8 on Monday, August 8 through Friday, August 12 from 9-noon each day. The girls will play games, eat healthy snacks, exercise, make friends and laugh! Cost is $75- register by calling 472-3242.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Farm to Kitchen to Table

2011-07-25T20:46:00.004-04:00

Local Food: Farm to table always involves a stop in the kitchen. For pork ribs in particular, that means time and heat to coax their juicy tenderness and complement their rich flavors. Taking pork ribs from Pete's, Steven rubs in warm and smokey spices like chile and mustard, adding maple sugar for sweetness. Next, he grills the ribs for that vital bit of charcoal and caramelization. Finally, the ribs are braised slowly in Hill Farmstead Brewery's Double Galaxy Imperial IPA, with its notes of citrus and hops, along with the long awaited first onions of the season from Bill Half at Harvest Hill Farm in Walden. These ribs are served with a creamy, herbacious polenta and a sauté of peppers, golden squash from Harvest Hill and another first of the season - corn - from Riverside Farm for a level of sweet crunch.

At the Bar: Don't forget our Sunday and Monday drink specials. This Sunday, July 31, we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art Sunny & 75, a $4 glass of East Shore Vineyard Traminette or Lincoln Peak Marquette. The raspberry lemon drop is offered for $5. And many thanks to Duncan Holaday and all our students for last weekend's invigorating Cocktail Class.

Around the Galaxy: On Tuesday Alex Smith of Greensboro and Elye Alexander of Craftsbury join us to talk about their work as translators. Their most recent project is the translation of The Devotion of Suspect X, a bestselling book in Japan and China. Come to Galaxy on Tuesday at 7 to hear about Alex and Elye's collaboration on this and many other translations from the Japanese.

Music Notes: Neon Campfire, a lo-fi Americana duo with a slight European aftertaste, join us Thursday, July 28 at 7:30. Read about their recently released albums reviewed by Dan Bolles at Seven Days here.

Local Events: New Leaf Designs Eclectic Nursery owner Lynette Courtney will share her professional secrets at her Deadheading Clinic on Sunday, July 31 from 1-3. Learn some of the most important skills a gardener can have to extend bloom time and keep seeds from becoming weeds with a single snip. Bring scissors and/or pruners to 281 The Bend Road in Greensboro Bend. Call 533-9836 or email newleaf@vtlink.net to register.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check - credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Earn Your Degree at Cocktail Class

2011-07-21T15:43:00.003-04:00

Cocktail Class is back, with special guest Duncan Holaday, our renowned local distiller who has just embarked on a new adventure with Dunc's Mills Maple and Elderflower rums. Duncan is founder of the oldest existing distillery in Vermont, where Vermont Gold Vodka was born and Vermont Spirits once housed. He distills his rum in the traditional way, from cane sugar, and adds Vermont maple and elderflower to this unique barrel aged local spirit. On Saturday, July 23 from 4-5 pm, learn from a master what cocktails bring out the complex flavor of each variety, and how to mix rum with the flavorful produce of Vermont. Free Admission and specials on cocktails and flights if you are so inspired.

Attend four classes to earn your degree - a gift card at Claire's or The Galaxy Bookshop.

Scamorza? More than Mozzarella

2011-07-18T21:00:00.010-04:00

Local Food: Steven's mother-in-law recently asked about Vermont cheese. "Does anyone in Vermont make Scamorza?" Mike's mom wanted to know from her California home. Similar to mozzarella, this stretched curd cheese was a favorite childhood treat shopping with her mother on Saturdays in Boston's North End. Intrigued, it didn't take Steven long to find Scamorza "affumicata" (or smoked) from Maplebrook Farm, and he uses the cheese for a touch of creaminess in a cool and crisp summer salad just right for these dog days. Provender Farm in Cabot brings us the first crop of sweet and crunchy snap peas, mixed with Pete's first heirloom tomatoes and purple beans. Provender Farm's light, leafy greens go along with scallions for a rich variety of textures, flavors and colors. The vinaigrette of garlic scape oil and red wine vinegar brightens up the plate.

Our New Hours!
Now Open for Dinner All Week
Open at 2:30
Free WiFi with coffee and bar service
Dinner seatings available 5-9, 5-8 Sundays
Blunch every Sunday from 11-2

Cocktail Class
Saturday, July 23, 4-5
Featuring Duncan Holaday of
Dunc's Mills Rum
Free Admission
Cocktail and Flight Specials

At the Bar: Cocktail Class is back, with special guest Duncan Holaday, our renowned local distiller who has just embarked on a new adventure with Dunc's Mills Maple and Elderflower rums. Duncan is founder of the oldest existing distillery in Vermont, where Vermont Gold Vodka was born and Vermont Spirits once housed. He distills his rum in the traditional way, from cane sugar, and adds Vermont maple and elderflower to this unique barrel aged local spirit. On Saturday, July 23 from 4-5 pm, learn from a master what cocktails bring out the complex flavor of each variety, and how to mix rum with the flavorful produce of Vermont. Free Admission and specials on cocktails and flights if you are so inspired.

Don't forget our Sunday and Monday drink specials. On Sunday, July 24, we offer a $2.50 pint of Wolaver's Wildflower Wheat, a $4 glass of East Shore Vineyard Cabernet Franc or Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc. The Black Raspberry Gimlet features Green Mountain Organic Gin and Larry Brochu's black raspberries, for $5.

Around the Galaxy: On Tuesday, July 26 Galaxy welcomes area translators Alex Smith and Elye Alexander. Their most recent project has brought them attention from many quarters, including The Wall Street Journal. They will talk about their translation process and The Devotion of Suspect X on the 26th at 7PM. And put August 23 on your calendar to welcome David Budbill's new collection of poems, Happy Life. The book, with a stunning cover by Lois Eby, is available now for your reading pleasure.

Music Notes: Plank House Band, "a tasty little Cornet and Banjolele duo, playing the popular music of yesterday," join us Thursday July 21 at 7:30. The Hardwick duo are also part of Vermont Vaudeville and put on a show that is not to be missed.

Local Events: Summer Music from Greensboro begins this Tuesday, July 19 at 8:00 at the United Church of Christ. Adults are $18, seniors $17 and students $10.

The Craftsbury Chamber Players perform at the Hardwick Town House on Thursday nights - don't forget the free mini-concerts for children and their friends earlier in the day at 2.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check- credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Beets and WiFi

2011-07-11T20:00:00.005-04:00

Local Food: This month, we get to enjoy the first crop of beets from Pete's, roasted to bring out their crisp, earthy and supple sweetness. Steven uses Chiogga beets, also known as candy stripe, as well as golden and red beets to emphasize the variety of color, texture, and flavor. Utilizing the entire plant, he adds the deep greens of the beets for crunch and to balance the moist roasted roots. Light and tangy goat cheese from Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery makes for a creamy touch, and spiced pecans are added for crunch. Steven tops the salad with a dill horseradish vinaigrette, made with dill from Riverside Farm and horseradish from Rabbi's Roots.

Our New Hours!

Now Open for Dinner 7 Days

Open at 2:30

Free WiFi with coffee and bar service

Dinner seatings available 5-9, 5-8 Sundays

Blunch every Sunday from 11-2

At the Bar: Remember our drink specials every Sunday and Monday. For Sunday, July 17, we offer a $2.50 pint of Trout River Rainbow Red, a $5 glass of Shelburne Vineyard Riesling or Lincoln Peak Marquette. The Tequila Sunset features 100% agave Milagro tequila, lime juice and Fresh Tracks Rosé.

Coming up at Cocktail Class: Duncan Holaday of Dunc's Mill will join us for our next cocktail class on Saturday, July 23 from 4-5. Learn about the new Vermont made rums and cocktails you can make with them. Admission is free, and you can enjoy a flight of the rums and a cocktail special.

Around the Galaxy: Anne Stuart, Greensboro's bestselling master of romance, puts the sizzle in summer starting at 7 on Tuesday, July 12. Anne Stuart will read from her newest installment in The House of Rohan series and lead a discussion about entering the world of ebooks. Anne Stuart will also introduce a newcomer to the world of romance, Kristina Douglas, who has just penned the first in a series, The Fallen: Raziel. The event is free and open to all.

Local Music: Art Edelstein and Mike Fullerton are the Borealis Guitar Duo, joining us Thursday, July 14 at 7:30. They play music from the Celtic Lands with forays into American, Scandinavian and Klezmer music.

Local Art: The art opening for Hardwick artist Ken Leslie is Monday, July 18 from 4-6. Stop by to greet Ken, admire his art and enjoy some drink specials.

Local Events: The Craftsbury Chamber Players 2011 season kicks off in Hardwick on Thursday, July 14 at 7:30. You can enjoy their performances in Burlington every Wednesday through August 17, and in Hardwick every Thursday through August 18.

Reminders: We appreciate it when you use cash or a check- credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Cherry on Top

2011-07-04T20:33:00.009-04:00

Local Food: Hedelfingen Sweet Cherries from Champlain Orchards are here, and they are popping up all over the menu. Steven roasts the cherries to bring out their sweetness and serves them with the rich pork belly from Winding Brook Farm, along with pickled rhubarb and broccolini from Harvest Hill Farm. The maple and black pepper grilled pork loin is accompanied with a sweet cherry compote. For dessert, the tart cherries complement the silky and sweet mascarpone cheesecake. Cherries are for Blunch too, in a compote with honey from Honey Gardens and rhubarb, served with spiced pancakes and Chocorakers French Toast. Look for our cherry infused whiskey at the bar soon.

We are now open seven days a week through August!

At the Bar: Remember our drink specials every Sunday and Monday. For Sunday, July 10, we offer a $2.50 pint of Rock Art Whitetail Ale, a $4 glass of Fresh Tracks Rosé or Boyden Valley Big Barn Red. Our new cocktail, the Tomato Zinger features Green Mountain Organic Gin, sweet cherry tomatoes, lime juice and a salted rim, specially priced at $5.

Coming up at Cocktail Class: Duncan Holaday of Dunc's Mill will join us for our next cocktail class on Saturday, July 23 from 4-5. Learn about the new Vermont-made rums and the cocktails you can make with them. Admission is free, and you can enjoy a flight of the rum or a special cocktail.

Around the Galaxy: This week Galaxy celebrates the arrival of David Budbill's new book of poetry, Happy Life. The book's striking cover features Lois Eby's painting. David will read from his work at Galaxy in August and you can get your copy now. In the meantime, put the sizzle in your summer on July 12 when Greensboro's master of romance Anne Stuart & Kristina Douglas appear to introduce a hot new series plus the latest installment in The House of Rohan, Shameless.

Music Notes: Hardwick favorites The Butterbeans are back this Thursday, July 7 at 7:30. Support local music and dance to their old timey, jazz and bluegrass tunes.

Local Events: A benefit concert for the Jeudevine Library will be Saturday, July 9 at the Hardwick Town House from 7-9pm. Admission is $8, $5 for seniors and students and kids are free! Help support the fund for the new Youth Services Librarian while listening to some great local music by Laslo Cameo, Tracy Wolters and the Flood Family. For more information call the library at 472-5948.

On Sunday, July 10 Kenji Bunch and his Bluegrass Allstars play a benefit for the Craftsbury Chamber Players at 7PM in Craftsbury.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee and espresso drinks, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. We appreciate it when you use cash or a check- credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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In Hardwick When it Sizzles

2011-06-27T17:00:00.004-04:00

Local Food: As summer heats up, so does the grill, and the juicy, flavorful and tender leg of lamb from Winding Brook Farm in Morrisville sizzles. Steven provides the classic complement to the uniquely mild flavor of the lamb with mint from his own garden, mixed with sage and walnut to create a twist on pesto. Creamy polenta from Butterworks Farm accompanies the lamb, as well as a warm slaw of Napa cabbage, turnip, radish and garlic scape, all from Craftsbury, to accompany your portion from the succulent leg of lamb.

At the Bar: As the holiday weekend approaches, remember our drink specials every Sunday and Monday. For Sunday, July 3, we offer a $2.50 pint of Wolaver's Wildflower Wheat, a $4 glass of East Shore Vineyard Traminette or Lincoln Peak Marquette. Our Cilantro Margarita features Milagro 100% agave tequila, cilantro from Riverside Farm, lime juice and a splash of Cointreau, specially priced at $5. Enjoy a cocktail before or after you watch the fireworks in Greensboro at the Four Corners Ball Field beginning at dusk.

Beginning July 6, we will be open seven days a week for the months of July and August

Around the Galaxy: On Tuesday Edward Hoagland comes to Galaxy to discuss and sign Sex and the River Styx. The essays in his latest book explore themes of aging, love, and sex in deeply personal, often surprising ways. Hoagland's prose shines with the energy and intelligence that has characterized his work for decades and the wisdom of a man whose curiosity about the world has given him, and us, a lifetime of stories. Come hear for yourself, and celebrate the man John Updike called "the best essayist of my generation" on Tuesday at 7.

Music Notes: Singer/Songwriters Don & Jenn join us Thursday, June 30 at 7:30. The duo features guitar and vocals, and perform jazz and folk inspired originals and covers.

Local Events: Circus Smirkus kicks off their 2011 Big Top Tour in Greensboro on Sunday, July 3 with two shows at 1:00 and 6:00. The theme this year is "Frontpage Follies: Big Top Big News!" performed by a company of talented Circus Troupers, ages 10-18.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee and espresso drinks, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed this Wednesday. We appreciate it when you use cash or a check- credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Berry Berry Good

2011-06-20T17:30:00.001-04:00

Local Food: Celebrate the summer solstice with the first strawberries of the season, arriving from Pete's Greens to sweeten things up a bit. After we blend the berries, they are added to an exciting new arrival - Dunc's Mill Maple Flavored Rum. Handcrafted by Duncan Holaday at Vermont's oldest distillery, the rum adds a sweet hint of maple flavor to our strawberry daiquiri. Also available at the bar is Dunc's Mill Elderflower Flavor Rum, which blends Vermont elderberry blossoms with essence from Austrian Elder and Caribbean cane. The Elderflower Flavor Rum is perfect served straight or over ice. You will also find strawberries on our dessert menu, in the upside down cake with rhubarb and in Steven's soufflé glacé, or frozen souffle. Either one offers the perfect finish to your meal on a hot summer evening, or an enjoyable afternoon snack as you surf the web with our free WiFi.

At the Bar:Remember our drink specials every Sunday and Monday. For Sunday, June 26, our specials are a $2.50 pint of Switchback, a $4 glass of Santa Julia Pinot Grigio or their Cabernet Sauvignon. Our Dark & Stormy features Gosling's Black Seal Rum, Green Mountain Organic Maple Liqueur handcrafted in Vermont, Domaine de Canton Ginger liqueur and ginger beer, specially priced at $5.

Around the Galaxy: On Tuesday at 7, beloved storyteller Willem Lange and Caldecott medalist Mary Azarian visit Galaxy to promote their new book, A Dream of Dragons: A Saga in Verse. And mark your calendars for June 28th when Edward Hoagland comes to Galaxy with his new book Sex and the River Styx. Events are free and open to all.

Music Notes: Lesley Grant and Stepstone join us this Thursday at 7:30. The new trio featuring Mark Struhsacker, Carrie Cook and Lesley Grant blend country, folk and bluegrass music with sweet harmonies and a mix of traditional and original songs.

Local Events: Take the confusion out of composting with gardening consultant Carol Schminke at the Hardwick Community Gardens on Saturday, June 25 at 10:00. Contact Heather at the Center for an Agricultural Economy to register at 472-5840 or heather@hardwickagriculture.org

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee and espresso drinks, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday. We appreciate it when you use cash or a check- credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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The Trout is Smokin' on Father's Day

2011-06-13T16:00:00.002-04:00

Local Food: What better way to honor your hard working dad than joining us in celebrating all the hard working father farmers and artisans in and around Hardwick? Start your Father's Day at Blunch or relax over dinner with trout raised by Curtis Sjolander, his wife Joan, and their three children just over Stannard Mountain at Mountain Foot Farm. Steven smokes the trout in house with applewood chips pruned from Champlain Orchards. To balance the smoky flavor of the fish, Steven composes a salad that combines aptly named Flashy Trout lettuce from Eastview Farm with bright and peppery arugula and delicate golden endive. The refreshing crunch of cucumbers and a bite of heat from radishes are complemented by pink rhubarb brought to us by Leslie White and already pickled in house. The salad is topped with ramp and cucumber crème fraîche for a cool finish.

On Father's Day, our famous hearty Blunch is available from 11 am until 2 pm, and stop by anytime between 5 and 8 for dinner.

At the Bar: Remember our drink specials every Sunday and Monday. For Father's Day, our specials are a $3 pint from Hill Farmstead Brewery, a $5 glass of Boyden Valley Big Barn Red or their Seyval Blanc from Cambridge, VT. Our popular Bayley Hazen Bluetini, features Green Mountain Organic Gin, handcrafted in Vermont, and imported cured olives stuffed with Bayley Hazen blue cheese from the dads at Jasper Hill, specially priced at $5.

Around the Galaxy: On Tuesday at 7 Galaxy welcomes back Barre author Jennifer McMahon. She will read from her latest novel Don't Breathe A Word.

Music Notes: Bluegrass trio Freddy & The Weeds join us Thursday, June 16 at 7:30. Their non-traditional jams mixed with old favorites are not to be missed!

Local Events: Graduation is upon us. Congratulations to all our local achievers, their parents, and in particular, our own Zach and Paige!

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee and espresso drinks, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday. We appreciate it when you use cash or a check- credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Summer School!

2011-06-06T15:00:00.004-04:00

Local Food and Drink: With wine, everyone understands its importance. And more recently, we've learned how it works with food on the plate. But can you taste "place" in a cocktail? Find out the relationship between quality, ingenuity, and community in building a cocktail at our first Cocktail Class, in session at our bar one Friday each month from 4-5 pm starting this week on June 10. Our bartenders will take you through the nature of a particular spirit, how different distillers produce remarkably different attributes, and how best to mix a variety of flavors with the crisp produce of a Vermont summer, crafting fresh, surprising, and complex cocktails - sometimes with a kick. There's no admission and nothing you're required to buy. But if you'd like, you can enjoy one of the cocktails with a flight which samples the featured spirit for $15.

This Friday, June 10, we'll be working with our best Vodkas, from the smooth flavors of Vermont to the pungent and dry sensibility of one of the best made from potatoes in Poland. Our bartenders will take you through a NEK variation of the Lemon Drop, made with very tart rhubarb juice. We call it a Rhubarb Drop (pictured above with its key components). You'll also learn how to mix a classic martini as well as the dirty version, our Honeycomb, and a few new concoctions.

Around the Galaxy: The books have finally arrived and we are ready and excited to welcome Ben Hewitt and all of you to the world premiere of Making Supper Safe: One Man's Quest to Learn the Truth About Food Safety. Join us Tuesday at 7 for Ben's insights - from small scale to the bigger picture - about an issue that is all too often in the headlines, including right now.

Music Notes: If you missed Flat Top Trio last month, Thursday, June 9 at 7:30 is your chance. With a sound deeply rooted in the spirit of their country heroes and heartbeat of a flat top guitar, the Trio personifies a sound that is both unique and timeless. The Flat Top Trio has been delighting audiences around Northern Vermont performing their original songs and a range of covers from John Prine to Merle Haggard.

Local Events: The 2nd Annual Hardwick Historic House Fair is this Sunday, June 12 at the Hardwick Town House on Church Street from 11-4. This is a free event featuring information booths on subjects including researching your property, identifying architectural styles, historic house paint colors and old varieties of flowers for the historic garden. Preservation tradespeople with expertise is framing, masonry, windows, moldings and blacksmithing will demonstrate their work and answer questions.

Kismet in Montpelier needs our help. They are continuing to struggle with the aftermath of the flood in Montpelier over Memorial Day weekend. After losing thousands of dollars worth of equipment, inventory and revenue, Kismet is not giving up and is seeking donations. Please give what you can, including words of encouragement.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday. We appreciate it when you use cash or a check- credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Rhubarb Upside Down Cake

2011-05-30T17:02:00.004-04:00

Local Food: At Claire's, we have a special fondess for rhubarb, with its unique tart flavor and hint of Vermont frugality. Every year at Spring Festival, the abundance of rhubarb reminds us of the first week we were open, and the friends and neighbors who dropped off bags full of the first "fruit" of the year. While Steven likes to feature rhubarb with savory chutneys and other dinner plates, this week, he turns the pink produce upside down in his upside down cake. After making a rich caramel sauce, Steven adds tangy rhubarb, much of it coming from Pete's Greens (but bring some by if you have extra!). The moist cake is made with cornmeal from Butterworks Farm. Frozen blueberries from Shirley's Produce provide the base for the sauce, drizzled over the cake, with thick whipped cream on top. Look for more rhubarb, in savory dishes, across the dinner menu, and at the bar in cocktails like the Rhubarb Bellini.

With Spring Festival we mark our third year in business and we celebrate all of you who have given so much to make Claire's what it is. Investors, subscribers, lenders, customers - we salute all of you. For those of you who are CSR supporters, your new cards will be at Claire's for you to pick up at you next visit. Thank you all.

Around the Galaxy: Get ready for another World Premiere on Tuesday, June 7th when Ben Hewitt debuts Making Supper Safe: One Man's Quest to Learn About Food Safety. Get an idea about the book here, and call Galaxy at 472-5533 to reserve your copy now. Ben's first book, The Town That Food Saved, is Galaxy's all time bestseller, and will be out in paperback at the same time. Make a dinner reservation at Claire's before or after the event.

Music Notes: Bohemian Blues Quartet bring you gypsy jazz this Thursday, June 2 at 7:30. Bring your dancing shoes and celebrate the music styling of Django Reinhardt.

Local Events: The Children's Parade of East Hardwick is this Saturday, June 4 at 11:00. Registration begins at 10:30 at Hardwick Chiropractic on Route 16. Awards are given in many categories including best costume and decoration for pets, wagons and bikes.

Click on the image above to get a closer look!

Spring Festival

2011-05-28T22:07:00.018-04:00

With severe thunder storms taking a break this morning, Hardwick lined up to watch the Spring Festival parade and to commemorate Memorial Day. We thought you'd enjoy a few images of our view of the contingents.

Spring Festival Cocktail

2011-05-23T17:26:00.001-04:00

Local Food: Just like the menu from our kitchen, you'll find new concoctions from our bar that highlight Vermont wines, beers, and spirits. We build our cocktails from the bounty of foraged and cultivated ingredients, including cucumbers, berries, melons, hot peppers, and ramps. Our version of a dirty martini uses house-pickled ramps that Steven prepared with cider vinegar and his own mixture of herbs and spices, including bay leaves, peppercorns, star anise and chile flakes. After canning, the ramps absorb the flavors as they are pickled. At the bar, we take a bit of the pickling juice and shake it with your choice of vodka. From traditional Polish style to Vermont's own, we look for distillers who value their ingredients and respect the many hands that provide and shape the ingredients into the final product. We call this cocktail a Ramptini, and it is the perfect concoction for Luksusowa vodka, distilled since the end of World War II in Western Poland from local artesian well-water and potatoes grown only along that country’s Baltic coast. Or try your cocktail with one of the fine Vermont vodkas we carry - the pickled ramps would be well served by the hints of smoke you can taste in Vermont Gold, distilled from 100% maple sap.

The Ramptini is served ice cold and with a pickled ramp garnish.

Around the Galaxy: Aspiring writers, poets, dreamers, amateurs & pros, come to Galaxy on May 24th when Galaxy hosts open mic night, beginning at 7. And save June 7th for the World Premiere of Ben Hewitt's new book Making Supper Safe. Take a look here and then call Claire's to make your reservation for before or after the event at Galaxy. Ben's first book, The Town That Food Saved, will be out in paperback at the same time.

Music Notes: Bluegrass band Gold Town returns Thursday, May 26 at 7:30. Support Vermont music and enjoy their original and traditional tunes.

Local Events: The 61st Annual Hardwick Kiwanis Spring Festival is this Saturday, May 28. Don't miss the parade, craft fair, games and more. The Sustainable Living and Agricultural Fair begins at 11:00 at Atkins Field as part of Spring Fest-look for the petting zoo, many vendors, and honor local living, a sustainable future and our agricultural heritage.

Memorial Day weekend also marks Claire's third anniversary. We are so thankful for everyone who provides our ingredients, for our outstanding staff, and to all of you who have brought your talents, expertise, wallets, appetites and feedback to make Claire's what it is. Come by and say "hi" before the parade, or join us for dinner or a cocktail to watch the fireworks! We have a great view of both from our big picture windows.

Vermont's Annual Open Studio Weekend is this weekend, May 28 and 29. Visit local artists at their studios Saturday and Sunday, and learn about their work and each artist's process. Bring in a receipt for a purchase from a local artist over Open Studio Weekend, and we'll buy you a dessert!

Spring Bonanza 2011 is Friday, May 27 at the Hardwick Town House from 7:00-11:00. Celebrate life, music and the groove. Admission is $10 to see Evan Crandell & Pals and the Collin Craig Blues Trio.

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Get Your Grill On

2011-05-16T13:26:00.003-04:00

Local Food: As Spring promises rising temperatures and Summer days just around the corner, the kitchen at Claire's is heating up as well. From our grill, Steven introduces chicken from Pete's Greens done to smokey, crispy, juicy goodness. It is served with two sauces: a cucumber and ramp crème fraîche, made with season-defying cucumbers from Pete's that contrast against the grilled chicken and add a tangy moistness; and chimichurri, a traditional South American sauce that can incorporate a variety of herbs and spices. Steven makes this chimichurri with basil and our own dried chiles for a kick of heat. The grilled chicken is served along with quickly sautéed greens. The contrast of hot and cold in this flavorful dish is a promise of much to celebrate as we kick in grilling for the season.

Around the Galaxy: Save June 7th for the World Premier at Galaxy of Ben Hewitt's new book Making Supper Safe: One Man's Quest to Learn About Food Safety. Take a peek at it here and then call Claire's to make your reservation for before or after the event at Galaxy. Ben's first book, The Town That Food Saved, will be out in paperback at the same time. Bring your own work to read on May 24th when Galaxy hosts an open mic night.

Music Notes: Flat Top Trio join us Thursday, May 19 at 7:30 with their bluegrassin' honky tonkin' music. With a sound deeply rooted in the spirit of real country and bluegrass music based around the heartbeat of a flat top guitar, the Trio projects a sound that is unique and timeless.

Local Events: The next Vermont Vaudeville show is Saturday, May 21 at 8:00, at the Hardwick Town House. Their community-centered, live entertainment is all ages and features circus, comedy, magic, puppetry, contortion, music and more! Every show is different, admittance is always by donation and anyone and everyone is welcome.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday. We appreciate it when you use cash or a check- credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Forage

2011-05-09T17:30:00.000-04:00

Local Food: Though wildly different from each other, ramps and fiddleheads are foraged in spring and hit our menu this week. With some peaking earlier in the season, which illustrates our range of microclimates, Fiddlehead Farm in Greensboro is going strong. Fiddleheads have a slightly nutty flavor, similar to asparagus. Right now, Steven fries them in a beer batter along with with other vegetables, accompanied by mayo made in house. They also add just the right complement to the trout from Mountain Foot Farm, prepared with brown butter and herb sauce. Ramps, also called wild leeks, have a mild flavor, similar to onion, so they serve to enhance the ingredients on a plate or can stand out on their own. Steven just started foraging to include the ramps with the beer battered vegetables. Also look for his ramp pesto, or enjoy our Ramptini cocktail from the bar, made with pickled ramp juice.

Remember, if you forage for ramps and fiddleheads, harvest responsibly.

Around the Galaxy: Bill Schubart visits the Galaxy on Tuesday at 7PM to talk about his new book Fat People. His book is a fictional look at the emotions and experiences of those who live to eat, and Bill will also speak about his own complicated relationship with food.

Music Notes: Tiffany Pfeiffer returns this Thursday, May 12 at 7:30. Don't miss the musician who Dan Bolles of Seven Days calls a "remarkably talented songstress." Her "classic jazz vocal aesthetic with modern beats, flavors and rhythms" is not to be missed!

Local Events: Ed Smith, author of The Vegetable Gardener's Bible, will provide insights on vegetable gardening at the Craftsbury Public Library on Sunday, May 15th at 4:00. The program is free, and will provide gardeners with ideas about obtaining higher yields, composting, and how to have a weed and pest free garden.

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Filet o Fish

2011-05-02T17:00:00.003-04:00

Local Food: Satisfy your hankering for a sandwich at Sunday "Blunch," when Steven builds an ample meal on beer-battered trout from Mountain Foot Farm in Wheelock and crispy bacon from Pete's Greens, served on toasted slices of Elmore Mountain baguette. Spinach from David Allen at Hazendale Farm adds the light green of the season, and the sandwich is spread with a house-made mayonnaise that includes basil from Pete's. The plate is topped with pickled red onions from Sweet Mountain Farm for some extra tart. Our fish sandwich pairs well with a glass of Fresh Tracks Rosé. Crispy French fries, made with potatoes from Blackwell Roots, and our own ketchup accompany the sandwich.

Around the Galaxy: Vermont author Bill Schubart will stop by to talk about his new book, Fat People, on Tuesday, May 10 at 7:00. Alice Levitt of Seven Days says, "In Schubart's stories, we meet a vividly realized cast of characters who all fight a battle with the scale. Some emerge relatively unscathed. Many don't emerge at all...Schubart loves food, and he doesn't hide it. But in Fat People, which he self-published through his company Magic Hill, he explores the dark side of that passion." A reading and book signing will follow his talk at Galaxy.

Music Notes: Burlington musicians Dr. Ruckus bring on the funk with their repertoire of favorite jazz, funk and rock standards this Thursday, May 5 at 7:30. Check out the mix of guitar, bass, drums, sax and trombone and support Vermont music.

Local Events: May 7 is Green Up Day. Started in 1970, Vermont was the first state to designate a day to clean up the entire state. Find out how you can participate here.

Reminders: Make a Blunch reservation for Mother's Day, May 8, and be entered to win a $25 gift certificate for mom! We will also be serving dinner from 5-8.

We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday. We appreciate it when you use cash or a check- credit card companies charge us a fee that really adds up.

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Seeing Green

2011-04-25T17:00:00.002-04:00

Local Food: With spring promising rebirth, Pete just delivered the first greens of the season and the first since the fire destroyed the farm's storage facilities a few months ago. With farmers around Hardwick harvesting the first taste of the season, we have greens - in various shades and with hints of color beyond green - sprouting across the menu. Ruby streaked mustard greens add a bite of pepper to the crab cake, while the spicy curly variety of mustard greens provides a familiar heat to the wheatberry risotto. Steven introduces succulent and fluffy Claytonia, from Brian Titus at Woods Edge Farm in Greensboro, to the sprout salad to balance the textures. Also from Pete's Greens is basil- look for it in Steven's famous pesto and in cocktails at the bar.

Music Notes: Burlington based songwriter Phil Yates and his band, Phil Yates & The Affiliates, join us Thursday at 7:30. Support local music and don't miss the "clever songsmith with an indelibly off-kilter sense of humor."

Local Events: April is Alcohol Awareness Month. Consider making a donation to the Hardwick Area Community Coalition to support local prevention efforts.

School Budget voting for Hazen Union is Thursday, April 28 in Hardwick, Greensboro and Woodbury.

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Incredible Edible Egg

2011-04-18T17:00:00.001-04:00

Local Food: The egg - with its deep colors and perfect shape - is the perfect symbol of spring's rebirth just as it serves as a starting point in cooking. With breeds that include Red Sex-Link, Barred Rock and Welsummer hens, Windhorse Farm in Hardwick provides the rich eggs that Steven prepares hard cooked to add to both our spinach salad and crab cake. Bright purple pickled eggs top the sprout salad, and a fried egg accompanies the house made herb fettuccine. Of course there is Blunch too, when the egg provides added depth to poutine, and builds on the textures of our curry vegetable and tofu hash. A new favorite is the cheddar, thyme and buttermilk biscuits with red wine sausage gravy and a fried egg.

And special for Easter, we will feature a new version of green eggs and ham. Make your reservation today - we have a special Easter "Blunch" menu for kids.

Around the Galaxy: Come to Galaxy on Tuesday to hear Baron Wormser read from his new book of poems, Impenitent Notes. Baron Wormser is the former poet laureate of Maine and is now our neighbor. Come to Galaxy at 7PM on Tuesday to celebrate National Poetry Month, Baron Wormser, and a new event season at the bookstore.

Music Notes: Burlington based bluegrass and country band Honest Thieves join us Thursday, April 21 at 7:30 for their first performance at Claire's. Come out and dance and support local music.

Local Events: Learn about vermicomposting (composting with worms) with the "wackier worm sister" Lynette Courtney on Tuesday, April 26 at 4:00 at the Center for an Agricultural Economy. With seed starts and planting, you need worm castings the most, so come and learn all about it. Cost is $5 for Community Garden members, $10 for non-members.

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2011-04-11T16:30:00.000-04:00

Local Food: With the celebration of Passover in mind, Steven prepares a dish of chicken liver that takes off from flavors and textures inspired by the Seder plate. Starting with sautéed liver from chickens raised at Pete's Greens, Steven adds a sauce that combines horseradish, cider vinegar from Square Deal Farm, maple syrup from Sweet Stone Maple Farm, and Empire apples from Champlain Orchards in a variation on the bitter herbs and sweet charoset that recall the signficance of the holiday. The tender morsels of liver are served over polenta and then topped with our housemade pickled ramps that suggest karpas, which is celery dipped in vinegar or salt water. Matzoh bread from Patchwork Farms provides the final note.

Around the Galaxy: Baron Wormser, former Poet Laureate of Maine and now our neighbor, kicks off the 2011 event series at Galaxy on Tuesday, April 19th at 7pm. He will read from his new volume of poetry, Impenitent Notes. Celebrate National Poetry Month and Baron Wormser at Galaxy on April 19th.

Music Notes: Dan Haley is Mister Casual will perform the "world's most beautiful songs" on Thursday, April 14 at 7:30. Check out their 100% original chord garden of acoustic/electric art-pop with clever lyrics, innovative harmonies and tuxedo shirts.

Local Events: Registration for 2011 Hardwick Community Garden plots is now open. Plots are 20 x 30 and cost $20. A potluck meeting for new and returning gardeners is Wednesday, April 20 at 6:00 at the Center for an Agricultural Economy. Contact Elena at center@hardwickagriculture.org for more information.

Democracy Matters & the Office of Sustainability at St. Mike's College host a panel discussion on local food movements on Tuesday, April 12 at 7:00. Hardwick area panelists include Ben Hewitt, author of The Town that Food Saved, and Mike Bosia, St. Mike's political science professor and Claire's co-owner.

On Thursday, April 14th area residents can learn more about and help shape Hardwick's e-Vermont projects at a forum at the Town House at 7PM. To find out more about the meeting, contact Lisa Sammet at the Jeudevine Memorial Library at 472-5948 or by email at jeudevine@hotmail.com.

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"I am what I am"

2011-04-04T17:05:00.002-04:00

Local Food: Even after the whiff of spring on Sunday, the best sign that Mother Nature is bringing warmer weather is the baby spinach from David Allen at Hazendale Farm in Greensboro. Buttery, tender, and herbacious, spinach is one of the earliest risers and the heartiest growers - and a muscle builder to boot, according to Popeye. We're featuring it in a classic American spinach salad - tantalizing and comforting all at the same time. Our version includes the traditional hard cooked eggs, brought to us from Windhorse Farm, and thinly sliced red onion from Blackwell Roots. Crispy bacon from Pete's Greens adds crunch and rich flavor, and Mossend Blue cheese from Bonnieview Farm lends a strong nuttiness. Maple candied cranberries from Vermont Cranberry Company with maple syrup are included for a pop of tartness and some caramelized crunch.

Around the Galaxy: These April snowstorms seem to send many to the gardening section at Galaxy. If you are looking for inspiration, try Eliot Coleman's Four-Season Harvest or Lewis Hill's classic, Cold-Climate Gardening. For more advice about gardening here, check out Henry Homeyer's Vermont Gardener's Companion and enjoy watching those seedlings grow!

Music Notes: Local favorites Fresh Greenes return this Thursday, April 7 at 7:30. Check out the original repertoire of this father-daughter duo and support local music.

Local Events: Celebrate with WGDR/WGDH, community radio from Goddard College, as they launch their new signal at the WGDH Launch Party at the Hardwick Townhouse on Saturday, April 9. The new signal, 91.7 FM will now reach the Hardwick community. The party gets started at 3:00 with music, food and much more.

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Crème de la Crème

2011-03-28T17:00:00.002-04:00

Local Food: Is there a better way to end your meal than a chocolatey, luscious and smooth pot de crème, a French version of pudding that we prepare and serve in a little glass "pot?" This disarmingly simple dessert is made with few ingredients- Steven uses just the finest fair trade chocolate, Butterworks Farm cream, and eggs from Applecheek Farm. Because of its simplicity and the proportion of eggs, the pudding sets loosely, and so it is traditionally served in a small pot, which gives the dessert its name, "pot of cream" in English. Baked to perfection for that layer of comforting skin on top, Steven adds a dollop of whipped cream and a bit of chocolate cookie for some crunch.

Around the Galaxy: With April approaching, get ready for the Galaxy event season to begin. Mark your calendars for April 19th when we welcome Baron Wormser in celebration of his new book Impenitent Notes. We have many great events already booked, and more are in the works. Stay up to date on www.galaxybookshop.com.

Music Notes: Hometown favorites The Butterbeans are back! Come down Thursday, March 31 at 7:30 for some mud season merry making.

Local Events: A Benefit Concert for Heartbeet Lifesharing will be held Friday, April 1 at 7:30 at UVM Davis Center in Burlington. The UVM Hit Paws Co-Ed A Cappella group will perform along with other groups from Boston. For more information or tickets, contact Heartbeet at 802-472-3285 or ingrid@heartbeet.org.

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Got Brats?

2011-03-21T15:00:00.008-04:00

Each of us at Claire's extends a big thank you to everyone who came for dinner and music last Thursday in support of Pete's Greens and Vermont agriculture. Appreciation especially to the musicians who contributed their considerable talent to a spirited evening as this photo from the Burlington Free Press conveys.

Local Food: With the arrival of spring and the promised end of cold weather in sight, it is almost time to dig out and gather around the grill. While we wait for more snow to melt, Steven is preparing grilled bratwurst to tide us over. A German staple that comes from Applecheek Farm in Hyde Park, bratwurst is made with beef and pork, a special spice blend, and some Long Trail Ale. We serve the bratwurst with a rich potato gratin made from Deep Root Organic Cooperative potatoes, from Johnson, and Bonnieview Farm's grassy and nutty Mossend Blanc cheese. Steven adds the traditional accompaniment for bratwurst -- mustard -- to caramelized onions for another layer of flavor. A whipped Rabbi's Roots horseradish cream tops the dish for the final kick.

Around the Galaxy: Galaxy is a great resource for finding the information you need. Financial Intelligence: A Manager's Guide to Knowing What the Numbers Really Mean and Sell Your Specialty Food: Market, Distribute, and Profit from Your Kitchen Creation are just two examples of books that Galaxy is stocking in anticipation of the opening of the Vermont Food Venture Center.

Music Notes: Boston based acoustic/folk duo Tall Heights join us this Thursday, March 24 at 7:30. Don't miss their captivating vocal harmonies and folk-inspired accompaniment of cello and acoustic guitar.

Local Events: Sterling College hosts a comprehensive, full day workshop on "Bringing your Product to Market: Specialty Food Product Development." Experts Cathy Bacon and Molly Creelman will discuss a variety of topics related to selling your products on Wednesday, March 23 from 8:30-4:30. RSVP to Heidi Krantz at 472-5840 or hkrantz@vtsbdc.org

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Erin Go Bragh

2011-03-14T17:00:00.001-04:00

Go Green for Pete's Greens: Celebrate Ireland with us on St. Patrick's Day, when our Thursday Music Night goes "open mic night" to benefit Pete's Greens. Come by for Steven's version of corned beef, raise a pint of Rock Art Brewery's new Pete's Greens Barn Raising Brown Ale, and our proceeds go to Pete's Greens and then on to the newly formed Vermont Farm Fund. Wear your finest greens, bring some extra greens in your wallet, enjoy drink specials and show off your talent in support of Northern Vermont agriculture. We are excited to be a part of this effort and hope you will join us on Thursday. If you are interested in performing at the Open Mic, there is still space available - email us at newvermontcooking@yahoo.com.

Around the Galaxy: A world of reading awaits you at the Galaxy, as two highlights from the week demonstrate. Galaxy is well stocked with The Warmth of Other Suns, which won the National Book Critics Circle award this week after being a favorite of Galaxy readers for several months. And we just received a companion volume to the Galaxy bestseller The Backyard Homestead, Guide to Raising Farm Animals, which includes a full-color at-a-glance breed guide to the animals. Stop in to see these books and lots more!

Local Events: Vermont's 10th Annual Maple Open House Weekend is this Saturday and Sunday, March 19 and 20. This is a great opportunity to visit local sugarhouses and watch maple syrup being made. Sweet Stone Maple Farm in Hardwick will be open, and local favorites The Butterbeans will play bluegrass beginning at 2:00.

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Falafel

2011-03-07T19:00:00.003-05:00

Local Food: A favorite and often requested dish among Claire's newcomers and regulars alike, Steven's falafels give us a taste of the Middle East. Traditionally made with fava beans or chickpeas, Steven instead grinds much anticipated black beans from Butterworks Farm, whose crew has the labor intensive job of cleaning and drying the beans. Preserved red peppers from Pete's Greens and onions from Sandiwood Farm in Wolcott are added along with rosemary, sage, oregano and thyme from Vermont Herb & Salad Company. In keeping with custom, he adds the flavors of coriander and cumin. Dried jalapeno peppers from Steven's garden add a kick of heat. The falafel balls are fried to crispy perfection and served with a duo of sauces, one of mint infused Honey Gardens honey and Butterworks yogurt, and the other a spicy carrot sauce, with carrots from Blackwell Roots. The falafel is vegan, and can be served with only the spicy carrot sauce to keep the dish vegan friendly. Sprouts from Peace of Earth Farm top the dish.

We are fortunate and thankful to live in such a fertile area populated by creative and hardworking people who are eager to demonstrate that Vermont can feed itself. Neighbors knock on our door with baskets full of produce, willing to share their bounty with Steven, Claire's and the community. Olde Barn Farm in East Hardwick grows mesclun and put up roasted tomato preserves, Mary McGrath called with 60 pounds of sunchokes, Sue Holmes sold us three Hubbard squash and Too Little Farm made a dinner reservation and brought with them banana fingerling potatoes. Knowing that Pete's Greens has provided many of the ingredients that comprise the menu at Claire's, people have asked how we are continuing to buy as much local food as Pete's provided before the barn fire. The answer is that our area is teeming with growers and producers who support Claire's mission, and we are eager to support them too.

Around the Galaxy: March means maple and new at Galaxy is Maple Sugar: From Sap to Syrup and Maple Sugarin' in Vermont: A Sweet History. And if it is sugaring season, event season can't be far behind. The schedule is still coming together- get a peek at the calendar so far here.

Music Notes: Blue Fox returns this Thursday, March 10 at 7:30. Don't miss his "deep-lazy-growly-sexy" vocals and his "ultra-strength" guitar playing.

Go Green for Pete's Greens: On St. Patrick's Day, Claire's hosts an open mic celebration to benefit Pete's Farm Fund, to rebuild the barn and help Pete and his crew. Celebrate the day by wearing your finest greens, bring some extra greens in your wallet, and show off your talent in support of Pete's. Pete recently announced that in 2-3 years, when his farm is back on stable financial ground, he will repay the money raised to support Pete's Greens to a special fund to support Vermont agriculture and farms in crisis. We're excited to be part of this effort and hope you will join us on March 17th. Email newvermontcooking@yahoo.com if you are interested in performing. If you want to make a more immediate financial donation to Pete's Greens, stop by Claire's and drop it in our donation bucket or go directly to the farm website.

Local Events: Next Monday, March 14 from 4-6, Claire's will host an art opening featuring the work of Merill Densmore, who worked with the GRACE program beginning in 1994. He was born in 1943 and was raised in the Northeast Kingdom, inspiring many of his pieces that depict the Vermont landscape.

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Bacon, Lettuce, and Burrata

2011-02-28T15:20:00.005-05:00

Local Food: Maplebrook Farm in Bennington introduces locally produced burrata cheese, a kind of stuffed mozzarella that has the softest, most buttery center of fresh cream. Steven carefully places this Italian-style delicacy between layers of baked Empire apples from Champlain Orchards, with crispy bacon from Pete's Greens in the middle. It is served with a salad of greens from Old Barn Farm and drizzled with a cranberry gastrique with a hint of vinegar to add a touch of tartness. Buttered Troika three seed croutons from Bohemian Bread accompany the baked apple and add a bit of crunch. A pesto of rosemary, sage and oregano finishes off the dish with an earthy, herby flavor to complement the creamy burrata. Think of it as somewhere between a traditional mozzarella salad, an Italian bread salad, and a good old grilled cheese.

Around the Galaxy: March means the arrival of gardening books at Galaxy. It's a great time to pick up a copy of The Vegetable Gardener's Bible by Ed Smith of Cabot, a bestseller with over 400,000 copies in print. Or pick up his brand new book, The Vegetable Gardener's Container Bible. Both books are packed with full-color photographs and illustrations to inspire your plans.

Music Notes: Be sure to check out Cinder Conk on Thursday, March 3 at 7:30. This Balkan music whirlwind provides dance tunes aplenty to the delight of enthusiasts and first-timers alike. With frenzied accordion riffs, sometimes adding violin, and warm double bass counterpoint with a classic bardic lyricism, Cinder Conk is inviting and transcendent.

Local Events: Sterling College in Craftsbury is hosting a Northeast Kingdom Food Systems Strategic Planning Summit on Tuesday, March 8 from 5:30-8:30. Learn about the key findings from the Center for an Agricultural Economy and the Northeastern Vermont Development Association in developing a food systems strategic plan. For more information, contact Erica Campbell at 802-272-0886 or erica@hardwickagriculture.org.

Mark your calendars for the Craftsbury Outdoor Center Marathon Tour on Saturday, March 5th. The ski tour starts between 9 and 10 and goes from the Highland Lodge to the Outdoor Center. The tour is untimed and will feature food stops along the way, including one with Steven's butternut squash and apple soup with wheatberries to warm you up.

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Laissez le bon temp rouler

2011-02-21T16:15:00.011-05:00

Local Food: Inspired by his recent trip to New Orleans, and just as the Crescent City gears up for Mardi Gras ("let the good times roll!"), Steven brings beignets to our menu. One of New Orleans' greatest contributions to American regional cooking, the beignet is of French and Acadian origins. Though it is usually a sweet treat served with a mug of chicory and coffee at Café Du Monde, Steven adapts the beignet to savory notes, adding chunks of Maine lobster and preserved red bell peppers from Pete's Greens. A mixture of rosemary, sage and oregano, all from Vermont Herb and Salad Company, complements the lobster. Each beignet is fried to a golden crisp and the plate is served with an ailoi that incorporates preserved tomatoes from Old Barn Farm that were roasted and canned.

Around the Galaxy: Congratulations to local translators, Alex Smith of Greensboro and Elye Alexander of Craftsbury whose translation of the suspenseful detective novel The Devotion of Suspect X has been receiving national attention. The book, by Japan's most popular bestselling author today, was recently reviewed in The Wall Street Journal and on NPR among other places. Pick up a copy at Galaxy and join over two million readers who have made this book a bestseller in Japan. And if you want to experience the flavor of Japan even more, head over to the Highland Lodge for Japanese Bistro night, brought to you by Yukiyo Matsuzaki-Smith.

Music Notes: Acoustic bluegrass/roots group Wiley Dobbs Duo join us again this Thursday, February 24 at 7:30. Come out and support local music and enjoy the sounds of their guitar, mandolin and banjo.

Local Events: The Second Annual Highfields Compost Cabaret and Silent Auction is this Saturday, February 26 from 7:00-10:00 at the Cabot Town Hall. It's sure to be an evening of steaming hot entertainment with music, poetry and a silent auction. Suggested donation is $10. Call 472-5138 for more information.

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Trippin' on Tofu

2011-02-14T14:50:00.002-05:00

Local Food: Even more than corn or pasta, the variety of forms and wide availability of tofu make it a world food. Steven's latest invention shows us these worlds on one plate, starting with Vermont Soy's tofu from Hardwick. First stop, North Africa, where Steven celebrates the winds of change with regional spices, turmeric, and a hint of ginger to flavor the tofu morsels, then fried and served with a carrot sauce, made with carrots from Blackwell Roots Farm. Next, up is vibrant India, with tofu sautéed in cardamon, cinnamon and nutmeg, served on a sauce featuring Sweet Dumpling Squash from Michael Croce at Mystic Morning Farm. The journey continues to warm, sunny Tuscany, featuring tofu rubbed with garlic and rosemary, the latter from Vermont Herb and Salad Company, then grilled for a layer of char, and served with a scallion sauce from Old Barn Farm. The fourth and final stop is a homecoming. Steven bakes applesauce and maple syrup marinated tofu, tops it with crunchy walnuts and serves that with a beet and horseradish sauce, featuring beets from Blackwell Roots Farm and horseradish from Rabbi's Roots. This dish is vegan friendly and gluten free.

Around the Galaxy: Mid-February is a great time of year to head out for adventure. Pick yours from Waterbury author David Goodman's new edition of Backcountry Skiing in the Northeast. Sharing the shelf are the Green Mountain Club's Snowshoeing in Vermont and the Catamount Trail Guidebook and the Snow Walker's Companion. Or if your idea of adventure is escaping into the pages of a great book by the fire, Galaxy has plenty for you too, on Mill Street or at www.galaxybookshop.com.

Music Notes: Chase the winter blues away with "a helping of Green Mountain Soul" from the Rustbucket Brothers on Thursday, February 17 at 7:30. Support local music and get down with their "rootsy Americana rock and country."

Local Events: Experience the magic of moonlight on snow during the Full Moon Snowshoe Walk at Highland Lodge on Friday, February 18. Call the Lodge at 533-2647 by noon on the 18th to sign up. Hot chocolate available by donation after the walk.

Go Green for Pete's Greens: On St. Patrick's Day, come to Claire's for a benefit for the Pete's Farm Fund, to rebuild the barn and help Pete and his crew. Celebrate the day by wearing your finest greens, bring some extra greens in your wallet, and show off your talent at our Open Mic Night in support of Pete's. Pete recently announced that in 2-3 years, when his farm is back on stable financial ground, he will repay the money raised to support Pete's Greens to a special fund to support Vermont agriculture and farms in crisis. We're excited to be part of this effort and hope you will join us on March 17th. Email newvermontcooking@yahoo.com if you are interested in performing.

If you are interested in making a more immediate financial donation to Pete's Greens, stop by Claire's and drop it in our donation bucket or donate directly on the farm website.

Green Mountain Loving

2011-02-06T13:58:00.001-05:00

Local Love: Enjoy your Valentine's Day with the abundant love of our local farmers and producers. We welcome couples, friends, and families to enjoy a romantic interlude or a convivial celebration. Like every Monday, we'll offer beer, wine, and cocktail specials as well as a menu designed to set the mood.

Local Food: Risotto, a slow cooked rice, is one of the most straightforward preparations in Italian cooking. But it requires a great deal of skill to finish the rice just at that point where it combines pearly firmness and silky cream. Steven is inspired by this careful, slow preparation in creating a version that is truly Vermont. Traditionally made with the arborio that thrives in Northern Italy's rich river valley, a strain of rice that is uniquely able to transform its texture when prepared with patience, Steven instead has selected Vermont wheatberries, a whole grain kernel from Butterworks Farm. He soaks them overnight before plunging them in boiling water so they pop open to reveal their natural creaminess. The wheatberries are then sautéed for a nutty twist. Steven slowly adds vegetable stock, absorbed by the hearty grain, and adds tofu from Vermont Soy, roasted carrots from Blackwell Roots Farm, rutabaga from Westminster Organics, butternut squash from Mystic Morning Farm and sunchokes from Mary McGrath in Greensboro. The risotto is topped with soft and grassy Hartwell cheese from Ploughgate Creamery, with a sage and walnut pesto made with sage from Vermont Herb & Salad Company. Vegans can ask their server to hold the butter and cheese.

Around the Galaxy: A Valentine's treat for you - if you spend $20 or more on a book between February 7 and February 14, you will receive a bonbon made in Hardwick by Marie LaPré-Grabon. Or you can forgo the chocolate and take 14% off a second book. Maybe a gift for your own Valentine.

Music Notes: Montpelier singer-songwriter Jay Ekis returns this Thursday, February 10, at 7:30. Check out an artist who Dan Bolles of Seven Days calls "among the state's stoutest songwriters."

Local Events: Noted author of more than a dozen books Rick Bass will read from his work at Sterling College in Simpson Hall on Monday, February 14 at 6:30.

Go Green for Pete's Greens: On St. Patrick's Day, come to Claire's for a benefit for the Pete's Farm Fund, to rebuild the barn and help Pete and his crew. Celebrate the day by wearing your finest greens, bring some extra greens in your wallet, and show off your talent at our Open Mic Night in support of Pete's. Pete has recently announced that in 2-3 years when his farm is back on stable financial ground, he will establish a special fund to support Vermont agriculture with the money that is being raised to help him now. We're excited to be part of this effort and hope you will join us on March 17th. Email newvermontcooking@yahoo.com if you are interested in performing.

If you are interested in making a more immediate financial donation to Pete's Greens, stop by Claire's and drop it in our donation bucket or donate directly on the farm website.

Succulently Rustic

2011-01-31T20:00:00.012-05:00

Local Food: There's little that's more succulently rustic than a nicely aged potted meat. For the Quebecois, it might be creton, or ciccioli in Italy, also known as rillettes in France. Whatever the name, the variations on this traditional home technique provide a texture similar to a liverwurst spread, but with much more pork flavor. With pork ribs provided by the famous cheese makers at Jasper Hill Farm, Steven slowly cooks the meat in a braise of Shelburne Vineyards NuMondo red wine until it is fall-off-the-bone tender. The pork rests for a few days to let the flavors develop. It's then finely shredded and mixed with blueberries from Shirley's Produce that Steven preserved over the summer. With just the right combination of smooth textures, the rillettes are spread on a hearty grilled slice from a six grain loaf baked at Patchwork Farm & Bakery. Topped with pickled red onions and ramps for a touch of tartness, and served with a sprout salad for a bit of green to balance out the rich pork, the rillettes are drizzled with mustard elderberry vinaigrette to finish, featuring elderberry juice from Honey Gardens.

Around the Galaxy: With Valentine's Day approaching, consider the bright red Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human or a passion infused combination of recipes and travel writing, In Late Winter We Ate Pears: A Year of Hunger and Love by the proprietors of Osteria Pane e Salute in Woodstock.

Music Notes: Birchwood Coupe will make their debut at Claire's on Thursday, February 3 at 7:30. Check out their folk/americana originals and support local music.

Local Events: Spend the afternoon of Saturday, February 5 with Tom Stearns, president and founder of High Mowing Organic Seeds at Highland Lodge in Greensboro. Tour the High Mowing Seeds facility in Wolcott from 4-5, enjoy dinner at the Lodge from 5:30-7:30 and stay for the presentation at 7:30 by Tom about healthy food systems. Call the Highland Lodge for more information at 533-2647.

Super Bowl Sunday is next Sunday February 6. Start your pre-game at Claire's with $2.50 Switchback pints, $4 wine and $5 Hot & Cold Martini.

Reserve some love and make your Valentine's Day reservation today.

Heavens to Dumplings

2011-01-26T12:25:00.001-05:00

Local Food: Even as the outside temperature has dipped below zero, the temperature in Claire's remains warm and cozy as you settle in with a bowl of Steven's Chicken and Dumplings. With chicken, shallots, and parsnips from Pete's Greens in our last delivery before the fire, Steven adds carrots from Harvest Hill Farm and potatoes. They are served in a warm jus with white wine, and creamy cornmeal dumplings on top. The dumplings are made with Butterworks Farm cornmeal and greenhouse grown rosemary from Vermont Herb Company for a burst of herbaceousness. Steven browns the dumplings just until they are golden and just a bit crispy.

Around the Galaxy: While the Galaxy takes a break from events for the winter, there are plenty of books to keep you warm this winter. Whether you want to escape with a novel or an adventure tale or spend some extra time near your warm oven, Galaxy has it. This is a great time to explore some of the 270 recipes in Andrea Chesman's Recipes from the Root Cellar, or to sample from Eating Well's Comfort Foods Made Healthy.

Music Notes: Soulful, gritty and sweet singer/songwriter Dave Keller returns this Thursday at 7:30. Come in from the cold and support local music.

Local Events: Help support Pete's Greens in their effort to rebuild their barn after a devastating fire. Visit Bid for the Barn to bid on a wide variety of items donated by Vermonters to help raise money for the effort. Check out our donation, a dinner for four with Pete and two rooms at the Kimball House in Hardwick.

As part of the ongoing mission to raise money for Pete's Greens, we will make a donation from our sales on Thursday, March 17, also known as St. Patrick's Day. Celebrate the day by wearing your finest greens, bring some extra greens in your wallet, and show off your talent at our Open Mic Night in support of Pete's. Email newvermontcooking@yahoo.com if you are interested in performing.

If you are interested in making a more immediate financial donation to Pete's Greens, stop by Claire's and drop it in our donation bucket or donate directly on the farm website.

Please remember to make reservations at your earliest convenience. It helps us plan a more enjoyable and relaxed evening for you. Without a reservation, you may have to wait longer for a table.

Upcoming Events: Valentine's Day will be here soon- reservations fill up fast so make yours today.

Take a look as we update our new website.

Serving Community Along with Dinner

2011-01-17T09:09:00.030-05:00

With our break behind us and concerns at hand after the fire at Pete's, we re-open our kitchen on Main Street tonight. Community is much on our minds. While Linda had a lot on her plate in Hardwick, from a fresh application of Vermont Natural Coatings on the wood floors at Claire's to working with the Center for an Agricultural Economy, her Claire's co-owners Steven and Mike went to New Orleans to learn from the the emergence of a new food community in a city well-known for its cooking but still struggling in the aftermath of Katrina and last summer's oil spill.

They found exciting new efforts, centered in part on a small program called Our School at Blair Grocery (left and above) in the still devastated Lower 9th Ward. This program helps young men and women from the community complete a high school degree while learning about sustainable agriculture, growing food at affordable prices for the neighborhood and selling produce to both established New Orleans chefs and rising newcomers. One of the best of these restaurants is a casual eatery in Bywater called Satsuma Cafe, named to honor the local citrus and not far across the canal from the Lower 9th (below).

Like Claire's, the Cafe provides a community space where people gather for good food, to keep in touch, and to enjoy an ever changing exhibit of local artists.

Another is Cochon (right) in the more established Warehouse Arts District. Both do their best to source local and sustainable produce in a region where farming and fisheries have been devastated by industry, bad government policy, and neglect, and are just beginning to make a comeback.

Coming home just after the fire at Pete's, Steven and Mike are inspired by how much communities can accomplish when they pull together to realize their dreams - even in the aftermath of overwhelming disaster, antipathy, and indifference. You can learn more about their trip by stopping by at Claire's or reading Mike's blog post and links on the Saint Michael's College website.

Aware that much of the food at Claire's is grown at Pete's, many in our community have asked what will happen now. We are fortunate beyond measure to be in the heart of an agricultural economy of such abundance; we're inspired by Pete's plans to rebuild and by the many efforts to support his plans in creative ways. So close to the farm itself, we are working with Pete on how we might best help, and you can send your support directly to Pete at his Farm Fund. While we look forward to the rebirth at Pete's Greens that spring will offer, the food at Claire's will continue to reflect the abundance of farms all around us.

Claire's is open tonight and every night except Wednesday, with bar service, coffee, and baked goods after 2:30 and dinner seating from 5:00 until 9:00 pm. On Sunday, we are open for Blunch from 11:00 am until 2:00 pm. Reservations are encouraged.

Time to Re-Open and to Come Together

2011-01-14T14:08:00.008-05:00

The image at left, taken in late Spring, is a reminder of the abundance we enjoy from Pete's Greens. This week's fire has been a shock for us, coming during our winter break just before we returned to prep the kitchen to re-open this coming Monday. As neighbors, we talk with Pete or his staff, go by the farm, receive deliveries, and serve the food he grows every day. Our staff is strongly connected to his. We're always pleased to see Pete and everyone who works on the farm come in for dinner or enjoy a beer at the bar. Pete's Greens is our largest provider and we are among his top customers. We count everyone at Pete's Greens among our family.

For our community, the loss of the barn, equipment, and stored food is a social and economic loss. The growth of his farm has been one of the most important parts of our local food system, sustaining our environment and numerous families. This is a setback for Pete, for his staff and the families who depend on them, and for the businesses like ours who count on the quality food Pete grows, as well as the countless other businesses nurtured by the dollars first earned on the farm.

Despite this loss, we are nonetheless optimistic. The fire is something we will work through as a community, and like any setback, it provides the opportunity for growth and renewal as we all pull together. So the photo of the farm taken in the Spring is also a symbol of regrowth.

We will open on Monday with produce that came from Pete with the deliveries prepared just before the fire. We are fortunate as well to have more than two dozen farms we work with, and a number of others who have inquired about providing food for our pantry. Of course, this might mean we'll have to venture a bit farther down the road than the 15 miles we are used to, our menu might be a bit shorter, and we will certainly be on the phone more frequently to rustle up enough produce for the kitchen.

And all of us in and around Hardwick will be pulling together. We're working with Pete to see how best we might fit into his plans to raise the capital needed to rebuild. In the meantime, please go directly to his website at www.petesgreens.com/Fire.html and contribute to the Pete's Greens Farm Fund.

You might also come by on Monday and after to enjoy some of that legendary produce.

On New Year's Eve, Invest in Hardwick

2010-12-27T17:00:00.003-05:00

Local New Year: Though it seems these difficult economic times aren't over yet, we still have much to celebrate and to encourage locally as the New Year breaks. As always, we're investing our New Year's Eve in the communities around Hardwick and so can you. Join us for dinner on Friday, and you can trust that 79 cents of every food dollar we spend spend goes to local farmers and artisans. While you celebrate with your family and friends, you'll also enjoy the unique sounds of old timey Americana and jazz from our favorite local duet, The Butterbeans. Performing from 7-9, their nostalgic tunes will bring to mind the best of New Year's Eve past.

From the bar, toast the coming year with our bubbly cocktail special, a New Year's Bellini. Frozen raspberries and elderflower liqueur are blended until smooth and topped with Honey Gardens sparkling mead.

Every reservation of two or more made by Thursday, December 30, at noon, will enjoy two desserts as a gift from us, and all our New Year's Eve guests can enter to win the Grand Prize Drawing, a Valentine's Day dinner for two.

Around the Galaxy: The gals at Galaxy are grateful for everyone who has shopped at Hardwick's independent this year. Read this fun article about Galaxy and other quirky Vermont bookstores in Seven Days.

Music Notes: Acoustic Bluegrass/Roots group Wiley Dobbs Duo will join us Thursday, December 30 at 7:30 with their mandolin and guitar. This will be their first time at Claire's and we look forward to welcoming them and supporting Vermont music.

Local Events: The Craftsbury Outdoor Center is open for the ski season. You can buy a season or day pass and enjoy winter in the Northeast Kingdom. Mark your calendars for the Craftsbury Marathon on Saturday, January 29 and the Craftsbury Marathon Tour on Saturday, March 5.

Getting Ready for the Holidays: Buy a gift certificate now through the new year and we will donate 10% of sales to NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program.

Our annual closing will start at 2 pm after "blunch" service on January 2, reopening Monday, January 17 at 5 pm for dinner.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you reserve a table with us, as it helps us plan a relaxed and hospitable experience for you and all our guests. To show our appreciation, when you call, email, or stop by to make a reservation, you will be entered into our weekly drawing for a $20 gift card for your next visit.

Vermont Gifts

2010-12-20T16:15:00.004-05:00

With wishes of peace, joy, and love for all our purveyors, friends, families, and neighbors!

Local Food: Steven's cooking philosophy is based on bringing out the fullest flavors our farms can provide, which is best exemplified in all its simplicity by his traditional approach to the cheese plate. Truly our local gift, the wealth of cheeses produced by neighboring artisans provides a variety of flavors that can be fully appreciated on their own as well as complement other flavors. The cheese plate features a rotating selection of three cheeses from Jasper Hill Farm, Ploughgate Creamery and Bonnieview Farm. You will find Coomersdale cheese, a semi-hard cheese similar to young pecorino from Bonnieview; Hartwell, a soft-ripened bloomy rind cheese from Ploughgate; Bayley Hazen blue and Moses Sleeper, a soft and grassy triple cream cheese from Jasper Hill; or their Clothbound Cheddar. The plate features apple slices, walnuts and crunchy croutons to complement or contrast with the flavors and textures of the cheese. Our cheese plate can be enjoyed as an appetizer to start your meal or as your final course.

At the Bar: December means eggnog time and we feature the rich decadence from Strafford Organic Creamery at the bar. We serve our hot chocolate with a splash of Organic Maple Liquor from Green Mountain Distillery and top it off with a heaping serving of warm and frothy egg nog.

Around the Galaxy: Whether you are looking for Christmas gifts, cookbooks to add new flavor to your holiday meals, or a great new book to settle in with by the fire during a vacation, Galaxy has plenty to choose from. And don't forget Hardwick's 2010 bestseller, The Town That Food Saved, available pre-wrapped for your gift giving ease.

Music Notes: Students from Hazen High School choir will help get us in the holiday spirit by singing a variety of songs on Thursday, December 23 beginning at 7:30.

Local Events: Startdust Books in Craftsbury will host December's Full Moon Feast on Tuesday, December 21 at 6:30. The monthly potluck dinner will feature a representative from Vermont Foodbank who will talk about the organization. Bring a dish to share and a plate, utensils and a cup. For more information, call 586-2200.

Getting Ready for the Holidays: Buy a gift certificate now through the new year and we will donate 10% of sales to NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program.

We will be closed December 24 and 25 so our staff can celebrate the holidays with their families and friends. Our annual closing will start at 2 pm after "blunch" service on January 2, reopening Monday, January 17 at 5 pm for dinner.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you reserve a table with us, as it helps us plan a relaxed and hospitable experience for you and all our guests. To show our appreciation, when you call, email, or stop by to make a reservation, you will be entered into our weekly drawing for a $20 gift card for your next visit.

Bring on the Braise

2010-12-13T17:00:00.002-05:00

Local Food: Nose to tail is a mantra to some, indicating the careful use of very traditional techniques to prepare every cut of meat available. Our pork braise is inspired by these traditions and the slow cooking used in kitchens around the world to get the most flavor and the lightest texture. Pork cheek from Pete's Greens is unique, a rich cut of meat that is often found smoked or cured. Steven marinates it in Shelburne Vineyard's NuMondo red wine, then adds a dry rub of nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, mace, coriander and star anise. With the flavors absorbed, he braises the meat in red wine and apple cider from Harvest Hill Farm in Walden. It is then sliced and served with jus from the braise as well as cranberry and house made mustard sauce. Purple cabbage from Surfing Veggie Farm marinated with apples and onions in the NuMondo wine and red wine vinegar accompany the pork cheek, along with mashed potatoes and sunflower sprouts.

At the Bar: Savor the flavors of the holiday season with a Gingersnap Appletini. A pop of ginger flavor comes from Domaine de Canton liqueur, which is mixed with your choice of vodka. Apple cider from Harvest Hill brings out a little holiday sugar. Shaken vigorously to incorporate the flavors and give it a chill, the Gingersnap Appletini is served up, with the rim dusted with crushed gingersnap cookies from Vermont Common Foods.

Around the Galaxy: The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion and The Gourmet Cookie Book: The Single Best Recipe From Each Year 1941-2009 - need we say more?

Music Notes: Hardwick's own The Butterbeans return for their hometown gig this Thursday, December 16 at 7:30. Support local music and enjoy the sounds of their fiddle, guitar, banjo and mandolin on jazz, blues, swing and original tunes.

Local Events: Celebrate the newly renovated Hardwick Inn at 4 South Main St on Wednesday, December 15 from 4-6 during the Open House hosted by Lise and Larry Hamel. From 3-4 on the 15th, Santa will welcome families and children. Refreshments will be served. Also on the 15th, S & J Fitness will be offering special deals including 15% off all memberships and gym services. Visit them on the second floor of the Hardwick Inn from 2-7.

Getting Ready for the Holidays: Buy a gift certificate now through the new year and we will donate 10% of sales to NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program.

Book a Holiday Party at Claire's now and you'll be entered to win a $30 gift certificate. For groups of six or more we will offer a $25 prix fixe menu.

We will be closed December 24 and 25 so our staff can celebrate the holidays with their families and friends. Our annual closing will be after "blunch" service on January 2, reopening Monday, January 17.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you reserve a table with us, as it helps us plan a relaxed and hospitable experience for you and all our guests. To show our appreciation, when you call, email, or stop by to make a reservation, you will be entered into our weekly drawing for a $20 gift card for your next visit.

Warm up these winter nights

2010-12-06T15:20:00.003-05:00

Local Food: Charlie Emers of Patchwork Farm and Bakery brings over the best fresh-baked chocorackers bread made using Meunerie Milanaise flour from Canada with Vahlrohna chocolate chunks made in St. Albans. Steven uses the treat as the base for bread pudding, which includes caramel mixed with fair trade French roast coffee from Vermont Coffee Company, and Organic Maple Liquor from Green Mountain Organics. Baked and served warm, this rustic morsel of chocolate lets you savor each ingredient without too much sweetness. Try it with a shot of hot espresso or the maple liquor with its earthy warmth.

Around the Galaxy: Come explore the bounty at Galaxy with the season's best cookbooks. Harvest to Heat: Cooking with America's Best Chefs, Farmers, and Artisans features our neighbors at Jasper Hill, and Good Meat: The Complete Guide to Sourcing and Cooking Sustainable Meat is by Vermont author and James Beard award winner Deborah Krasner.

Music Notes: Cosa Buena returns this Thursday, December 9 at 7:30. Support local music and enjoy their acoustic music with a gentle Latin-Jazz feel.

Local Events: Celebrate Vermont Glass Workshop's 26th year with their Open Studio Seconds Sale. The studio will be open Saturday, December 11 and Saturday, December 18 from 10-5 with live glassblowing demonstrations. Call Wendy at 472-5733 for more information.

Getting Ready for the Holidays: Buy a gift certificate now through the new year and we will donate 10% of sales to NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program.

Book a Holiday Party at Claire's now and you'll be entered to win a $30 gift certificate. For groups of six or more we will offer a $25 prix fixe menu.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you reserve a table with us, as it helps us plan a relaxed and hospitable experience for you and all our guests. To show our appreciation, when you call, email, or stop by to make a reservation, you will be entered into our weekly drawing for a $20 gift card for your next visit.

Two in the Pot

2010-11-29T16:40:00.003-05:00

Local Food: Good turkey is something to be thankful for year 'round. And with Rebel Pine Farm in Wolcott crossing two heritage breeds - the Blue Slate and Bourbon Red - we have unique and flavorful meat to fill a root vegetable pot pie. Starting with sautéed turnips, carrots, parsnips, rutabagas and onions, then adding white wine from Shelburne Vineyard to create a jus, Steven includes kale, finishing with turkey and baking. Topped with a crispy crust of cornmeal from Butterworks Farm and Grafton cheddar, this ultimate comfort food is also available vegetarian with tofu from Vermont Soy, or you can enjoy its rustic simplicity with nothing but veggies. Try the pot pie with a glass of Boyden Valley Seyval Blanc for $9.00 or pint of Trapp Helles Lager for $5.00.

Around the Galaxy: Come to Galaxy on December 4th to celebrate 22 years of a world of reading in Hardwick! Andrea Chesman and Tracey Medeiros will be at Galaxy from 11-1 to sign their cookbooks. Sandy, Stella and Linda will cook from Andrea's book Recipes from the Root Cellar, and Tracey's book, Dishing up Vermont. Come sample recipes and meet the authors from 11-1, and join the Sirius celebration at The Galaxy Bookshop from 8 in the morning until 5 in the evening.

Music Notes: The trio of Katie Trautz on fiddle, banjo and guitar, Jay Ekis on guitar and Noah Hahn on acoustic and electric bass will join us on Thursday, December 2 at 7:30. Don't miss their unique blend of rock/folk/indie originals and covers.

Local Events: Join authors Bethany Dunbar, Caroline Abels, Ben Hewitt and Julia Shipley at the St. John's Episcopal Church at 6:30 pm on Friday, December 3 for a benefit to raise money and awareness around hunger in Vermont. In lieu of admission, please bring a non-perishable item for the Hardwick Area Food Pantry or a monetary donation to benefit the Center for an Agricultural Economy's Food Access Fund. For more information, contact Elena Gustavson at elena@hardwickagriculture.org or call 802-472-5840

Getting Ready for the Holidays: Buy a gift certificate now through the new year and we will donate 10% of sales to NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program.

Book a Holiday Party at Claire's now and you'll be entered to win a $30 gift certificate. For groups of six or more we will offer a $25 prix fixe menu.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you reserve a table with us, as it helps us plan a relaxed and hospitable experience for you and all our guests. To show our appreciation, when you call, email, or stop by to make a reservation, you will be entered into our weekly drawing for a $20 gift card for your next visit.

Ah Shucks!

2010-11-22T15:00:00.000-05:00

Local News: This week, we've upholstered our generous benches for a scoosh more comfort. Thanks to the skills and dedication of Linda Fox and a little ingenuity and research of our own, our benches are padded with wool batting from Neil and Kristin Urie at Bonnieview Farm and covered with recycled, biodegradable fabric made utilizing a low energy process consuming only 0.1% of solvent.

Local Food: Arriving from a family oyster farm in Maine, the celebrated Glidden Point Oysters have debuted on our menu, shucked to order so they are as fresh as possible. Raised using low impact handling, these plump oysters yield sweet and briny meat for seafood lovers to savor. For that touch of Hardwick, Steven serves the oysters with lemon thyme and horseradish straight from his own garden. He tops them with an herbed butter with roasted garlic, rosemary and thyme, adding a dash of bread crumbs and bits of crispy bacon. Gratinéed to lightly toast them and add crunchy texture to the oysters, the plate arrives at your table with a salad of Napa cabbage from Pete's Greens and pea sprouts from Peace of Earth Farm. Try the Oysters with a glass Shelburne Vineyards sweet riesling or Vidal Blanc Ice Wine.

Around the Galaxy:The bookshelves are practically sagging with the weight of the season's crop of cookbooks. Always a great time for new titles, this fall has brought an especially delicious selection. On Saturday, December 4th, Galaxy celebrates 22 years in business with a Sirius Reader party, cookbook signing and recipe tasting. Come by between 11 and 1 to meet Andrea Chesman, author of Recipes from the Root Cellar, and Tracey Madeiros. Tracey is the author of Galaxy bestseller Dishing Up Vermont.

Music Notes: We will be closed this Thursday for Thanksgiving. Join us next week for Katie Trautz, Noah Hahn and Jay Ekis.

Local Events: Meet the creator of basketball, James Naismith, in a living history presentation at the Jeudevine Library on Tuesday, November 30 at 7 pm. See Robert Cheney, author of Basketball's Origins, become Dr. Naismith. For more information contact the library at 472-5948

Getting Ready for the Holidays: Buy a gift certificate now through the new year and we will donate 10% of sales to NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program.

Book a Holiday Party at Claire's now and you'll be entered to win a $25 gift certificate. For groups of six or more we will offer a $25 prix fixe menu.

We will be closed Thursday, November 25 as well as December 24 and 25 so our staff can celebrate the holidays with their families and friends. Our annual closing will be after "blunch" service on January 2, reopening Monday, January 17.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9, Sundays from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

We appreciate it when you reserve a table with us, as it helps us plan a relaxed and hospitable experience for you and all our guests. To show our appreciation, when you call, email, or stop by to make a reservation, you will be entered into our weekly drawing for a $20 gift card for your next visit.

Rue-Full Baguette

2010-11-16T12:30:00.001-05:00

Local Food: Wandering the streets of Paris on a cold day one November, Steven found what would become his all time favorite street food, made by a neighborhood baker... a cheese covered baguette with thick chunks of pork belly called lardons. Back home, he discovered that the Filone bread from Charlie Emers of Patchwork Farm and Bakery makes the perfect variation, with its hint of rye flour. To bring out the creamy cheese, Steven tops the halved loaf with Coomersdale, a semi-hard cheese similar to young pecorino, from Bonnieview Farm in Craftsbury, with a creamy bechamel sauce and a bit of nutmeg for the right melting silkiness. Caramelized red onions and apples are baked into the cheese with bacon from Pete's Greens to add crunch and smoke, and sunflower sprouts accompany the plate. So if you find yourself wandering Main Street in Hardwick, stop in for a journey that takes you near and far, best with a pint of Hill Farmstead Brewery Citra or a glass of Vermont's Cayuga white.

Around the Galaxy: On Tuesday evening from 6:30-8:00, Galaxy hosts a Local Author Celebration. Come meet seven different authors representing a variety of genres. And mark your calendars now for a cookbook signing and recipe tasting at Galaxy on December 4th.

Music Notes: Dan Haley returns this Thursday at 7:30 for a solo performance as Dan Haley is Mister Casual. Check out his Indie/Rock/Pop originals and covers and support local music.

Local Events: The Sari Fashion Show and Indian Dinner is this Saturday, November 20 at 6:00 at Hazen High School. Proceeds benefit Child Haven International. Tickets are $12 for adults and $7 for children 12 and under and are available at the Buffalo Mountain Coop, Gagnon's and Hazen.

The Full Moon Festival is this Sunday, November 21. There will be events throughout the day at Stardust Books and Cafe and The Art House in Craftsbury including a silent auction, music, gallery opening and a full moon feast. All proceeds benefit The Common Place.

Holiday Hours: We will be closed Thursday, November 25 for Thanksgiving and December 24 and 25. Our annual closing will be January 2 for dinner and reopen January 17.

Buy a gift certificate now through the new year and we will donate 10% of sales to NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program.

We appreciate it when you reserve a table with us, as it helps us plan a relaxed and hospitable experience for you and all our guests. To show our appreciation, when you call, email, or stop by to make a reservation, you will be entered into our weekly drawing for a $20 gift card for your next visit.

Ribs

2010-11-08T15:43:00.000-05:00

Local Food: Beef short ribs from Pete's Greens are more tender and meatier then their pork counterpart. Steven generously seasons the ribs with toasted cumin and smoked paprika, grills the ribs for a smoky flavor, and then braises them in Switchback beer and apple cider from Champlain Orchards, creating a rich jus as the sauce. They are served with sweet roasted acorn squash from Riverside Farm, parsnips from Rowan Farm and creamy polenta made with cornmeal from Butterworks Farm for a variety of complementary textures and flavors. The tender fall-off-the-bone meat is not to be missed.

Around the Galaxy: Just as farms have been busy harvesting and getting ready for Winter, publishers have been sending out the season's new crop of cookbooks. Come in to browse At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Simple, Delectable Dishes from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka or, for a different flavor, My Calabria: Rustic Family Cooking from Italy's Undiscovered South. The Essential New York Times Cookbook: Classic Recipes for a New Century includes the recipe most requested by readers, Marian Burros' Purple Plum Torte. Come in now and pick up some inspiration for your Thanksgiving and harvest dinners.

Music Notes: Blue Fox returns this Thursday, November 11 at 7:30. Support local music and check out "one of the few authentic blues musicians in Vermont."

Local Events: Sterling College students will present informative slideshows explaining their internship experiences on Wednesday, November 10 at 6:30. The event is free and at Simpson III.

Ruby Reds

2010-11-01T16:40:00.005-04:00

Special Note: We will be closed for a private event Saturday, November 6, returning to regular service for "blunch" on Sunday. Thank you for your understanding.

Local News: Larry Hamel's restoration of the Hardwick Inn brings light and warmth to downtown Hardwick during the first snow of the season.

Local Food: Vermont Cranberry Company in East Fairfield grows some of the best tartly sweet ruby fruit. With duck just available from Applecheek Farm in Hyde Park, Steven has crafted a plate featuring sauteed breast to capture the rich texture and crispy skin, paired with a sauce composed from cranberries, apples, and plums, a mixture that balances the sweet and tart aspects of each to complement the luscious duck. Steven also brought back a fall favorite, his upside cake starring cranberries and blueberries. Cranberries also arrived at the bar, in our Claire's Cosmo and Cranberry Margarita.

Around the Galaxy: The third annual Read-a Thon starts Friday at 5PM at The Galaxy Bookshop. Last year avid readers raised over $1500 to benefit Hardwick Head Start and Early Head Start. The deadline for registering was last Friday, but if you've missed that and are still interested in participating, please call Sandy at 472-5533 before November 4.

Music Notes: Rustbucket Brothers return this Thursday, November 4 at 7:30. Support local music and get down with their "rootsy Americana rock and country with a helping of Green Mountain soul."

Local Events: The First Friday Artist Talk at the Art House this month features Jennifer Ranz of Greensboro. She will show examples of her work and speak about her thirty years both painting and working with clay.

Radicchio

2010-10-25T17:00:00.011-04:00

Local Food: The burgundy leafed radicchio is an Italian staple, and though it looks much like green leaf cabbage, it is actually a variant of chicory. Slightly bitter - with a hint of spice - when eaten raw, slowly braising or even roasting or grilling radicchio mellows the deeper flavors. Steven prepares the mildly spicy, crispy radicchio to complement the sweetness of the apples and celery root he serves with grilled scallops. The rich brown butter sauce with crispy sage and fennel confit round out the dish and balance the earthy winter vegetables.

Around the Galaxy: Galaxy welcomes Pamela Kristan on Tuesday at 7P.M. Pamela will discuss her book, Awakening in Time: Practical Time Management for Those on a Spiritual Path. She has spent the last 25 years helping others find practical, creative strategies to help improve their lives through her workshops, talks and individual consultations. Come to Galaxy on Tuesday, October 26th.

Music Notes: Dan Haley is Mister Casual returns this Thursday, October 28 at 7:30. Support local music and listen as he crafts a 100% original chord garden of acoustic/electric art pop with clever lyrics, innovative harmonies and tuxedo shirts."

Local Events: Sterling College alumna and Salvation Farms founder Theresa Snow will present on food security in the state tonight at Simpson Hall at Sterling College. The event is free and open to the public.

Jeudevine Library's monthly poetry readings continue this Wednesday, October 27 at 7:00pm. Peggy Sapphire, Len Irving and Elenore Grimes will each read for 20-25 minutes, followed by refreshments and conversation with the poets. For more information, call the library at 472-5948.

Aaargh! Pirates the at Haunted Library! Stop by the Haunted Jeudevine Library on October 31 from 5:30-7:30 to plunder some loot. Be sure to visit Claire's for some Halloween treats as well.

Tart it up

2010-10-18T13:14:00.000-04:00

Local Food: At any time of year, Steven's tarts are a local showcase. Right now, with our long, warm fall just turning to cold and damp, and before the hens slow down their egg laying, they are quite a treat. Start with eggs from Windhorse Farm in East Hardwick, whipped with half & half from Strafford Organic Creamery. Add the last of the year's broccoli from Pete's Greens, then leeks and squash from Hazendale Farm. Top the tart with Hartwell cheese, a velvety and mild variety from Ploughgate Creamery. The pâte brisée crust is made with butter from Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery, and it is all baked until the cheese on top melts and develops a slight crispy texture.

Around the Galaxy: Come to The Galaxy Bookshop on Tuesday at 7PM to hear Tim Simard talk about his new book Haunted Hikes of Vermont. Just in time for Halloween hiking, the book is filled with both fanciful legend and practical trail information. Come on Tuesday, pick up a copy of the book and head out for a hike if you dare.

Music Notes: The Eames Brothers return this Thursday, October 21 at 7:30. Don't miss their "uplifting, soulful, mysterious" music that flows from "stinging electric shuffles to sparse delta blues."

Local Art: We welcome new art on our walls for the months of October and November by Kathy Stark. Join her Monday, October 18 from 4-6 for her artist reception.

Local Events: This week is particularly fruitful for those Vermonters interested in food politics and global activism. On Monday at the Town House, the New England Region of Witness for Peace, Buffalo Mountain Co-op, the Highfields Institute, and the Center for an Agricultural Economy welcome Kiado Cruz, an organizer with the Autonomous Network for Food Sovereignty in Oaxaca, Mexico. On Tuesday evening, Saint Michael's College in Colchester inaugurates the college's new Environmental Studies major with a special address by Indian scientist and food activist Dr. Vandana Shiva (note that the location has been changed from the Arts Center to the chapel). Read a recent interview with Dr. Shiva published by Rodale Press. And the focus is closer to home next week when Theresa Snow, founder of Salvation Farms, discusses hunger in Vermont and her work with the Vermont Food Bank on October 25th at 6:30PM at Sterling College.

This Saturday, the Wacky Worm Sisters of Down to Earth Worm Farm in Greensboro will host an Indoor Composting with Red Wigglers Workshop at 1:00pm. The workshop is free. Please RSVP to 533-9836 or newleaf@vtlink.net.

Counter Revolutions, or Can "Eating Together" Save Food?

2010-10-14T10:38:00.012-04:00

by Mike Bosia

I approached last Sunday’s New York Times Magazine, devoted to “eating together,” with a mix of enthusiasm and trepidation. The series of articles and essays promised a glimpse of the multidimensional character of food, bringing us back to the social nature of an activity many Americans have reduced to mere calories. At the same time, this latest venture in food journalism arrives just after the fall series of style magazines in the Sunday Times (men’s and women’s fashion, design, and travel), with their glossy images and painfully anachronistic consumerism. Would there be something new in this communal take on eating? Or is The Times enshrining food as another dimension of “style”?

Of course, the answer is a lot of both. The articles and their similarly arresting illustrations are like one of those PBS documentaries that seek all at the same time to describe and define a stereotypical Americana while avoiding the politics and power that shapes those stereotypes. Snappy and artfully evocative (explains an article on a pie cooperative in Alabama: “Behind a counter made of planks salvaged from abandoned sharecropper shacks, two young women slid pie tins into a double oven stack. At trestle tables, beneath industrial pendant lights, four young men, on lunch break from their G.E.D. classes, dug into slices of taco pie and made weekend plans”), the Magazine travels from the Maine coast, through the South and Southwest, out West to California’s irrigation fueled farmlands – without mentioning water – and past a kosher restaurant in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. There’s even a snarky gay man on Long Island who learns a thing or two about community and wellness from his deprecating spouse and a taciturn farmer.

With the essay, “Growing Together,” the Magazine’s food editor, Christine Muhlke, sets the tone. By her own admission, she was initially interested in farmers as the force behind the urban chef, and discovered that in rural communities, well, there is community (or “comm” as she unselfconsciously shorthands it). Muhlke’s piece places the right amount of emphasis on the efforts to build community, and the stunningly important part community plays as a resource for both rural living and sustainable farming. She also notes how limited the scope of these communities are despite the wide variety – very intimate, first hand, based in trust, and comparatively few in number within the broader food economy. She concludes with a quote from Slow Food founder Carlo Petrini, a reminder for me that “eating together” is nothing new. The Slow Food movement was founded more than two decades ago.

During a talk I gave on gender and local food politics last month for the Wellesley College Peace and Justice program, one first year student asked me a question that struck at the core of our food dilemma, overlooked by The Times’ much more celebrated food experts. “What about the Kenyan organic farmer,” she asked, “who makes a living growing food for European consumers?” The question of distance and community was brought home again last week, after I sent around an announcement about the founding events for the US Food Sovereignty Alliance to a variety of listserves and friends (my virtual food community). During a full week of direct action on food, October 11 would see people across the Americas calling attention to the latest global land grab and “indigenous resistance to conquest” – instead of Columbus Day. I received only one response, from a Vermont farmer who was especially disturbed that some people he would never meet might not revere Columbus: “Please don’t waste valuable electrons by forwarding nonsense like this,” he wrote to me.

The student and the farmer illustrate our dilemma from different perspectives, which is the real politics of community overlooked by all this talk of “eating together” (or, as Muhlke admits, groups of people with shared interests around food). Eating emphasizes the process of consumption, and so grounds communal relationships in food markets (admiringly cooperative) that bring together consumers and producers around interests. As we cultivate relationships in real time and actual physical space like farmers markets and CSAs, we also make choices about how we live and what we value in our communities. And this is complicated. In some ways, for example, we pull inward around a now communal dinner table, but a local and isolated one nonetheless, that at times draws on the same hierarchies of power and privilege of the traditional dinner table, with a man at its head.

This is how we risk substituting a democracy of consumer choice for the democratization of power. Building a network that brings together producers and consumers in cooperative markets, we might lose sight of the political. What happens, for example, when local markets can’t overcome deeply entrenched patterns of privilege or resentment? Or when we don’t share some of our most obvious and immediate interests, our experiences or perspectives, either locally or at a great distance? And how do we develop broad coalitions of solidarity beyond our own communities so we can knit “eating together” into a global political movement that can translate the best norms of cooperative markets into actual policy? One of the most insightful political economists of the last century, Karl Polanyi, drew a stark contrast between free markets and society. Before the rise of the free market, he demonstrated, production and consumption were part of fixed hierarchical social relationships based on reciprocity in rights and obligations. Nevertheless, Polanyi didn’t presume that hierarchical cooperation was in itself without politics – in fact, reciprocity was superior to free markets because economic activity was recognized as innately social and entirely political.

The politics of power and true democracy lurk beneath the consumerism of the Sunday Magazine coverage of food communities and our own burgeoning local food movement. This month, Vermonters can hear from two activists working on these issues globally and locally. On Monday, Kiado Cruz from Santa Cruz de Yagavila outside Oaxaca, Mexico will speak at the Hardwick Town House at 7 pm. Cruz is a farmer and organizer building democratic institutions around food produced for either local exchange or global sales. On Tuesday, Vandana Shiva, a founder of the international movement of peasants and farmers called Via Campesina, comes to Saint Michael’s College. Shiva is a renowned scientist who left the Indian Institute of Science to devote herself to the rights of farmers and the preservation of agricultural biodiversity. With Via Campesina, she has championed what the organization calls “food sovereignty,” a political process of building communities that emphasizes local decision-making and substantive democratic practice, coupled with the explicit empowerment of women and youth at all levels of governance.

Like the French farmer José Bové, another co-founder of Via Campesina whose visit to Vermont a decade ago represented the culmination of one stage in the development of an alternative food movement, these visits can inspire us to examine where we are and how we move forward within a global movement, to seek alliances with farmers and consumers around the world. Through the substantive forms of democracy advocated by the global movement, we can address our assumptions about power and privilege, and at the same time, draw on our own deeply embedded form of rural democracy and communal decision-making best exemplified by the institutions of the town meeting and Main Street.

“Eating together” should not be the limit of action; it is just the start.

Emphasizing local news, menu updates, and recipes, from time to time New Vermont Cooking also will feature reviews and ideas. In addition to being a co-owner of Claire’s, Mike is a political scientist at Saint Michael’s College working on food politics and political movements. He and Jeffrey Ayres at Saint Mike’s, with Carleton University’s Peter Andrée and Marie-Josée Massicotte of the University of Ottawa, are co-editing a book called Globalization and Food Sovereignty: Global and Local Change in the New Politics of Food, at University of Toronto Press.

Finger Lickin' Good

2010-10-12T12:09:00.002-04:00

Local Food: If you never imagined chicken nuggets at Claire's, we have news for you. Steven starts with earthy, rich and smooth chicken livers from Deb Hart at Windy Acres, soaks them in batter, and fries them until they develop a golden crust and a tender interior. Dusted with smoked paprika and cumin to add a hint of spice and smokiness, the livers are paired with a mild salsa of tomatillos from Rowan Farm and jalapeno and cayenne peppers from Pete's Greens. Just the right balance of rich flavors, indulgent textures, and bright acidity.

Around the Galaxy: For Halloween hiking, pick up a copy of the newly arrived Haunted Hikes of Vermont, and see if you dare check out any of the trails that are rated on a ghostly scale after you have read it. Filled both with fanciful legend and practical trail information, the book has something for every member of the family. Author Tim Simard will be at Galaxy to talk about his new book on Tuesday, October 19th at 7PM.

Music Notes: Fresh Greenes join us this Thursday, October 14 at 7:30 for their first performance at Claire's. Come in and enjoy the original music by father-daughter duo Chris and Juliana Greene on vocals, guitar and keyboard, with Sarah Cannon on fiddle.

Local Events: The Hardwick Fall Film Festival takes place this weekend at the Hardwick Town House. The festival, organized by Harriet Wood and David Rodgers, features four films by independent Vermont filmmakers. Take a look at the full schedule here.

Kiado Cruz, community organizer for food sovereignty in a rural community near the city of Oaxaca, Mexico, will speak at the Hardwick Town House on Monday, October 18 at 7:00. Cruz will address sustainable agriculture and community participation that are instrumental in the current autonomous movements in Oaxaca and Chiapas. The event is sponsored by the Highfields Center for Composting, The Center for an Agricultural Economy, The Buffalo Mountain Food Co-operative Learning Exchange, and New England Witness for Peace.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9. We will return to our regular Sunday dinner hours on October 17, seating arriving guests from 5-8. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

Gingerbread is in the House

2010-10-04T15:29:00.001-04:00

Local Food: Summer's turn to Fall marks the end of fresh herbs, but the cool, crisp weather means that spices call out for greater attention. Steven's blend of cinnamon, star anise and black pepper - along with some secrets - combine with the zip of crystallized ginger in his warm gingerbread cake. He adds molasses and maple syrup from Caledonia Farm for a touch of our orange and red "leafy"sweetness. Caramelized apples and pumpkins are added for texture, and cider-butter sauce to round out the spice, along with vanilla ice cream from Strafford Organic Creamery. Try the gingerbread cake with a taste of WhistlePig Whiskey, the new rye at our bar, distilled in Shoreham, Vermont.

Around the Galaxy: If the cooler weather puts you in the mood to stay near the stove, try some recipes from two new books Apples: More Than 75 Delicious Recipes and The Comfort of Apples: Modern Recipes for an Old-Fashioned Favorite. Perhaps some Cider-Braised Ribs, Apple and Sage Burgers with Camelized Onions or Curried Apple Lentil Soup? And you can keep apples all Winter long with the help of The Complete Root Cellar Book: Building Plans, Uses, and 100 Recipes. Come by and check out these books along with many more in the Fall crop of books.

Music Notes: Mark Struhsacker has played guitar and sung in Montana and Vermont based bluegrass bands for over 35 years. He created and has fronted the WDEV Radio Rangers radio show which has aired on WDEV every Saturday morning at 10:30 since June 1986. Check out his bluegrass flat picking and cross picking guitar style on Thursday at 7:30.

Local Events: The sixteenth annual Share the Harvest fundraiser will be held Thursday, October 7th to benefit NOFA-VT's Farm Share Program. The program helps limited-income Vermonters afford CSA shares from their local farms. On October 7th, restaurants, co-ops and food stores will participate in Share the Harvest by donating a portion of the day's sales to the program. Both Claire's and Buffalo Mountain Co-op in Hardwick will participate.

Foliage in Hardwick

2010-09-30T14:31:00.007-04:00

Foliage in the Northeast Kingdom is approaching its peak. Stop through Hardwick on your road tour and visit us for Blunch or dinner this weekend.

A Squash by Any Other Name

2010-09-27T20:59:00.000-04:00

Local Food: Not inclined toward edible decorations, Steven prefers to harvest pumpkins for satisfying rather than scaring. This week, the plump squash from Mystic Morning Farm star in a tarte of leeks and pumpkin, paired with the smoky texture of bacon and the dry bite of Tarentaise cheese. You will also find the prolific fruit roasted with young chard alongside the crab cake. Pumpkin is also for breakfast, featured as pumpkin pancakes with hot buttered rum apples and whipped cream. And dessert is more than just pie. Look for spicy gingerbread with caramelized pumpkin and apples as a sweet finish to your meal. And if you are craving the flavor profile of pumpkin pie, you can find it at the bar in a pumpkin martini. You might also enjoy the stunning pumpkins from Ben's Pumpkins we feature in the dining room as sculpture. You can get your own pumpkins from Ben Notterman on Pumpkin Lane in East Hardwick.

Around the Galaxy: Archer Mayor returns to The Galaxy Bookshop on the publication day of his 21st Joe Gunther book, Red Herring, on Tuesday. As anyone who has been to one of Archer's many appearances at Galaxy can attest, he entertains the crowd every time. In addition to writing mysteries, Archer is a death investigator, a sheriff's deputy, a volunteer firefighter and an EMT. Come to Galaxy to celebrate Archer's success as a writer, and to kick off his bookstore tour in style. The evening begins Tuesday, September 28th at 7PM and is free.

Music Notes: Singer/Songwriters Ryan Arthur from Danville and Steve Wright of Gopher Broke will play this Thursday, September 30 at 7:30. Come out and support local acoustic rock and bluegrass music.

Local Events: On Saturday, October 2, The Hardwick Town House will present the Mellow Yellow Experience, an immersive musical theater show that transports audience members back to the time when "Baby Boomers" were coming of age. The show features live music, outrageous costumes and a stunning multi-media video light show. Doors open at 6:30 and the show starts at 7:00. Tickets are available at the door and are $12 for the general public and $10 for those over 65. Call Shari at 472-5920 or David Cooper at 399-2589 for more information.

Take a Bite out of Fall

2010-09-20T20:45:00.000-04:00

Local Food: New England is as famous for the ripe colors of apples as for fall foliage, and Josh Karp and Maria Schumann bring us some of the best heirloom apples from their 100 year old Cate Hill Orchard. The first available are tart Duchess apples and the soft, sweet Peach apple, perfect for making sauces. Steven has included them at Blunch in the spiced brioche French toast served with hot buttered rum apples. Served raw and crisp, Duchess apples are found in the beet and spinach salad to add some sweetness and crunch against the creamy tang of blue cheese, dressed with walnuts and maple balsamic vinaigrette. They also accompany the duck leg confit in a warm salad of apples, cabbage and green beans. With blackberries and apples, Steven creates a compote served with the chicken liver mousse. We'll also be featuring apples in many forms at the bar, like our apple cidertini.

Around the Galaxy: Get ready for another World Premiere! Galaxy will welcome Archer Mayor on September 28th, publication day for Archer's 20th Joe Gunter novel, Red Herring. Come celebrate and help Archer kick off his tour in style, Tuesday, September 28th at 7PM!

Music Notes: Hardwick's own Jeanne Segretto Miller and Josh Gould, aka The Butterbeans return for their second performance on Thursday, September 23 at 7:30. Don't miss this opportunity to support Hardwick's music scene featuring Jeanne on fiddle and vocals and Josh on guitar, banjo, mandolin and vocals.

Local Events: Highfields Center for Composting will host a Livestock Mortality Composting Workshop on Thursday, September 23 from 10-12:30. The workshop is for farmers and agricultural professionals interested in learning how to compost routine livestock mortalities. The workshop is free and will be held at the Center's Demonstration and Research Site.

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9. Please note we have extended our Sunday dinner hours and will seat guests until 9:00 pm. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.

A Piper's Peck of Peppers

2010-09-14T17:00:00.000-04:00

Local Food: Steven loves peppers more than almost anything else, so he brings an aficionado's sensibilities to their use on the plate. Warm with a hint of sweet spice, crisp and a bite of heat, or that dash of energy. Right now, Steven is using the large and earthy green peppers from Pete's Greens as an edible bowl. He fills the hollow of the pepper with wheatberries and groats for some texture, then adds fennel, onions and tofu from Vermont Soy to round out the stuffing. Mozzarella from Maplebrook Farm is baked on top of the pepper, and the plate is served with dragon tongue beans from Mystic Morning Farm, cauliflower, and lacinato kale from Harvest Hill, with a dash of pesto.

Around the Galaxy: Thanks to everyone who came to welcome Rowan Jacobsen and his new book American Terroir to the bookshelves. The Galaxy still has some autographed copies of this fascinating book. If you missed Rowan in Hardwick, catch him at Bear Pond in Montpelier before he heads across the country on his tour. And for those of you busy preserving your own terroir, come browse the shelves at Galaxy to discover many books on canning and preserving.

Music Notes: Blue Fox returns this Thursday at 7:30. Don't miss what Pamela Polston of Seven Days calls his "deep-lazy-growly-sexy" vocals and his ultra-strength guitar playing.

Local Events: Celebrate Buffalo Mountain Co-op's 35th Anniversary on Saturday, September 18 at Atkins Field in Hardwick. The clothing swap will be from 2-5; make cider, hear poets, storytellers and musicians and play old-time games from 3-6. The potluck begins at 6- bring a dish to share, and your garden surplus for the community-wide stone soup. Following dinner, dance to local favorites the Butterbeans. For more information or to volunteer, stop by the Co-op or call 472-6020

Reminders: We are open daily after 2:30 for coffee, bar service, and baked goods, and free WiFi, with dinner reservations available from 5-9. Please note we have extended our Summer Sunday dinner hours and will seat guests until 9:00 pm. We serve our special Blunch menu Sundays from 11-2. Claire's is closed every Wednesday.