By Pat Tanner Special Writer
Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) of Mercer County, which has been serving the community’s vulnerable children for more than 35 years, will hold its annual food and wine fundraising gala, “Autumn Culinaire,” on Thursday, Oct. 15, at Greenacres Country Club in Lawrenceville.
More than 20 of the area’s finest restaurants have signed on for the event, and Glendale Liquors will be offering a tasting of about 150 wines and beers.
As always, proceeds benefit the organization’s youth mentoring programs, which this year will help more than 600 children on a one-to-one basis.Host chef Daniel Daniluk of Greenacres will be dishing up braised pork agrodolce with white polenta and, for a sweet treat, wild berry mango parfait. He’ll be welcoming back established restaurants like Blue Bottle Café, Brothers Moon, Witherspoon Grill, and Blue Point Grill and greeting others that are relatively new to the area’s dining scene, including New Brunswick’s Due Mari and Princeton’s Elements, On the Bone, Parallel 40, and Ruth’s Chris Steak House.
Still others comprise familiar names but new endeavors. These include Bobby Trigg Concepts (i.e. the well-established Ferry House and the new BT-Bistro) and Lawrenceville’s Acacia, which underwent a change of ownership and style two years ago. Kelly Edelstein and Joe Immordino plan to serve crab cake surf-and-turf appetizer and lemon curd tarts.
The evening will also feature live music and a silent auction with tempting items from A to Z (i.e. Amy Karyn Home’s Polarfleece baby blanket and Zoe’s Burberry scarf). In between are opportunities for ballroom dance, Pilates, golf, theater, restaurant dining, and stays at local hotels, and for luxuries such as a Tiffany watch, original artwork, custom photography, fine wines, and top-notch tableware. Also up for bid: a dozen of this year’s cookbooks from my personal collection.
Rounding out the tasting roster are: Anton’s at the Swan (which will serve a selection of pates and Viennese carrot cake), Ota-Ya, Starbucks, Triumph Brewing, Archives, the Nassau Club, Lindt Chocolate, and Silver Decoy Winery.
In so many ways “Autumn Culinaire” represents the best of what happens when the local hospitality and business communities come together for a good cause, even in a less-than- optimal economic climate.
Presenting sponsors are Bloomberg and Ernst & Young. Salt Creek Grille, another of the participating restaurants, is donating $1 from every order of its Herb Roasted Chicken dish to BBBS-Mercer County for all of 2009. And Elements, which opened its doors a year ago, has teamed up with Small World Coffee to create a signature coffee blend for the restaurant. The Elements Blend beans will also be available by the pound at both of the Small World Coffee locations in Princeton. A portion of the sales will be donated to the Princeton School Garden Cooperative.
The folks at Elements have also shared the recipe for the wonderful fall tart, below. The free-flowing recipe perfectly mimics the kitchen staff’s creative yet exacting approach. The recipe was “interpreted” by Emilia Sparatta, the restaurant’s general manage, who adds, “We like to serve this with vanilla or cinnamon ice cream, but an apple sorbet would be great. too. And if you find yourself with leftover apples, they are great over pancakes, or in a crepe.”
Big Brothers Big Sisters “Autumn Culinaire” will take place on Thursday, Oct. 15 from 6 to 9:30 p.m. at Greenacres Country Club, 2170 Lawrenceville Road, Lawrenceville. Tickets are $85 in advance, $95 at the door. For tickets and information visit www.bbbsmercer.org or phone 609-656-1000.
APPLE TART
WITH CRANBERRIES
Scott Anderson,
Elements Restaurant
CRUST
In the restaurant, this is a recipe used to make individual 4-inch tarts. We use a simple pate brisee dough to make the pre-baked shells; it’s not as complicated as pie dough and is more cookie- like in texture. You could substitute homemade or purchased pie dough or, even better, puffed pastry dough. Just follow the baking directions on the package. If you do not have small tart shells you can make rings out of foil (three layers thick to be safe) and fit the dough inside this. It really works!
CRANBERRY COMPOTE
Fresh cranberries are best here; they have more acidity and flavor. If you must use dried, try to find a no-sugar-added variety, or add some extra lemon for contrast. In a pan, melt enough butter to cover entire cooking surface and enough to swirl generously. Add cranberries: You want about a 1-inch to 1-1/2-inch depth in the pan to cook evenly. When berries start to soften, add enough sugar to coat, the zest of 1 lemon (or orange, to taste), 1 cinnamon stick, and golden raisins. When raisins are tender and cranberries are somewhat withered, remove from heat and set aside.
APPLES
If possible, use Jonah Mac apples from Terhune Orchards. Peel and core apples. Cut about 1/3 of the apples into small chunks (pieces of 1- to 1-1/ 2-inches). Cut the remaining apples into full-length wedges. The cooking method for the chunks and wedges is the same, but cook them separately. In a sauté pan place butter and sugar in a ratio of 1/3 butter to 2/3 sugar, plus ½ vanilla bean, scraped, or 1 teaspoon of vanilla. (You could add additional spices at this time: a cinnamon stick, star anise, 2 to 3 cloves, etc.) Melt this down until the sugar starts to turn light caramel in color. Now add your apple chunks or wedges. Cook slowly, turning pieces when necessary to achieve even caramelization. It is very important to get good color on the apples without losing all of their texture — they need not be fully cooked at this point. Remove apples from the “caramel” liquid, reserving the liquid. Repeat the process with the remaining apples.
ASSEMBLY & BAKING
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Add the apple chunks to the cranberry compote. In the pre-baked tart shells place a small base of the compote, making a pyramid shape. (This will serve as the support for the finished tart). Arrange the apple wedges in a spiral pattern around the compote, tucking one tip of the wedge under the lip of the tart shell, the other meeting at the top of the pyramid. Bake the tarts for 10 minutes, or until the apples are quite soft. Brush the finished tart with the reserved apple cooking liquid.
‘Taste of Lawrenceville’
“Celebrating Sustainable Lawrence” is the theme of the fourth annual “Taste of Lawrenceville” to be held on Sunday, Oct. 11, from 5 to 8 p.m. in the Abbott Dining Center of the Lawrenceville School.
This Lawrenceville Main Street (LMS) benefit event will offer a tasting of seasonal delicacies from Lawrenceville eateries and local farms, as well as a sampling of wines from Renault Winery, established more than 140 years ago.
Guests will enjoy an evening of eclectic dining and music by Stringzville, a quartet that mixes acoustic string jazz with a touch of gypsy and bossa nova. LMS also will host a silent auction and 50/50 fundraiser.
This year’s participating eateries are Amalfi’s Cuisine, Acacia, Chambers Walk Café, Duda-Q’s Barbecue, Enzo’s La Piccola Cucina, Leonardo’s Restaurant, Maidenhead Bagel, Passage to India, Simply Radishing, Vidalia Cucina con Passione, and the Village Bakery.
The following local farms also will contribute by providing fresh produce, poultry and beef: Cherry Grove Organic Farm, Cherry Grove Farm, Davidson Exotic Mushrooms, Gravity Hill Farm, Griggstown Quail Farm, Hlubick Farms, Little Acres Farm, Terhune Orchards, Valley Shepherd Creamery, and Village Farms.
The ticket price is $35 per person in advance and $45 at the door. Tickets will be available online at www.lawrencevillemainstreet.com and by phone at 609-219-9300.
