Archive of Past News of the Farm:
A Dinner in Time November 2, 2010 |
Greetings Friends of the Farm,
This
Sunday, we are hosting a dinner celebrating historic preservation in
Austin. The beneficiary is Inherit Austin, a sub group (of the younger
members) of the Heritage Society of Austin, an organization that
champions the protection of historic structures in our city. Since
Sunday is the day we go back to real time, historic time -- thus it will
get dark earlier -- the organizers will install a tent near the field
and trick it out with twinkly lights, and candle-lit tables.
(Nope, it won't be this big!! This was the Outstanding in the Field dinners in early October....)
The theme of the dinner is “Somewhere in Time” and the menu, created by chefs Gina Burchenal and Kristine Kittrell, closely replicates food that may have graced the table of James and Elizabeth Smith, the pioneers who built our farm house and who first farmed this land in the early 1840’s.
(Babette and Spotty Dottie offer scale for the setting for the dinner: the back yard...)
The Appetizers
The appetizers begin with “Fresh Oyster Bar and Garnishes.” Hmmm. Well, garnishes shouldn’t be a problem, but oysters? Actually, anyone living next to the Gulf of Mexico, in that century, would have had access to plenty of oysters. Oysters not yet affected by pollution! Imagine that! Perhaps when the Smiths traveled to Galveston, they favored the local oysters, but bringing them back to Austin in those days would have been a rank proposition. Imagine oysters after several un-airconditioned days on a rough road....hmmm. Now, if we expand our vision to say that this is an 1880’s dinner, then oysters would be iced down and brought to Austin. But of course, James and Elizabeth would already have been in the hereafter. Apparently, by decades, they missed out on oysters. A pity.
Ok, next appetizer: “Smoked Quail Legs with Molasses Glaze.” You bet! Quail would have been plentiful on the grassland savannah that surrounded the farm. And molasses would be within the realm of possibility....easily transported or made locally.
Another appetizer: “Wild Mushrooms and Chevre Tartlets.” Well, maybe the pioneers knew which mushrooms around here are edible and which will send you swiftly to the hereafter. I personally don’t have that knowledge, so I never eat the fungi that sprout up on the farm after lots of rain. But Gina and Kristine will know, so we won’t worry!
The records don’t show that the Smiths had goats, but perhaps a neighboring farm did, so really fresh goat cheese could have been possible.
Then on to the first course! (That is, ahem, if everyone doesn’t succumb to sudden death syndrome over a mistake in the mushrooms....)
The First Course
“Beet Salad with Fall Greens, Texas Pecans and Corn Fritters.”
(Well, if Elizabeth didn't grow beets, she missed out!)
“Beet Salad with Fall Greens, Texas Pecans and Corn Fritters.”
(Well, if Elizabeth didn't grow beets, she missed out!)
Oh this is almost easy! I’m not sure about the beets, but most vegetables have been grown in this country for many years prior to the 1840’s and I imagine Elizabeth Smith would have had a kitchen garden for family food. Likewise, no problem with fall greens.
And Texas pecans! The trees lined the rivers and the creeks back then, just as they do today. Every fall, the pioneers, after supplanting the Native Americans, who also loved pecans, foraged for the protein/fat-rich nuts along the banks of Boggy Creek, four blocks south of the farm house in the 1840‘s, and the Colorado River, exactly one mile south. The nuts, falling off the trees in November, stored well through the winter.
Corn of course, was a given on the daily menus. The Smiths grew lots of corn and wheat, and had their own mill to grind corn meal and wheat flour for themselves, and for their customers in Austin, which was just two and a half miles from the Smith farm. Corn fritters would have been standard fare.
The Second Course
“Confit Duck Leg with Potato Bacon Gratin, Brussels Sprouts and roasted Grapes”
“Confit Duck Leg with Potato Bacon Gratin, Brussels Sprouts and roasted Grapes”
Now, the Smiths also raised cattle and hogs, so meat would have been on the table. I don’t know if they raised ducks, but a hunter could likely produce one as the river and creek would be attractive hangouts for the water birds.
No problems with the bacon, as the Smiths raised a lot of pigs, and if Elizabeth liked Brussels sprouts, she could have grown them in her garden. And not those huge, soggy, bitter sprouts that no one likes. No, they would have been those little, almost sweet sprouts that we grow on her farm land. Now, grape season has passed, so we may have to permit our eyes to glaze over with molasses and just accept that the chefs think grapes would be good with duck leg confit. I think they are right, as I love the concept of a roasted grape. Don’t you?
Now, we’re getting full, but still there is ...
Dessert
“Chocolate Bread Pudding with Texas Bourbon Caramel Sauce.”
“Chocolate Bread Pudding with Texas Bourbon Caramel Sauce.”
Yummmmm! Bread pudding is almost a given when an 1840’s farmer grows a lot of wheat (they had yields of 25 bushels to the acre back then, and that’s pretty good for pioneer methods!). And if the pudding needs eggs, I’m pretty sure Elizabeth had a flock of laying hens. This farm can’t be without chickens! The caramel sauce is conceivable, as they would be able to buy sugar at the dry goods store, and most likely chocolate too.
The BOURBON, no problem. The pioneers had their brews! And, in a modern curve, we will also have Central Texas wines.
At the bottom of the menu for the dinner is this:
“Vegetarian Option by Reservation Only! “
Oops, it may have been a bit hard to be a vegetarian back then -- unless you were really poor, then it was likely your diet. Corn mush and veggies seem pretty delicious to me (a former vegetarian), but I bet that the chefs will do something fancy. And although, lard was used to cook everything, I doubt that Gina and Kristine will use it to cook the fancy vegetarian options, so no worry.
If you don’t make it to the dinner (a few seats are available; info below), I’ll let you know how it goes. That is, if the chefs get the mushrooms right!
Carol Ann
PS: Info on and tickets for the dinner: http://www.heritagesocietyaustin.org
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