Portsmouth Restaurant Week | Black Trumpet

Along a brick sidewalk that weaves down a quaint New England street bordering a historic port studded with industrial fishing boats, sits a mustard yellow barn door with thin black metal hinges, adorned with a handsome slate sign. Complimentary elements come together to create an inviting facade along a brick back drop - a giant circular sign touting gold lettering swings overhead, black windowpanes form a focal point where plants still bloom in the garden boxes beneath, and a gold striped awning above the door frame is the finishing touch. Located here at 29 Ceres Street is the family owned Black Trumpet Bistro, serving seasonally inspired, widely influenced American cuisine. A staple in the Portsmouth fine dining scene, I had heard plenty of rave reviews but this evening marked my first time in. Up a creaky narrow staircase the intimate wine bar overlooks the Piscataqua River. A cozy cave like dining room defined by heavy wood beam ceilings, exposed brick walls and shiny copper table tops is situated on the first floor. Both of these spaces embody a rustic elegance, fit for a romantic duo or a convivial group of 10.The ladies and I, after solid day at Red Hook Brewery and exploring downtown Portsmouth, cozied up at the wine bar just as it was opening at 5pm. We shared pitchers of the fall inspired Harvest Sangria, made with white wine, lemon, brandy and autumnal spices, before settling into our table downstairs for our 5:30 reservation.We started with a bread bowl of thinly sliced ciabatta and the restaurants signature bread, a crumbly loaf studded with black trumpets and dates. Accompanying them was a creamy butter laced with orange, this unique pairing sparked intrigue and made fans all around the table. I opted to partake in the restaurant week menu, three courses for $29 is certainly a good deal! I started with the delicately prepared Salt Cod Salad made with heirloom squash, pancetta and brussels sprouts, served warm in a sherry apple vinaigrette. The cod was not overly salty nor overly fishy, and as a result of pairing it with classic fall ingredients, the salad struck just the right balance of flavors and texture. You've got a nice sweetness from the heirloom squash, a bitter crunch from the brussels, and a firm bite of saltiness from the pancetta. The sherry vinegar and crisp apple dressing adds depth while tying everything together. For my main course, the Coq au Vin with porcini-cocoa pappardelle, cob smoked bacon and mushrooms was excellent. The chicken was perfectly braised, this traditionally rustic french preparation is clearly something the chef excels at. The pappardelle added a unique flair to the dish, it was a welcome addition to the earthy mushrooms, smokey bacon and savory chicken. Dessert was less exciting in comparison to its predecessors, but still a job well done. I had a few bites of the German Chocolate Beet Brownie with milk chocolate frosting, beet whip and candied orange peel. I wasn't a huge fan of the brownie itself, but that fluffy beet whip topping was pretty awesome. For my Indian Pudding with whipped vanilla custard and golden raisin sauce, I actually expected it would come at a warmer temperature. With a soft set consistency, the pudding still manages to comfort, covered by a blanket of silky vanilla custard over a pool of golden raisins bathing in sweet syrupy goodness. If you find yourself in the city of Portsmouth, you'll be in good company at Black Trumpet. It's definitely worth checking out, both the bistro and wine bar, on separate occasions or all at once. The place was packed as the girls and I made our way out. I was so not ready to leave New Hampshire and head back to Boston, I love it up there!!

Favorite Fall Recipes & Seasonal Craft Beers

As I make my way back into the kitchen, I have been delightfully borrowing recipes from around the blogosphere. Here is a look at my foray into fall cuisine and the seasonal craft beers that have accompanied the dishes.

Click on the links for the step by step recipes!

Cake Batter and Bowl's BBQ Chicken & Cheddar Baked Potatoes with corn and roasted red peppers.

I made these awhile back when the weather was still warm, saying good bye to late summer corn before diving into the world of root vegetables. While the potato bakes, the chicken is poached, shredded and mixed in your favorite BBQ sauce. The extracted baked potato flesh is combined with butter, corn and roasted red pepper and scooped back into the potato skins before getting loaded with the BBQ chicken and some fresh grated sharp cheddar cheese.

These are hearty and filling, proving a fantastic way to spice up your regular old twice baked potato. Alongside I drank Sixpoint Sweet Action, a beer I had been enjoying throughout the summer. This dynamic golden amber colored ale is brewed in Brooklyn, NY. The sweetness from the barely malts nicely pairs with the juicy pops of corn kernels. The action is lent from the hops, a bitter spice that brushes your palate clean after every sip.

Delicious Dishing's Butternut Squash Soup with brown butter, sage, cayenne and blue cheese. The soup is made with roasted and sauteed squash, as well as leeks, carrots, onions, shallots and garlic. Filling, hearty, sweet, savory and spicy, I can't think of anything more you could want from a cold weather soup. Actually, the weather is not what I would describe as cold quite yet, the days are seeing beautifully crisp fall temperatures, but perfect for soups none the less.I did make one small change to Megan's recipe; I substituted the 2 tablespoons of honey for maple syrup. I also used a bit more cayenne pepper for an extra kick. The soft pungent sage and the sharp creamy blue cheese crumbles are ideal garnishes for lending even more contrast to the deeply flavorful soup.

From Cambridge Brewing Company, The Great Pumpkin Ale is now being sold in the bottle for the first time in 22 years of brewing! It's an unfiltered ale brewed with locally grown organic sugar pumpkins.

The pumpkin flavor is subtle but fresh, enhanced by autumnal spices. And much like the blue cheese and cayenne garnishes, the beer also served to balanced out the bold sweetness of the butternut squash. While I generally crave powerful flavors of sweet pumpkin in my pumpkin beer, (hello Shipyard Pumpkin/see below!) this brew was a nice contrast in general and a pretty perfect pairing with the soup.

Beantown Baker's Balsamic Roasted Vegetables I used Jen's recipe (which she actually borrowed as part of a recipe swap from another blog) as inspiration for the vegetables I had on hand. I adjusted the original recipe by adding olive oil, opening one of my California Olive Ranch bottles provided at the tasting dinner I attended a couple weeks ago. It's pretty amazing what a high quality extra virgin olive oil can do for your food; I'm a big fan of their product.

Here is what's in the mix:

- 1 potato

- 1 sweet potato

- 1/2 butternut squash

- 3 beets

- 6 garlic cloves

- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

- 1/4 cup olive oil

- salt and pepper

I tossed the evenly chopped vegetables and whole garlic cloves in a large bowl with the balsamic, olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted on a tin foil lined baking sheet at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. This made enough for a hearty side dish for two, with a small amount of leftovers that Adam heated up in a saute pan the next morning and served for breakfast, homefry style with egg sandwiches. I decided to pair the vegetables with Shipyard Brewery Smashed Pumpkin Ale. Not to be confused with Pumpkinhead, but make no mistake, I've been drinking that like it's going out of style (oh wait, it is...) Smashed Pumpkin is an energetic, full bodied pumpkin ale, with a light coppery orange color and nutmeg aromatics. The natural pumpkin tannins are vigorous, playing off the vegetables sweet roasted flavors, one doesn't tend to overpower the other. The spiciness of the hops also lends balanced flavor to the ale.

What's all these savory fall foods and brews without a pumpkin dessert?!

Eat Live Run's Pumpkin Whoopie Pies are a breeze to make, even for a non baker like myself! You don't even need an electric mixer or anything fancy - even the buttercream frosting can be mixed by hand.
I would like to call mine Artisian Pumpkin Whoopie Pies, due to the fact that I have no patience for piping batter or frosting. I take comfort in the fact that I can haphazardly spoon batter on a pan, yielding varied shapes and size pies, that will all taste the same. These morsels are moist and fluffy, with bright pumpkin flavor and rich spices sandwiching sweet, creamy frosting. They impressed Adam, delighted my co workers and gave me a good excuse to use my recently obtained Silpat non-stick baking sheet liners. I purchased my Silpats with a $40 Amazon gift card from The Fairy Hobmother, a generous woman on a mission to bring joy and happiness to the world’s bloggers by providing treats for our hard work. She visited my blog after I left a comment on this post and she just might continue the cycle and grant you a gift if she notices your comment below!!

If you have a recipe for fall that I absolutely must make, please don't hesitate to share! And then go bake these whoopie pies!!!

Seasonal Beer Delights

The best place to enjoy a pint of thick frothy draught beer; specifically a dry stout, perhaps a pale lager, maybe even a dark ale? Why, an Irish Pub of course! From Guinness, to Harp, to Smithwick's, respectively, these winter warmer brews which hale from the great country of Ireland were paired with a four course meal of seasonal and locally sourced ingredients at The Lansdowne Pub. Located directly across from Fenway Park at 9 Lansdowne Street, this typically rowdy Pub with a reputation for chaos and rif raff was pleasantly subdued on a Monday evening. The expansive interior is tastefully designed in true Irish Pub fashion. They manage to make it feel cozy and inviting, despite the vast space. Adam and I attended this Seasonal Beer Dinner - priced at a reasonable $40 with Megan, Jen and her husband Carlos, and Meghan and her husband Eric.Upon arrival we were given a ticket for a mini pint of Guinness at the bar. Classic Gaelic sayings line the wood panels overhead. Eric translated this one for us, which means "Beer and Whiskey".A mini pint was the ideal way to kick off the evening. We introduced significant others and mingled at the refined wood bar before choosing our seats at the the community style tables.

They were set in advance, reading and waiting for diners to fill in.

Malcom Patterson, a representative for Guinness since 1994, took the stage with a microphone to announce each course and provide tasting and pairing notes. To truly understand the connection between the beer and the food, the whys and hows, is a much appreciated talking point. The gesture makes you feel like you are a part of an experience, not just a person with a ticket for a meal.

First course: Oven Roasted Duxbury Oysters with Candied Fennel

Beer Pairing: Guinness

A dry Irish stout with a smooth creamy head and silky ruby red body (appearing jet black or deep brown at times, the true color - hold it up to the light, is red) lends aromas of coffee, chocolate, toast and caramel. The infamous Dublin pint is brewed with generous hops and roasted and malted barley for a bittersweet balance and intense-flavored natural bite. Guinness was smartly paired with our first course. Two oysters on the half shell were coated in a garlic herb bread crumb and baked until golden brown, topped with candied fennel and plated over a bed of pickled cabbage. The sweetness lent from the malted barley in the Guinness as well the dry finish from the hops served to balance out the salty oysters. The delicately sweet candied fennel was an exciting topping which also served to compliment the slippery oven roasted bivalves. Unfortunately, not all the oysters served came topped with the glistening diced gems of fennel. This was likely an easy oversight in a kitchen full of plates, but a disappointment to my fellow diners none the less. The candied fennel truly impressed me, so I was bummed others missed out on the experience of the oysters as they were intended.

Second course: Roasted Winter Squash, Native Blue Cheese, Spiced Walnuts

Beer Pairing: Harp

Harp pours a clear golden-amber color with a frothy head. A light mouth feel, one may be able to detect malty flavors of green apple and pear that mingle with hints of lemon. The intensely sweet winter squash, tossed with fresh herbs, olive oil and seasoning and roasted until tender welcomes the pairing of a clean light bodied lager. Topped with locally made blue cheese, its sharpness undeniably pleasing as it mingled in the balsamic infused brown butter and melted over the soft wedges of the fleshy orange vegetable. The final touch of roasted walnuts, deep brown and generously scattered about the place, hit the palate with a spiced cayenne pepper zing. Harp lager finishes crisp and refreshing, with notes of biscuit, which serve to compliment the spice.

Third course: Braised Veal Breast, Herb Spatzel, Glazed Turnips & Local Greens

Beer Pairing: Smithwick's

Smithwick's is a deep chestnut brown ale with Irish heritage that is even older than Guinness. Malcom went on to explain that the beer has been recognized globally, winning numerous awards in best quality categories. A gentle balance of bitterness due to the hops being added later in the brewing process give way to flavors of roasted coffee and a sweet caramel finish. Smithwick's unique taste compliments the veal breast which is stuffed with wild mushrooms and paired with purple top turnips and local braised greens. My first time experiencing braised veal; while it was tender and flavorful it didn't yield that fall apart to the touch tenderness. I found myself cutting vigorously through at certain points to enjoy a bite. Veal is typically not my meat of choice and while it is encouraging to branch out, I think last nights diner affirmed that. Adam on the other hand, who thoroughly enjoys veal (often orders veal parm when we go out for Italian) loved the braised cut and cleaned his plate. Despite my love lacking in the veal department, the entree delivered in other areas. The thinly sliced circles of glazed turnip were cooked well and the toothsome spatzel made with fresh herbs was equally appealing. Smithwick's didn't overpower the strong flavors in this meal, rather it stuck a harmonious balance with the hearty vegetables, pasta and meat.

Fourth Course: Guinness Float

The third and final mini pint of Guinness, this time was poured over freshly made butterscotch ice cream. The creamy Guinness didn't easily mingle with the icy scoop of butterscotch ice cream, and we quickly realized that stirring the two together provided for the desired level of sweetness. The bitter flavors of the Guinness then faded into the background and the creamy melted butterscotch took center stage.

I understand the timing of multiple courses for large parties is tough to master! (Top Chef anyone?!) and while this wasn't flawless at every turn, overall it didn't take away from the quality of the dining experience. Everyone loved the food and the mini pints of beer, which ended up being the just the right amount for sipping without leaving one too full for the next course. I was delighted to finally check out what The Lansdowne Pub had to offer. It was clear the chef worked very hard to prepare a menu with seasonal local ingredients for such a large crowd and my many compliments are due. The pairing of beers with each course were remarkably well thought out. This Monday night dinner that was both informative and appetizing, with fun company to boot, kicked of the second week of 2011 in great form.