"I'll walk you out in the morning dew my honey"
-The Grateful Dead
Hello! Last week of summer, and man it has been a strange one hasn't it? A year ago would you have believed that we would spend the summer eating most of our meals in a Tent outdoors? Me neither. It's almost time to say goodbye to our beloved Al Fresco dining, this morning when I got up it was 50 degrees and I realized it was time to dig out the long sleeves and sweaters. So many of you have been peering into the nearly finished Dining rooms, it is starting to come together fast isn't it? We have received many of the new wines for our menus, the new computer system is in place and we have several new hires in place so we are still planning on September 30 as our opening date for the 1859 and Dad Clark Bar. Fingers crossed ok?
This week is a quiet one, not a lot of extra events on the Food and Beverage side of things.
On Monday however, David and Alberto have come up with a special menu in honor of Mexican Independence day. I really like this one, First of all the soups are a Mexican-Style Lentil with pulled pork and a play on Pozole using shrimp instead of pork.
We have Red Snapper in Achiote Sauce. Achiote-- also known as Annatto, originated in the Caribbean but is now used in many cultures worldwide-adding a bright color and mild smoky flavor to the mild Red Snapper. Snapper is found in warm waters but the Red Snapper is prized above all and it's price tag certainly reflects that.
There is a Chicken Mole Poblano-- a darker style of mole which interestingly contains no Poblanos at all. Mole poblano is native to the state of Puebla, Mexico and originated in the 16th century.
According to one popular legend, the nuns of the Convent of Santa Rosa created the dish to impress Juan de Palafox, Viceroy of New Spain and Archbishop of Puebla who was visiting the convent. They combined a variety of ingredients they had on hand, including dried chilies, spices, bread, nuts, and chocolate, to make the sauce. The archbishop loved it and mole poblano has been a beloved Mexican dish ever since.
What does contain chilies is the Chiles en Nogales, basically a pepper stuffed with pork, fruit and spices; it also hails from Puebla. Try the Charros Beans as well. The term "charro" refers to Mexican cowherds who tended horses and cattle, and the lifestyle they led required a lot of protein and energy. The charro tradition in Mexico has its roots in the Spanish Conquest, when Spanish shepherds and livestock management customs were brought over to Mexico. When I asked David to explain Charros his simple response was:
" Mariachi Cowboys". So, there you go. Cowboy beans.
Brenda is in our Naples community this week meeting the leadership team there, and learning how they utilize the new reservations system so when she gets back we will go over the new system and how to use it-- probably the week of the 23rd.
I hope to see you all Monday morning at the Culinary Corner to discuss the menu and whatever else is on your mind
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