scott hutcheson

A "Home Grown Indiana" Dinner Menu

A couple of times each year, I auction off a dinner party. Last night, I made dinner for six for the winner of last year's Witham Health Services Gala Auction. Witham is my community hospital and I try to support them in any way I can. My donated auction item was a dinner for six using as many fresh, seasonal, and local ingredients as possible. The dinner is prepared in the winner's home and I even clean up.

This is a way to double my contribution to the hospital. I buy the ingredients for two or three hundred bucks (including wine) and the auction item usually goes for $600-$700 bucks - the hospital gets the proceeds. By the way, if you are planning to go to this years gala (May 17), I'll be auctioning off another dinner party for this year. Here is the menu from last night.

• Appetizer - Crostini with Chevre, Caramelized Onions, and Mission Fig Marmalade
• First Course - Salad of Endive, Fennel, and Blood Oranges
• Second Course - Mini Shrimp Scampi Pizza
• Intermezzo - Limoncello Granita
• Third Course -Beef Tenderloin Marsala with Roasted Asparagus and a Gratin of Potatoes and Artisan Cheeses
• Dessert - Flourless Chocolate Torte with Mint-Infused Ganache

Ingredients for the evening’s dinner came from the following Indiana farmers, artisans, and shopkeepers:

Cheeses from Capriole Farm, Rockville and Traders Point Creamery, Zionsville
Asparagus from Melon Acres, Oaktown
Beef from Fischer Farms, Kenya
Herbs and Spices from Terra Spice Company, Walkerton
Eggs from Stout’s Melody Acres, Franklin
Chocolate from David Alan Chocolatier, Lebanon
Mint Oil from Wappel Farm, San Pierre
Wines from Grapevine Cottage, Zionsville
Coffee from Hubbard & Cravens, Indianapolis

Each time I do this I get asked if I would ever do this sort of thing for non-charitable purposes - i.e., do it as a paid gig. I've always said no. I got asked again last night and I said "maybe." This is not the way I would want to spend every Saturday night, but I might do it a few times each year. If you're interested, let me know and we can talk.

How to Taste Olive Oil

A friend of mine, Bill Sanders, is launching a site called Crush and Press that focuses on wine and olive oil. The site is not up yet but he does have this video on YouTube about tasting olive oil. Take a look and then watch for the launch of his site.

Back in the Cyber Saddle

Well it looks like I'm back, for now. If you are regular reader of this blog, you'll notice that posts have really slowed down over the last few months. Much of this was due to the significant amount of non-blog writing I was doing. I'm still doing a lot, but have finished a couple big projects to decided to jump back into the blog pool.

As you know, this blog is called "food, family. community." I'm thinking this blog might be less about food and more about the other two. I'm writing so much about food - weekly newspaper column, monthly magazine column, Hungry Hoosier blog, TV, and a book - that I'm just not that into posting recipes and documenting what I've been eating. Maybe I'll do more food-related commentary. Anyway, I'm going to try to post more frequently.

 

M&M Field? Say it Ain't So!

I have always loved Chicago but I fell a little out of love a couple of years ago when Marshall Fields became Macy's. In my mind, Marshall Fields WAS Chicago and Macy's WAS New York. I have come to terms with the change -I don't set foot in the place, I just remember the way things used to be. Today my love affair took another blow - Mars is buying out Wrigley and there is talk that the Mar's brand wants to be associated with a sports venue. I was planning to take my oldest son to his first game a Wrigley this summer. It looks like we better hurry. 

A Session with Dr. Will

I had the great good fortune of spending an hour or so drinking coffee with Dr. Will Miller - writer, psychotherapist, teacher, stand-up comic, minister, and a couple other vocations. If you watched Nick-at-Night back in the early 90s you might remember Dr. Will as the network's official therapist analyzing why we watch shows like Sanford and Son. Will's gift is that he is both hilarious and so insightful. Will has graciously agreed to help me with a writing project and we spent some time last week talking about it and talking about writing in general.

Will is also an avid blogger, having written entries every weekday since 2006. He covers a broad range of topics including insights into whatever is currently going on in the world. I've added him to my blogroll and think that many of you would enjoy reading his blog as well. Here is a link.

Early Reactions to "Home Grown Indiana"

Home Grown Indiana: A Food Lover's Guide to Good Eating in the Hoosier State is the book I recently completed with Christine Barbour. Our publisher, Indiana University Press, has given us a publication date of July 7, 2008. We're excited that it will be out just as so much wonderful food is coming out of Indiana's rich soil.

The book was sent out for some potential "blubs" that will be on the back cover, used in marketing, etc. Here is one from the creator and producer of Chefs A'Field, a wonderful award-winning PBS series on local foods. I get it in High Def on my cable system. It is a great program and we're so pleased to have Heidi's reactions. Here is what she had to say:

Home Grown Indiana provides the map for a delicious adventure that is bursting with flavor, personality, and fine foods. . . . Make this book your trusty guide for family outings and country drives and the basis for tastily eating your way across the Hoosier state. - Heidi Hanson, Creator and Producer of Chefs A'Field.

BTW, you can now sign up for email notification of the release at the website we've set up for the book.

Another Food Story on TV

On Wednesday at 7:30 pm on WFYI Indianapolis there will be a Hungry Hoosier story about the National Maple Syrup Festival in Medora, Indiana. The crew and I (as well as my family) braved a blizzard to get down there in Saturday. We had a great time learning about the syrup-making process and meeting some friendly and colorful Jackson County folks. The show, Across Indiana, also runs in other areas on other Indiana PBS stations. Check local listing.   

Hundreds of Words a Day Will Keep Blogging Away

One of the reasons I started this blog was to get into the daily habit of writing and in the early days (2004) I really did post something almost every day. Check the dates of my posts recently and you'll see that I most certainly am not posting as frequently. I'm more likely to post a few times a month. One of the big reasons is that I'm writing every day on other projects. I now have regular writing gigs. Weekly and monthly deadlines for newspapers and magazines and then trying to be disciplined to work each day on longer-term book projects leave little time for blogging. Since all that is on top of my "day job," which happens to also include a good deal of writing, my current blog activity level is likely to remain where it is.   

Hungry Hoosier "Reuben Tuesdays" Story Now Online

A few weeks ago, Across Indiana (WFYI TV Indianapolis) aired a story I wrote and produced about a group of friends who gather for "Reuben Tuesdays" to sample the best Rebuen sandwiches in the Indy area. In the story we also visit the Tie Dye Grill to get some tips on how to make a great Reuben! The clip is now available online here. I had a lot of fun making it and hope you'll enjoy watching it.

On the Air: WFYI Public Television

If you are in the Indianapolis TV viewing area, you may want to check out the piece I wrote and produced (I also appear on-air) for WFYI Public Television. It will be on the Across Indiana program on Monday, January 28, 2008 at 7:30 pm. The story is about a group of friends who gather for "Reuben Tuesdays" to sample the best Reuben sandwiches in the Indy area. You can check out their website here. We'll also visit the Tie Dye Grill to get some tips on how to make a great Reuben! The piece will eventually be streamed and I'll provide a link to it. Hope you can check it out.

This will be my third piece for WFYI. If you would like to see the other two, you can find them at the links below:

• The Meal Behind the Mask (you won't believe what's on the menu)
• Collins Caviar (did you know we produce caviar in Indiana?)