This week we head up to New England to visit “The Green Mountain State.” Vermont became a state in 1791, and was the first admitted to the Union after the ratification of The Constitution making it the 14th state - the first outside the original Thirteen Colonies. Vermont is also the only New England state that does not boarder the Atlantic Ocean. Vermont is the second smallest state in population, only beating out Wyoming. President Calvin Coolidge was born in Plymouth, VT and is the only president to be born on the 4th of July. Everyone’s favorite late night indulgence, Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream, was founded in 1978 in Burlington, VT. Being known as an environmentally conscience company, Ben & Jerry's gives their ice cream waste to the local Vermont farmers who use it to feed their hogs. Apparently the hogs seem to like all of the flavors except Mint Oreo.
But perhaps the thing that Vermont is most famous for, and
what will be the inspiration for our meal this week, is maple syrup. Vermont is the largest producer of maple syrup in the U.S., producing over 500,000 gallons a year. This week, we’ll be making a maple glazed bone-in pork chop, with brown sugar glazed carrots. And, to incorporate another famed Vermont food, we will be serving it with a Vermont white cheddar potato au gratin.
Vermont White Cheddar Potato au Gratin:
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup finely chopped shallots
1 teaspoon chopped rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 pounds potatoes
4 ounces sharp white cheddar cheese
This dish is so easy to make, it's practically fool proof, and it's so delicious and heats up nicely if you have leftovers. To get started, first we're going to wash and peel the potatoes. I used Yukon golds for this, but I think russet or red potatoes would work well too. After the potatoes are peeled, we have to slice them very thin. The easiest way to do this is to either use a mandolin (the kitchen tool, not the musical instrument) or to use the slicing attachment on your food processor. You could do this with a kitchen knife, but it will take a lot longer and will be more difficult to get even, thin slices. The potato slices should be about 1/8 of an inch thick or even a little thinner.
Preheat oven to 375°F and butter your baking dish. I used a 8x6x2 (6 cup) glass baking dish, which is the perfect size for cooking just for 2 to 4 people. While the oven is heating, grate your cheese. Then, in a small mixing bowl, combine the cream, shallots, rosemary, salt, and pepper and whisk it a little to blend it all together. Next, place half of potatoes in the baking dish, overlapping slightly so they lay even and sprinkle with half of the grated cheese. Then, top with a second layer of potatoes and pour cream mixture over potatoes in dish and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cover gratin with foil and bake for 1 hour. Then uncover and bake an additional 45 minutes or until top is golden brown and potatoes are tender. When you take the gratin out of the oven, it might look a little soupy, that's OK. Just make sure to let the gratin cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Maple Glazed Bone-In Pork Chop:
2 bone-in pork chops
1 cup chicken stock 1/4 cup maple syrup (THE REAL STUFF!)
6 thyme sprigs, leaves stripped and chopped
Juice and zest of 1/2 lemon
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Before we cook our pork chops, we want to take them out of the refrigerator and let them sit on the counter until they're at room temperature. This is because if you put cold meat into a hot pan, it will seize up and get tough. Season the pork chops liberally with salt and pepper on each side. Preheat a large skillet over medium high heat with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil, or until the bottom of the pan is just
covered. When the oil is hot, add the pork chops and sear for 2 minutes on each side and they are nice and brown. Then turn the heat down to medium and cook another 5-6 minutes total. Remove the pork chops from the pan and place on a plate and cover with foil. Then, using the same pan, add the chicken stock, thyme, maple syrup, lemon zest and juice. Bring up to a bubble and simmer until it starts to thicken. Then, return the pork chops to the pan and coat both sides with the glaze. Remove pork chops and place on the serving plate and drizzle some of the remaining glaze on top.
Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots:
1 pound medium-small carrots (about 10 carrots)
2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup water
Salt and pepper
Chopped flat-leaf parsley
First, trim the green stems leaving about 1 inch left on the top and scrub the carrots to clean off any excess dirt. You can peel them if you want to, but I didn't because I like the rustic look of an unpeeled carrot. In a medium saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar, and water and bring to a boil over high heat. Then, add the carrots and reduce heat to medium and continue boiling (uncovered) for about 20 minutes or until carrots are tender but not mushy. Add salt and pepper to taste and freshly chopped parsley. Use a slotted spoon to remove carrots from the pan and serve.
And there we have our completed Vermont meal! Hopefully, you'll be able to time it so that all of the components come together at the same time. After your dinner, I suggest finishing off your night with a pint of your favorite Ben & Jerry's ice cream. My favorite is "AmirCone Dream" - Vanilla Ice Cream with Fudge Covered Waffle Cone Pieces & a Caramel Swirl. Also, as of this post, Vermont is dealing with massive flooding due to Hurricane Irene. If you would like to make a donation to help with the relief effort, you can do so through the American Red Cross http://www.redcross.org/
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