Years ago, when the Serenbe community was still a dream, the first person Steve and I told about it was our dear friend Ray Anderson. Ray was the founder of Interface Inc., one of the world’s largest manufacturers of commercial modular floor coverings, and one of the first CEOs in the world to make corporate sustainability his mission. When we told Ray our plan, he said: “You’re crazy, you have to do this and I’m going to do everything I can do help you.”

Ray connected us with so many people who helped inform and shape our vision, and one of them was Paul Hawken, an environmentalist, entrepreneur, journalist, author and one of the world’s foremost leaders on sustainability. Paul wrote The Ecology of Commerce; Growing A Business; Natural Capitalism; and Blessed Unrest: How The Largest Movement in the World Came Into Being And Why No One Saw It Coming. Paul has affected world change with his books, and when he speaks I’m so taken with his passion for the environment.

So when he called and asked me to get a group of influential women together who could potentially become investors in a new hair color product he was working on, I said yes. It was my way of repaying the favor Ray had done for us all those years ago.

Paul stayed at Serenbe for three days. One night he presented his product and the next day he was spoke at our first Creative Changemaker Series. But on that first night, we had a private dinner for him with the members of Steve’s Biophilic Institute group. I found whole chickens from a farm in South Georgia at Fern’s Market, roasted them and served them with the feet and everything.

Fresh chickens vary, but this free-range and scratch fed, which means it was lean and very delicate, not big and moist like chickens you might find in the grocery store. I served it with sautéed cabbage and roasted okra on the side.

Before he left, Paul said, “Marie’s, as long as you’re cooking, I’ll come back anytime.”

Roasted Whole Chicken

• 1 whole chicken
• Olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• Fresh thyme
• Fresh lemon

Rub the chicken all over with olive oil, salt and pepper. Take whole sprigs of fresh thyme and put it into the cavity of the bird and under the skin of its breast.

Roast it at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes until fork tender. When it’s done, let the meat rest a bit and squeeze fresh lemon juice all over it before cutting into small pieces and serving.

One of the most exciting aspects of the series for me is the exposure to the many talented chefs and the range of menus, flavors, and experiences they bring to their class.  It’s such a joy to have the opportunity to try different types of cuisine in an intimate class setting.  Sometimes we “travel” to other regions of the country through a guest chef’s chosen menu, and other times, I feel as though we boarded a plane and landed in an exotic locale.  We traveled far with Andrea and what a culinary journey it was!

Chef Andrea enjoying class.

Andrea’s menu was inspired and clever.  On Sunday afternoon, we prepared and then enjoyed warm paneer, kombacha and date salad with red watercress, vadouvan shrimp with spicy carrot puree and cardamon rice, and Louisiana tangerine sorbet with candied kumquat.  In Monday’s class, we prepared and happily consumed all night pot-au-fen (French beef stew) with spring vegetables in broth and crushed strawberry mess (see recipe below).

Kombacha and date salad with red watercress – it’s gorgeous!

We are having a fabulous time with each guest chef in the 2013 expanded Southern Chefs Series.  There are still spaces available in future classes.  Proceeds from this year’s series benefit Wholesome Wave.  Visit the Inn at Serenbe online for information on upcoming classes and call the Inn to register for Southern Chefs Series classes, 770 463 2610.

Crushed Strawberry Mess, Delicious!

Serves 4

For the meringue:
3 egg whites from jumbo eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
a pinch of kosher salt

For the strawberries:
About 25 very ripe strawberries, washed and hulled
3 to 4 tablespoons turbinado sugar, or to taste
2 pinches of kosher salt

For the cream:
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
1 to 2 teaspoons sugar or honey, or to taste
1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise and seeds removed by scraping with a sharp knife

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.
In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the egg whites with half the sugar at medium speed until they are foamy.  Beat in the remaining sugar, the cream of tartar, and the pinch of salt until the egg whites are shiny and stiff.  Spoon the mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment to form 12 to 14 mounds, and bake for 30 minutes.  Continue to bake for an additional hour with the oven door slightly ajar.  When done, the meringues will be crisp and dry on the outside and tender and fluffy within.  (Serve within 4 hours.)

Place the strawberries in a medium bowl and sprinkle with the sugar and salt.  Crush them with a potato masher or large fork until they are juicy and a spoonable consistency but still chunky.  Let the strawberries sit for 15 minutes before serving.

In the meantime, combine the cream, the sugar or honey, and the vanilla seeds and pulp in a medium bowl (save the vanilla pod for another use).  With a whisk or an electric mixer, whip the cream until it is thickened and softly set but not firm.  Whip the yogurt and fold together.

To serve, arrange the meringues, strawberries and juice, and the cream in layers on a platter or individual plates.

I had to keep this quiet for some months, but I can now announce that the fabulous publication Where Women Cook included the story of my journey with food in their spring 2013 edition, which is now on newsstands or available for purchase online.  You should find the magazine locally at Costco, Barnes and Noble, Jo-Ann’s, Michaels, and Hobby Lobby.

Last October, the engaging Jo Packham, creator and editor-in-chief of Where Women Cook, Where Women Create, and Where Women Create Business, and Dana Waldon, a talented photographer, visited Serenbe for the photo shoot.

We had a great time both in the kitchen as I prepared garlic shrimp and grits with greens and while walking the garden.  Now that the issue is out, I can sing Jo’s praises for the outstanding publications she produces for and about women!

I am humbled to have been included in Where Women Cook and hope you will enjoy the issue as much as I have been relishing it.  Nine other women are featured, hailing from Washington (state), Alaska, Hawaii, Arizona, California, New York, and Mexico.  I think you’ll be intrigued by their stories and inspired to make the many and varied recipes included in the spring edition.

Here’s to women everywhere for the many reasons we take pride and pleasure in cooking!

Oh, the thrill…The Southern Chefs Series‘ February guest chef was Anne Quatrano.  I adore Anne, queen of Star Provisions, Bacchanalia, Abattoir, Quinones at Bacchanalia, Floataway Cafe, and Summerland Farms.  Chef Anne graced this past weekend’s class with her wit, stories, tips and techniques, and infinite wisdom.
The 10 class participants held on her every word and eagerly tested their new or refined skills in the preparation of two sumptuous meals.  Dinner featured a salad of winter citrus, radish, fennel, Caramont Farm Esmontonian cheese, and Summerland Farms microgreens; pan-seared halibut, green garlic, greens, fine herbs, and preserved Meyer lemon; quail with heirloom grains, roasted mushrooms, and preserved pears; chocolate souffle with chantilly cream; and madeleines.  Lunch was a feast of celery root soup, pickled Vidalia onion, and pesto; peeky toe crab toast (see recipe below); winter lettuces with pecan, apple, lemon, and olive oil; and ginger cookies.

I am invigorated in the presence of Anne and always learn something new from her.  By the buzz in my kitchen, I think the others felt the same.  There was great energy and camaraderie among the group.

The beauty of the Southern Chefs Series classes is participants get to learn from the best of the South’s best in a casual, intimate setting.  We work together to create delicious and memorable meals and leave knowing we can recreate these meals in our own kitchens. The featured chefs are down-to-earth people who make preparing great food approachable for every level of cook.

What are you waiting for?  Join us this year for what Forbes lists as 1 of 5 Foodie Fantasy Camps.  Call the Inn at Serenbe today to register, 770 463 2610.

Chef Anne Quatrano’s Peeky Toe Crab Toast

Serves 4

4 thick slices sourdough bread
1/2 pound peeky toe crab meat (may substitute lobster for crab if desired)
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus 1 teaspoon for brushing bread
Salt
Black pepper
1 tablespoon spicy mayonnaise
Fresh herbs

Brush each side of the bread with olive oil and toast under the broiler or on a grill.  Pick through the crab meat to ensure there are no shells; try to retain the large pieces of crab.  Toss the crab with the lemon juice, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.  Top each slice of toast with crab.  Put small dots of spicy mayonnaise on top of the crab and garnish with the freshly picked herbs.

January 20 and 21 marked the kickoff to the new year for the Southern Chefs Series, now in its 4^th full season.  Ten eager participants arrived at my door on Sunday afternoon to learn from a master.  Chef Linton Hopkins of Restaurant Eugene, Holeman & Finch Public House, and H&F Bread Co. and a 2012 co-winner for Best Chef Southeast by the James Beard Foundation, donned his apron, unpacked his coolers of food, and began instructing his protégés in the preparation of what was termed a “Southern Masala” dinner, this to be contrasted with the next day’s “Southern Classic” lunch.  The mood was light, the instruction complete, and the resulting meals delicious, colorful, and world’s apart in flavors, despite the fact, as Chef Linton pointed out, southern India and Georgia are on the same latitude and have many foods and preparations in common.

Uniquely, none of the students had attended any previous Southern Chefs Series classes, but all left indicating they plan to enroll in additional classes, citing the intimate setting, personal interaction, and Linton’s attention to each person as favorite aspects of the class.  Fabulous, wonderful, and beautiful are adjectives participants used to describe the experience.

 
Our Sunday Masala Dinner featured tandoori BBQ chicken and pork shoulder, fragrant butter-laced pureed mustard greens (recipe below), sea island red pea dal, kale chaat, corn bread with radish, accompaniments (including a saffron laced mango chutney with almonds), and sweet spoonbread with buttermilk and persimmon lassi.  Monday’s Southern Classic lunch included shrimp salad with citrus, lettuce, and fennel; winter squash soup with bacon and herbs; buttermilk yeast rolls; and old fashioned chocolate cake.

Restaurant Eugene’s Fragrant Butter Laced Mustard Greens

With my talented friend Steven Satterfield

From this…

…in process…

to this…in preparation for several dishes

From this…

to this…it was as good as it looks

Some members of our class with Steven