1.Buca’s Tuscan Roadhouse  is one of our favorite restaurants! When making reservations for our guests we always try to reserve our favorite table (we like to call it the “BBTS table”) that is right by the fire- very romantic and private! The cuisine here is top notch and always includes fresh local seafood and wonderful meats. One of our favorite dishes is their Vitello Rosa which is veal in a red wine reduction sauce with sun dried cherries…mmnnn! Their Bruschetta is also to die for. Buca’s is open 7 days a week, year round.

Bruschetta at Buca's Tuscan Road House

2. Brewster Fish House- We always preface our summary when helping guests make their dining choices “in the summer high season patrons of this Fish House will wait over 2 hours for a meal”. Fresh, artful food that is always innovative- mostly seafood with maybe one chicken, one beef and one vegetarian entree included in the menu.

Brewster Fish House

3. Mediterranean fare at Abba restaurant in Orleans is both adventuresome and creative.   They boast a Thai infusion and their food continues to amaze us. Signature dishes include Lobster  Pad Thai and Duck Breast with Gnocchi and Broccolini in a Sate Sauce.

4. Blue Moon Bistro is in Dennis. It is small, quaint with great attention to detail. Chef Peter has outdone himself and it’s been a joy watching him make a dream restaurant become reality and successful in just a few short years.

5. Fin- Chef Martha was the chef at the Brewster Fish House for many years. She has created a similar experience at her new restaurant in Dennis. Mostly seafood in a sophisticated environment.

6. Naked Oyster in Hyannis is the perfect place to go for a fresh oyster bar experience. Their martinis are also to die for.

7. We LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Mahoney’s in Orleans. The menu is very broad, always fresh and creative and the restaurant is casual yet still an upscale pub experience.

8. Chillingsworth is just up the street from the Captain Freeman and is an acclaimed 5 star french restaurant. We like dining in the formal dining room for their 5 course meal when we are celebrating a special occasion. It’s all about the food experience and the food really is delicious and appreciated more when savored and spread out over a couple of hours. Just talking about it makes me want to have a birthday or anniversary earlier then scheduled!

9. Bramble Inn- Ruth and Cliff have been innkeepers and restaurant owners for many years and their experience shows. They have both formal menus and bar bites which are great for a lighter meal.

10. 28 Atlantic at Wequassett  is the formal restaurant at the high end resort, Wequassett. Many of the tables have water views and the food is beautifully presented. The chef is very particular about finding local, organic ingredients and it shows! Every bite is an explosion of flavor. I especially liked the dessert which was a creme brûlée medley sampling.

11. Ocean House is a very popular, reasonably priced restaurant that has beautiful views of the Atlantic. In this case the food is as good as the views!

12. Road House in Hyannis is the place we go whenever we are craving good food  along with some fun entertainment. They know just how to grill a great steak and the jazz is usually a happy ending to a great meal.

Bon Appetit!

Dicken's Christmas Village at Brewster by the Sea

Christmas decorations at Brewster by the Sea

It’s always fun to think about new ones and this weekend we were blown away with the creativity of two lovely couples from New Jersey and New York that have come up with a friendship tradition that has enriched both couples lives for over 20 years.   They met in 1987 at a church social sponsored  by their church, the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church. As a way to get into the holiday spirit, Richard Curtin took on the responsibility to  research and organize a winter getaway for the two couples to enjoy together. His goal was to find a special place each year that brought some of the old time values, such as caroling and tree lighting for everyone to get into tho holiday spirit. Each year he would creatively provide clues to their upcoming getaway. We were so touched by the bond that had been established between these two couples. When we asked them where they had visited they quickly gathered beside our fire with a glass of sherry to provide a list of the 21 places they had enjoyed over the years. Listed below, in no particular order,  is a list of their destinations over the  years. Happy to report that Brewster by the Sea was #21.

Richard’s research included dining at our favorite Cape Cod dining destinations, Bucas Italian Roadhouse and a fun new spot in Wellfleet, PB Boulangerie.

As they were leaving they told us that they usually don’t revisit a destination but they so enjoyed their stay with us at Brewster by the Sea that they were thinking about visiting us in another season….possibly the spring to see our beautiful Hydrangeas.

1. Chaddsford, Pa.
2. williamsburg, Va
3. Hershey, Pa. (one of the clues was “two words that mean the same)
4. Bethlehem, Pa.
5. Annapolis, Md. (the one spot they voted to revisit twice)
6. Fredericksburg, Md
7. Cape May, NJ
8. Martha’s Vineyard, Ma
9. Philadelphia, Pa.
10. Manchester, Vt
11. Lakeville, Ct.
12. Essex, Ct.
13. Mystic, Ct.
14. Providence, RI
15. Rockport, Ma.
16. Kennybunkport, Me.
17. Sturbridge, Ma
18. Newport, RI
19. Selinsgrove, Pa.
20. Woodstock, VT.
21. Cape Cod, Ma

Richard & Lynn Curtin and Richard & Jeanne Struck

Holiday traditions with family and friends are such a special gift.

Happy holidays to all!

After all there are so many ways to cook an egg!  I have mastered the over easy egg, the herbed scramble eggs, the sunny side up egg, the over well egg and the easy hard boiled egg. But the perfect poached egg is still a work in progress. Here is what I know:

1. A perfect poached egg does not come easily.

2. I do not like  the special fry pans that come with cups to poach the egg….it feels like cheating and I hate to have special pans that take up space in my closet.

3.  After talking to many innkeepers, our cooking staff, and referencing many cookbooks this is what works best for me- I like to use a large fry pan with a cover. I fill it up half way with water and bring to a simmering boil. I turndown the heat and add 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar then carefully drop the eggs into individual tea cups and lower into the water so that the egg drops near the side of the fry pan. I use a slotted spoon to coral the whites back with the yolk and then cover the pan and turn off the heat. I leave this for about 4 minutes while I prepare the rest of the Eggs Benedict and then remove the egg with a slotted spoon into a bowl of cold water. The eggs can be carefully lifted onto a plate with a paper towel to absorb the water before placing on the plate.

4. While I know the egg whites are good for us I like to cut away the uneven parts so that I have a perfect round.

5. Total perfection of a pouched egg includes having the water level perfect so that part of the yolk is above the water. That allows the center to be a little different color.

6. An egg hour glass timer is very helpful to keep the cooking time to 4 minutes.

7. Fresh eggs always come out better.

8. Patience is always needed!

Poached eggs at Brewster by the Sea

Pumpkin pancakes at Brewster by the Sea

This recipe is really good. We are fortunate to have local fresh ground cornmeal and I liked that it combined buttermilk with the pumpkin. The pancakes were easy to make and our guests raved about how light they were. We decided to keep this in our regular fall menus at Brewster by the Sea and our sister inn,  Captain Freeman Inn.

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Pumpkin Pancakes

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup corn meal

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup canned solid packed pumpkin

3 tablespoons light brown sugar

1 large egg

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

3 pears or apples

Stir together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.

In separate bowl disk together  the buttermilk, egg, pumpkin, brown sugar and oil.

Add flour mixture and stir until moistened. Do not over stir.

Butter grill and add 1/4 cup of battler on hot grill.

Meanwhile, peel apples and pears and slice thin. Saute in butter and add a little sherry and cinnamon to taste.

To serve, top pancakes with fruit and sprinkle with confectionary sugar. Serve with maple syrup on the side. mnnnnnn!

I have driven by this inn hundreds of times and always wondered what it would like to stay in this stately old building. As we were walking down the long hall to get to our suite on the third floor I could not help but smile. Everything felt old and appropriately so! The inn was built in 1773 and evolved quickly into a stagecoach stop, inn and tavern. There was a faint musty smell that reminded me of my grandmothers house. All of the windows were decorated in starched Country Curtains since the inn is also home to a retail Country Curtain store. Common areas were filled with lovely antiques and china with many teapots.

One of the many grand hallways at the Red Lion Inn

We were quick to critique the comfort items including good reading light, comfortable bed, pillows, placement of bathroom amenities, etc. After waking up the first morning we decided that this inn is properly managed and was a perfect choice for our New England getaway.

I have always appreciated antiques and love to include a few distinct pieces at our inns. But after staying at the Red Lion Inn I confirmed my original vision when decorating both Brewster by the Sea and the Captain Freeman Inn…..we are relaxed, yet elegant, our decor is simple but refined and our rooms are light filled with a clean fresh smell from the ocean breezes. Ahhhhhh!

Old things are nice and I appreciate them now and again but what my soul appreciates is a decor with a little more simplicity.

Chef Carol - Cape Cod Bed and Breakfast Chef

This quiet season on Cape Cod we are introducing a wonderful calendar of cooking classes at our new inn, the Captain Freeman Inn.  Former owner and master chef, Carol Edmondson, from Cape Cod Culinary  will be leading the class. Our theme is small plates- big flavors which is a perfect combination to enjoy all of the food made earlier with wine tasting and bite size delights. We will explore France, Italy, Spain and other Mediterranean ports as ingredients and imagination allow.

We will be following in the wake of clipper ships captained by Cape Cod’s famous traders, including Captain Freeman himself, who harvested sea salts and sailed the world to trade for exotic spices, food and wares. These cuisines are world renowned for their fresh ingredients, simple home based preparations and complex flavors. The tradition of small plates  simply prepared and enjoyed almost any time of day is well established throughout the Mediterranean region. Our class schedule is noted below:

November 12, 2011- Bellisimo Italia

January 14, 2012- En Francais

February 11, 2012- Mediterranean Fare

February 25, 2012- Espana Ole

March 24, 2012- Mediterranean Fare

April 21, 2012- Espana Ole

Sample menu from our first Italian cooking school include fresh fig and goat’s cheese focaccia, sausage cacciatore, shrimp grilled in prosciutto, arancini, roasted peppers and eggplant, tiny potatoes roasted with rosemary and fresh lemon….mnnnnn!

Two night package includes breakfast each morning, afternoon tea, truffles, 2 hour cooking class, wine tasting and food sampling afterwards.   Cooking school guests can stay at either Brewster by the Sea Inn and Spa or the Captain Freeman Inn.

For more information please call 800-892-3910.

Brewster by the Sea Innkeeper with Denise and Abbie

Inn keeping is a wonderful career,  and we continue to strive to keep a lighthearted attitude in life and to pass on good will to those around us. The love of my life,  shown above with two of our dedicated employees at our Cape Cod bed and breakfast, is always putting a smile on my face. A good example of this is when I came home on Saturday after helping out at the Captain Freeman to find Byron wearing a cap that he made out of tin foil. He informed me that this cap would help ward off the evil that was predicted to end the world this past weekend. My Mom lives with us at our Brewster Cape Cod inn and her comment was very fitting of someone that grew up in the depression era…….”Byron, you are wasting tin foil!”  I just smiled.

Happy to report that we are all still here on Cape Cod  and are still loving hosting guests at Brewster by the Sea Inn and Spa and Captain Freeman Inn.

Here’s to always remember to let the kid in us come out to play every now and then!

Sunny Abbi; so positive all the time

We have always loved cupcakes at our Cape Cod bed and breakfast,  Brewster by the Sea In and Spa. Over our 8 years as innkeepers we have made lemon cupcakes, carrot cupcakes, buttermilk cupcakes, chocolate and cocoanut, just to name a few. After purchasing our new inn, the Captain Freeman, we decided that every Friday should be cupcake day. We have expanded our cupcake repertoire to include many different flavors and have been so pleased that two of our employees, Lisa and Abbi, have helped us to keep our Friday tradition filled with many different creations and flavors. This summer’s cupcake repast included Red Velvet cupcakes, Strawberry Lime cupcakes, Almond with raspberry glaze, Choca/Mocha cupcakes, cheese cake cupcakes and chocolate orange cupcakes. Needless to say, we have enjoyed watching our guest’s delight when they sample our cupcake of the day. This past week Abbi was in charge of the kitchen since Lisa was on a much deserved weekend off.

That afternoon was such a fall treat…….Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Brown Sugar! Abbi created and baked the cupcakes at the Captain Freeman and later delivered them to Brewster by the Sea so that all our guests could enjoy this wonderful fall treat. It was definitely a collective effort as our innkeeper, Suni, went to the Brewster General Store to had select the wonderful fall candies that are on the top. Abbi made them as mini-cupcakes which was perfect…..just enough for 2 bites of pure heaven.

The recipe is shown below.

Pumpkin cupcakes with Cinnamon Brown Sugar Buttercream

1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

4 eggs

1/2 cup milk

3/4 cup pumpkin

1 stick unsalted butter (1/2 cup), softened

Combine all ingredients with a stand mixer or a hand  mixer.

Preheat oven to 350. Line cupcake tins with paper. Once the batter is smooth, fill each cupcake liners about 2/3 full with batter. Bake the cupcakes for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cupcakes in the pan for a few minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cinnamon Brown Sugar Buttercream

1 stick, unsalted butter, softened

1/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3 cups powdered sugar

4 tablespoons half and half

In large mixer bowl,  whip the butter with the whisk attachment until light and fluffy. Add the brown sugar and cinnamon and whisk until well combined. Gradually add the powdered sugar, alternating with the cream, whipping the icing on medium speed after each addition, until the desired consistency is reached.

Fill a pastry bag with icing and pipe onto cupcakes. Top the cupcakes with Halloween candy and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Mnnnnn!

Cape Cod Bog

Indians introduced cranberries to the Pilgrims in the early 1600′s. The Pilgrims learned the benefits  of cranberries and used them as a remedy against scurvy. Later uses included using the fruit to make dyes, and whalers and residents used the cranberry as a major source of vitamin C.  Colonists actually called the fruit”crane berry” because the blossom and stem resembled a crane’s head and neck. In 1816, Captain Henry Hall of Dennis noticed when sand blew on his cranberry bogs and settled on the vines, cranberry production increased. After some perfecting and practice, commercial cranberry harvesting began to multiply on Cape Cod.

A bog is technically a spongy, low lying wetland that holds water and is full of ancient decayed vegetation. Since cranberries require constant moisture, bogs make a fertile and moist natural habitat for them to grow.  Commercial bogs use a system of wetlands, uplands, ponds and other water bodies to have the cranberries grow year after year. Cape Cod offers the special conditions that cranberries require, including sandy soil, abundant fresh water and a dormancy period that requires enough chill hours to produce a  crop for the following season. Normally growers do not replant every year since an undamaged cranberry vine will survive indefinitely. Some vines on the Cape are more than 150 years old and are still bearing fruit.

Harvesting begins shortly after Labor Day and continues through October. Most growers use a wet pick method that involves flooding the bogs and then using a water reel, known to growers as an egg beater, that moves through the flooded bogs beating the water to knock the ripened berries of off the vines. After the berries are off the vine they float to the top and workers connect miles of tubing, called a boom, which corrals the berries into a conveyer belt.

Workers gather berries using a boom

Cranberry harvesting in Cape Cod

In the winter after the harvest, the bogs are covered with water that freezes and provides protection against frost. In mid March the water melts and the bogs are drained and left exposed and ready for the summer sun to promote growth. One of our favorite summer bike rides is to ride our bikes on the rail trail and to see all the summer cranberry bogs.

Fall is such a magical time on the Cape and we always recommend to our Brewster by the Sea and Captain Freeman Inn guests to visit the Harwich Cranberry Festival.
It’s a fun time for all filled with a  arts & crafts fair, parade  and musical concerts.