On Thursdays we’ve been hosting cooking classes taught by Nicole: farmer, friend, and crafter of scrumptious Italian dishes. The kids learned how to make pasta (as in the homemade kind with a pasta machine), ravioli (including how to make ricotta cheese from milk), pizza, lemon almond torte & sugar cookies for Valentine’s day, and homemade donuts. Nicole ended her classes by arranging a field trip to Knife & Fork, a relatively new and definitely splendid restaurant in nearby Spruce Pine, that celebrates the fresh and local food produced by our mountain farmers.
Chef Nate Allen graciously welcomed us into his kitchen to demonstrate how he makes juicy and delicious hamburgers from local grass-fed beef.
The addition of a little bit of jam helps make the lean grass-fed beef seem extra-juicy by stimulating the salivary glands.
Throw in some sauteed onions and herbs, some homemade ketchup…
Mix it all together really good, make a tiny test patty,
make your final adjustments, form your patties, and sprinkle them with salt.
Add some more homemade ketchup, some homemade mustard,
and Enjoy!
