July 2, 2019
Blackberry Season is Here!
In the U.S., Oregon is the leading commercial blackberry producer. Here in eastern Tennessee, we find them at local farmers’ markets as well as in the grocery store. Their deep, purple sheen attracts our eyes. The soft, juicy berries fill our mouths with fresh, sweet, and slightly tart flavor. Blackberries are not technically a berry, but rather an aggregate bramble fruit. Did you know that blackberries have been used for medicinal purposes by the ancient Greeks, native Americans, and other peoples worldwide?
Blackberries capture the sweet taste of summer.
Chewing the leaves was a remedy for mouth ailments and a tea brewed from the leaves, roots, and bark was used to treat pertussis. The fruit, high in vitamin C, was used to treat scurvy. A 1771 document recommended a tea of blackberry leaves, stem, and bark for stomach ulcers. https://en/wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackberry
They are rich in vitamins A and C, iron, calcium, and dietary fiber. They also are anti-oxidant rich. The fruit also has been used to dye fabric and the stems to make rope. The wild plants have sharp thorns, so have been used as barriers against large animals. The berry is often used in desserts, jams, jelly, wine, pies, and crumbles. We use it is this delicious coffee cake. What a way to start your day!
Blackberry, Walnut, Bran Coffeecake
Pre-heat oven to 350 F.
Grease or spray 9X13 baking pan
Mix together the following ingredients:
1 cup sugar
½ cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
¼ cup molasses
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup oat bran
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup fresh blackberries
1 cup chopped walnuts
Bake 35-40 minutes (or until top is brown and tester comes out clean)
Yield: 18 squares
To get this delicious taste of summer year-round, you can substitute frozen blackberries. This recipe is also a treat when made with blackberries, raspberries, or your favorite berry mix.
July 16, 2018
New Breakfast Dish Tantalizes Guests’ Taste Buds
If you have stayed at the Buckhorn Inn, you know that breakfast is truly a highlight. Each morning we offer fresh coffee, biscuits and coffee cake right from the oven, fresh fruit, and a choice of a sweet or savory hot entrée. One of our newest breakfast dishes is chicken and waffles!
Our new breakfast entree was a hit with this guest!
Not Just for Breakfast
Chicken and waffles is truly an American dish that draws both on soul food and Pennsylvania Dutch cuisine traditions.
There are several theories about the origins of this dish. We do know that European colonists brought waffles to America in the 1600’s. When Thomas Jefferson bought a waffle iron in France in 1789, the popularity of the dish soared. One origin theory says that in the early 1800’s Philadelphia restaurants served waffles with fried catfish. Chicken gradually became more popular than catfish because it was available year round. The Pennsylvania Dutch enjoyed Sunday dinners of waffles, chicken and gravy. So much so that the dish became a symbol of Pennsylvania Dutch country by the end of the 19th century.
In the early 20th century Harlem, New York, chicken and waffles was served by such restaurants as Tillie’s Chicken Shack, Dickie Wells’ jazz nightclub, and the Wells Supper Club. In 1935 Bunny Berigan composed a jazz instrumental called “Chicken and Waffles”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wike/Chicken_and_waffles
Fried chicken and waffles came to Los Angeles by 1940’s. The dish was served at The Maryland and marketed as a Southern specialty. Interestingly, the combination of chicken and waffles does not appear in early Southern cookbooks.
Whatever the origins of the dish, chicken and waffles has become a popular breakfast item at Buckhorn Inn. We make a light, fluffy waffle, top it with crispy fried chicken, drizzle it with a bit of Tennessee honey, and serve warm maple syrup on the side. What could make a better breakfast?
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