Bay Club members recently had the opportunity to join Kitchen Manager, George Karos for a hands-on Greek Cooking class.  The focus was on working with Phyllo Dough.  Participants received hands-on instruction and learned the secrets behind making Baklava, Tiropita, and Spanakopita.  While enjoying a light lunch around the Teaching Kitchen’s counter, George shared his knowledge of the flavors of Greek Cuisine, and provided some tips and helpful insight on the versatility of Phyllo Dough.

Members experienced a great afternoon of baking and eating, while welcoming George’s engaging approach to teaching.

Bay Club members recently had the opportunity to join Food and Beverage Manager and resident Pasta Making Expert, Nick Lisotto for a hands-on class.  Participants gathered at the Teaching Kitchen where Nick provided the instructions and necessary tools to make pasta dough from scratch.  The dough was then used to create hand-cut Tagliatelle and filled Ravioli.

During the process, Nick also provided mini-lessons on Fillings and Ragus, as well as Butter-based and Olive Oil-based sauces, to compliment the pastas.  Once the pastas were made, members were able to enjoy the fruits of their labor as they sat down to eat their freshly made pasta meals along with a glass of wine.

The flour was flying throughout the afternoon, and so were the laughs as everyone had a great time learning and creating a delicious pasta feast.

Bay Club Sous Chef Mary Towers recently embarked on a trip of a lifetime to Paris, France for a week of eating, drinking wine, exploring and expanding her knowledge of the culinary world.  While there, she visited the Champagne Houses of Moet and Chandon in Epernay and G.H. Mumm in Reims.  Mary also spent a day walking in Julia Childs’ footsteps; dining at Le Grand Vefour, the restaurant that inspired Julia’s culinary career, and shopping at her favorite cooking supply shop, E. Dehillerin.

Mary also had the opportunity to participate in French cooking and pastry making classes, which she loved.  Upon her return, she shared her experiences with members by hosting two different events that featured favorite memories and foods inspired by her journey.  In her French Pastry Class, participants had the opportunity to make fresh baguettes and croissants.   A special French Wine Dinner saw members enjoying a traditional French dinner with multiple, small courses.  Some of the delicacies featured were Croque Madame, Pig Trotters, Sole and Whole Roasted Duck.  There was even a cheese cart wheeled around the dining room.  Dessert highlighted five of Mary’s favorite bites from Paris including Pistachio Macaron, Cauliflower and Chocolate and Pineapple, Cranberry and Coconut Torte.

The French, with their love of food and their dedication to service, truly inspired Mary.  She was thrilled to be able to share her newfound knowledge with members.

The Bay Club welcomed acclaimed Boston chef, restaurateur and seafood authority Jeremy Sewall to the club recently for a cooking demonstration and book signing. Jeremy is the Chef and owner of Lineage restaurant, Island Creek Oyster Bar and the newly opened Row 34 in Boston’s Fort Point neighborhood.

In addition to the cooking demonstration, all participants received a signed copy of his first cookbook, The New England Kitchen: Fresh Takes on Seasonal Recipes.  The recipes throughout the book highlight the best of each season, and include profiles on Chef Sewall’s friends in the farming, fishing and brewing communities.  Highlighting contemporary New England fare and adapting the region’s fresh, simple flavors into refined dishes for the home cook, the book features more than 100 delectable recipes from the area’s most celebrated farms and fisheries, for easy at-home cooking and entertaining. Divided by season, the book incorporates distinct flavors throughout the year through Chef Sewall’s soups, salads, hearty dishes, grilling favorites, seafood specialties and simple desserts.

Members enjoyed sampling Chef Sewall’s Toasted Barley with Chantenay Carrots and Pomegranate along with Crab Cakes with Grilled Scallions and Pickled Fresno Peppers over Hubbard Squash while learning more about Chef Sewall and his techniques.

Bay Club members recently welcomed Daniel Bruce, Executive Chef at the five star Boston Harbor Hotel at Rowes Wharf to the club for a special cooking demonstration and book signing.   Bay Club Executive Chef Jim Mercer joined Daniel to demonstrate how to prepare White Bean, Sun-dried Tomato and Basil Dip as well as Pan-Roasted Striped Bass with Orange Ale Essence.  These recipes, along with a collection of easy to make recipes for the home cook, are featured in Simply New England, Daniel’s first cookbook released in November.  All who attended received a personally signed copy of the book.

Internationally-renowned, Daniel Bruce has been awarded the title of Vice Consellier Culiniaire, Bailliage de Boston, and he has been honored twice as one of the “Best Hotel Chefs in America” at the James Beard House. In 2009 Daniel was the featured chef at the Celebrity Chef and Winemaker Auction Dinner at the Nantucket Wine Festival, as tribute to two decades of dedication to wine and food education. Additionally, Daniel is an honorary member of Chevalier du Tastevin and has been recognized by Boston magazine as the city’s Best Hotel Chef. Daniel has made numerous live television appearances on national programs such as NBC’s Today and Live with Regis and Kelly. He was awarded an honorary doctorate from his alma mater, Johnson & Wales University in 1996 and in 2013, Daniel was awarded Chef of the Year by the Massachusetts Restaurant Association.

Portugalia Marketplace, Fall River, MA

A new market recently opened in Fall River that will undoubtedly take the South Coast by storm.  Portugalia Marketplace is a spin-off of Portugalia Imports, a wholesaler/distributor of ingredients for Portuguese cooking.  It is a friendly, family, neighborhood Portuguese market and so much more.

The folks at Portugalia Marketplace no doubt take their cues from places such as Chelsea Market Place in New York or the best of contemporary Portugal/Azores markets.  Housed in a former factory outlet in Fall River, the fully renovated facility houses a gorgeous open floor plan market with beautiful exposed brickwork, tall ceilings with huge wooden beams and old windows.  The floor to ceiling glass wall that sections off perhaps the largest display of international Bacalao, providing a salt cod room the likes of nothing you have ever seen in America. 

The market offers wonderful prepared dishes of traditional fare such as roast pressed chicken, braised octopus, Bacalao in two to three ways and various soups and sides. The cheese and charcuterie section is quite impressive and inspiring of all things chicken, pork and blood. Olive oil is given the same respect as fine wine as they are both displayed like alter objects; both with ample selection of variety and budget.

The nicest aspect of this market is the Café with true European coffee, pressed sandwiches and pastries. They carry items rarely seen in other markets. You truly feel like you have traveled to an Old World, European marketplace in Portugal and then you realize you are in your own back yard. It is an exciting place.

And I suggest you check out the interesting root vegetables from the Furnas Islands and the dried fava bean nuts section.

Enjoy,

Jim

Executive Chef Jim Mercer recommends “Fear of Food: A History of Why We Worry about What We Eat” by Harvey Levenstein.  Are eggs the perfect protein, or are they cholesterol bombs? Is red wine good for my heart or bad for my liver? Will pesticides and processed foods kill me? Here with some rare and very welcome advice is food historian Harvey Levenstein: Stop worrying!  In “Fear of Food” Levenstein reveals these worries, causing an extraordinary number of Americans to allow fear to trump pleasure in dictating their food choices.

On Saturday, June 22 members were treated to a special cooking demonstration by Joanne Chang, chef/owner of Flour Bakery + Café.  Joanne prepared Christopher’s Oven-Baked Potato and Red Pepper Tortilla, Gougères and Bittersweet Chocolate-Espresso Terrine.  Participants also received a signed copy of her second cookbook Flour, too: Indispensable Recipes from the Cafe’s Most Loved Sweets and Savories.

Joanne currently operates four Flour Bakery and Cafés in Boston.   She and her husband Christopher Myers also own and operate Myers+Chang, a pan-Asian restaurant in the South End.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is a country club with an eighteen hole championship level golf course and residential property located in Southeastern MA.   To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-207-9232.

Bay Club members recently learned the secrets of Chinese cooking with Jadine Loo-Dixon, the owner of Wok Magic, a Mattapoisett Caterer.  Cantonese cuisine is considered to be the finest of China’s regional cuisines, known all over the world for its freshness of ingredients. Jadine drew on her Cantonese heritage and more than 25 years of experience to show members how to take the mystery out of preparing Chinese food.  Jadine’s family immigrated to this country from Canton, China in the 1920s and opened Charlie Wong’s Chinese restaurant in downtown New Bedford.  Her parents operated a second Charlie Wong’s restaurant in the North End of New Bedford while her aunt and two uncles ran the Cathay Temple in Mattapoisett.  Some of the items prepared and served included Steamed Pork and Shrimp Dumplings, Wonton Soup and Chicken with Chinese Vegetables, all prepared using the finest ingredients.

Members were recently treated to a special cooking demonstration, tasting and book signing with Joanne Chang at the Bay Club.  Joanne is the owner of three Flour Bakery + Café locations throughout Boston in the Fort Point Channel, South End and Central Square and a partner in Myers+Chang restaurant.  The shop has received numerous accolades for her homemade sticky buns, scones and cinnamon cream brioche. Chang also writes pastry articles and reviews cookbooks for Fine Cooking magazine.  She opened Myers+ Chang Restaurant with her husband Christopher Myers in the South End neighborhood in the fall of 2007.

Joanne demonstrated how to make Sticky Buns, Pop Tarts and Banana Bread all from her new cookbook Flour, Spectacular Recipes from Boston’s Flour Bakery + Cafe.  The demonstration was held at the Sports and Activities Center and members left with a copy of her cookbook.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is a country club with an eighteen hole championship level golf course and residential property located in Southeastern MA.   To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-758-9543.

Duxbury Island Creek Oysters from the Island Creek Company are the focus of the Bay Club at Mattapoisett’s upcoming cooking class.  An intensive crash course on how to grow, harvest, taste and celebrate oysters will be lead by  Bay Club Executive Chef Jim Mercer.  Chef Mercer will then prepare a few of his favorite oyster dishes and show students how to make some simple and fresh condiments to accompany them raw.

Island Creek Oysters was started by Skip Bennett in 1992 following three years of growing quahogs in Duxbury Bay.  After years of trial and error, and some undeniably delicious oysters, Skip and his team have grown Island Creek Oysters into one of the largest oyster companies in the United States selling over 100,000 oysters a week.  From the Atlantic Coast to the Pacific Coast, as far north as Canada, and as far south as the Caribbean, Island Creek Oysters can be found on menus such as The French Laundry, Per Se, Le Bernardin and even the White House.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is a country club with an eighteen hole championship level golf course and residential property located in Southeastern MA.   To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-758-9543.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett has two awesome days worth of activities for our youngest members during School Vacation Week!

Wednesday Feb 17th “Children’s Fun Day” at the Sports & Activities Center

Artist Sue Slowey and her team will bring two hours of indoor winter fun to the Bay Club!  The fun begins at the Sports and Activities Center at 9:30 am where children will create a unique snowman mask like you have never seen before! After a break and snack of cut up apples with yogurt dip, graham crackers with cream cheese and bottled water, the fun continues with winter games, “Who’s lost something?”  Two attendants will dress for a snowy day and the remaining children will try to discover what is missing. Next comes story time “What do Snowmen do at Night?” and a creative sing along with hand signs.  Time permitting they will “sew” a mitten and decorate it with stickers and colored markers.

Children’s Yoga Class Wednesday, February 17th 11:45am-12:15

Bay Club yoga instructor Joan Davignon will offer yoga classes for children during February vacation. Yoga is a great way to help children develop better body awareness, self-control, flexibility and coordination.

Children’s Yoga Class Thursday, February 18th 11:45am-12:15

Bay Club yoga instructor Joan Davignon will offer yoga classes for children during February vacation. Yoga is a great way to help children develop better body awareness, self-control, flexibility and coordination.

Children’s Pasta Making Class Thursday February 18th 1-3pm

Bring the children to the Sports and Activities Center Teaching Kitchen during February vacation for a fun and informal cooking class. We’ll create different types of traditional pasta that the kids will love to make and eat including their favorite chocolate raviolis. The class will be led by John McCormack and parents and grandparents are welcome to join in on the fun.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is a country club with an eighteen hole championship level golf course and residential property located in Southeastern MA.   To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via email or phone, 508-758-9543.

This month  a cooking class with two of the Bay Club Mattapoisett’s finest chefs from the Golf House restaurant, Mary Towers and Andrew Kortright will collaborate and demonstrate how to prepare a winter meal fit for lunch or dinner.

The menu begins with a warm spinach salad topped smoked bacon and a mustard vinaigrette, followed by classic New England fish chowder. Chef Towers’ famous Portuguese bread pudding covered with caramelized apples will round out the menu.

Make sure you come hungry to this cooking demonstration as you will want to taste everything at least once.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is a country club with an eighteen hole championship level golf course and residential property located in Southeastern MA.   To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via email or phone, 508-758-9543

How to Roast, Smoke or Deep Fry a Turkey

Chef Mercer will give tips on how to prepare a holiday turkey in a variety of ways in his class Inventive Holiday Cooking.  Members will learn how to create a juicy roast turkey in a conventional stove, as well as how to create a savory bird using a gas grill and natural woods to give it a flavorful smoked taste.  Lastly, he will plunge a bird into hot peanut oil to demonstrate how to safely make a fried turkey.  The class will include information on all the different types of turkeys available and suggestions for side dishes.

Thanksgiving Table Arrangement Class

Florist Chad Peters will teach members a few new tricks on flower arranging, table settings, and holiday decorations.  A bountiful supply of flowers, herbs, and foliage containers will be available for the members to create their own arrangement in a favorite vase, pumpkin or container.

Children’s Thanksgiving Cookie Class

This fun hands-on cookie making workshop is designed for children aged 5 to 12 years old.   The children will be given fresh cookies in entertaining holiday shapes all cooled and ready to decorate for the upcoming holiday.