Smokey Mountain Breakdown

This is really a post about seasonal freshness. But I have this dandy recipe from the Cloister's Hotel on Sea Island in Georgia that uses some of the ingredients found from farm vendors on the side of the road.

If you drive into Newport, most any day now, but especially on Fridays, you will see folks selling corn out of the backs of their pick-up trucks. It's best to take these straight home and prepare them, since corn starts to degrade from the moment you pick it. From stalk to the table in under six hours is highly recommended. Sometimes you'll see an nice bunch of scallions like these shown on the right with the dirt still clinging to the roots.

My father's parents lived next door to The Cloister's head chef many years ago. He and his wife had a herd of chihuahuas who regularly dined on roast squab brought home from the hotel.

My family has a tradition of honeymooning at The Cloister, my parents went there when they were married and my brother went there as well. The food is amazing. My mother loved to talk about her time there and the amazing food that was served. I have quite a few Cloister's recipes, honorably obtained from their old head chef.

Though you can now obtain fresh ingredients year round in most markets, there's nothing like gathering them from local sources. Enjoy the season of plenty.

Cloister's Corn Soup

1 gallon chicken stock
1 cup diced celery
3 cups diced potatoes
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 and 1/ pint coffee cream
1/2 pound diced salt pork
1 cup chopped onions
1 pound fresh corn, cut from cob
2 chopped garlic cloves
1/2 cup flour

In a large skillet, fry salt pork and save grease. Strain and remove bits of pork. Make a roux by adding slowly 1/2 cup of flour. In separate pan, fry onions, parsley, celery and garlic in a small amount of chicken stock. When greens are soft, add to roux, stirring constantly. Add remainder to chicken stock, potatoes and corn. Allow to simmer for one hour in covered pot. Season to taste with salt and white pepper. Allow to cook 1/2 hour uncovered; then add cream and serve at once.