The Alton Mill’s CusineArt was a was a lot of fun this year.  Not only did we have a lot going on at Shaw’s Creek Café, but With the Grain was once again able to participate in the popular BBQ cooking demonstrations.  The cooking demo was put on by our Chef and Kitchen Department Manager, Katie (pictured above), and our Kitchen Department Lead, Shannon.  Here is the recipe for Smoked Trout and Pesto Crostinis!

Pesto:

Ingredients

4 cups of roughly chopped garlic scapes
6 cups of fresh basil
1 cup of sunflower seeds
1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup of olive oil
2 teaspoons of salt
2 teaspoons of pepper

Directions

1. Rinse scapes and basil well
2. Pulse all ingredients except oil in a food processor.  Add oil to mixture while blending until everything is well combined.  Adjust seasoning to taste.

Lemon Mayonnaise:

Ingredients

1 cup of mayonnaise
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Directions

Mix mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

On the Grill:

Other ingredients you will need:

1 loaf of sliced bread cut into quarters
1 side of smoked trout, sliced into pieces
1 pint of cherry tomatoes

Directions

1. Brush the bread with olive oil and grill until golden.
2. Toss cherry tomatoes with olive oil and a bit of salt and pepper, grill until skins become wrinkled and begin to split.

To assemble

Top grilled bread with about 1 tablespoon of pesto, a portion of smoked fish, lemon mayo and a grilled cherry tomato.

Enjoy!

In our second staff Black Box Challenge employees got a chance to show off their culinary skills.  Each team of two received different main ingredients and access to all of the spices and pantry items in WtG’s kitchen.  They had five minutes to access their ingredients and then one hour to create their dish.  Click on the picture above to see some of the exciting dishes they created.