My latest column in the Charleston Gazette-Mail:

Some things are just an acquired taste — often due to nostalgia or developed via repeated exposure. Beans and cornbread. Dark chocolate. Beer.

That can probably be applied to many Appalachian foods. But, because I grew up eating them, I knew no different. Especially in sixth grade.

For a class project, I had been working on a genealogy report, where I traced my family back 13 generations until I ran out of documents in 1863 — when West Virginia wasn’t yet a state.

After months of poring over census records, birth records, death records and marriage licenses at the local courthouse, the day finally came to celebrate the diversity of the class, and everyone brought a traditional dish from his or her culture. I was tickled to bring the Nelson family’s famous bread pudding.

Bread pudding was a treat for my family. We baked a batch for special occasions, and every Nelson woman competed each year at my family reunion to see who could win the coveted title of best bread pudding.

It was never a contest, though, because Aunt Pat always took home top honors with her family recipe that likely dated back to when our ancestors emigrated from England.

But you know who wasn’t tickled? A bunch of picky 12-year-olds who turn their noses up at raisins and a congealed mass of stale bread.

Among a buffet of pizzas, pastas and mini-calzones from the kids with Italian heritage, my boring bread pudding remained untouched. Not. One. Bite.

It was a tragic moment for me — a young girl excited to share a piece of her culture through food. It wasn’t just any dessert. It was one that had been lovingly perfected over generations, integrated into important family events and adapted to fit ingredients we had readily available.

Appalachian cuisine is special in that the dishes are rooted in place and draw on our heritage.

Bread pudding exists in many different forms and cultures around the world. In the Philippines, they add bananas. In Canada, maple syrup. In West Virginia, it’s often made with dried apples from a summer harvest or hearty raisins. And memories.

That experience helped plant the seed for learning how food plays an important role in our culture. Appalachian cuisine may be difficult to define, but for me, it’s those meals that have stories associated with them and draw on the place we’re from.

For me, there’s nothing more Appalachian than bread pudding that has incorporated local ingredients that were available and developed by Nelson hands over many generations.

These experiences, memories, cultures — and food — are like blood running through my veins. They make up who I am. And part of who I am? Bread pudding connoisseur.

What is your Appalachian blood type?

Aunt Pat’s Nelson Family Bread Pudding

My latest column for the Charleston Gazette-Mail:

When I mention soup beans to folks, I get one of two responses: Either they look confused and ask if I’m referring to a soup with beans, or they nod happily and recall fond memories. The latter response is often an indicator that the person is an Appalachian.

Soup beans are not so much a soup, but rather pinto beans that have been slowly simmered in water, creating a rich pot likker with the help of ham, salt and pepper. The silky, creamy, pork-flavored dish is a hearty, filling meal when paired with cornbread, fried potatoes, chow chow and diced onions, and has fed mountaineers for many years.

It’s a simple dish — one crafted from dried beans, which were often a necessity during tough mountain winters. Paired with cornbread made from dried corn and a homemade chow chow from garden vegetables, soup beans have been a cold-weather necessity in Appalachia.

In “Appalachian Home Cooking: History, Culture, and Recipes” by Mark F. Sohn, he writes, “Like stores across America, mountain markets today sell pinto beans, white beans, black beans, red kidneys, and great Northerns in one-pound bags. In the fall, however, mountain markets also sell pinto beans in 10-, 25-, and even 40-pound bags. Forty pounds. This size bag suggests a diet staple.”

But I never liked soup beans.

In my house, soup beans meant money was tight. Soup beans and cornbread is an inexpensive meal that can stretch for a week for a small family. And there were times when we did just that.

Others enjoy the dish because it’s a taste of home — it hearkens back to a time when a pot of beans would simmer on the stove all winter.

It speaks to a deeper sense of place — gathering dried goods that could survive the harsh winter and lovingly creating a fulfilling meal for the whole family.

When my grandma made hers, she would never salt the soup beans. Rather, she would let everybody salt their own so they can adjust their desired amount. It’s the little things.

My grandmother made a soup beans recipe that stayed true to its simple roots. Sometimes, she would use great northern beans, which are white, rather than the brown pinto bean, and they cook a bit more quickly.

None of her recipes include precise measurements; it’s always a “handful” of this or a “pinch” of that. But I included a close version of her home-style recipe for soup beans.

So, I may not like soup beans, but I do love them.

I love them for nourishing my hungry tummy — and soul. I love them for creating memories with my grandmother. And, I love them for helping develop an appreciation for Appalachian food and how it connects me to the place I’m from.

My latest column in the Charleston Gazette-Mail:

Fall is just around the corner: boots, flannel, football and leaves.

Or, in my world: cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and ginger.

While everyone else is resurrecting their scarves from storage in anticipation of cooler temperatures, I’m salivating over the Curried Carrot Bisque, the Venison Tenderloin with chanterelle mushrooms and the caramel lattes about to come my way.

I’m not saying fall flavors are the best ... but actually, yes, I’m saying fall flavors are the best. And no one does fall better than West Virginia.

Cinnamon

Take Beckley Chef Jon Lester, for example. The head chef at Dobra Zupas is already serving his Curried Carrot Bisque — full of beautiful cinnamon — as we speak.

“I love to cook in accordance with the seasons,” Lester said. “So, if it’s cooler, we go with heartier dishes. In the fall, we work to balance that sweet and savory and really use things like carrot, acorn and butternut squash, pumpkin, sweet potato, rutabaga, and apples. The Curried Carrot Bisque is something that I just tried recently, and it’s been a big hit — especially during the cooler, rainy days.”

The vibrant orange soup both looks and tastes like fall with carrot, cinnamon and ...
Nutmeg

The nutty, slightly sweet nutmeg flavor pairs well with root vegetables, as well as seasonal drinks. Think eggnog — or better: lattes.

Elizabeth Morton, co-owner of Vandal’s Kitchen in Fayetteville, lets the seasons dictate the restaurant’s daily coffee special. Fall brings with it nutmeg, maple and caramel-flavored lattes for the restaurant.

Morton said the coffee, which the shop is known for, is especially inspired by what is seasonally available — whether that’s at the local market or right outside.

“We draw on ingredients from the garden and see what we can find to infuse into our specials,” she said. “In the fall, we will have more nutmeg, cinnamon and clove.”
Clove

Hill & Hollow in Morgantown is creating its autumn menu with wild game, foraged mushrooms and other earthy dishes — many of which will see the addition of clove.

“Fall ingredients do seem to be easier to work with,” said Marion Ohlinger, owner and chef. “The cooler weather brings back the appetite that gets lost in the summer heat, and hearty comfort dishes are the simplest to cook. For us folks raised on farms, late fall is butcher time, so there’s also that aspect.”

Ohlinger will serve his traditional favorite of Venison Tenderloin with Foraged Chanterelles. And while clove is good friends with cinnamon or nutmeg, it has a strong savory bond with red meat.

“I’ve been working on some nontraditional ideas that are evocative of autumn,” he said. “In a few weeks we’ll be debuting a dish made of toasted alfalfa broth — yep, made from hay — with rabbit and hen-of-the-woods ravioli; the flavor of the broth is similar to an earthy chamomile, but the aroma is pure autumn in Appalachia.”


Ginger

Pumpkin, honey and apples all have (at least) one thing in common: They’re better with ginger. The slightly spicy and warm flavor is often sprinkled atop drinks or desserts for a little extra somethin’ somethin’.

Lester crafts a poached Fiji Apple Pie Shot with brown sugar, apple cider, rum, amaretto, ginger, whipped cream and crumbled pie pieces that you eat as you drink it.

“It’s warming, it’s fun to eat and, most importantly, it’s delicious,” Lester said.

He added that while there are few flavors specific to Appalachia — like paw paws — how chefs in the area work with fall flavors is unique. Cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and ginger play prominent flavor roles, which create these warm and comforting dishes.

“What’s really important is not that West Virginia chefs have different ingredients to work with, but how they incorporate them into a set style. Appalachian fall cooking is a real taste of home, and it doesn’t get much better than that.”

No, it doesn’t get much better than that.

Candace Nelson is a marketing and public relations professional living in Morgantown. In her free time, Nelson blogs about West Virginia food culture at CandaceLately.com. Find her @Candace07 on Twitter or email Candace127@gmail.com.

Dobra Zupas’ Curried Carrot Bisque

1 yellow onion (diced)

6 stalks celery (diced)

3 pounds carrots (shredded)

3 pears (skinned and diced)

4 cups orange juice

1 cup brown sugar

vegetable stock

large handful fresh chopped basil

1/2 tablespoon cinnamon

1/4 tablespoon nutmeg

2 tablespoons yellow curry

1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

Saute all vegetables and pears in butter until lightly browned.

Add basil and lightly wilt.

Add orange juice, brown sugar and enough vegetable stock to cover vegetable mixture.

Add all dry ingredients and Sriracha.

Simmer until carrots are nice and soft, occasionally adding more stock if it starts to dry out.

Puree with immersion/stick blender until smooth and add heavy cream.

Salt and pepper to taste. More curry is optional depending upon preference.

- See more at: http://www.wvgazettemail.com/life-food-and-dining/20160911/wv-culinary-team-west-virginia-does-fall-flavors-best#sthash.KRwWRegA.dpuf

Here's a column I wrote for the Charleston Gazette-Mail about how to ~West Virginia-fy~ your New Year's Eve celebration, but, realistically, this could be used for any celebration. And, consider it's the Fourth of July, what better time, right? 

Here's a column I wrote for the Charleston Gazette-Mail about how important I think it is that we reclaim Appalachian cuisine:

A simple, garlicky green growing wild in Appalachia has made its way to kitchens in New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles.

The ramp, with its bright green leaves descending into a deep red stem and culminating in a slender white bulb, has been a pungent mountain secret for decades — home cooks and local restaurants alike paying homage to the spring treat.

In recent years, the ramp has been elevated in prominent culinary circles that have praised the incorporation of the leek as innovative and groundbreaking — often at the expense of Appalachian cooks and chefs who pioneered its use and put the ramp on the map.

Appalachian cuisine has very humble roots, and as this style of cooking becomes more trendy, it’s important to take ownership of our foodways.

Empower our local food systems. Reclaim our narrative. Make the Appalachian voice heard.

On one hand, it’s great the region is getting noticed for its culinary ability and for the diverse, inventive food created here. On the other, plucking ingredients or ideas from Appalachia to make a dish elsewhere strips the context from that food and the stories behind those meals. The result is a shallow facsimile void of the complex history and sense of place that makes up Appalachian food.

Take that ramp for example. We lovingly create authentic meals that recognize its place in our culture and as part of our narrative. From ramp feeds to haute cuisine, in West Virginia we celebrate the Allium tricoccum myriad ways.

Richwood is the self-proclaimed Ramp Capital of the World. Here, you can sit down for the Feast of the Ramson for the true, utilitarian meal that highlights the ramp: cooked ramps, ham, bacon, potatoes, brown beans, cornbread, dessert and sassafras tea.

It’s a simple meal that is hearty, filling and uses local ingredients. It draws on historical roots and carries on our tradition.

Then, take Hill & Hollow’s Ramp-A-Rama beer pairing dinner held at the end of April. It drew on inspiration from our lands and melded it with a modern interpretation.

The Morgantown restaurant featured ramp and camel albondigas in a smoked banana barbecue for its first course (paired with Greenbrier Valley Brewing Co.’s Devil Anse IPA). The second course featured Cape Cod littleneck clams steamed in ale with pancetta, cannelloni beans and ramps (paired with Chestnut Brew Works’ Halleck Pale Ale). The third was lemongrass-smoked Gardner farms spareribs with ramp-mango mojo (paired with Big Timber Brewing Company’s Robber Baron Rye IPA). And, finally, dessert was a ramp-Meyer lemon sorbet with mint-anchovy granite (paired with North End Tavern’s Roedy’s Red).

West Virginians do both: the filling, utilitarian meals and the inspired, imaginative dishes that illustrate the power of Appalachian ingredients. And, of course, everything in between.

But the essence of the food remains the same: It pays tribute to our foraging past and respects the integrity of the ingredients. That is what helps tell our story.

And, that ramp. The wild onion is small — but mighty — and has opened the door for other Appalachian ingredients to shine.

So let’s celebrate others recognizing what we’ve always seen in the ramp, all the while crediting the folks who forged that path so we can all enjoy that little stinker.

Candace Nelson is a marketing professional living in Morgantown. In her free time, Nelson blogs about Appalachian food culture at CandaceLately.com. Follow @Candace07 on Twitter or email Candace127@gmail.com.

Were there pickled eggs on your Easter table today? There's a reason. Check out the column I wrote for the Charleston Gazette-Mail.

Of all the symbols of Easter, it’s the humble egg that goes hand in hand with the festivities of the day: chocolate and peanut butter eggs from the local church, pastel-dyed hardboiled eggs that decorate the table, and, especially for those of us in Appalachia, homemade pickled eggs.

For the uninitiated, pickled eggs are hardboiled and cured in vinegar or brine that often includes beets, leaving the eggs a bright pink/purple color fit for the Easter dinner table. And they’re an Easter tradition in many West Virginia homes.

Will there pickled eggs and beets on your table this weekend?

If you’re like some of my friends, the chances are pretty likely you answered “yes.” Because when asked, I received responses like:

“We have pickle beets and eggs every year at my house.”

“If we don’t have pickled eggs, Easter is canceled.”

“My grandmother always does pickled eggs and beets for Easter.”

“Agree on this. Always available. Rarely touched. My dad is about the only one who eats them.”

“We always do this too, and I love them. [Purple] egg dying for grownups, basically!”

“I hate the pickled beets and eggs, but they’re definitely a tradition.”

According to the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America, red-beet pickled eggs have roots in Pennsylvania Dutch cooking brought over from Europe, and early farmers in Appalachia took to them as a way to preserve foods that could be eaten months later.

Pickling — and canning — were essential parts of a rural lifestyle, and pickled eggs have been a staple in Appalachian pantries since the 19th century.

One of the first documented mentions of pickled eggs in America appeared in “The Kentucky Housewife” in 1839. There, Lettice Bryan shared a recipe that included nutmeg and cloves, and even suggested cutting them into ringlets.

The Nelson household is not quite “ringlet-fancy,” but my dad does indeed whip up a pretty mean pickled egg that can be found not just during Easter, but often year-round.

As a child, I remember being enamored with the purplish-pink color the eggs would turn, and fishing either a pickled egg or a whole beet out of a glass jar (often one that served a previous life as a pickle jar) to nosh. Fingers stained purple, I would be pleased with catching either the beet or the egg, as long as it would turn my tongue a dark purple hue.

The tradition of eating pickled eggs — or any eggs — after Easter, according to The Catholic Encyclopedia, began because they were forbidden during Lent. So, they were one of the first treats eaten to celebrate the end of Lent.

Love them or hate them, pickled eggs are the bright centerpiece that completes many a West Virginia Easter dinner table. Nestled between the ham and maybe the Easter bread (if you have Italian ancestry), it is a true mainstay of the holiday.

I hope that by now you’ve broken out your purple dye (beet juice) and hardboiled eggs, and that you’ve partaken in some egg-dying for adults to carry on our Appalachian tradition during this holiday season. If not, hop to it. The Nelson family recipe can guide your way to fuschia fingers. Happy Easter.

Candace Nelson is a marketing and public relations professional living in Morgantown, W.Va. In her free time, Nelson blogs about West Virginia food culture at CandaceLately.com. Find her on Twitter at @Candace07 or email Candace127@gmail.com.

Frank Nelson’s pickled eggs

Ingredients:

2 15 oz. cans of beets

12 large eggs

1 cup sugar

1 cup vinegar

1 cup water

1 tbsp salt

1 tbsp garlic (diced)

1 tsp pepper

1 medium onion (diced)

3-4 stalks celery (diced)

Directions:

Put the dozen eggs in a pot, cover with cold water about an inch above the tops of the eggs and heat until boiling. Once the water begins to boil, remove the pot from heat and cover for 10-12 minutes. Then, run the eggs under cold water, peel them and add them to a large jar or bowl.

Cover he eggs with 1 can of beet juice along with the beets and set aside.

Combine the sugar, vinegar, water, salt, pepper, onion and celery in a large saucepan and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 12 minutes.

Add garlic at the last remaining minute.

Pour mixture over eggs, let sit overnight.

Enjoy the next day!

An endless field of bright orange pumpkins with green vines sprout from the earth. Tots bounce from patch to patch eyeing which orb they can fashion into the perfect jack-o’-lantern.

The hayride circles back around to retrieve the next crop of farm-goers. Farm workers regale visitors with the history of the farm and agriculture. And, a few rows over, families reach up to pluck fresh apples from bushy trees.

This beautiful scene painted at Orr’s Farm Market in Martinsburg is an essential part of fall in Appalachia.

Is it really autumn if you don’t leave a family farm with a pumpkin or two under your arm and a peck of apples at your side?

Many farms are no longer simply planting crops and raising livestock. Rather, they are destinations that provide experiences and memories that last a lifetime — otherwise known agritourism.

Agritourism, by broad definition, encompasses farms providing additional activities, events or education at the property that draw visitors to generate additional income.

West Virginia farms are incorporating corn mazes, produce picking, hayrides, educational activities, games, restaurants that use local food and even bed-and-breakfasts, often known as farm stays.

More and more local farms are investing in this concept of agritourism, which has served small West Virginia family farms well and can contribute to growing the state economy.

“I’ve heard a lot of customers tell me how much it means to them to come, relax, pick berries and get away from everything,” said Katy Orr-Dove, retail market manager at Orr’s Farm Market and third-generation family member to work at the farm.

“From years of working with the customer, we have heard what they want and are constantly wanting to incorporate what they are asking for,” she said. “As our community becomes less agricultural-based and more urban, a lot of people that live around here no longer have their own backyard garden and they want a place where they can buy fresh, local produce and even more, they want to take their children with them and experience it together.”

Not only do these experiences define the season, the additional profit farms receive also makes an impact — one that could be crucial to the success and future growth for family farms.

“Our sales have greatly increased ever since incorporating the pick-your-own fruits — and especially with the pumpkin patch,” Orr-Dove said. “It’s brought a lot of new guests to our farm. And, whenever we have school trips, that’s up to 120 people who have never been here before, and it’s almost like free advertising because then they want to come back again with their families at another time.”

These farm-based tourism opportunities are another way for farms to diversify their income, and judging by the success of farms like Orr’s, it may be time to evaluate this new opportunity.

“If you’re in an area like us where you have access to enough people who find apple picking or pumpkin patches to be a novelty, it can be very beneficial for the business,” Orr -Dove said. “Because for us, we’ve probably increased business five times in 10 years —just incorporating activities brings in so many people for market or retail.”

Other farms like Gritt’s Farm, in Buffalo, offer playgrounds, apple slingshots and even a giant corn bin in which to play. At Sickler Farm in Moatsville, you can purchase mums and flowers. Byrnside Branch Farm in Union has bonfires and kettle corn.

As Cindy Martel, marketing specialist with the West Virginia Department of Agriculture, said in a previous story in the Gazette-Mail, this concept tends to work best when several operations “cluster” to create an area with several attractions, rather than just one, to help draw in folks.

This concept may not work well for every farm, I realize that. Many face location, staff or safety concerns. And others may struggle with activities outside of fall. But the potential is enormous.

These farms have integrated themselves into our experiences as West Virginians. The thrill of finding the perfect pumpkin to set out at Halloween is a cherished memory, and peeling freshly plucked apples for a homemade applesauce makes that farm — those people — part of our family.

“It’s very special to me ... it’s a lot of work and we have some days where we’re just exhausted, especially this time of year. But I go stand by the registers and watch kids come through with pumpkins and see how excited they are to be here,” Dove-Orr said.

“It reminds me why we do this. To see that joy when they get on the hayride to go to the pumpkin patch. To us, it’s just a pumpkin, to them, it’s a huge adventure to go on a hayride and to the pumpkin patch. It’s a memory.”

Fall in West Virginia isn’t complete without a trip to the pumpkin patch and apple orchard, and our small farms are integral to that experience — all while working together to grow our state’s economy.

The West Virginia Department of Agriculture, The West Virginia Division of Tourism, West Virginia University Extension Service and West Virginia State University are all working to make this opportunity available for more farms.

For more information on venturing into the agritourism market, visit http://anr.ext.wvu.edu/agritourism.

Candace Nelson is a marketing and public relations professional living in Morgantown. In her free time, Nelson blogs about West Virginia food culture at CandaceLately.com.

Follow @Candace07 on Twitter or email Candace127@gmail.com.
Katy Orr-Dove’s homemade applesauce

This recipe, which can be made with apples from Orr’s Farm Market, is simple, and Katy said it has been enjoyed by many folks for many years.

12 medium-large apples (McIntosh, Cortland, Golden Delicious or others of your choice) peeled, cored, and sliced

1 cup fresh apple cider

3 tablespoons local honey

1 teaspoon lemon juice

spices to taste: 2-3 teaspoons cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (Katy’s picks)

Place all ingredients in a Crock-Pot on low for 4 to 6 hours.

Stir occasionally, adding more cider if needed. The key to this recipe is serving it warm at the end of a long cold day.

Add a little cream on top for a special treat.

Some things just go together: peanut butter and jelly, chicken and waffles, Worcestershire-rubbed brisket and a stiff drink.

The pairing helps to complement and enhance the taste of the dish, bringing out the best flavors in each component. The same goes for local businesses in Appalachia.

Tamarack, which showcases the best of West Virginia through art, food and experience, recently partnered with Eastern Panhandle distillery Bloomery SweetShine to pair local foods with local drinks in a dinner that not only allowed the best flavors of each dish and drink to shine through, but also showcased the incredible culinary talent we have in West Virginia.

“I was at an event where Bloomery SweetShine had a booth set up, and I could sample some of the SweetShine. And they just all worked so well,” said Jamie Henderson, executive chef at Tamarack in Beckley. “The label on those bottles is exactly what it tasted like, and I knew it would be great to pair food with.”

Henderson contacted Rob Losey, co-owner of Bloomery SweetShine, and they constructed a boozy dinner that paired creative Appalachian cooking with delicious drinks — a collaboration that stretched beyond the kitchen.

The evening’s first course was a roast chicken consomme with wild mushroom garlic gnocchi, summer squashes and late summer tomatoes. The dish was paired with Bloomery’s Ginger SweetShine, as well as a Dark and Shiny cocktail.

“The best part of that was the Ginger SweetShine had this bright, strong flavor, and we created this clarified soup with egg whites that lets the ginger complement, but the dish had to be strong enough to stand up on its own,” Henderson said. “Plus, there was a little carbonation in that ’shine, so it cleansed the palate for the next course.”

The salad course featured grilled romaine, artichoke, caper berries, Nicoise olives and a creamy paprika vinaigrette. It was paired with Raspberry Lemon SweetShine and a Raspberry Lemon Cosmo.

“We had some strong flavors in this course because of the grilled romaine, the artichokes, the caper berries — all bold flavors that need downplayed, so the refreshing Raspberry Lemon SweetShine, that citrus, helped tone down all the bold, smoky flavors,” Henderson said.

The entree course was a Worcestershire-rubbed brisket with honey mead barbecue, sweet potato puree, Johnny bread and bitter buttermilk slaw. It was paired with Black Walnut SweetShine and The Jonas SweetShine cocktail.

“We rubbed the brisket down with some dehydrated Worcestershire sauce and cold smoked the brisket for three hours and finished it with a little bit of stock and braised it in the oven, so it had the aspect of smoke like a barbecue brisket, but also tender like braised brisket. Best of both worlds,” Henderson said. “That, plus the sweet barbecue and sweet potato puree and the strong, bitter buttermilk slaw, those needed something that could take the edge of the strong flavors, which is why the Black Walnut SweetShine worked so well. It helped tone it down and create a better balance.”

The dessert course was an applewood-smoked bacon and praline torte paired with Cremma Lemma SweetShine and an Appalachian Cream cocktail.

“The most interesting dish for me was the fourth course because we paired on accordance of texture, rather than flavor. The praline torte has this crumbly pie texture, and the Cremma Lemma SweetShine has cream in it, so you get that creamy texture — it’s almost like getting a cookies and cream or a pie and milk texture. It worked really well,” Henderson said.

The flavors, the colors and the textures paired together seamlessly for one tasty meal, but the evening, for me, was about more than that.

It was about two businesses pairing to promote one another, which, in turn, promoted the unbelievable talent of West Virginia.

Just like a mellow drink highlighting the strong flavors of a smoky, sweet barbecue and buttermilk slaw, when two businesses in West Virginia work together, they highlight the best parts of each other.

Tamarack’s skilled chefs would not have shined so brightly had it not been for Bloomery SweetShine’s inventive cordials. Bloomery SweetShine would not have had the kind of exposure without Tamarack’s commitment to promoting the best in West Virginia.

Both businesses brought a different audience to the dinner table and expanded each other’s reach — which serves us better as a whole. These two partnering together brought out the best in one another, showing the absolute best of what we have to offer as a state.

West Virginia has a wealth of culinary talent, and I, for one, am happy it’s on display for the rest of the world to take notice.

Some things do just go together. Me and a fork. Barbecue and SweetShine. West Virginia business and West Virginia business.

Candace Nelson is a marketing and public relations professional living in Morgantown. In her free time, Nelson blogs about West Virginia food culture at CandaceLately.com. Find her @Candace07 on Twitter or email Candace127@gmail.com.

Worcestershire-Rubbed Brisket

4-6 pounds trimmed beef brisket (approximately 1/8-inch fat on top)
1 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon salt
¼ tablespoon black pepper
½ cup beef stock
hickory wood chips soaked in water

Combine the Worcestershire seasoning, salt and black pepper and thoroughly rub the mixture on the beef brisket.
Wrap in plastic and place in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours.
Set the smoker temperature to 250 degrees Fahrenheit and add soaked wood chips.
Set the unwrapped brisket in and cook until it reaches an internal temperature of 150 degrees Fahrenheit and reduce the smoker to 225 degrees Fahrenheit. The total cook time will be 8 to 10 hours.
Place a fork in brisket to check for tenderness once it reaches an internal temperature of 185 degrees Fahrenheit. If you can move the beef around with little resistance, then it is ready to be removed from the smoker.
Tightly wrap the brisket in foil with the beef stock and place in a warm holding for 1 to 2 hours.
Slice the brisket against the grain and brush on the leftover beef stock on the brisket or use for Au Jus dipping.

(Recipe from Chef Jamie Henderson’s third course of the Bloomery SweetShine Pairings Dinner.)

The Jonas SweetShine Cocktail
1 ounce Black Walnut SweetShine
2 ounces small batch bourbon
dash of blood orange bitters
turbinado sugar to taste