I’m a bit bummed that we are busy next weekend because one of my favorite bands, The Bodeans are playing at the Door Community Auditorium in Fish Creek next Saturday.
The Bodeans
I think there are still tickets available… it’s going to be a great show. Hopefully, they will be back again sometime.
Well, this is the end of my tour but a part of the “midtown” section” was not suitable for viewing so I will back track tomorrow and redo it. Anyway, here is the end of our walk through the Village of Egg Harbor.
Yes, folks it is here… fall that is. The weather has been a bit rainy of late but once this passes we’ll be good to go. We have the Egg Harbor Lodge decorated for Autumn but still have to put our scarecrow display together this week before Egg Harbor’s Pumpkin Patch Festival this weekend. The colors have started and the trees are really starting to turn. The weekend is going to be crazy but don’t forget their are vacancies during the week with the “crowd free” bonus factor.
All this cool weather makes me want to cook and last night I made my famous “big chicken”. We get theses huge chickens from our friends Patti and Billy Bley who raise them. They are around 8 lbs. each which is enough to feed even my whole family. I usually make mashed potatoes and pan gravy out of the drippings but last night I decided on just scattering the potatoes, onions and carrots around the chicken which makes for an easy supper. Here is the result…
The "Big Chicken" before...
The "Big Chicken" after
This recipe is fool proof… I also make it on a charcoal grill but it takes a lot longer to cook but the smokey taste is worth it.
THE BIG CHICKEN
1 Large whole chicken
1 head of garlic
1 lemon
1 thyme bundle
Salt & Pepper
1 Large Spanish or sweet onion
1 Cup Chicken stock or broth
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
Liberally season the inside of the chicken with salt and pepper or any seasoning of your choice… I use Rotisserie Chicken seasoning that I picked up at Fleet Farm. Oil the outside the chicken with vegetable oil and/or butter and liberally season the outside as well.
Cut the lemon and garlic in half and stuff the cavity with the 1/2 lemon, the 1/2 garlic, the thyme bundle, and then the other halves of the garlic and lemon. Tie the legs and tuck the wings.
Cut up small Yukon Gold potatoes in half, cut up the peeled carrots, and slice the onions into rounds and spread all around the chicken and season with salt and pepper. Add about a cup of chicken stock (so the vegetables don’t burn before the chicken gives off its juices) and cook for and hour and a half or so or until a meat thermometer is at 165 degrees. During cooking, cover with foil when it gets nice and brown and periodically stir the veggies and baste the bird. Let sit for at least 15 minutes before carving. If I make mashed potatoes, I will substitute rutabaga for the Yukon Golds and make a pan gravy (there is no equal to roast chicken pan gravy). Place the vegetables in a serving dish, carve the bird and serve. This recipe is easy and once you do all the prep work (particularly if you don’t make the mashed potatoes) once it is in the oven you’re done. Perfect for guests… everyone loves chicken!
Anyway, watch for my video of Downtown Egg Harbor all dressed up for fall this week. My granddaughter Adi and I are taking a walk this week to film the decorations and fall colors. We aren’t near peak yet, so there is a lot of time to see the fall colors in Door County.
My newest BFF Amy Hanten, of WLUK Fox 11’s “Living with Amy”, stayed at Egg Harbor Lodge last night with her adorable daughter Ireland, her producer Jocelyn and camera man Don. They had dinner Thursday night at Pasta Vino (they were all impressed) located in the Country Walk Shops in Sister Bay. This morning, the crew headed up to Good Eggs in Ephraim to check out their breakfast burritos… they all agreed they were excellent. They returned to Egg Harbor to check out Main Street Market and Door County Nature Works owned by our good friends Kaaren and Steve Northrop and Polly and Don Helm respectively. At noon they came back to Egg Harbor Lodge and interviewed Mark and me. We also did a segment on our hot cider that we make in the fall for our guests. The weather was really nice which I was really excited about. After they left our place they headed up to Seaquist Orchard. I am not sure just yet when the Door County show will air… I will keep you posted. I will get a copy and post it on my website. It was nice to get little Egg Harbor some press!
Last March, I was fortunate to get the opportunity to be on the “Living with Amy” show (it was LIVE!!) and cook with her. We had a blast… she said she wanted to have me on again. I hope so, it was one of the highlights of the spring for me and I have tons of good fall recipes, maybe she would like my Coq Au Vin! Yeah, that sounds good, think I’ll make it this week.
reading my new favorite mag...
I just picked up the autumn edition of Door County Living… it is now my new favorite magazine. Door County Living is the sister publication of the Peninsula Pulse a free weekly publication and resource of Door County arts, news and entertainment. Both publications have tons of interesting articles with info about Door County residents, businesses, characters, restaurants, nature and of course art. The Pulse is the go-to guide for entertainment in DC. Coincidentally, both are free… yes, free. I love free stuff.
Anyway, while I was reading the latest edition of Door County Living I stumbled across an article (The Small School Experience by Gary Jones a Gibraltar teacher) about the three Northern Door Schools… Sevastopol (where our kids attended), Gibraltar (where Mark and I graduated) and Washington Island (there were 6 graduates this year) and low and behold there was a quote from our son Joe who just graduated from Sevastopol. Upon further reading, our older son Josh’s in-laws were mentioned (A Sea of Orchards) as owners of Schartner’s Farm Market along with our grandson Jaden.
In the article about Door County golf, there were three photos of our God son, Ed Strege. I guess it is just really special to have a nice, glossy magazine that can really get to the heart and soul of Door County. Like George Bailey said, it is the citizens that “do most of the working and paying and living and dying in this community” … it is nice to read about them as well.
There are probably 6 Door County radio stations but of course I have two favorites. WDOR owned and operated by Eddie Allen and his son Danny. We have known Eddie for well over 30 years. I met him when I worked at the Savings and Loan in Sturgeon Bay and he did the play by play for the Door County League Baseball which he still does to this day. The radio station is still listened to by many for its local sports, news and interviews with people regarding current events. Deloris Allen, Eddie’s mom used to read a new recipe everyday… many which I still have. At Christmas time, The Cinnamon Bear story was told bit by bit each day for the children after school.
While WDOR will always be a favorite, as far as music goes, I would have to go with 106.9 The Lodge. I love it. Good music, local artists on Wednesday nights at nine and best of all… no “opinions” from the owners or anyone else for that matter. They also don’t read the police report… another bonus. They play tons of Bob Marley and Jimmy Buffet. It is not a “classic” station or a pop station but a combination of really great music, some old some new. Our daughter Emilie’s friend Chrystal Kugle is a DJ on the weekends. She is a communications major at UW-Milwaukee. One of The Lodge slogans goes something like no sports, no shopping shows or court reports. Now that is music to my ears.
In my honorable mention catagory I would have to mention WSRG 97.7 The Big Dawg… my kids are all a huge fan of this station and its music. While I am not a big country fan I am probably in the minority in Door County.
At any rate publications or music… Door County rocks!