ORDER YOUR 4th of JULY PIE! It’s Not TOO SOON!!

4TH OF JULY PIE ORDER IS NOW!

I know! It’s still a month out, but I’m not back in action in Nashville from New York until far too close to the date and by then, it’ll feel like a knife fight to try to get this post made, arrangements made for kitchen rental, assistants hired and ingredients sourced.

I’m planning ahead (be proud, this is so contrary to every instinct I have) and now I know, after all these years, what my father meant when he said “a well planned and organized battle becomes the metaphorical high ground for the victor”. He was a field artillery man. As proof, he’s completely deaf in one ear from when the howitzers would go off. We had lots of tactical advice growing up. And, we always have to shout at family dinners.

I leave for New York in a week and perhaps, by now, you all are sizing up your holiday plans for the 4th of July. If you’re not, see above and be a victor and go ahead and check one thing off your to-do list. I’m selling pie. Lots and lots of pie.

I’ll be using the best ingredients I can find, which I hope goes without saying. My buttermilk pies will be made with Knoxville’s own Cruze’s buttermilk. Peaches from our friends at Parson’s Farm/ThePeachTruck. Apples dried from Floyd, Virginia. Chocolate from those jokers at Olive & Sinclair. And, I think put up enough Strawberries and Rhubarb that I think I can cover a handful of orders. As such, Strawberry Rhubarb Pie orders will be a little more limited than the rest.

Since I’m a small operation, I’ll be only taking up to 100 orders. They do sell out fast, and because of this, we will be sending out emails either confirming your pie order or refunding your payment. We will confirm pies in the order that they are received. Thank you for your understanding.

Photo courtesy of Matt Fern

Whole pies will be 10″, enough to feed 8-10 folks and your options are below.

Pies are $40 each.

Pie pick up will be on Friday, July 3rd at a designated pop-up location.

*Special early pickup for those of you who are travelers can be accommodated upon request.

TO PLACE YOUR ORDER, CHOOSE FROM THE OPTIONS BELOW AND PRESS THE “ORDER HERE” LINK FOLLOWING THE MENU. YOU WILL BE REDIRECTED TO THE BMR PAYPAL SITE. PLEASE SPECIFY WHICH PIES YOU’D LIKE TO ORDER IN THE “INSTRUCTIONS/NOTE TO SELLER” SECTION OF YOUR CHECKOUT.

PIE OPTIONS FOR 4TH OF JULY, 2015

 CRUZE’S BUTTERMILK PIE

DOUBLE CRUST PEACH

O&S CHOCOLATE CHESS PIE

CHERRY LATTICE

APPLE AND GA PECAN&CANE SYRUP STREUSEL

ORDER YOUR PIES HERE! 

Thank you and have a happy June!

LD and the BMR Team

Photo courtesy of A. Behrends and J. Justus

AND! APRIL and MAY DATES! (all sold out!)

Chelsea Market, NYC. Photo by Andrea Behrends

There are so many really incredible opportunities being offered to me right now, at this very moment in life. I’m happy. I’m damn happy. Work has beget more good, true work amidst good, true people and, really, I’m not sure what else a person can ask for out of their life. I find myself, more often than not, in a dizzying and delightful spin, bouncing from one incredible person who loves what they do as much as I do, to another. The conversations are about ideas, about love, about passion, about dreams, about failures, about journeys, about right turns and wrong roads. I feel lucky and constantly inspired by all that life has brought my way. I’m enjoying the moment. And the growing and building doesn’t stop. I’m working harder than ever at a different kind of “building” – it’s the kind of growth that beckons for design and creativity rather the jolting and exhausting foundational structure that I’ve been trying to establish these many years. I can finally put away the heavy jackhammer and pick up my lathe.

This however, has left me with a lot less time to do public Buttermilk Road events. And, quite frankly, I really miss it and y’all and being elbow deep in the pure, odd, raw joy that getting a room full of Nashvillians together brings me (and, seemingly, everyone else in the room as well!). SO, in an effort to not let another single moment go by without committing some dates, I’ve decided to announce dates for April and May before life sweeps me off my feet again!

Also, please do know that my calendar has been booking up with private baking classes. Private baking classes typically book up two to three months in advance (in another words, my dance card is pretty full for private classes until June/July. The next reservations I will be taking will be for mid-late Summer). If this is something of interest to you, please contact me at: buttermilkroadsundaysupper@gmail.com

As always:

Sunday Suppers will be limited to 30 people.

Baking classes will be limited to 12 people.

All materials for baking classes provided. Just bring an apron and a notebook.

Locations for Sunday Suppers will be shared with confirmed guests. We’ve shared Suppers at Barista Parlor, Mas Tacos, The Catbird Seat, BurgerUp on 12th, Arnold’s Country Kitchen… People are generous and kind and always opening their doors to us.

Sunday Suppers will be a three course family style meal, including wine pairings by the beautifully pregnant Robin Riddell Jones with appetizers and cocktails (with delightful picks from our best pals at Woodland Wine Merchant) as soon as you walk in the door.

Price is per seat for Suppers and per student for baking classes. Seats are non-refundable but transferable if you if find you cannot attend. I usually have a waiting list and am happy to help if you come across a scheduling snafu.

Don’t hog the night. I kindly suggest that you purchase a maximum of four seats for Sunday Suppers, please. The idea is to put yourself out there and have a different experience with different people.

We usually have live music. It’s usually ridiculously mind blowing.

Come with an open heart and a hungry body and spirit and the night will be yours.

Photo by Andrea Behrends

APRIL DATES

SOLD OUT!! BUTTERMILK ROAD SOUTHERN BAKING BASICS CLASS: APRIL 13TH, 2PM-5PM, LOCATION TBD; $75

SOLD OUT!! BUTTERMILK ROAD SUNDAY SUPPER: APRIL 20TH 730PM, LOCATION TBA TO CONFIRMED GUESTS; $85

MAY DATES

SOLD OUT!! BUTTERMILK ROAD SUNDAY SUPPER: MAY 11TH, 730PM, LOCATION TBA TO CONFIRMED GUESTS; $85

SOLD OUT!! BUTTERMILK ROAD SOUTHERN BAKING BASICS CLASS: MAY 18TH, LOCATION TBD; $75

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO MADE A RESERVATION TO JOIN US! ALL APRIL AND MAY DATES ARE SOLD OUT!

TO MAKE A RESERVATION: 

PLEASE FOLLOW THIS LINK AND PAY WITH A DETAILED NOTE DESCRIBING WHICH EVENT YOU’D LIKE TO ATTEND AND HOW MANY PEOPLE YOU ARE PAYING FOR. 

**SINCE MULTIPLE DATES ARE LISTED, IT IS VERY IMPORTANT YOU ADD A NOTE TO YOUR PAYMENT WITH WHICH EVENT YOU WOULD LIKE TO ATTEND! THANK YOU!**

WITHIN 24HOURS, YOU WILL RECEIVE AN EMAIL CONTAINING A CONFIRMATION OF YOUR SEAT AS WELL AS OTHER PERTINENT INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR EVENT.

You can always, always, always reach me directly at buttermilkroadsundaysupper@gmail.com if you have any questions or concerns. Please do allow for 2-3 days for me to respond – email has been tricky for me to find time for lately. But, I promise, I will respond as quickly as possible.

I can’t wait to see you all at the table again!

LD

Seen the Morning Light, And It Ain’t Because I’m an Early Rise..

So. Charleston Wine and Food Festival. 2014. Sean Brock, Drew Robinson, John Currence, Donald Link, Angie Mosier, Rodney Scott and…. Me. We cooked one of the most fun and inspiring dinners together at the Alabama Tent Revival on the Saturday night of the festival to celebrate and support Jim n’ Nick and The Southern Foodway Alliance’s recognition of the Archibald family of Archibald’s BBQ in Northpoint, Alabama.

The food was phenomenal and the company was outstanding. I made Alabama Lane Cakes with Atlanta’s own Angie Mosier – a gal who somehow manages to make you fall in love with her five thousand times more every time you get to spend time with her. Working the pass with this crew, a world class shit-talking fest if I’ve ever seen one, was something dreams are made of. I’d love to say that I have plenty of stories to share, but it was all in the moment. And the moment included a lot, like a lifetime’s worth, of incredible whisky.

The one and only Angie Mosier, setting the tone at Nick’s BBQ for our Tent Revival.

Nick of Jim n’ Nicks and Sean.

Donald Link of Pesce and Cochon – he was waxing super poetically about his days as a grill cook at this exact moment.

This badass pass. An impressive line up from start to finish.

My contribution: The Alabama Lane Cake.

I think everyone liked it, especially Ed Lee.

BMR in New York/Photographer and Friend Andrea Behrends (with some Thanks sprinkled in at the end)

As I plan my 2014 Calendar, which has yet another incredibly exciting Sunday Supper planned for New York, I wanted to take a moment to tell you about this trip – but it’s likely that you’re better off if I just show you. You know how when you’re having an incredibly big moment in your life and you actually, afterward, feel like you were completely stoned and buzzed and dizzy and breathless through the entire thing? That’s pretty much how this trip to New York was. Words actually fail me.

We toured the Chelsea Market, I taught my very first Southern Baking class with a group of some of the most amazing women I’ve ever met (including the dear, dear Charlotte Druckman who became an “instant favorite person ever” person), we cooked for a room full of lovely New Yorkers and, in between, ate the best punjabi, pizza, chinese, thai, italian and snuck into male-only middle eastern eateries in the middle of the night to eat hummus and drink black tea. Best whirlwind trip of my life.

(A big thank you to Sarah Simmons and her crew at CityGrit for gifting us the use of their kitchen and dining room!)

So, it is with much gratitude to Andrea Behrends for capturing all the little and big moments of this trip, the nuances of each day, all of the gestures, all of the friends that showed up to support us, all of the food that we were able to so eagerly prepare and present, all of the guests who came and ate and laughed and had their own very, separate and intimate experiences outside of us. Thank you Andrea for being there and for the really wonderful gift that these pictures are.

A MOMENT OF SERIOUS, I’M NOT EVEN KIDDING YOU, GRATITUDE AND HUMILITY 

As I write this and share these pictures, I’m feeling a rather spontaneous inclination to to say thank you. I should probably wait for an end of the year wrap up, but screw it. My heart says “now”. Thank you to my friends who have all made this thing work, simply by showing up to wash dishes, by carrying heavy ass boxes of dishes all over god’s green earth, by taking the most beautiful and meaningful pictures of all these important moments, by cleaning corn, by playing a live show for my guests, by setting tables and pouring wine and making playlists and by taking trash bags full of fish carcasses in your brand new car to a dumpster because the one at the restaurant was locked and not hating me when one ripped and made your brand new car smell like fish for months and months. I don’t know how I deserve people like you in my life, but I’m so grateful. Bare with me while I gush, will ya?

The one and only Jessica Cheatham, BMR would likely be a big pile of neglected, sad, twitching broken dreams and, I, an overworked, stressed out pile of twitching brokenness without you and your immense love and kindness and strength of friendship and dedication. You’re the hardest working girl I know. Thank you. Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou and I love you. You’re remarkable.

Photo by R. Green

Heidi Ross for being the strongest sounding board I’ve ever had and for putting in so many hours of your time simply because you believe in my ideas. You’ve brought order and style and enthusiastic partnership to my, ahem, romantic and batshit crazy brain.

Photo by R. Green

John Donovan for being everyone’s hero, every damn time. But mostly, for being my hero. You make me win at life.

Photo by R. Green

Molly Levine for being the best sous I may ever have. I miss you every time I cook a Supper. I can’t wait for the next time we step foot in a kitchen together… In San Francisco.

Photo by A. Behrends

Andrea Behrends – you’re always there with a camera, a badass attitude and serious server skills to bus tables and fill water. I love being around you. I love you’re heart. I love you’re joy. I love your ability to make a room full of super badassery come to life.

Photo by H. Ross

Joy Shaw for saying yes even when you should have said no and for always, always, always being my back up plan, and for always having a cocktail in my hand every time I plated the last plate – you were always a life saver and still are.

Photo by H. Ross

Robin Riddell Jones for being smart where I am lacking and making sure that everyone always had a lovely glass of wine to sip.

Photo by A. Behrends

Alisa Martin, Caitlin Mello, Teresa Mason, Leia Buchanan, Shannon Wright, Sean Brock, Josh Habiger, Courtney Jaye, Mack and Holly Linebaugh, Heather Routh, Libby Callaway, Susan Sherrick, Aaron Clemins, Molly Fitzpatrick, Nicole Wolfe, Kahlil Arnold and the whole Arnold’s family, Mike Wiley, Melissa Shoaf, Kindy Girdley, Ryan Green, Mark Tucker, Laura Wilson…

Photo by M. Tucker

I feel like George Bailey at the end of It’s a Wonderful Life when I think of all of you. “No man who has friends is a failure.”

You all make me my most capable self. I love you all.

Here’s to the end of a year, a New Year to follow and many more memories!

April: Joint Gallery Breakfast Photos, Cooking w. Yazoo Supper, Anthology Magazine Spread and BIG NEWS!

I feel like I’m about to inundate you with massive amounts of amazingness. I hope you’re sitting down.

This past weekend, I was fortunate enough to host the Gallery Breakfast for Joint Project One, a three day photography pop up courtesy of my dreamboat friends, the ever-wonderful Susan Sherrick who curated and uber-talent Libby Callaway, organizer. Under photography by Richard Avedon, Lee Friedlander, Horst P. Horst, Mikael Kennedy, William Klein, Saul Leiter, Vivian Maier, Sarah Moon, Irving Penn, Heidi Ross, Josef Sudek, Joshua Black Wilkins and Josh Wool we drank sangria, roasted pear champagne cocktails and then, afterward, were treated to a curator’s tour by Susan. The morning was a delight for me. (Photos by the lovely and talented Andrea Behrends. Thank you Andrea for being so incredible and such a badass, always).

One last big thanks to Libby and Susan, and to Nick and Lina Dryden to opening their new and stunning under renovation home for such a wonderful experience! (And, one last big fat shout out to my girls Jessica Cheatham, Alisa Martin and Holly “Jean” Linebaugh for helping me to make all things possible this weekend. Love you three.)

April has been full of activity and big news! The cat if officially out of the bag and we’ve announced my placement as Pastry Chef at Husk Nashville. Sean Brock and I have been chatting about this venture for a few years now – first when he opened Husk Charleston and then, when it was a more feasible venture, Husk Nashville. To say that I’m both honored and nerding out over the opportunity in equal measures is an understatement. Sean is a wonder. And, he’s one of the first chefs I’ve met who really digs deeply into history with an academic eye in much the same way I do. We have a lot in common, though I truly feel like I’m flattering myself for making such a statement. I’m just thrilled to be working with someone who wants to talk about the historical constructs of cane sugar and flour. It’s a dream opportunity. Chris Chamberlain made a lovely little announcement here.  It was also announced on EaterNational here (which, for cooks, is a big damn deal). I walk around constantly pinching myself at the opportunity. And, I’m ready to get to work. Big time. You’ll be hearing much more about this, don’t you worry.

Also in April, we are delighted to be participating in an Anthology Magazine spread for their summer issue featuring the work and studio of another dreamboat friend, Emily Leonard. I’ll share more post-production. I’m looking so forward to it!

Our next event! We’ll be Cooking w. Yazoo on Tuesday, April 23rd at 6pm. This is a little different for us on two accounts: it’s on a Tuesday night and you need to go HERE to make your reservations! These seats are limited so go get one before they sell out. It’s going to be a fun night full of beer, sausages, beer, ice cream, beer, rye rolls, mustard, beer.. Amazing things. My dear friend Aaron Clemins, executive Sous at City House, will be our Guest Chef. Aaron is as good as a brother to me. He and I opened City House together and spent many long days together talking about food, making food, eating food, dreaming about food and complaining about front of house nonsense together. I’m incredibly lucky to call this guy a dear friend and a massive inspiration. He is no nonsense and remarkably smart in all his approaches to food. I adore him and I can’t WAIT to be in a kitchen again with him. I learn something every damn time I talk to that man and it goes double when we’re slinging food around a kitchen together.

Here’s what we’ve worked out for you all:

April 23rd Buttermilk Road/Cooking w. Yazoo Supper

w. Guest Chef Aaron Clemins, City House Executive Sous Chef

Amuse Bouche:

Beer Cheese Pale Ale Biscuit Bite

First Course:

Apple, Fennel and Radish Salad w. Pecans and Grapefruit Vinaigrette

Main Course:

Trio of Housemade Sausage: Smoked Sausage, Bratwurst, Chorizo

Bread:

Seeded Rye Rolls

Sides:

Aaron’s Suarkraut

Roasted Radish “Potato” Salad

Cauliflower and Red Cabbage Slaw

Dessert:

Ice Cream Sundaes:

Vanilla Bean and Chocolate Malt Ice Creams, Yazoo Porter Caramel, Sweet and Salty Beer Nuts, Cream and Candied Bing Cherry

 That post was a mouthful! As always, please contact me directly if you have any questions about our next supper.

Best to you all and see you at the table!

LD