Another Sign of Fall!

 Every year about this time, I begin thinking about church suppers. I know - there have been church suppers here and there throughout the summer, but I'm not as interested then. The Cabot church puts on take-out dinners by donation throughout the summer, pulled pork, barbecued chicken, etc., and that's fine; but now comes the real deal: chicken pie suppers, turkey suppers (Cabot puts on a really great turkey supper on Fall Foliage Day!!), or really any kind of meals put on during fall foliage. In case you haven't noticed, there is a tinge of color here and there in our north country forests, and the maples will be turning soon, so it's almost time! As sure as the leaves turn, one of the best fall meals around is coming right up -  North Danville's chicken pie supper. It's on the 24th. Here's a poster that will give you all the details. Mark your calendar - it's a good one!

 

 

 

 

 

At the other end of town, at Greenbanks Hollow in South Danville, the annual Bean Hole Supper is coming right up - this Sunday, as a matter of fact. This has been going on every year for a while, but I've never attended. I'm planning to go this year, and will arrive in time to watch as they open up the bean hole! It's called a supper, and generally one thinks of that as being an evening meal; however, the definition of "supper" is that it's the main meal of the day. Looking at the menu on the poster, I doubt any of us will want much more to eat after sampling all that's planned for that mid-day meal! It will be the "main meal of the day" for most everyone, I expect. 

I hope the weather will be cooperative. The forecast looks pretty near perfect, predicting 78 degrees and cloudy. That is far better than being baked in the hot sun, even though 78 is pretty warm, especially for the folks working on getting the fire just perfect to cook the beans. It's a lot of work making preparations for the hole and having the fire just right. Native Americans traditionally cooked beans this way, using bear grease and maple syrup. They used clay pots, but later colonists used cast iron kettles and embedded them in a stone-lined pit of coals, covered with earth. Cooks in logging camps traditionally used the same method to cook large pots of beans. Today, the usual flavorings are salt-pork or other shortening, molasses, maple syrup, chopped onions and dry mustard. Salt and pepper to taste, top it all off with water, and the pot is ready for the pit. Hot coals are shoveled around and over the pot and a thick layer of soil is shoveled over the whole pit. It takes about 24 hours for the beans to cook. I expect every cook has his or her own recipe, but I found the above recipe in a publication of the Main Organic Farmers and Gardeners. 

I'm thinking there has to be a trick to getting the pot out of the hole without getting seriously burned, and without contaminating the beans with ashes and/or dirt. We'll find out more about that on Sunday! I hope to see you there!