Recipes from The Sherwood Inn cookbook (2024)

sherwood Inn cookbook

Scrod Christopher from "The Sherwood Inn" cookbook

(James Scherzi)

These recipes are from the new book, "The Sherwood Inn: The Cornerstone of Skaneateles Since 1807" by Bill Eberhardt and Denise Owen Harrigan.

Scrod Christopher

INGREDIENTS

For the beurre blanc

1 cup dry white wine
1 lemon, halved
1 medium shallot, peeled and minced
10 black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
10 sprigs fresh thyme
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 pound unsalted butter
1 teaspoons kosher salt

For the scrod

1 sleeve Ritz crackers, crushed
2 ounces butter, melted
6 tablespoons paprika
1 cup dry white wine
4 pounds fresh scrod filets, each about 8 ounces, 1-inch thick, skinned
Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

Dice cold butter into 1/4-inch cubes, Set aside to reach room temperature, but no warmer. Extract juice from lemon and pour into medium saucepan with straight, not sloping, sides. Toss in the lemon rind as well. Add the wine, shallot, peppercorns, bay leaves and thyme. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then continue to boil until liquid is reduced by 80 percent. Whisk in the heavy cream and return liquid to a simmer.

Turn off the heat. Remove lemon rind. Add the room-temperature butter, one cube at a time. whisking constantly until each addition is incorporated. If the sauce stops absorbing the butter, briefly return the pan to medium heat. Strain the sauce through a sieve, pressing solids to extract flavor. Season with salt. Hold sauce at room temperature until ready to serve -- but no longer than six hours.

Roasted Corn Chowder with Fennel and Bacon

Made-from-scratch soups are a cornerstone of The Sherwood Inn menu, with chowders in especially high demand. This corn chowder is ideal for early fall in the Finger Lakes, when fresh corn is still available, yet cool temperatures call for more substantial soup.

Makes 5 quarts

INGREDIENTS

1 bulb fennel
2 medium leeeks
2 pounds yellow corn kernels, fresh or frozen
olive oil for roasting
8 ounces unsalted butter
4 ounces bacon, thick-sliced, preferably double-smoked, diced
1 medium Spanish onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 red pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, peeled, smashed and roughly chopped
1 cup flour
96 ounces chicken broth, at room temperature
4 teaspoons dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
12 ounces Yukon Gold or fingerling potatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 quart heavy cream or half and half, at room temperature
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup cornstarch for thickening (optional)

DIRECTIONS

To prepare the fennel, trim outer leaves and cut bulb in half. Remove core by cutting out rigid triangle at bottom. Dice bulb into 3/4-inch cubes.

Wash leeks thoroughly. Cut in half lengthwise, then cut into 1/4-inch slices up to the light green section.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

To prepare fresh corn: Remove husks and fine threads. Position ear of corn over a sheet pan and cut kernels from ear into pan. Drizzle kernels with oil and roast in oven for about 25 minutes, until golden brown.

To use frozen corn: Thaw, drizzle with oil and roast in oven as above, adding 10 minutes to roasting time.

Place a heavy-bottomed stock pot over medium heat. Add butter and bacon. Cook until bacon fat is released into butter. Bacon should be just golden, not cripsy, and butter should not brown.

Season with salt and pepper. Stir in cream. Continue to cook over low heat fro 10 minutes.

For a thicker soup: BEFORE adding cream, blend together 1/4 cup cornstarch and 1/2 cup water. Stir into soup, bring to a boil and reduce heat. Proceed as in previous step. Remove bay leaves before serving.