Tag Archives: Berkshires

Take a short train ride from Grand Central to Wine Country

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Plan your wine weekend early this fall, celebrate the bounty of the scenic Hudson Valley.

The Millbrook and Clinton Wineries are just down the road.  Spend the day shopping in nearby Millerton, home to internationally aclaimed Harney & Sons Fine Teas, great antique shops and excellent dinning.  Just across the street from the charming tea store is Gilmore Glassworks, exquisite fine art glass scultpure and original stemware.

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Every Saturday many nearby town host Farmer’s Markets, or if you like pick your own.  McEnroe Organic Farm provides first-hand know-how about organic farming and composting. Tour the expansive 700 acre working farm, then sample McEnroe’s gourmet delicacies at the full-service market!

You’ve got to enjoy our locally made artisanal cheeses from The Amazing Real Live Food Company (based in nearby Pine Plains - www.amazingreallive.com) from the Victualers at the McEnroe Market. The Chaseholm Farm Creamery is a small cheesemaking operation and the home of the Amazing Real Live Food Co. Chaseholm is a family run dairy farm that manages a 50-head milking herd of registered Holsteins. It is from the beautiful milk of these cows that produces probiotic cheeses and fine, artisanal cheeses (Fresh Herbed Farmer’s Cheese, Queso Blancos, Chaseholm Camembert, Moonlight Chaource, and Stella Vallis Tomme.

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The Dutchess County Farm Fresh Link shuttle will stay with you all day, transporting you to the various locations and bringing you back to the Wassaic Station for the return trip home.

Reservations for the Dutchess County Farm Fresh Link shuttle are required in advance by calling 800-445-3131. Reservations must be made at least 48 hours in advance and confirmed before you purchase a train ticket. Shuttle seats are limited, so you must have a reservation.

Once you’ve made your reservation, purchase your rail and shuttle ticket any Metro-North station with a ticket office, at all full-service ticket machines (except Beacon Station). Tickets and shuttle reservations are non-refundable.

Some activities, such as wine tasting, require an additional fee. For more information about these itinerary stops and other agricultural and culinary destinations throughout Dutchess County, please visitwww.farmfresh.dutchesstourism.com.

Gluten-Free Blueberry Scones | Fresh from the Valley’s Table

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Gluten-Free Blueberry Scones Recipe with Whole Grains

Hudson Valley Fresh from the Garden

Prepare a 9-inch round cake pan by lining it with a circle of parchment paper. Set aside.

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Ingredients:

1 cup brown rice flour, or sorghum flour
1/2 cup millet flour
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup quinoa flakes
1/4 cup rice bran
1/4 cup sugar, or substitute to taste
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup organic raw coconut oil
2 large organic free-range eggs, beaten
Up to 1/3 cup almond milk, as needed
2 teaspoons bourbon vanilla extract
3/4 cup fresh blueberries, washed, patted dry

Instructions:

In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients by whisking till blended (brown rice flour through nutmeg).

Add the coconut oil in pieces and whisk or mix to distribute. The flour should get a bit crumbly and sandy.

Add in the eggs and beat. The dough will be thick and stiff.

Add the almond milk a little at a time and beat until you see the dough relax and become smooth and pliable. It should be slightly sticky, but not wet or thin. My dough took the full 1/3 cup liquid (and weather was humid). Use only the amount of almond milk you need to get the dough to stick together. You may need less (or more) than I did.

Add in 1/2 cup of the fresh blueberries and mix briefly.

Scoop the scone dough into the lined cake pan and using oiled or wet hands pat the dough into an even round loaf. Press the remaining blueberries into the top.

So good, serves around eight or four folks depending on your sweet tooth.

Set aside and allow to rest for about fifteen minutes.

Relax at Hilltop House Bed and Breakfast

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 The “home-away-from-home” atmosphere at Hilltop House Bed and Breakfast makes for a relaxing weekend escape. Nestled in the foothills of the Berkshires amidst beautiful horse farms, Hilltop House in Amenia is a peaceful and quiet hideaway where you can get in touch with nature’s beauty.

The inn was featured in the fall of 2010 in one of New York magazine’s Five-Point Weekend Escape Plan article on Poughkeepsie, http://nymag.com/travel/weekends/poughkeepsie/

Horse & Hunt Country

Amenia is located in the scenic Hudson Valley, rich in historic tradition as well. The inn is only a short distance from the Harlem Valley Rail Ride, which begins in Millerton. Millerton was named one of the Top Ten “coolest small towns” in America by Frommer’s Budget Travel magazine. The Rail Trail includes 15 miles of hiking and biking trails that weave through Dutchess and Columbia counties. Hilltop House has a variety of mountain bikes available for guests to take advantage of this biking trail or to bike around the town.

Hilltop House offers access to some of the Hudson Valley’s most amazing cultural attractions. Within a short distance are Clermont and Staatsburgh State Historic Sites, the Franklin D. Roosevelt Home and Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Sites in Hyde Park, and Locust Grove Estate in Poughkeepsie. Art exhibits are featured at Dia: Beacon, and performing arts fill the stage at the Fisher Performing Arts Center at Bard College, designed by Frank Gehry, and the Center for Performing Arts in Rhinebeck. Tour and taste delicious wine at several area vineyards. Cascade Mountain Winery is on a scenic hilltop right in Amenia as well!

There are five guest rooms available at Hilltop House, each quaintly decorated with antique furniture and quilts, providing all the necessary comforts for a serene and charming getaway. The living room, complete with a fire place, is a great place to unwind and enjoy the gourmet cooking by the chef and innkeeper Sandra Johnson.

For more information on the inn and to make a reservation you can visit www.hilltophousebb.com, e-mail info@hilltophousebb.com, or call 917-586-4694.

Bike Trails in the Berkshires | Weekend Getaway

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Save the Date

TUESDAY, APRIL 19, 2011, 7:00  PM  - Interlaken Inn
Forum on the Housatonic Covered Bride Bike Trail

A forum will be held to discuss the economic impact of the proposed bicycle trail that would connect nine Litchfield County communities along the Housatonic River.

Discussion and expert commentary by Carl Knoch of the Rails To Trails Conservancy, Bruce Adams (Kent First Selectman) and Ruth Skovron (Northwestern CT Regional Planning Collaborative).

Knoch is the author of  “Trail User Surveys and Economic Impact,” a summary of 14 trail user expenditure surveys in the Northeastern U.S.

 

FORUM IS FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

The Housatonic Covered Bridge Bike Trail would use the old river roads that parallel the Housatonic, and typically have little traffic. Relative to the rest of the area, the river roads have very few hills, making for a more enjoyable ride. The proposed “HouBike” Trail is approximately 45 miles long, and would run from Ashley Falls, MA to New Milford, CT.

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The Berkshires Trail would connect an several attractions:

  • Bartholomew’s Cobble
  • The Great Falls in Falls Village
  • Dean Ravine and the Covered Bridge in Cornwall
  • Kent Falls State Park
  • The Sloane – Stanley Museum / Connecticut Antique Machinery Association
  • The ledges at the Schaghticoke Indian Reservation
  • Bulls Bridge and its gorge
  • And Sega Meadows in New Milford.

HELD  at THE INTERLAKEN INN, RT. 112, LAKEVILLE, CT

 

For more inforation about bike trials and special weekend packages contact us: info@hilltophousebb.com.

Thank You.

Add a little romance to your relationship.

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Nothing is better than an intimate weekend with your lover.

1. Strawberies, come pick them.  Oh so romantic.

2. Take a yoga class together.  Yoga refreshes, relaxes and restores your sex drive!

Enjoy a massage.

3. Give and get a message.  Splurge on a bottle of fragrant massage oil infused with the relaxing, sensuous and alluring scent of jasmine.

4.  Indulge in a glass of wine.  Lots of wineries here in the valley.

5.  Take a bike ride through the country.
Hilltop House Bed & Breakfast offers mountian bikes.

Cycling in the country.

6. GO DANCING!
Venues nearby here in the valley to tango.

Love is the drug to relive all of life’s challenges!

Explore the Bash Bish Falls.

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The Berkshires comprise large tracts of wildernessis noted for its beautiful natural scenery.

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The dramatic Bash Bish Falls tumbles through a series ofgorges near Mount Washington State Forest.  Bash Bish is the tallest single-drop waterfall in Massachusetts.

The Berkshire Botanical Garden and Appalachian Trail wander through the south western range of Massachusetts.

Hudson Valley Restaurant Week returns.

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Restaurant week is back in the valley.  Millbrook Vineyards, The Culinary Institute of America and the valley’s newest hot spot, Bull and Budha are pairing their meals with the Millhrook Winery’s award-winning wines.

Bull & Buddha

Click here for the full article in this month’s Hudson Valley Magazine.

The Hudson Valley is a great weekend getaway

Exploring the Hudson Valley.

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BY ALLYSON GRENNILLE agrennille@njherald.com

When it comes to day-tripping, the Hudson River Valley is a
traveler’s dream. The banks of the Hudson are dotted with small, charming destination towns, each with its own unique character and attractions. What’s more, the valley is a worthy destination year-round: fall apple picking, winter hiking, spring antiquing and summer county fairs truly offer something for everyone.

 

Hudson River Valley

Whether you’re a budget-conscious parent looking for a family-friendly outing or a couple in search of a romantic weekend, the Hudson Valley offers plenty of opportunities to get away.

It’s also easy to get there. Take a straight shot up the scenic and beautiful New York State Thruway and pick an exit; it’s hard to go wrong.

If you’re in need of guidance, here’s an overview of three great river towns, offering a sampling of the area’s food, arts and family culture.

For more information, see the Historic Hudson River Towns website, www.hudsonriver.com, which offers town-by-town information and travel tips, or Hudson Valley Tourism online at www.travelhudsonvalley.org.

Click here for the entire article.

 

Speakers in the humanities. Sunday March 6th, 2pm | Millbrook, NY

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Art in Food and Food in Art

Weekend Speaker Event here in the Hudson Valley.

A lusciously illustrated slide-talk on food and drink seen in the 17th century Dutch Masters and their relevance to the American kitchen today. It explores the foodways brought to America by the Dutch more than three centuries ago, and how these foods were changed and adapted under new circumstances. Using slides of some 40 paintings by Jan Steen, Adriaen von Ostade, Jan Davidsz. De Heem, Pieter Claesz, Harmen van Steenwijck and many others, the lecture will demonstrate how these art works give an insight into 17th century food practices and shed new light on the colonial diet.

Ms. Peter G. Rose – Author, Columnist, Lecturer, Food Historian  

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Ms. Rose has lectured on a variety of topics related to Dutch-American culinary history at, among others: The Smithsonian Institute, the National Gallery of Art, the Culinary Institute of America, New York University, and the New York Historical Society, as well as many other historical societies and libraries in New York State.

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Sunday, March 6, 2011 2:00 pm  
Millbrook Free Library
(845) 677-3611
3 Friendly Lane, Millbrook, NY 12545
Email: mfldirector@optimum.net
WEBSITE www.millbrooklibrary.org

 

This Speakers in the Humanities event, which is free and open to the public, is made possible through the support of the New York Council for the Humanities, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The Speakers in the Humanities program has linked distinguished scholars with diverse audiences since its launch in 1983, bringing the best in humanities scholarship to thousands of people at hundreds of cultural organizations in virtually every corner of New York State. This program is just one of the ways the New York Council for the Humanities helps all New Yorkers to lead vibrant intellectual lives by strengthening traditions of cultural literacy, critical inquiry, and civic participation.

For more information vist, www.nyhumnaities.org.