Downhome With a Twist
The Purple Fiddle mixes music and meals.
Take an old historic general store. Fill the walls full of whimsy. Add an upscale, eco-friendly menu. Throw in a whole lot of mountain music, and you have The Purple Fiddle, located in the tiny mountain town of Thomas, W.Va.
By day, it’s a coffeehouse serving cappuccinos, lattes, wraps and sweet treats, along with guest Internet access and a mountain-inspired gift shop.
Relax. Sit a spell and grab a board game. Check out the huge wooden bears at the side entrance, try on a funky hat, sit on an old-fashioned stool at the counter and scan the messages scrawled in chalk on the big black safe outside the front door (located directly under the big – purple – moose head).
Weekend nights come alive with a full lineup of foot-stompin’ mountain music. It’s a diverse mix with an emphasis on bluegrass, old-time, new grass and traditional Appalachian music.
It’s acoustic overload all in one building – Stewed Mulligan, Deep Fried Pickle Project, Special Ed and the Shortbus, Hunger Mountain Boys (with names like these, how can these bands not be full of fun?). The place is packed with a mix of locals and travelers, from young children to retired folks.
Owners Kate and John Bright are the energy behind the atmosphere. Kate bakes most of the desserts using old family recipes and ingredients from local organic growers. The drinks and lunch menu are also organic based.
On a sign outside the restaurant: "Rural Traditions and Urban Taste."
It's a good mix.
304/463-4040, www.purplefiddle.com
-Cindy Ruggiert
Featured Recipes:
Carrot Cake
Combine:
- 2 cups oil
- 6 cups grated carrots
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8 eggs
Add:
Directions:
Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes in two 9”x13” pans. Frost with cream cheese frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting:
Put three packages of warmed cream cheese (microwave one to two minutes on high) in food processor with 1/2 bag of confectioner’s sugar, 1/4 cup milk, and 2 tsp. lemon juice. Puree until very smooth. Freezes well.
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Biscotti
The easiest recipe for biscotti I have ever used. Cannot be wrecked.
Ingredients:
Directions:
Knead all ingredients. Form dough into three 12-inch logs. Place on foil-covered cookie sheets and squish logs evenly until 5” x 13” or so. Bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool for 10 minutes. Cut into 5/8-inch slices. Lay biscotti on sides and re-bake for 15 minutes.
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Taboo Fondue
We use this fondue for special events, served with fresh fruit, for a quick and extremely decadent crowd-pleasing dessert. We also use it for frosting many of our homemade cakes and as a sauce over ice cream or homemade cheesecakes. Drizzled over hot chocolate topped with whipped cream or as a mocha sauce for espresso drinks is another use for this versatile old standby recipe.
Ingredients:
-
10 cups dark chocolate wafers
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2 cans sweetened condensed milk
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1 quart fresh cream
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1/2 cup liqueur or any flavor extract to taste
Directions:
Melt over low heat – I actually plant myself, or one of our many children, on a kitchen stool, never leaving the big pot alone, as it is prone to burning if forgotten while multi-tasking. It is an expensive recipe to toss, so sit still and stir. It makes a huge batch and freezes very well. It can be made with white, milk, colored or any combination of chocolate or flavors, so have fun.
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Chocolate Zucchini Cake
This is my mother’s recipe. I grew up on the northern prairies in Canada and our gardening season was a mere blink, but we always had scads of good old zucchini. This recipe is perfect for those giant tough ones that are a shame to toss out, but inedible any other way. In Canada, if you find a zucchini on your doorstep, it is a sure sign that one of your neighbors dislikes you.
In a large bowl, combine:
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups raw sugar
2 fresh farm eggs
Cream together. Add 1/2 cup sour milk and mix.
Add:
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. cocoa powder
2 1/2 cups unbleached flour
Mix together.
Add:
2 cups finely shredded/pureed zucchini
(skins and seeds o.k.)
1 cup chocolate chips
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes in 9”x12” greased and floured pan. Frost with taboo chocolate fondue or traditional cream cheese frosting.
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Guinness Stoutsicles
This is a Purple Fiddle specialty frozen bar. Bizarre, yes, but surprisingly delicious!
Ingredients:
Directions:
Over medium heat, whisk together cornstarch and water for two minutes. Add canned milks and sugar and stir until dissolved. Let cool completely and add Guinness. Freeze in popsicle molds for several hours before serving.
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Kate's Homemade Salsa
Ingredients:
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25 cups chopped tomatoes, unpeeled
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6 large green peppers, chopped
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6 large onions, chopped
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3 Tbsp. salt
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3 tsp. oregano
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3 tsp. parsley
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3 tsp. garlic, minced
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2 tsp. crushed chilis or hot peppers to taste
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1 Tbsp. black pepper
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2 tsp. cumin
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24 oz. tomato paste
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4 Tbsp. lime juice
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hot sauce to taste
Directions
:
Throw everything in a big heavy pot (cheap stock pots will burn on the bottom). Simmer one hour. Freeze, process in jars or just store in fridge for two to three weeks. Another one of my most requested recipes for certain.
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Mountain Mama Pound Cake
(with local organic blueberries)
This recipe is versatile. You can add any fruit, jams, fudge, nuts or whatever you have on hand to make this classic old-time dessert. I used this recipe for my wedding cake, with fresh edible flower petals and lemon peel throughout it, and it was divine and memorable. It is a very forgiving recipe; perfect for playing and experimenting.
Cream together:
2 sticks soft butter
3 cups raw sugar
1/4 tsp. sea salt
Add 6 large farm eggs at room temperature, one at a time, mixing. Add 3 cups unbleached organic flour. Stir. Add 1 cup sour cream, 1 cup fresh blueberries, 2 tsp. lemon zest and 1 tsp. vanilla. Bake at 350 degrees in greased and floured tube pan for 75 minutes. Freezes very well.
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Childhood Sweetheart Granola
The mother of my very first playmate, Geoff, passed this recipe to my mother, and I was raised on this hearty breakfast. We kindly hold the powdered milk, however, and top it with fresh yoghurt. (Really, mom… powdered milk?)
The granola is awesome and is another one of those begging to be played with recipes that I love so well. I have finally learned to throw things together without a recipe, as my mother, grandmother and aunts all did… I guess I am getting old.
Ingredients:
Mix together. Bake at 300 degrees for one hour. Stir several times. Feel free to substitute any ingredient you do not have on hand – use whole wheat flour, if you do not have soy flour, try subbing in raisins, dried fruit, maple syrup and other grains. I usually multiply this recipe by five or six and freeze it in buckets.
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Sour Cream Cookies
This recipe comes from my sister Rhonda’s collection. We used to skim the cream off her fresh farm milk and let it sour to use in this recipe.
1 cup sour cream
1 cup butter
2 cup raw sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
Cream together, and add 2 eggs. Add 4 cups of flour, or enough to make a stiff dough. Roll into balls and press with sugared glass or cookie stamp. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes until barely brown on edges. Cool five minutes on pan before moving to cookie racks.
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Guinness Marinade
and Mopping Sauce
1 pitcher of Guinness or other dark beer
3 cups vinegar
3 cups of mustard (your choice)
3 Tbsp. garlic powder
3 Tbsp. Worchestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. tarragon
2 Tbsp. oregano
3 Tbsp. black pepper
handful parsley
2 cups brown sugar
Simmer in saucepan until sugar is dissolved. Bottle and use for marinades and grilling. Does not require refrigeration.
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The Famous Aunt Cavell’s
Pumpkin Pie Recipe
This recipe may have originated on the can label for all I know, but guests go wild over it. And her name is written on my recipe card, so I credit her. She and my mom were fabulous pie makers and one year they entered in a huge apple pie contest, with hundreds and hundreds of contestants and my mom won first place and my Aunt Cavell, the older sister, won second place. Says more about grandma than anything…
Ingredients:
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1 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
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3/4 cups raw sugar
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1/2 tsp. salt
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1/2 tsp. ginger
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1/2 tsp. nutmeg
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1/4 tsp. cloves
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1 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
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3 eggs, slightly beaten
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3/4 cup evaporated milk
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1 cup milk
Combine all ingredients and pour into a 9” unbaked pie shell. Bake 15 minutes at 425 degrees and reduce heat to 325 degrees for 30 minutes more.
I prefer to use cream cheese pastry, having been surrounded by famous pie makers and being traumatized by the lardy crust bottom, I have perfected the perfect chewy crust.
I always end up explaining to customers that it is supposed to be chewy and not flaky – I guess it is a product of being raised by pastry masters, but I feel some residual family pressure to have perfect pie – and it is, but not if you are expecting lard.
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Cream Cheese Pastry
Ingredients:
-
1 cup cold butter
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2 1/2 cups flour
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1/2 tsp. salt
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1 8-oz. block cream cheese
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3 Tbsp. cold water
Alternate mixing in cubes of butter and cream cheese to flour and salt. Process or hand mix until pea-sized chunks. Add ice water and knead until smooth. Refrigerate for one hour. Roll out on floured surface. Use in place of any pastry.
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Lazy Summertime Gazpacho
Ingredients:
-
1 quart organic vegetable juice
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1 red onion, chopped
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2 long English cucumbers, chopped
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4 large tomatoes, chopped
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2 (red, yellow, orange, green) bell
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peppers, chopped
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1/2 tsp. minced garlic
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4 Tbsp. lemon juice
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1/2 tsp. black pepper
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Dash of hot sauce to taste
Combine all ingredients. Can also use any other garden vegetables you have on hand. Cover and chill for several hours. Use within two to three days.
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Old Fashioned Cookies
Cookie mix
6 cups organic oats
3 cups demerra or brown sugar
4 cups organic unbleached flour
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. salt
Mix together. Add 1 pound softened butter. Mix thoroughly.
Add:
2 cups raisins
2 cups coconut
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts
Store in 4 cup portions in plastic bags in fridge for up to 10 weeks or freeze forever.
To make cookies:
4 cups cookie mix
1 egg
2 Tbsp. milk
2 tsp. vanilla
Mix together, roll into balls, swish with a fork. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes. Makes two dozen per batch.
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Black Bean Hummus
Ingredients
1/4 cup water
2 cups drained black beans
3/4 tsp. minced garlic
2 Tbsp. lime juice
4 tsp. olive oil
1/4 cup tahini
1 Tbsp. parsley
1/2 tsp. red pepper
1/2 tsp. cumin
Mix together all ingredients in food processor until smooth. Serve with pita, veggies or corn chips.
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Our Favorite Birthday Cake
My daughter Madelaine is the best baker in the household and she is in charge of doing all the custom birthday cakes. This cake is her specialty, we all gather around to pick crumbs from the pans. Incredibly decadent, rich and, best of all, made from scratch.
Method:
Mix 1/2 cup margarine and 4 Tbsp. cocoa over low heat in small sauce pan, until smooth. Cool.
In a large bowl, add:
1 cup raw sugar
3/4 cup unbleached flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
In another bowl, mix the wet ingredients:
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
Make well in dry ingredients, pour wet ingredients into well. Mix as little as possible. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes in greased and floured 9”x9” pan. Loosen edges with knife. Cool before removing from pan. Frost with Taboo Fondue. Create rainbows of colors for cake decorating by making the fondue recipe with white chocolate wafers and tinting it with paste food coloring. Colored wafers are also available.
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Shindiggers’ Pig Roast (pulled pork)
Ingredients:
2 small to medium pork roasts
2 16-oz. cans tomatoes
2 8-oz. cans tomato paste
3 garlic cloves
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white vinegar
2 onions, chopped
salt and pepper
Combine in heavy stock pot. Bring to boil and simmer on low heat 12 to 18 hours. Can be done outside in crock pot in summertime, to keep the house cooler. Cool meat, pull apart and freeze or refrigerate. Serve over rice or in sandwiches. (Great with coleslaw!)
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