The 8 Broads in the Kitchen are hanging up their collective aprons.

Twelve years ago, eight of us, innkeepers from across the US, embarked on a journey that has taken us to places we had never anticipated. In 2008, when very few innkeepers knew about blogs, we decided to form a new group, 8 Broads in the Kitchen.  Although we were from vastly different backgrounds and cultures, we did share similar passions – the love of innkeeping and a culinary commitment to using the best and freshest ingredients, locally sourced, prepared with love, and shared with friends.

And we were determined to have fun! Not only did we have fun, but to our surprise, we became close friends, sharing life’s joys and tears. Like sisters! The blog blossomed! In no time, we 8 Broads were sharing our recipes with several hundred other innkeepers, guests, relatives, friends, and friends of relatives and friends of friends. The blog led to presenting workshops at innkeeping and non-innkeeping conferences, local, statewide, and national as well as offering consulting opportunities for innkeepers. Cookbooks? They were inevitable – three of them! All the while we continued to hone our skills and broaden our horizons.

We were going places! The journey has taken us throughout the US, from Sonoma and Austin to Santa Fe and Estes Park as well as to Provence, France, for innkeeping conferences and our annual general “meetings.” We have even spawned a young offshoot, Two Little Broads, passing on our culinary passion to another generation.

The 8 Broads in the Kitchen guesstimate that collectively we have had close to 200 years of innkeeping experience, served more than 200,000 breakfasts, and baked at least a half-million cookies, munched by guests (and, we admit, the 8 broads ourselves, of course).

Even though as an organization we are hanging up our aprons and closing 8 Broads in the Kitchen, the 8 of us as friends intend to continue meeting virtually at least once a month and traveling together each year. And, yes, we are still having fun!

We couldn’t have done this alone. We gratefully thank all who have supported and encouraged us, who have followed on our blog, who have purchased and continue to purchase our cookbooks* Breakfast and Brunch Recipes and Desserts! You helped us thrive!

The 8 Broads in the Kitchen proved once again that food bridges divides, connects different philosophies, and brings people together. Food, the universal language, opens doors, inspires conversation, calms restless souls, and often provides opportunities to laugh. We hope you enjoyed stirring up fun in the kitchen with us.

What a trip!

*You can still order the cookbooks until March 31, 2021 at www.8broads.com. After March 31, order via Swiss Woods B&B Inn at http://stores.swisswoodstea.com/books/ and The White Oak Inn at info@whiteoakinn.com.

INGREDIENTS

4 ripe peaches, peeled and diced
½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
¼ cup of organic raw sugar
1 pinch ground nutmeg
1 cup plain yogurt

DIRECTIONS

Set aside ½ cup of the diced peaches and sprinkle 1 tablespoon of orange juice on top to prevent the fruit from turning brown.
Place the peaches, juice and sugar and nutmeg in a blender and blend until smooth. Add yogurt and mix until well blended. Refrigerate for a couple of hours or over-night.
Serve in an ice cream dish topped with a teaspoon of the diced peaches and decorated with a sprig of mint.

Makes 3 cups or 6 servings as a breakfast fruit dish.

Brampton Inn
http://www.bramptoninn.com
Danielle
Bed and Breakfast Foodie

Nine years ago, the 8 Broads in the Kitchen was born when we all attended an innkeeping conference in Atlanta. At the time, all 8 of us were foodies and successful business women. Each of us owned and operated bed & breakfast inns, with four of us continuing currently as Innkeepers while others have created new lives post-innkeeping, and many still involved in our great industry.

Food and friendship, laughter and tears, life’s joys and sorrows unite us. We travel together, support each other, tell crazy (mostly true) stories sprinkled with humor and bold language. We love each other dearly.

Now it’s time to focus on our food blog, and learn from the experts of food blogging. Of course, sampling great food is on the agenda at #IFBC18. I’m especially looking forward to the plethora of relevant workshops, plus hearing the keynoter Michael Twitty a renowned culinary historian and food writer in DC. His blog, Afroculinaria, fascinates me as he combines his love for African southern cooking with political commentary in powerful narratives. Mr. Twitty was recently awarded the James Beard Foundation Book of the Year Award for his book exploring the history of southern cuisine: The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African-American Culinary History in the Old South.  Congratulations, Mr. Twitty!

We’ll be sharing cool stuff from the conference in late August, 2018! And we cannot wait– A Learning We Will Go!

In June, the family made our biennial visit to South Padre Island, and Sea Turtle Inc. This important sea turtle conservancy rescues injured sea turtles in the Gulf of Mexico and provides safety for nesting turtles to lay hundreds of eggs. We have had the privilege of watching a release of new hatchlings as they make their way to the water, following the point of light of the moon or rising sun.

This year, Sea Turtle Inc. was emphasizing the dangers of plastic straws and how many of their rescued and sick turtles have consumed parts of straws and other plastics. Sea turtles are not able to regurgitate, the plastic provides the feeling of being full, and the turtles become weak and malnourished. The very next morning my grandson Blaine and I walked the beach and picked up at least 3 dozen plastic straws, either discarded by beachgoers or washed upon the beach!

Time magazine, July 23, 2018, edition, notes that an estimated 500 million disposable straws are used in the U.S. each DAY! Many of those end of in our waterways, ending up in the ocean. Starbucks just announced that it would stop using plastic straws by 2020. It’s a start.

It’s time for me to Skip the Straw. My daughter and I now carry clean metal straws in our purses, ready to use. I hope you’ll consider skipping the plastic straw!

The delicious smoothies, found on page 231 in our new cookbook 8 Broads “Breakfast and Brunch Recipes”, are perfect on summer days. The metal straws are a nice addition! Order your cookbook today at 8Broads.com.

In May, the Family & Children’s Service of Ithaca presented Lynnette with the 35^th annual Agda Osborn Award in grateful recognition of her numerous and outstanding contributions to Ithaca and Tompkins County through her active volunteerism  and community service. Ironically, Mrs. Osborn was the owner of the home that is now The William Henry Miller Inn.

Lynnette has chaired two United Way campaigns, raising more than $3 million. She has also been involved with the Tompkins County Library Board and  the Strategic Tourism Planning Board. She is currently a member of the Advisory Council of the History Center of Tompkins County and The Sciencenter and a Board member of FoodNet Meals on Wheels as well as a co-founder of Animeals, a pet food pantry.

In 2013, Select Registry named Lynnette Innkeeper of the Year for North America. In May, 2017 the Inn was honored to be presented with United Way’s Business of the Year award.

The 8 Broads in the Kitchen applaud all that Lynnette does at her inn, in her community, and the 8 Broads. We are so proud that she’s our friend.

This spring the 8 Broads in the Kitchen held its first cookbook signing at Swiss Woods, Debbie Mosimann’s inn in Lititz, PA. The cavalry arrived to help Debbie in the form of three other Broads – Kathryn White, Lynnette Scofield, and Ellen Chenaux.  Deb’s family and friends also pitched in.

We had no idea how many would attend, but we anticipated maybe 50 people. So we were overwhelmed when about 200 folks appeared on Swiss Woods’ doorstep! They came that afternoon to purchase the Broads in the Kitchen’s new Breakfast & Brunch Recipes and have the cookbooks signed by four of the 8 Broads. Although they came for the cookbook, many stayed for several hours, sampling nibbles and making new friends. The signing became a pop-up party!

Not only did we run out of food, we also ran out of cookbooks! Yes, indeed, the signing was a success,  and the 8 Broads in the Kitchen look forward to future book signingsl There will be many people in Lancaster County stirring up fun in the kitchen.

Next book signing: S Clyde Weavers in East Petersburg PA, June 9, 10am-1pm. Stop by to see two of the Broads, Deb Mosimann and Ellen Chenaux, and get your new cookbook autographed!

Order your copy today at 8Broads.com.

The 8 Broads in the Kitchen celebrate spring with the publication of our second cookbook, Breakfast & Brunch Recipes. More recipes! More morning muffins! More delicious photography! More fun to stir up in the kitchen!

A great Mother’s Day gift! Hint. Hint. Hint.

You are going to love our new cookbook. You can order your copy at www.8broads.com — $22.99 plus shipping.

When I lived in the Seattle area in the late 60s, I remember signing a petition to save the Pike Street Market. Today this market is thriving and a must-see when you’re in the area. With the proliferation of supermarkets in the 50s, the markets were dying out. According to the National Museum of American History, the 100 farmers markets in 1960 grew to more than 3,000 in 2000. And today there are more than 8,000 in the U.S.!

Why do we love them? With people moving around and often, the markets connect people, creating strong community ties. And each market is reflects its extended neighborhood, selling each area’s specialties. If you visit farmers markets in Wisconsin, you will definitely see a lot of cheese. In New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the markets abound in what we in the Mid-Atlantic states like to think of as the world’s greatest tomatoes and corn. The markets reflect the local flavor.

I am lucky to live less than a block from one of the oldest farmers markets in the U.S, the historic New Market, known today as the Headhouse Market, a historic national landmark in Philadelphia. What makes this market so interesting is that it is housed in the Headhouse Shambles, the oldest surviving colonial marketplace in the U.S. Built prior to 1745, it was designed after the rural markets in England, with two parallel rows of brick pillars supporting a gabled roof. Just as farmers and traders backed up wagons to the arches, today, farmers from Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware back up their trucks to the arches.

Philadelphia also is the home of the Reading Terminal, which dates from 1892, selling local treasures and the exotic, from table food to table linens. It’s huge and a foodie favorite. Dating from 1730, Lancaster Pennsylvania’s Central Market boasts the oldest continuous farmers market.

Everyone has their favorite farmers market, from the Capitol Market in Charleston to the Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market in San Francisco. My personal favorites include, in addition to my local Philly markets, Kensington and St. Lawrence Markets in Toronto as well as each and every farmers market in Switzerland and France! A movable feast!

Ellen Cheneaux

Proud to be one of the 8 Broads in the Kitchen

Living in Philadelphia, I am immersed daily in colonial history — with the Liberty Bell, Constitution Hall, and the new Museum of the American Revolution, all just up the street as is one of the oldest restaurants in the U.S. I have come to realize that our Founding Fathers not only set the course of our democracy but also greatly influenced the course of American food.

Thomas Jefferson, for instance, was the first to introduce pasta to the new country. And Ben Franklin and George Washington are credited with bringing European food and wine to our shores.They also brought the first ice cream makers to the U.S. Wow! Who knew? They even had the good sense to bring barbecue to our shores from Mexico and the Caribbean! And they notably experimented to make food from around the world American.

As these were three of the most traveled of the new Americans as they journeyed back and forth to Europe, they came home with food, seeds, wine and inventions to begin our culinary history. As foodies, they wanted to learn everything there was to know about food.

Jefferson influenced American wine and wine making. Great lessons were learned through successes and failures. Washington’s Mount Vernon boasted a gristmill and distillery. Spirits and beers were of great importance in our country’s early years. Interestingly, the early Americans drank twice as much as we do today. In fact, John Hancock was not only a patriot but was also a well-known smuggler of beer and rum!

Native Americans taught the early agricultural lessons to the colonists, and importantly, are credited with inventing popcorn, cultivating the brewing of corn beer, and smoking meat. The early Americans are responsible for inventing the solar salt maker, cod fishing and the automated wheat mill. The colonists and early Americans knew the importance of kitchen gardens. And many of the crops – Washington grew 60 different crops and, like Jefferson, planted a large vineyard – became commercial successes, such as tobacco and rum, both of which were exported all over the world.

Washington was a notable fisherman and has been dubbed the First Angler. Not only did he fish for sport, but as a business he was responsible for more than 100,000 herring being caught a day along the Potomac.

The Founding Fathers not only introduced and help create American food, but also were responsible for modern agriculture, improving methods to reduce soil erosion and increase crop rotation.

But it wasn’t all work and no play. While our Founding Fathers spent long days writing the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, they often indulged themselves with overwhelmingly huge dinners – prepared at home by their French-trained chefs as well as local Philly restaurants, such as the City Tavern. Dating from 1773, the City Tavern is one of the oldest eateries in the US.

(It is interesting to note that women could not dine in public until the late 1800s! Some of us seem to be making up for lost time!)

Founding Fathers, Founding Foodies, and…between 1768 and 1775, Martha and George Washington hosted more than 2,000 guests, many of whom stayed overnight – not surprising after all that rum and beer! So perhaps our Founding Fathers and Founding Foodies were also our Founding Innkeepers!

Note: If you are interested in learning more about our Founding Foodies, there is much literature available on the topic, notably The Founding Foodies, by Dave DeWitt, which includes some of the earliest recipes, such as Martha Washington’s Fruit Cake. Enjoy!