Inn-spiration - Recipe

Sunset, Feb, 2001 by Linda Lau Anusasananan

A make-it-yourself menu from great inns around the West

At a fine inn, it seems foolish to ever leave the premises, what with a picture-perfect setting, luxurious accommodations, pampering service, and meals that can rival four-star restaurant food. Our search for the best places to get away turned up some stellar dishes. Sample them in this indulgent dinner for eight, as a whole or in selected parts. If you can't actually leave home, you can at least bring the flavors of a luxurious holiday to your dining room.

Innkeeper's Mussel Chowder

PREP AND COOK TIME: About 1 1/4 hours

NOTES: This creamy mussel chowder debuted in 1981 on the first menu at Shelburne Inn's Shoalwater Restaurant in Seaview, Washington. If making it up to 1 day ahead, cool, cover, and chill; reheat to serve.

MAKES: 8 to 10 first-course servings

5 pounds mussels in shells

1 cup dry white wine or water

1 pound thin-skinned potatoes

1 onion (1/2 lb.)

1 stalk celery (3 oz.)

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

2 teaspoons curry powder

1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil

1 can (28 oz.) tomato sauce

2 cups whipping cream

Salt and pepper

1. Scrub mussels in cool water and pull off beards; discard any whose shells don't close when tapped. In an 8- to 10-quart pan, combine mussels and wine; bring to a boil over high heat. Cover and simmer over medium heat until mussels open, 5 to 8 minutes. Pour into a colander set in a large bowl to collect juices. Let mussels stand until cool enough to touch.

2. Meanwhile, peel potatoes and cut into 1/2-inch cubes. Peel and chop onion. Rinse celery and cut into 1/2-inch pieces.

3. In the pan used for mussels, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion and celery; stir often until onion is limp, 6 to 8 minutes. Add curry powder and basil; stir until spices become more fragrant, about 30 seconds.

4. Pour mussel juices from bowl into pan. Add tomato sauce, cream, and potatoes. Turn heat to high; when mixture is boiling, cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until flavors are well blended, about 30 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, remove mussels from shells; discard shells.

6. Add mussels to soup; cover and simmer just until mussels are hot, 3 to 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls.

Per serving: 285 cal., 60% (171 cal.) from fat; 11 g protein; 19 g fat (11 g sat.); 19 g carbo (2.5 g fiber); 721 mg sodium; 78 mg chol.

Apple-Mint Salad

PREP AND COOK TIME: About 15 minutes

NOTES: Chef Eric Skokan at Gold Lake Mountain Resort and Spa in Ward, Colorado, serves this simple dish as a palate cleanser. Here it's a fresh interlude between the soup and the pork. Prepare through step 2 up to 3 hours ahead; cover and chill.

MAKES: 8 servings

6 tablespoons lemon juice

2 Granny Smith apples (1 lb. total)

1/3 cup orange juice

2 tablespoons salad oil

1/3 cup finely slivered fresh mint leaves

Salt

8 butter lettuce leaves, rinsed and crisped

Fresh mint sprigs

1. In a 4- to 5-quart bowl, mix lemon juice with 1 quart water. Rinse apples, cut in half, and core; thinly slice lengthwise, then cut slices into match-stick-size slivers. As apples are cut, immerse in lemon water.

2. Drain apples thoroughly in a colander; return to bowl. Add orange juice and oil, and mix gently.

3. Just before serving, add mint leaves. Mix gently and add salt to taste. Place a lettuce leaf on each of 8 salad plates. Spoon apple salad equally onto lettuce leaves; garnish with mint sprigs.

Per serving: 68 cal., 47% (32 cal.) from fat; 0.4 g protein; 3.6 g fat (0.5 g sat.); 9.5 g carbo (1.5 g fiber); 1.7 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.

Peppered Pork Tenderloin with Cranberry-Onion Compote

PREP AND COOK TIME: About 1 hour

NOTES: Chef Stephen Smith of Albion River Inn in Albion, California, created this dish.

MAKES: 8 servings

2 fat-trimmed pork tenderloins (1 lb. each)

2 tablespoons coarse-ground pepper

4 teaspoons salad oil

1 red onion (6 oz.), peeled and chopped

1 cup dried sweetened cranberries

1/3 cup raspberry vinegar

1/3 cup fat-skimmed chicken broth

1 tablespoon sugar

1/3 cup butter or margarine Salt

1. Rinse pork and pat dry; roll in pepper to coat evenly.

2. Set an 11- to 12-inch frying pan with ovenproof handle over high heat. When pan is hot, add 1 tablespoon oil and swirl to coat bottom. Add pork (cut tenderloins crosswise to fit pan if necessary) and turn as needed to brown on all sides, 5 to 7 minutes total.

3. Set pan in a 400[degrees] regular or convection oven; bake until a thermometer inserted in center of thickest part of meat reaches 155[degrees], 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let meat stand in a warm place about 5 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, in a 1- to 1 1/2-quart pan over high heat, stir onion in remaining 1 teaspoon oil until limp, about 5 minutes. Add cranberries, vinegar, broth, and sugar; stir occasionally until liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons, about 7 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Add butter and stir until melted and incorporated into sauce.

5. Cut meat on the diagonal across the grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices; arrange on 8 plates. Spoon sauce equally over and around meat. Add salt to taste.