Vail Valley: Adventures in appetizers

VAIL VALLEY, Colorado — Come hungry because it's going to be a Vail Valley, Colorado feast. The organizers and authors of eight local and regional cookbooks are gathering at the Bookworm of Edwards on Thursday and they're bringing appetizers featured in each cookbook.

There will be a blue cheese crumble, corn and black bean salsa, fava bean puree, chicken satay, salmon tartar, shrimp and chutney dip and more. There's even dessert: peanut butter bon bons and Nitey Nite cookies, delicate little nuggets rife with pecans and chocolate chips.

Nicole Magistro, co-owner of The Bookworm of Edwards, is impressed by the variety and quality of local and regional cookbooks, which prompted her to organize the event.

“(The cookbooks) are produced by such different people — from the Junior League of Denver to foodie locals to families who just know what recipes work at this altitude,” she said. “We wanted to show off the books, the recipes and the stories by bringing this community together around great food.”

Dinner with a side of history

Sweetwater resident Cathie Jarnot came up with the initial idea for “Sweetwater Community Club's Collection of Epicurial and Historical Tidbits,” a cookbook that benefits the Sweetwater Historical Fund.

“(The book) was done by a very small community and contains history as well as recipes and is sort of a travelogue of the Sweetwater community,” said Jarnot, the club's treasurer. “Each divider page has a picture of some place in Sweetwater. People could bring their book and drive up the road and know something about a lot of the places.”

Potluck beginnings

The seed for the Arrowhead Alpine Club Cookbook, another community collaboration, came about after a pot luck dinner at the Alpine Club.

“I thought it would be great to have a collection of wonderful recipes contributed by our members,” said Nadine Davis, the cookbook organizer. “Then it evolved into a way to give back to our community.”

Proceeds from the Arrowhead cookbook benefit The Salvation Army, The Bright Future Foundation and The Food Rescue Express.

“Colorado Classique,” another cookbook being featured at the Bookworm on Thursday, is the newest cookbook from the Junior League of Denver. The book was released in late June and landed as the No. 1 bestseller at The Bookworm of Edwards last week.

For more information about the event, which costs $20, call The Bookworm at 970-926-READ.

High Life Editor Caramie Schnell can be reached at 970-748-2984 or cschnell@vaildaily.com.

Corn and black bean salsa

Frozen corn (twice as much as black beans)

1 can of rinsed black beans

1 Red pepper, diced

Small green pepper, diced

1 onion, chopped

1 can Rotel chiles and tomatoes (drained)

2 tablespoons lime juice

2 tablespoons chopped coriander (less if using dried)

cumin (more cumin than coriander)

1 garlic clove, minced

salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon of sugar

Stir first six items together in one bowl. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a second bowl and then drizzle dressing over the first mixture and mix well. Great with Frito scoops.

Fava bean puree

Recipe courtesy of “Colorado Organic”

4 pounds Cure Organic Farm fava bean pods

1 stem green garlic, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons Italian parsley

2 tablespoons mint

Extra-virgin olive oil

salt and pepper

1 baguette

Remove the fava beans from the pod. This will yield roughly three cups of picked beans. Bring a medium size pot of salted water to a full boil and add the beans. Boil for a few minutes until the beans float, remove them from the water, and then plunge them into a bowl of cold ice water.

Once chilled, the beans will be tender and bright green. Remove the beans from the skin by using your thumbnail to pop them out.

Put all ingredients into a food processor and begin to puree. Drizzle in extra virgin olive oil until you make a thick, smooth paste. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Slice the baguette into 1/2-inch slices and brush one side of each slice with olive oil. Grill the brushed side of the baguette slices and top each with fava bean puree.

Serves: 4.

Blue cheese crumble

Courtesy of “Colorado Classique”

1 8-ounce package blue cheese, crumbled

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1/3 cup of olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine

juice of 1/2 lemon

4 green onions, white and green parts, chopped

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

black pepper to taste

Place crumbled blue cheese in a serving dish. Combine garlic, olive oil, red wine, lemon juice, green onions and parsley in a food processor and pulse until blended. Pour mixture over blue cheese and mix together.

Sprinkle black pepper on top. Chill for 3 to 4 hours before serving. Serve with crackers or pita chips.

Serves: 8.