snowballs in suttons bay

susan is making coconut snowballs filled with lemon curd! when we started making these last year, we could hardly keep up. all of a sudden, I said -it's time for snowballs. they are getting frosted right now and will be on the stand by 1:30. when it is snowing like it has been for the 3rd day in a row-we start baking and cooking like crazy women. I love the winter. Had a wonderful coq au vin trial run at Jerome's house last night and we tasted 3 local pinots to go with it. more later on the snow balls.

Cooking Class at Martha's Leelanau Table - December 2, 2009

I'm getting ready for susan's pastry class tonight. we are making chocolate truffles and mocha cream tart and 3 more things plus I'm doing some luscious garlic cream soup. we have 8 people coming so i have lots to do. more later, Martha

Mario Batali Spotlights Martha’s Leelanau Table in Esquire Magazine

According to well-known Chef, Author, TV personality, Restauranteur, and Philanthropist Mario Batali, Leelanau Peninsula is the “best place on Earth.” And Batali thinks that Martha’s Leelanau Table European Style Cafe in Suttons Bay is an important part of the reason why.

Batali’s comments appear in Esquire Magazine’s 2009 Spring “Big Black Book” issue, now on magazine stands. This year, the issue features interviews with several well-known chefs, each being asked to describe his/her “best place on Earth.” Batali chose Leelanau Peninsula.

In explaining his decision, Batali, who co-owns 14 restaurants in New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas, adds, “It’s also important to me to have great restaurants to chill at.” He then singles out Martha’s Leelanau Table for its “simple Alice Waters sensibility.” Waters, co-owner of Chez Panisse in Berkely, California, is one of the leaders of the eating locally/seasonally movement.

Owner Martha Ryan is thrilled. “Mario comes into the restaurant from time to time when he’s in the area. We’re deeply honored to have been identified as one of his favorite restaurants. I applaud the work Mario has done to promote our region and to stress the importance of using locally produced, fresh ingredients in cooking. That’s what Martha’s is all about.”

Pull up a chair at Martha's Table - The Restaurant in Suttons Bay

In just one summer, Martha’s has become the favorite gathering spot for friends, family, visitors, and regulars alike. Martha’s features breakfast and lunch seven days a week, plus a full espresso bar, fine pastries by Susan McConnell, and Sunday Supper at 6 p.m. every Sunday. Martha’s is the place to go to enjoy specialties from Leelanau County and the surrounding area.

Breakfast is served every morning, and on Sunday until 2 p.m. It’s always simple, and it’s always fresh, with local eggs (poached, scrambled, or any way you like them), crusty bread toasted and served with strawberry jam, and buttermilk pancakes with blueberries and Michigan maple syrup. In the spring, enjoy frittatas with fresh asparagus and Leelanau cheese. And this fall, try freshly-squeezed juices and local sparkling wine, blended for Martha’s original Leelanau Mimosa.

Lunch might be a steaming bowl of classic pistou, a crusty sandwich piled high with meats and cheeses, Martha’s Caesar salad, penne pasta with fresh tomatoes and basil or a small, crisp-crust Pizza Margharita. But no matter the entree, it’s always made from scratch and of the finest local ingredients.

Martha's Hits The AP Wire as a "Foodie Haven"

Martha’s Hits The AP Wire

According to John Flesher of the The Associated Press, the Traverse City region is fast becoming known as a “foodie haven.” And Martha’s Leelanau Table is one of the reasons why! Here’s what Flesher said about us, “Martha’s Leelanau Table, a European-style bistro in Suttons Bay, stuffs its pancakes with northern Michigan blueberries and its frittatas with cheeses from nearby dairies.”

Thanks John!

Source: “Michigan’s Traverse City Is An Up-And-Coming Foodie Haven” by John Flesher of the AP; July 19, 2009.
Read the full article of how Martha's Leelanau Table is helping to create a "Foodie Haven" in the Traverse City region and in Leelanau County using cheeses from nearby dairies

About Martha & Friends at Martha's Leelanau Table

Martha Ryan's dream of having a restaurant in Leelanau County has now come true. After years of working for others, Martha is creating the dining experience she believes everyone will enjoy. Judy Balas, architect, gal friend and property owner, has transformed an old home on main street into the perfect venue for Martha’s new enterprise.

Martha brought in Susi McConnell to be the pastry chef. Nearly life long friends, Susi formerly worked as pastry chef for Jim Milliman at Hatties in Suttons Bay, and most recently for Carol Worsley at Thyme Out in Glen Arbor.

Traverse Magazine's Web Site Article About Martha's Leelanau Table's Cooking Classes

Elizabeth Edwards, Traverse Magazine's Managing Editor, paid us the ultimate compliment in her recent article when she said, “If you’re a Northern Michigan foodie and you don’t know Martha Ryan, owner and chef at Martha’s Leelanau table in Suttons Bay, it’s time to meet her.”

Elizabeth, her husband and several friends attended one of our cooking classes, and she’s written about it. That night we made (and ate!) a variety of tasty delights that included stuffed green olives, goat cheese souflees on a bed of mixed greens, a simple risotto, pizza with an Italian ham (speck), asparagus, mushrooms, and cheese, and flourless chocolate cake for dessert. Sound good? Give us a call to sign up for one of our upcoming classes!

Thank you Elizabeth for the glowing review.

Read the entire article “Dinner at Martha’s Leelanau Table by Elizabeth Edwards” and see some photos from the event.

We're just opening and daniela has pecan rolls coming out of the oven and she's also making asparagus quiche for zonta tonight.  the smells in the kitchen are great right now.  coffee brewing, warm, yeasty rolls and soup on the back burner.  more later