Huge Shoppers Weekend in North Conway

November 11 - 13: Bring A Friend Shopping Weekend at Settlers' Green Outlet Village Plus -
There will be plenty of giveaways, prizes, and fun activities to make shopping fun this weekend. Extended hours of shopping from 8 am to 9 pm except Sunday 9 am to 6 pm. This is the sale you wait for! Sign up early this year for access to the VIP Tent. Free shopping bags loaded with discount coupons and gifts to the first 1000 shoppers. Gift with purchase on Sunday & Monday.


Each year several women's shoppers groups return to the Buttonwood Inn on the second weekend in November to take advantage of the great sales at Settlers Green Outlet Stores.  This Friday and Saturday, we will have 22 women shoppers in the inn where they'll wrap their Holiday gifts in the Mt. Surprise Room and then have their annual Saturday night party!

Tomatoes, tomatoes, and more tomatoes!

Finally after two summers of trying to grow a vegetable garden with fresh tomatoes, we're successful this summer.  Due mainly to the dry and hot summer weather we've been experiencing, the tomatoes are thriving and continue to ripen.  I made my first batch of tomato sauce two days ago and added my homemade Italian sausage to it.  Yum!!!

We are growing plum tomatoes (in addition to heirlooms and beefsteaks) which are ideal for make tomato sauce.  But when they come off the vine and as we become busier with guests staying at our inn, I'll just wash them and throw them in freezer bags and freeze them whole until I'm ready to make sauce.  As an alternative to a laborious canning process, the defrosted tomatoes are soft but retain their flavor and juices and the skins just peel off.  Put them in the food processor, then the pot to make Italian tomato sauce.  How easy is that...

Here's a recipe for my homemade Italian sauce.  Enjoy!

Italian Sauce

2 28-oz. cans of Cento San Marzano plum tomatoes or 20-24 fresh plum tomatoes

1 6-oz. can of Cento tomato paste

10 cloves of garlic, sliced or minced

8-10 basil leaves, sliced

2 tablespoons of olive oil

Saute garlic in olive in a large pot until tender, but not browned, for a couple of minutes; then add basil.  Process plum tomatoes in a food processor until pureed and add to garlic and basil mixture and simmer for half an hour.  Add cooked meatballs and simmer for another 30 minutes.  Serve over your favorite cooked pasta.

New Adirondack Chairs and Benches at The Buttonwood

Ever since we bought our first two sets of double Adirondack chairs with a built in table for the front of our property, we've longed to purchase more for the back of our property to take in the mountain views and animal sounds from the forest.  

This summer we purchased another double Adirondack chair, a large single chair, and a bench which we placed in our back garden above the pool area.  These chairs are solid and comfortable and made from cedar, so they'll last a long time.  Robin and Rob make these chairs and seem to always be in production throughout the year, since they're so popular.  Check out their website for more info. on their product line.

Scenic Chair Lift at Bretton Woods

Yesterday, Bill and I seized the moment on a glorious late summer afternoon and drove up to Bretton Woods to ride up the mountain on the ski chair lift.  Not a cloud in the blue sky, just a nice cool breeze as we took in the beautiful expanse of the Presidentials.  You can have lunch at the top in their restaurant and linger as long as you would like just enjoying the view.

Buttonwood Cookie Recipe Featured in "Family Travel Guides Newsletter"

If you like cookies as much as "Cookie Monster" on "Sesame Street," then try our Buttonwood recipe for Maple Pecan Shortbread Cookies recently published in the "Family Travel Guides Newsletter."  Enjoy!


http://www.familytravelguides.com/newsletter/2010/aug.10.html

Homemade Italian Sausage--So Easy!

I've been using my sausage machine with wanton abandon lately, making breakfast sausage and now Italian sausage.  It's amazingly simple, but a little time-consuming because you do have to cut up the pork into small cubes to prepare it for the sausage machine.


The result is amazingly tender and flavorful sausage with just a few seasonings and fennel seeds.  Here's the recipe:


Italian Sausage


2 pounds of boneless pork butt, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1-1/2 teaspoons fennel seeds
1-1/4 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley 


Toast fennel seeds in pan on stove for about 3 minutes until fragrant and slightly browned.  Remove from pan and place on dish to cool.  Then pulverize them in a mortar and pestle or grind them in a spice grinder.  Combine the fennel seeds in a medium bowl with the salt, pepper, and chopped parsley; then add the diced pork and mix.  Refrigerate covered for 1 hour; remove and put through the sausage grinder.  Make patties or cook as small chunks in any recipe that incorporates Italian sausage.


Note:  I'm not partial to sausage links since I don't like the casing, so I just use the bulk sausage in pasta recipes or sauce.

Cranmore Summer Concerts

If you happen to be traveling to North Conway and plan to stay at The Buttonwood Inn, you may want to take in a concert on a Thursday or Friday evening at Cranmore Mountain Resort during their Summer Concert series in July and August.  Cranmore is located about 1 mile down Kearsarge Road from the inn.


This Friday, July 23, you can see "Assembly of Dust" with special guest "The Brew"--doors open at 5:00 pm and music is from 6:00-10:00 pm.


Tickets are $19 in advance or $25 at the door--purchase by phone at 1-800-706-0432 ext. 230 or on-line at http://www.cranmore.com/#

Wednesdays at Wildcat

From July 7 through August 25 from 10:00 am to 12:00 noon, Wildcat is hosting free, except for the cost of a gondola ride on some outdoor excursions, with a naturalist from Tin Mountain Conservation Center.  You will learn about the flora and fauna (including moose) of the alpine environment in the Presidential Range.


All you need to do is show up at the Wildcat Ski Lodge around 9:45 am to join in on this educational and fun activity.

"The inn thing was a pleasant surprise"--nashua telegraph.com

Recently, Richard Learned and his wife, Jan, stayed with us at The Buttonwood Inn.  Bill and I very much enjoyed their visit to the inn.  It's alway fascinating learning about folks from the "greatest generation" and listening to their stories.  Our parents were from this era too and it brings back fond memories of their experiences.

Richard is a writer of books and a weekly column for the Sunday Nashua Telegraph.  Surprisingly, he was interested in interviewing us for an upcoming article about in-state (NH) vacations as an alternative to more expensive lengthier vacations taken by most people pre-Great Recession.

Bird watching at the Buttonwood

Just four years ago, it was determined that in the U.S. there were 3,000,000 dedicated bird watchers.  Bill and I have been fascinated for years watching birds.  


As a result, we put out feeders with bird seed all year round and hummingbird feeders in the spring and summer.  Bill makes the sugar syrup with a ratio of 3 cups of water brought to a simmer, then stir in 1 cup of sugar until dissolved; let solution cool completely before adding to the feeder.   

On occasion the hummingbird feeders have attracted a bear, which soon learned that in trying to drink the syrup, it didn't get any "bear candy" because he drained it onto the ground when knocking off the bottom of the feeder.  Last time that happened, our guests were very amused and privileged to see a young bear on our front porch and captured the event on film.

In our New Hampshire location, we are amused by hummingbirds throughout the day from May until early September when they fly off to South America for the winter.  We've seen countless other types of birds from piliated woodpeckers to Cooper's hawks.  When you come to The Buttonwood Inn, you can view a video in the Mt. Surprise Room of our wonderous nature, both fauna and flora.

Time to harvest the rhubarb and make cake!

Time to harvest the rhubarb this weekend.  I usually get about 70-80 stalks from the two plants growing in the yard behind the inn.  It seems every other neighbor grows rhubarb up here in New Hampshire, since it's a cool season, perennial plant.


I clean it and slice it up in the food processor and freeze it in separate plastic bags to use in my Honey Rhubarb Walnut Bread.  But I wanted to try a dessert recipe for Memorial Day as we had friends over for a barbecue.  Here's a wonderful recipe for Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake that is packed with flavor due to the tart, yet sweet, flavor of the rhubarb accented with orange zest on top of a dense, buttery cake.

RHUBARB UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE              Yield:  1 10-inch Round Cake, Serves 10

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter a 10-inch round cake pan and dot with 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter, cut up into small pieces.

Crumb Topping

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

½ cup all-purpose flour

¼ cup sugar

¼ teaspoon Kosher salt

Mix together until moist and crumbly, and put aside.

Rhubarb

1 pound rhubarb sliced sharply on the diagonal ½-inch thick

¾ cup sugar

Toss rhubarb with sugar and let stand a few minutes, then toss again.

Cake

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1-1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

½ teaspoon finely grated orange zest

1 tablespoon of orange juice

2 large eggs

1 cup sour cream

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl. Beat remaining stick butter and cup sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Beat in zest and juice. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl. Beat in flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with sour cream, until smooth. Spread rhubarb evenly in the baking pan over the dotted butter. Then spread cake batter over the rhubarb and crumble topping evenly over batter.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Buttonwood Memorial Weekend Events and Special Deal

Check out our Memorial Weekend Events and Special Deal in honor of our U.S. active duty Armed Forces and veterans at the Buttonwood Inn located on our home page!

http://buttonwoodinnspecials.blogspot.com/

Alliums first to bloom...

The alliums are the first to bloom among the native New Hampshire spectacular beauty, the lupine, in our backyard garden. An allium is a unique, single stalked flower that towers  3-4 feet above the other flowers with a globe-shaped spikey flower, which is still attractive after it's dried.  Alliums are deer resistant and are planted from bulbs in the Fall. 


Lupines grow among each other in home gardens and in fields across New Hampshire.  We even have a June Lupine Festival in their honor when they bloom in various shades of purple, pink, and white. 


A few years ago, when we first bought the Buttonwood Inn, we had about two to three plants--now we have more than a dozen along the pool fence in the back yard and quite a few more in the various gardens around the inn.  I've transplanted a few after they bloom where they've spread their seeds in the garden.  The suggested way to grow lupines is to harvest their seeds in the early Autumn, dry them, and plant them the next Spring.  Aside from their beautiful conical-shaped summer blooms, lupines are hardy, deer resistant, and require little care.

Going organic—planting a garden…

Now that the snow has melted and the weather is a balmy 80 degrees (Yikes!) here in North Conway, NH, it’s time to start the vegetable seedlings in the egg cartons and place them in the sunny windows in the inn. We’ll expand our NH garden to nearly twice the size this year and place some vegetable and herbs in between the flowers too.



The rhubarb is growing and I should be able to harvest it by the end of May. As usual, I will make Honey Rhubarb bread as a starter for breakfast, which is a favorite of our guests. Here’s an interesting recipe for an Upside Down Rhubarb Cake from the Martha Stewart website.

Do you know the source of the food that is on your plate?

In a recent PBS, P.O.V. broadcast of the 2010 Oscar nominated documentary entitled, Food, Inc., the filmmaker, Robert Kenner, shows that the food we eat in America is not generated on small farms any longer. Over the past few decades, small farms have been eliminated and now a few major corporations provide our food. It’s a highly mechanized process dictating how the animals are raised in the most inhumane conditions. Cattle, pigs, and chickens no longer graze in green pastures eating grass or grain, but exist in large feed lots crammed next to each other steeped in their own excrement. To control disease, the animals are given antibiotics in their corn feed, but more strains of E. coli have developed affecting 73,000 Americans annually.

You can also read the article, "Getting Real About the High Price of Food," in Time magazine by Bryan Walsh.

We do have a choice, however, to eat organically raised animals, vegetables, and fruits though a little higher in cost. In fact, here in New England, there are many small, family-owned organic farms going back to the natural way of raising animals in pastures feeding on grass and grains. Bill and I just ordered a quarter of grass-fed beef that will rotate feeding on grass in the open pasture, which turns out to be economical and ensures a safe food source.

New Buttonwood Inn outdoor experience!

Over the past month, Bill and I have been working in the inn “yard” raking leaves, cutting down trees for next winter’s firewood, and cleaning out flower gardens. Yesterday we found a treasure trove of rocks in the forest to create a fire pit ring for our Chiminea stove. This new addition to the backyard will serve two purposes: we can burn the tree branches and sticks that land on the property and, more importantly, enjoy relaxing with a beverage of choice sitting around the fire after a long day’s work.



In the summer, our guests can also enjoy this experience conversing with other guests or looking up at the constellations in our glorious New Hampshire night sky.  Big kids and little kids of all ages can toast marshmallows over the fire too. You’ll enjoy the best of both worlds, staying in the comfort of our inn while experiencing the outdoor fun of a camping evening.

Only microsculptor in the world

If you saw this past CBS Sunday Morning show, you would have been impressed, as I was, by the microsculptor, Willard Wigan, from Birmingham, England.  He is currently showing his minute sculptures of people through microscopes.  For example, he sculpted Charlie Chaplin on the end of a human eyelash using a microscope to create it.  Wigan, currently, is the only artist in the world who does microscopic sculpting and strives to make even tinier sculptures.  He is now introducing his works in the US market which go for over a $100,000 for each sculpture and is exhibiting in the Atlanta Art Gallery.

New Hampshire also has many artists, including talented photographers, across the state who mainly capture the surrounding natural beauty of the White Mountains, rivers, lakes, and countryside.  It's not an uncommon sight to see them sketching or photographing The Presidentials on the White Mountain Highway in North Conway.  Some of these artistic works can be viewed in the White Mountain Artisans Gallery, The Underground Gallery, or the Mt. Washington Valley Visual Arts Center, to name a few.  

In fact, we are displaying and selling several photographs of the Mt. Washington Valley area taken by a guest from California, Jeffrey Aiello, who stayed during Fall Foliage.  If you visit The Buttonwood Inn, you can view or purchase his work from us or go directly to his website, Jeffrey Aiello Photography, and look in the Portfolio for New England.

Interesting neighbors on Mt. Surprise

Bill and I plan to "escape" from the inn this evening to attend a slideshow and talk, "Lost on Everest:  An Evening with Thom Pollard."  We've had our neighbors and friends, Thom, Kristen, and their boys, Will and Sam, over for dinner and always enjoy hearing about his recent filming adventures all over the world.  Now we'll see Thom "in action" professionally this evening.

The talk at Kennett High School is about Thom's 1999 PBS Nova and BBC expedtion with a filming crew that climbed Mt. Everest in search of two climbers, George Mallory and Sandy Irving, who were trying to reach the summit in June 1929.  Thom and his crew found Mallory's body on May 1, 1999.   In an effort to solve the mystery of whether Mallory and Irving made it to the top of Everest, Thom and his crew plan to go back next year to find Irving's body and Mallory's camera which would produce evidence if either reached the summit.  You can read more about this interesting adventure in today's article on page 14 of the Conway Daily Sun. 

Chocolate Lovers Festival Weekend

If you enjoy chocolate as much as I do and most of our guests who stayed with us for the 21st Annual Chocolate Festival on February 28, 2010, you may want to plan ahead and come for the last Sunday in February 2011.  Aside from the delectable chocolate goodies provided by various inns and retail stores, the Mt. Washington Valley Ski Touring & Snowshoe Foundation added an additional incentive for participants--a chance to win a $200 gift certificate good towars a stay at any one of the participating inns or towards a purchase at any of the participating stores.  When you book this Chocolate Festival package at The Buttonwood, it also includes your event passes.

My chocolate treat was a Triple Chocolate Cookie--recipe follows:

Recipe: TRIPLE CHOCOLATE COOKIES Yield: 2 dozen


Ingredients:


¼ cup butter, softened


½ cup dark brown sugar


¼ cup granulated sugar


¼ cup canola oil


1 egg


1 teaspoon vanilla


½ cup all-purpose flour


½ cup whole wheat flour


¼ cup cocoa powder


¼ teaspoon salt


1/3 cup coarsely chopped dark chocolate


1/3 cup coarsely chopped milk chocolate


2/3 cup chopped pecans


Baking Process:


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars. Add the oil and egg and beat until creamy; then mix in the vanilla. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, cocoa, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well. Stir in the dark and milk chocolates and pecans, mixing well. Scoop a tablespoon of the batter onto an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 12 minutes.

HAPPY BAKING!--  Paula

The Saints are no longer the "Aints"

I realize I’m a few days late in writing about this year’s most exciting Super Bowl, but it’s probably still in the minds of many New Orleans inhabitants. The Saints can no longer be nicknamed the “Aints” because they finally got into the Super Bowl and won it for the first time since it began in 1967.



Do you know which East Coast team won the most Super Bowl titles since then? No, it’s not the Patriots, but they do reign from the state that begins with a “P” (see answer below).


The real reason I’m writing my Blog today is not about the sport of football, of which I know little about, but to inform you of the favorite menu item I served at our Super Bowl Party. Bill likes to have friends over to watch the game; I’m more interested in preparing the food creating different menus each year.


Aside from a creamy baked macaroni and cheese with a crunchy bacon topping, I made barbecue pulled pork sandwiches—the “hands down” favorite. The recipe takes a long time to braise in the crock pot, but is easy. I made a simple rub of 3 ingredients to cover the entire pork shoulder roast and put it in the crock pot with onions and water to braise before I went to bed. On Sunday morning during breakfast, our guests asked what was cooking aside from the usual breakfast smells. Bill told them I cooked barbecue pulled pork during the night for our Super Bowl Party.


Recipe: BARBECUE PULLED PORK SANDWICHES                         
Yield: About 15 sandwiches


Ingredients:


4 pound pork shoulder roast


3 onions, sliced thick


For pork dry rub:


1/3 cup paprika


3 tablespoons brown sugar


1 tablespoon onion powder


Mix pork dry rub ingredients together and rub it all over the pork roast, cover with plastic wrap and let sit in the refrigerator for 8 hours. Meanwhile prepare the barbecue sauce.


For barbecue sauce:


2 cups catsup


1 cup water


½ cup apple cider vinegar


5 tablespoons brown sugar


1 tablespoon lemon juice


1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce


½ tablespoon ground black pepper


½ tablespoon ground mustard


½ tablespoon onion powder


In a medium sauce, combine all ingredients and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 1 hour, stirring frequently, until reduced and thickened becoming more flavorful. Cool sauce in a bowl, cover, and refrigerate while pork roast is marinating in the dry rub.


Braising Process:
After 8 hours, remove the pork shoulder roast from refrigerator and put in a crock pot. Cover it with sliced onions and water, put the lid on and set the crock pot time for 8 hours on low and let it cook overnight. In the morning, remove the roast; throw away the onions, grease, and water. After the roast has cooled, remove the outside fat layer and discard. Pull the pork apart with a fork or your fingers. Clean out the crock pot; put the pulled pork and barbecue sauce in it and cook on low for another 1-2 hours before serving. Serve on your favorite bun.


                                  Answer: Pittsburg Steelers

Sinfully Sexy Desserts for Valentine's/Presidents Weekend Feb.12-14

I plan to flex my culinary muscle for the upcoming Valentine's/Presidents Weekend on February 12-14.  In addition to my regular breakfast fare, I will introduce homemade breakfast sausage and cinnamon buns.  I received as a gift a sausage maker attachment for my KitchenAid mixer and will be testing several recipes.  My better half, Bill, has the task of taste tester and hopefully he considers this a perk! 

For afternoon tea in honor of Valentine's Day, I will make some sinfully sexy desserts, like cinnamon chocolate fudge and mini raspberry marble cheesecakes (recipe below).  We still have a room for one more couple.  So if you're interested in a romantic weekend in an idyllic location, please call us at 1-800-258-2625.

Recipe: RASPBERRY MARBLE CHEESECAKES        Yield: 32



Ingredients:


For cheesecakes:


1-1/2 cups ground graham crackers (about 12 sheets)


3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted


1-1/2 cups plus 5 tablespoons sugar


1 6-oz. container fresh raspberries


2 pounds cream cheese, room temperature


pinch of salt


1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract


4 large eggs, room temperature


Baking Process:


For cupcakes: Preheat oven to 325 F and line cupcake pans with paper liners. Stir together ground graham crackers, melted butter, and 3 tablespoons of sugar. Press 1 tablespoon crust mixture firmly into the bottom of each lined cup. Bake until set for about 5 minutes and transfer tins to a wire rack to cool.

Process raspberries until smooth and pass puree through a fine sieve into a bowl discarding solids. Whisk in 2 tablespoons sugar.

Beat cream cheese on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, then scrape sides of bowl, With mixer on low speed, add remaining 1-1/2 cups of sugar in a steady stream; add salt and vanilla and mix until well combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until just combined after each. Fill with 3 tablespoons of cheese mixture over each crust. Dollop ½ teaspoon raspberry sauce in a few dots over each and, with a wooden skewer or toothpick, swirl sauce into filling. Place each tin in a roasting pan and pour enough hot water into pan to come three-quarters of the way up sides of cups. Bake, rotating pans halfway through, 22 minutes. Carefully remove tin from water bath and cool on a wire rack. Refrigerate in tins at least 4 hours and remove from tins just before serving.

Who doesn't LOVE Cupcakes!!!

Martha Stewart published a whole cookbook with 175 recipes on cupcakes of all types, with or without icing, and for special holidays too!  There are theme cupcakes instead of the usual cake...my sister-in-law made cupcakes decorated with pacifiers for her daughter's baby shower this past weekend.  When I was in NYC, I was compelled to enter into Sur Le Table, the cook's gadget store, and found an 18-cupcake pedestal display holder (which I break out every once in awhile in the inn).

Growing up in the 1960's, box cake mixes and frosting from cans were popular, which my mother made practically every week.  When I became a mother of two children two decades later, cupcakes became popular.  I also made them from box cakes since I was guaranteed a tender cake crumb texture (which the children preferred), but I would always make my own frosting.  While my children were in middle school, I went to culinary school and learned in my baking course how to prepare cakes from scratch and piping techniques to frost and decorate them. 

A new bakery, White Mountain Cupcakery, opened up recently in North Conway located on Main Street across from Eastern Slope Inn.  They feature several different kinds of cupcakes to satisfy anyone's sweet tooth and also make wedding cakes and cakes for special occasions.  Bill and I are definitely planning on sampling these delectable treats at their ribbon-cutting ceremony this week.  

I'm happy to see that cupcakes have become popular again, since you can make any large type of cake into a little (cup)cake.  Here's my maple-inspired recipe for Maple Cupcakes with Maple Buttercream Frosting that I will make for our upcoming inn-to-inn tour -- March Maple Madness on March 27 & 28, 2010

 Recipe: MAPLE CUPCAKES WITH MAPLE BUTTERCREAM ICING

Yield: 2 dozen


Ingredients:


For cupcakes:


2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted


1 tablespoon baking powder


1 teaspoon salt


½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temp.


2 cups pure maple syrup, preferably Grade B


3 large eggs, room temperature


1 cup milk


1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract


For maple buttercream:


6 large egg yolks


2 cups pure maple syrup, preferably Grade B


1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into tablespoons


Baking Process:


For cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 F and line cupcake pans with paper liners. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt. Cream butter on medium-high speed until smooth; add the maple syrup and beat until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated, then scrape down the sides of bowl. Then add flour mixture and beat well to combine. Beat in milk and vanilla until combined. Fill each cupcake paper ¾’s full and bake 20 minutes for standard size and 10-13 minutes for mini cupcakes.


For maple buttercream: In a standing mixer bowl with a whisk attachment, beat egg yolks on high speed until pale and thick for about 5 minutes. At the same time, bring maple syrup to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat clipping a candy thermometer to the pan until it reaches 240 F for about 15 minutes. Remove from heat. With mixer on medium speed, slowly pour the maple syrup in a steady stream down the side of the bowl until completely combined, about 1-1/2 minutes. Continue mixing until the bottom of the bowl is slightly warm to the touch, about 5-6 minutes. Add the butter a few tablespoons at a time, until completed incorporated after each addition. After all the butter has been added, scrape the sides of the bowl and continue beating the buttercream until it is fluffy, about 4 minutes. Then frost the cupcakes. Makes 24 standard or about 50 mini cupcakes.

March Maple Madness - A wild & wooly Inn-to-Inn Event

If you like Maple Syrup then we have just the thing for you. Come visit the BB Inns this March and treat yourself to a variety of specially prepared maple based foods prepared by the wonderful chefs and cooks who we are proud to say work at the Inns within our Association. Ticket holders can also choose to take the challenge of “A Hare Raising Quiz” and “The Maddening Scavenger Hunt”, competing for hundreds of dollars in prizes. Along the way there will be opportunities to visit several “Sugaring” locations to experience the maple syrup process first hand, as well as Maple Country Partners happy to share clues and information. Inns participating include: Buttonwood Inn, Cabernet Inn, Covered Bridge House, The Farm by the River, Mt. Washington B&B, The Notchland Inn, Cranmore Mountain Lodge, Riverside Inn B&B and Spruce Moose Lodge. Visitors staying at any of these locations the weekend of March 27th and 28th, 2010 will receive March Maple Madness tickets as part of their stay package, along with breakfast each morning and additional enticements ranging from maple candy to a maple-themed five-course dinner.

Snowshoeing and Exploring from The Buttonwood Inn

Today's guests discovered another marked trail connected to the Mt. Surprise Trail. It heads in an Easterly direction at the base of Bartlett Mountain (the mountain which is behind the Inn) and eventually joins with the Buttonwood Trail. At that point there are two choices: 1) follow the Buttonwood Trail back to the Inn or;  2) follow the Buttonwood trail until it reaches Hurricane Mountain Road. You can cross Hurricane Mountain Road and reconnect with the Buttonwood Trail which crosses Abbott Brook stream. You can continue and exit at the back of the Cranmore Mountain Lodge, or continue down to the Easternmost connection with Whittaker Woods where the Mt. Washington Valley Ski Touring Association trails are located. From there you are now on a totally groomed trail system for both cross-country and snowshoeing.

Valentine's Packages Make the Rounds

Five Valentine's Day deals in New England


by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) on Jan 20th 2010 at 8:00AM

Nothing says "romance" like a roaring fire on a chilly evening on Valentine's Day. Through the windows, you can see snow-laden trees and pure white landscapes. From the warmth of your room, you can enjoy the winter wonderland outside, as you settle down for the perfect evening with the perfect person in your life. If this is how you envision your Valentine's Day this year, turn your thoughts to New England this year. There are plenty of deals at your disposal through the New England Inns and Resorts Association, and a tough travel market is leading many properties to put together some amazing deals. Here are some to get you started.

NECN's Tim Kelly comments on his stay at the Buttonwood Inn

I mentioned the other day that Tim Kelly (weatherman on NECN) and his wife Janet stayed with us this passed weekend and skiied Wildcat Mountain just up the road from us. Tim posted the following on his weather blog along with a video of the skiing..In his words, "This is the finest combination of comfortable temperatures, abundant Sunshine, and Snowfall, that we ever see in January. Bill and Paula Petrone cook up a Savory and/or Sweet Breakfast every day at their Buttonwood Inn on the Side of Mount Surprise in The Mount Washington Valley New Hampshire.

The Nordic Ski Trails passright out back, and you are minutes from Wildcat, Attitash, Black, and Cranmore. This video shows the weekend sunshine and weekday Powder. Thomas Prindle of Wilcdcat Mountain rips it up. More sunshine is in the forecast for this weekend, January 22-24, 2010."

Valentine's / President's Day Weekend Package Special

VALENTINE'S WEEKEND LOVERS PACKAGE

February 12 - 15, 2010

If you're looking for romance on Valentine's Weekend in an idyllic woodland setting, yet close to North Conway specialty shops and restaurants, come join us at The Buttonwood Inn and we'll make your weekend special.

Valentine's Day falls on President's Day Weekend this year.

Our Three Night Package Includes:

Full gourmet breakfast daily

Enjoy Paula's late afternoon tea/hot chocolate service with baked treats

Use of our hot tub "under the stars"

Rates starting at $125 per night plus tax

Add the following to enhance the experience:

Dinner for two one evening at a romantic restaurant

Bottle of bubbly or sparkling cider

Box of handmade New Hampshire chocolates

Book a massage either in-room or at the salon -

call 1-800-258-2625 for details and arrangements.

Prices starting

at $125.00 per night

for two

Based on double occupancy; subject to availability;

includes NH rooms and meal taxes;

not to be combined with other packages or discounts.

Click here to view rooms

Click here to check availability - or BOOK ONLINE

SPECIAL SKI AND STAY PACKAGE - LAST MINUTE DEAL

SPECIAL SKI AND STAY PACKAGE - LAST MINUTE DEAL

Not only can you get discounted downhill and cross-country ski tickets
But we'll also discount your room as follows:

2 DAY STAY - take 5% OFF! ! + another 5% if all the days are weekdays
3 DAY STAY - take 10% OFF!! + another 5% if all the days are weekdays
4 Day STAY - take 15% OFF!!! + another 5% if all the days are weekdays

Currently rated as one of the TOP bed and breakfasts in New Hampshire and the #1 Bed & Breakfast in North Conway on TripAdvisor.com Also selected as one of the winners for Best Food based upon the excellent reviews posted by our guests on Bed and Breakfast.Com during the past year.

New... Read the article about Buttonwood Inn on NH Living.com,  New Hampshire's Internet Magazine 

All Packages Include:

Full gourmet breakfast daily

Paula's late afternoon tea with baked treats

Use of our hot tub "under the stars"

Complimentary discount restaurant dining vouchers

Call Toll Free to reserve now! 1-800-258-2625

Based on dbl occupancy/rates vary by room type/taxes & gratuities not included. Subject to availability. Good for advance reservations only and must mention this advertisement. Cannot be combined with any other packages or discounts. Reservation must be made within 48 Hours of arrival date to qualify and does not apply on most Holidays.