Randy Crandall of Mendon got his first taste of macaroni and cheese in his life Saturday afternoon and came away intrigued by the classic comfort food.
With 12 restaurants putting their most creative recipe forward at wineries on the Old Mission Peninsula, his taste buds got a gourmet experience they might not soon forget. Up for a visit to the region over the Thanksgiving weekend, Crandall was among 1,000 people who enjoyed the Sixth Annual Mac and Cheese Cook-Off.
"This is different than what my college roommates used to make, that's for sure,” he said after tasting some offerings from restaurants hosted at Chateau Chantal. "I'd probably try it again, maybe next year.”
The five members of the Wineries of Old Mission Peninsula sponsored the event: Peninsula Cellars, Bowers Harbor Vineyards, Brys Estate, Chateau Grand Traverse and Chateau Chantal. The list of participating restaurants reads like a guide to fine dining in the area: Trattoria Stella, Bowers Harbor Inn, Windows at LeBear, The Boathouse, The Trillium, Silvertree Deli, TraVino, Blue Slipper, Great Lakes Culinary Institute, The Bluebird, Peninsula Grill, and Peninsula Market.
Bragging rights until next year are based on attendee voting and go to:
• Most Unique - Peninsula Market
• Cheesiest - TraVino Wine & Grill
• Best with White Wine - Trattoria Stella
• People's Choice - Trattoria Stella
The event began in 2000 to prove that a white wine could work with the classic but informal combo of cheese and noodles. Growing quickly, last year attendance peaked at more than 1,200 people, a 50 percent jump over 2004, and organizers decided this time to trim samplers to a manageable 1,000 people.
Winery owners are also pleased to provide a fun alternative to the hurly burly of the year's busiest shopping weekend while bringing out heavy traffic to sample their wares.
"All the wineries work together cooperatively,” said Coryn Briggs, tasting room manager for Peninsula Cellars, the winery that originally sparked the Mac and Cheese Cook-Off concept. "We are donating a portion of the proceeds to the Northwest Michigan Health Clinic.”
Chefs put a lot of thought into what they bring, noted Matthew Walheim, chef at the Silvertree, as they have reputations to promote and protect — not to mention it's a "blast.” His 47 pounds of Quack and Cheese offering featured duck meat as the highlight and did brisk business in the bottling room at Chateau Grand Traverse. When test-driving the recipe before the event to make sure it worked, the dish passed the crucial test by getting a thumbs up from his ten-year-old son.
"Macaroni and cheese lends itself to creativity,” he said. "Obviously you can't do anything oriental because they don't use cheese but anything that lends itself to noodles can work.”
Participating for the second year, Randy Chamberlain, chef at Windows of Le Bear, threw caution to the wind. Last year he played it safe with his debut performance but this year his goat cheese macaroni featured a garnish of ground roasted pistachios and port wine syrup.
"It's not something I normally make — macaroni and cheese — but I use all these ingredients and this was a fun way to transfer them into something simple,” said Chamberlain, who cooked 40 pounds of pasta and 5 gallons of sauce. "The pistachios and the wine are two flavors that really compliment the goat cheese flavor.”
Great fans of the event, Kristin and Chris Corner of Allendale headed north for the weekend just to attend the Mac and Cheese Cook-Off.
"We came here last year and it was fun,” said Chris. "I just like tasting all the different ones.”