BREWSTER - The tomato, basil, and garlic spread could have used more sea salt. But the olive pesto was perfect, especially atop the crisp squares of polenta we had made ourselves.
It was just past 6 on a Saturday evening, and students of the Captain Freeman Inn 2008 Mediterranean Cooking School were enjoying the fruits of their labors, along with some carefully chosen wines from Tuscany. The aroma of grilling porterhouse steaks seasoned with rosemary, sage, and oregano filled the parlor.
For inns in summer places like Cape Cod, winter can be a challenge. Clever innkeepers find ways to attract guests when it's too cold even to walk the beach and many restaurants, shops, and historic sites are closed.
The Captain Freeman Inn, a majestic 1866 Victorian built by one of Brewster's prosperous sea captains, offers a series of cooking classes in winter and spring. Taught by Norma Jean Anderson, who owns a local catering company, they focus on Mediterranean cuisine. Upcoming classes include dinner in Provence (March 8), Greek party foods (April 19), and dinner in Tuscany (March 15 and May 10). The classes are open to inn guests and to the public.
The cooking school began with the previous innkeeper, a chef, said Donna Amadeo, who has owned the inn with her husband, Peter, for five years. She has continued the tradition to introduce people to the inn in the off-season. "In summer I could fill a hundred more rooms if I had them," Amadeo said. "But in winter, people need another reason to visit."
Anderson said the inn's large commercial kitchen is unique among area bed-and-breakfasts, and that makes it ideal for the cooking school.
Each guest room at Captain Freeman is named for a Cape Cod town. We stayed in the Wellfleet, on the third floor, one of six "luxury" rooms. All have fireplaces, TV/VCRs, and mini-refrigerators, and either a whirlpool for two or a hot tub on an enclosed deck. Six "traditional" rooms feature private baths, sitting areas, and canopy beds.
The Wellfleet room's decor is country casual with a wide band of stenciling in nautical blue and gold along the walls and matching drapes flanking the deep windows. The wrought-iron queen-size bed was topped with a red-and-white checked coverlet. We loved the cushioned wicker chairs and footstool in front of the gas fireplace.
The whirlpool tub turned out to be just what we needed in the break between cooking class and dinner - standing on a tile floor for several hours sauteing, stirring, and slicing had taken a toll on feet and backs. The tub was easy to get in and out of, and its powerful jets soothed our tired muscles. The large, tiled bathroom also included a roomy shower stall, pedestal sink with good lighting above, and a marble-topped antique cabinet for storage.
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