Chef Carl Kosko, who owns New Holland's Harvest Moon Bed & Breakfast with his wife, Marlies, serves guest Lucinda Johnson.
Fatherhood nudged Kosko to step out of the high-pressure restaurant kitchen and embrace his longtime dream of a more laid-back lifestyle.
Chef Carl Kosko survived — even thrived — in the legendary pressure-cooker that is a restaurant kitchen.
Until his three children were born.
Fatherhood nudged Kosko to embrace his longtime dream of a more laid-back lifestyle — as an innkeeper at a countryside bed and breakfast.
"I love cooking," Kosko says. "But the restaurant industry is brutal on a family."
In 2002, he and his wife Marlies, also a chef, opened the Harvest Moon Bed & Breakfast in New Holland.
Kosko, 41, was finally living his dream, running a slower-paced place and relishing his role as a hands-on dad.
But he soon discovered that even concocting creative breakfast dishes like sweet-potato pancakes with curried creme fraiche couldn't quite quench his lifelong culinary appetite.
So Kosko found a way to showcase his cooking creativity without leaving the Harvest Moon's kitchen.
In 2005, he began offering cooking demonstrations and culinary tours, spotlighting Lancaster County's gastronomic gems and his own talents.
"People want to learn something," Kosko says. "They don't just want to go on a vacation anymore."
***
Kosko, a Baltimore native, first stood behind the stove at a young age.
His father taught him to make pizza. His grandfather showed him how to make chicken soup.
Kosko graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design's culinary program in 1986.
While working as sous chef at the Yankee Clipper Inn, in Rockport, Mass., he met his future wife.
Marlies Kosko grew up in Germany, part of the fourth generation of a Bavarian innkeeping family.
Marlies kicked off her food-service career as a child serving bread at the inn's restaurant. She trained as a chef in a German apprenticeship program.
The Koskos worked at the Yankee Clipper on and off for 15 years. Kosko eventually rose to general manager.
During the "off" times, he worked for two restaurants. He and Marlies also moved to Germany to help at the inn.
But the demands and long hours of the restaurant industry soon took a toll on their growing family.
The Koskos, the parents of Nathaniel, now 13, Sarah, 11, and Benjamin, 8, had always talked about owning their own place.
By 2001, they decided it was time.
***
The Koskos were attracted to Lancaster County's relatively low cost of living and its proximity to his family.
But there was something else.
"Lancaster just conjures up tourism," Kosko says.
On a visit to the area, they drove by 311 E. Main St., New Holland.
The home, finished in 1909, was once inhabited by Marjorie Musselman, heir to the Musselman's applesauce family.
"We decided it was the perfect place for us," Kosko says. "We went for it."
The Koskos spent a few months converting the home into an inn, updating the plumbing and electricity, adding two upstairs bathrooms and cordoning off innkeepers' quarters.
Marlies and Kosko's stepmother handled the decorating. Kosko accented their efforts with his collection of "usable antiques."
"Guests can actually touch them," he says. "A lot of places you go, you don't know if you can sit on a chair, for crying out loud."
As a nod to Musselman, the Koskos named each of the four guest rooms after apples.
The Harvest Moon opened its doors in April 2002. Nightly rates range from $79 to $149.
Besides her innkeeping duties, Marlies now works for the state department of education, evaluating school lunch programs.
***
Kosko, who especially loves Italian and German cooking, has an adventurous palate — with a few limits.
"I can't stand mushrooms," he says. "And livers."
Kosko's culinary talents shine at the inn's elaborate breakfasts. But he soon sought a post-a.m. outlet.
Kosko holds his cooking demos — Italian, Cajun and healthy cooking, holiday entertaining and chocolate so far — in the Harvest Moon's kitchen and dining room.
The increasingly popular demos typically include tours of Lancaster's Central Market and other culinary attractions, and dinner at a local fine restaurant.
"My first one, I was hosting one party of two," Kosko says. "Now we have weekends that are sold out."
Harvest Moon also partners with the nearby Artist's Inn and Sheep Hill Bed & Breakfast for themed culinary tours.
The tours showcase Lancaster County's unique culinary hot spots, including an Amish cheese cave and local wineries.
Guests, Kosko says, enjoy the entertaining-yet-educational nature of the activities, which showcase the area's fresh ingredients and attractions.
"We've got it all right here," he says.
Here are some breakfast recipes from Chef Carl Kosko:
Stewed Pears
10 pears (Kosko prefers Bartlett.)
2 cinnamon sticks
6 whole cloves
4 cups apple cider
Cut pears in quarters and remove seed cores.
Place into pot with remaining ingredients. Poach over medium-high heat until pears are just soft, about 40 minutes, depending on ripeness.
Serve hot.
Makes 10 servings.
Mango Smoothie
2 mangoes
1 can gingered pear halves
1 cup vanilla yogurt
1 cup ice
Place all ingredients in a blender and mix on high until smooth. Chill in freezer or serve immediately.
Makes 4 servings.
Homemade Chicken Scrapple
2 pounds ground chicken-thigh meat
2 cups water
2 chicken bouillon cubes
2 tablespoons poultry seasoning
Salt, pepper and garlic powder, to taste
1 cup ground corn flour or cornmeal
Cook chicken in pan over medium heat until it is brown. Add water, bouillon, poultry seasoning, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Stir until all ingredients are combined.
Add corn flour. Stir constantly until well-thickened, almost like a mush. If using cornmeal, cook a bit longer and add a bit of water, if needed.
Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap. Pour mush into lined pan. Chill overnight.
Remove from pan and cut slices off as needed.
Place in hot pan with a bit of butter; be careful not to burn the butter. Sauté over medium-high, turning down heat if necessary, on both sides, till golden-brown.
Serve hot with cranberry or blueberry butter, if available.
Makes 10 servings.
Sour Cream Pumpkin Coffeecake
For topping:
1 tablespoon sifted flour
1 1/4 teaspoons cinnamon
3/4 cup dark-brown sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 1/2 ounces cornflakes
For cake:
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon double-acting baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
Scant 1/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces unsalted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin
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