French Twist: A Transplanted French Chef Woos Ozark Appetites with Herbs

Originally published in Ozarks Magazine

Georges Clouzot’s marvelous and underappreciated 1956 documentary film, The Mystery of Picasso, allows the viewer to watch Picasso paint as if from behind the canvas, witnessing each piece take shape stroke by stroke. Picasso’s strokes are bold, vigorous, and decisive; the act of creation seems more purposeful than inspired, as if an age-old recipe is being followed from memory.

Watching Janine Winters slice purple onions to paper-thin translucency or trim fresh basil leaves to complete a Pan Bagnard French country sandwich always reminds me of Clouzot’s film. Like Picasso, Winters’ appetite for the work that defines her knows no bounds. Her instinctive ability to combine ingredients and balance flavors and textures certainly elevates food preparation to the level of art. Her passion to create has informed all of her food-related ventures—herb farmer, entrepreneur, teacher, author. Recently adding luncheon bistro to her family of related enterprises, Winters now holds court from behind the counter of her immaculate kitchen as she makes each sandwich or salad from scratch in full view, frequently pausing to ask questions about the diner’s preferences. Janine knows me as a "eat anything and everything" kind of guy, so I frequently get blessed with "Do you want to try something new?"

Janine Winters Café is open from Tuesday through Saturday from 10 to 2 for gourmet soups, sandwiches, and desserts. Located at the southern entrance to Batesville on Arkansas Highway 167, and within shouting distance of the Mark Martin Museum, Janine’s Café brings a decided French twist to lunch in this foothills community. Combine the French flair for food, fresh herbs grown less than a mile away, and Winters’ eagerness to share both her knowledge and her passion, and you either get an amazing experience with your lunch or an amazing lunch with your experience.

Winters was born in Morocco and grew up in France. She and her former husband moved to Desha, just south of Batesville in 1994, planning to retire. Following his unexpected death the next year, the former chef looked for new food-related paths to explore. In 1998, she built two hydroponic greenhouses and began growing culinary herbs under the name Winters Park Farm. As she says, "I got two greenhouses instead of the ‘dream house’ my husband and I had planned." That venture and her persistence ultimately landed her a distribution contract with Wal-Mart. Chances are that if you ever purchase fresh herbs in Wal-Mart that carry the "Grown in Arkansas" label they were grown in one of Winters’ 32 thirty-two perlite-filled, waist high beds.

When "the leftovers from the Wal-Mart account" grew to become a sizeable amount of perfectly edible fresh herbs, Winters drew upon her experience as a chef in Europe, the U.S., and Canada and developed a line of oil-preserved herbs and dry herb bouquets. Eighteen "herbs in olive oil" are available, ranging from dill, mint, and oregano to a quartet of pestos, including Basil Pesto Genovese (no cheese, no sodium). Winters also wrote The Perfume of Cooking, forty-two recipes using Winters Park herbs. In my own kitchen the pesto sauces meet the "quick and easy" requirement and work well with any pasta and as a pizza topping. The oregano and the mint substitute for fresh herbs in the winter version of my spaghetti sauce, the slow-cooked, crock pot variety.

As her herb business grew, Winters became increasingly connected to the community. She employs as many as fifteen people at any time, most are older woman from the immediate area, her friends and neighbors. She has at times had both a weekly radio show and a newspaper column, and remains active in both areas as time allows, always happy for a chance to explain how to use and store the herbs. She’s also an outspoken champion of developing the region’s tourism potential.

In 2004, Winters opened Cooking Secrets, a gourmet kitchen and food store. Slowly, "foodies" from Batesville and environs found their way to Cooking Secrets, word of mouth did the rest. Skeptics who questioned the size of the Batesville market underestimated people’s willingness to drive from Cherokee Village or Fairfield Bay for pastas, olive oil, gourmet candy, espresso makers, and high-end cutlery. The store not only showcases the Winters Park herb line, but also carries sourdough bread and foccaccia from Leslie’s Serenity Farm bakery and fresh roasted coffee beans from Rozark Hills Coffee Roasterie in Rosebud, soul mate pioneers in bringing culinary quality and variety, as well as a growing number of jobs, to the region. The cooperative marketing efforts of these three specialty food businesses, all based in small Ozark communities, bodes well for consumers craving expanded food choices and for entrepreneurs considering the region as a base of operations.

The latest dish on Winters’ own entrepreneurial menu is the café, which opened in Spring 2006. She vows to keep the café a lunchtime operation for now at the same time that she explains that there is room to expand "just in case." Nestled in the rear of Cooking Secrets, the café seats about 24. Winters competes for the diner’s attention with a pair of deli cases sporting an assortment of meats, cheeses, and olives that always seems to surprise new visitors. "You mean I can get Pistachio Mortadello in Batesville?" Diners and shoppers alike are also invited to ask for samples, giving the immaculate deli case its own bit of food drama as the adventurous sample Janine’s latest find, most likely a cheese or salami from a tiny village in Spain or France making its regional debut.

Winters works in full-view for the entire four-hour lunch. There are a few tables away from the hum of the kitchen for those wanting a quieter experience, but why skip the main attraction. Winters offers a non-stop lesson in food history and preparation. She moves freely from sharing the history of the Spanish goat cheese that tops her crostini to a brief lecture on the health advantages of kiwi, served frequently with sandwiches. She welcomes novices and initiates with equal enthusiasm. Serenity Farm Bakery owner and bread guru David Lower describes Winters’ joie de vivre as "contagious." "We can talk for hours about food. Janine is uncompromising when it comes to fresh food and quality ingredients. Her food has a way of nourishing both the body and the soul," he adds, with obvious admiration for a kindred spirit.

The fixed café menu is merely the platform from which Winters works. The contents of sandwiches may vary considerably from day to day depending upon the availability of seasonal vegetables and fresh herbs. Most of the sandwiches are made with grilled Serenity Farm bread, able to withstand the generous contents. Eight signature sandwiches and a daily special sandwich anchor the lunch menu. Most distinctive are the Bastille—thinly sliced prime rib, French Brie, fresh basil leaves, and mayonnaise (soy if you prefer)—and the Pan Bagnard—a French ‘country’ sandwich with tapenade (a thick black olive spread), ham, cheeses, tomato, cucumber, and fresh basil leaves. Roasted vegetables (asparagus, red peppers, zucchini, eggplant) dominate the California Veggie sandwich and can also be requested on other sandwiches. More familiar are the Rueben and the "New Orleans Style Muffuletta" but the bread, the ingredients, and Winters’ deft preparation raise both old favorites to new heights.

The café also features an equally compelling salad selection. The mozzarella-tomato-basil salad most likely features basil cut that morning. The Greek salad is a dinner-sized combination heavily laced with oregano. A Mediterranean Salad Nicoise, with or without anchovies, and a less daring but equally ample Garden Vegetable Salad round out the lighter choices. Winters prepares a daily soup special, including Baked Potato, Chicken Noodle, Roasted Corn and Red Pepper, and Minestrone. The soups also make extensive use of fresh herbs in familiar and sometimes surprising combinations. Spend enough time around Janine Winters and you soon develop a world view that calls for fresh herbs in everything that crosses your lips.

[ Mark Martin Museum ]

[ Old Independence Regional Museum ]

[ Janine's Café at Cooking Secrets ]

[ Josie's at the Lockhouse ]

[ MorningSide Coffee House ]

[ Landers Theater ]