As we neared the entrance to the lodge, mammoth icicles hung from the eves with two feet of brand new snow piled on the roof and the ground buried in fresh powder. It was a winter wonderland! ☃️ This windy, cold and blustery day in Jackson, Wyoming, was reminiscent of my childhood growing up in Michigan. But, the warmth from the crackling fire in the great room offered a sense of cozy comfort as we were greeted by the innkeeper. Right then, we knew we would love our stay at the Bentwood Inn.
This charming lodge, located in Wilson, Wyoming, is situated between the town of Jackson and Teton Village, (Jackson Hole Mountain Resort) about a ten minute drive in either direction. It was built in 1995 using 200 year-old logs brought in from Yellowstone after the 1988 wildfire roared through the park. This log structure is impressive, and aside from the beautiful interior with all of the modern comforts, it gives you the feeling that it was built centuries rather than decades ago.
The five rooms in the main lodge are beautifully appointed, with private decks or balconies, and some with their own fireplaces. There is also a separate family wing, which houses eight. The total capacity of the lodge is 24 guests. The fun thing about an inn this size, is that you can get to know the other guests as well as the owner and the innkeepers, while relaxing by the fire in the great room or over a morning breakfast chat. It is also the perfect setting for corporate retreats, family reunions or weddings, especially small ceremonies, the likes of which we’ve seen a lot lately! In the summertime, the sweeping yards and gardens around the inn offer plenty of space for reading, relaxing or friendly gatherings. The location is perfect for accessing both winter and summertime activities in the mountains.
We enjoyed a beautiful snowshoe hike to Bradley and Taggart Lakes in nearby Grand Teton National Park, as well as a day of skiing at Jackson Hole during our recent stay.
Sheer, jagged peaks are the calling card of the Grand Tetons.
The three of us taking a quick break on our 6-mile snowshoe adventure to both Bradley and Taggart Lakes in Grand Teton National Park
Melissa and Coleman, the resident chef and innkeeper are a very friendly and accommodating young couple, who excel at their craft. Along with another long-time employee Nastasha, they greeted us each day to make sure all of our needs were being met and to offer suggestions on what to see and do in the area and more importantly, how to get there and how to make reservations. This concierge service is especially helpful during this Covid era. Every restaurant in town requires reservations and they book up quickly, so be sure to ask when you arrive.
What we love most about the inn, is the food! That probably goes without saying since we are, after all, foodies! A hearty breakfast is served every morning with plenty of good strong coffee and as cocktail hour approaches, a spread of snacks, appetizers, beer, wine and cider roll out to greet guests as they return from a day of outdoor adventure. Twice a week, Melissa prepares a bistro style dinner in house, which is both fabulous and innovative. She is an inspiring chef, trained under Monica Byrne of Home/Made Hudson
During our stay, Melissa created beautiful and super-interesting breakfast and dinner dishes, including a goat cheese-quinoa breakfast bowl served with smoked salmon and an egg, plenty of wonderful breakfast pastries like blueberry yogurt coffee cake and scones, a dinner salad made of tart green apple, shaved fresh fennel and arugula all dressed in honey-sherry vinaigrette, and a fabulously subtle olive oil cake with lemon curd and candied oranges for dessert.
Her husband, Coleman, runs the front of the house and made us feel as though we were extra-special guests, attending to our every need. They’ve been kind enough to share Melissa’s olive oil cake recipe, which is posted below, and I’ve attempted to recreate her quinoa breakfast bowl and apple-fennel-arugula salad to share with our readers. We savored every morsel that came out of the Bentwood Inn kitchen and know you will love these unique recipes! Please look at our upcoming posts for Melissa’s recipe and fun dishes.
We thoroughly enjoyed taking our morning meals in the breakfast nook next to the kitchen, because the room is light and open with big picture windows for viewing both the front and back of the property. It was fun to peek outside in the morning to get a read on the weather and nature. In the evening we enjoyed our dinner in the great room, near the magnificent stone hearth with the fire blazing.
NEARBY HIKING/BIKING TRAIL
Just adjacent to the lodge there is a lovely paved hiking and cycling trail, which, though snowy and icy in some places, was navigable even during our cold snowy stay. This trail goes all the way into the town of Jackson, if you want to take it to town. There are plenty of nearby restaurants that also offer curbside pick up, in case you wish to stay in for dinner on evenings the Bentwood does not serve an evening meal.
The Bentwood Inn | Jackson Hole
4250 Raven Haven
Wilson, WY 83014
For more information on the Bentwood Inn, please visit: https://bentwoodinn.com/about-the-bentwood-inn
Or call, (307) 739-2453
Melissa’s Olive Oil Cake with lemon curd and candied oranges
Ingredients
- 7 tablespoons butter at room temperature
- 3/4 cup good-quality extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- Zest of 2 oranges
- 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Lemon Curd
- 2 large eggs
- 6 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter chilled and cut into small pieces
Candied Orange Slices
- 2 oranges cleaned and dried
- 1 medium pot of boiling water
- 1 large bowl of ice water
- 2 cups granulated sugar for simple syrup
- 2 cups water for simple syrup
- 1/2 cup extra-fine granulated sugar for garnishes candied orange slices
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour a 10-inch springform pan.
- Mix together butter and olive oil.
- In a separate bowl, beat together eggs, sugar, and orange zest for about 3 minutes.
- Mix dries together and add to the egg mixture alternately with the butter/olive oil mixture.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.
- Spread lemon curd over the entire top of the cake and garnish with candied orange slices (both recipes below).
Lemon Curd
- Whisk eggs and sugar in a medium saucepan.Add lemon juice and lemon peel. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring all the while until mixture begins to thicken and the thermometer reads 165 F.The sauce will be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.Remove from heat and stir in the butter until well blended.Transfer lemon curd to a clean bowl and cool.If the curd is lumpy, strain before chilling it.When cooled, cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface and chill until cold in the refrigerator, or until ready to use.
Candied Orange Slices
- Slice oranges into 1/8-inch slices, discard any stems and the rounded ends.
- Drop orange slices into boiling water for approximately 1 minute.Immediately remove from boiling water and drop orange slices into the ice water bath.(This process helps soften the rind and also helps to remove some of the bitterness from the pith of the orange peel.)
- Drain the orange slices in a colander or on a wire rack.
- Meanwhile, make your simple syrup by bringing 2 cups of water and 2 cups of sugar to a low boil in a large pot or skillet.Continue to cook until the sugar is dissolved, stirring occasionally.
- Reduce heat to low and place orange slices into the simple syrup in a single layer. Simmer the orange slices for about 45 minutes, turning the orange slices every 10-15 minutes.The orange peels will begin to look slightly translucent.Remove orange slices to a cooling rack and cool completely.This will take at least an hour, but you can leave them for several hours or even overnight.The orange slices will be sticky and glossy.
- Before storing or using the candied orange slices, you can opt to sprinkle both sides with the extra-fine sugar to make them less sticky, or just leave them as they are – your choice!
- Decorate each slice of olive oil cake with one orange slice.Store remaining orange slices in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a month.
JACKSON HOLE PHOTO GALLERY
Iven and Suz snowshoeing in Grand Teton National Park Courts and her dad, Iven, on a snowshoe adventure in the Grand Tetons 
Masks are required at Jackson Hole, but we needed them anyway as protection from the windy cold! Our snowshoe picnic lunch spot with a view of Taggart Lake View of the Grand Tetons in all of their winter splendor
