December 17, 2015

Obscure Holiday Cocktail Tasting, Vol. 7

Happy holidays! My friends and I recently had our long-running obscure holiday cocktail party - the 7th annual gathering (insert many exclamation points here). It really does blow my mind - in a warm fuzzy way - that I've been living in one place (that I love) having this same themed holiday party with the same group of people (that I love) for seven years now. 

We started with obscure holiday cocktails (Vol. 1), meaning historic holiday cocktails, but as you can imagine, we pretty quickly exhausted available recipes. Then we switched to holiday cocktails, but predictably those turn out to be pretty terrible, relying on green liqueurs and a lot of peppermint flavor. 


We finally evolved into creating original cocktails for the event, and it's here that we've seen the most success. This year, all of the drinks were hits. 

We started with a light sparkler, perfect for a party - easy to make and light on the alcohol. It's a riff on a Kir Royale with St. Germaine (an elderflower liqueur), sparkling wine, and hibiscus flowers. Jay of Finest Kind Modifiers & Mixers made it, so it contains a splash of his green tea hibiscus concentrate (available in Portland at Vena's Fizz House and Whole Foods). 

Cava
St. Germaine liqueur
club soda
dried hibiscus flower in syrup

Dawn made the Christmas Rose, a riff on a drink served at The Honey Paw. It contains a rose liqueur, adding a subtle floral taste, which complimented the Bombay Sapphire. 


Christmas Rose

2 oz Bombay Sapphire Gin
3/4 oz La Quintinye Dry Vermouth
1/2 oz Combier Rose Liqueur
Thin lemon peel (coat the rim of the glass then add to drink)

Prof. A's drink was thoughtfully sourced, using as many local ingredients as he could find, as is his usual approach.


He used honey from his beehives down in York County, which in 2013 made a lighter, brighter flavored honey and went well with the Cocchi Americano and the sweetness that aging imparts to the gin. 

Maine Craft Distilling Sprigge ("barrel-rested" gin)
Blue Current Sake
A little bit of Cocchi Americano
honey
lemon juice
Flower bitters

R. made a cocktail using Genever from her and S.'s trip to the Netherlands this year. R. reported that most of her attempts to use it in a cocktail tasted like "poop," so she ended up with a fruity cocktail that hid the Genever's flavor. 


The "You can't taste the Genever" cocktail

Genever
Curaçao
pineapple juice
dash of orange bitters
splash of Tonic

Garnish with a cherry and an umbrella. 

My drink was a replica of the Whiskey Paramour that A. and I enjoyed during our visit to The Velveteen Habit in Ogunquit. It's smoky from the Scotch, but the citrus juice and liqueur mediate the flavors and meld nicely. 



The Whiskey Paramour

1.5 oz Laphroaig Scotch whiskey
3/4 oz Rhum Clement
3/4 oz lemon juice
1/2 oz Royal Rose Jasmine simple syrup

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake, strain into coupe. Garnish with a dried orange slice or twist. 

Of course, all of the cocktails had expert cheese pairings from S. who slings cheese at Whole Foods. She's leading a cheese and beer class with Allagash next Tuesday if you're looking for holiday advice.  

See the recaps of volumes 3, 4, 5, and my punch from last year for our other winning holiday cocktail recipes. And most of all, enjoy your holiday!! 

December 8, 2015

Rare Bourbon Tasting at TIQA

I went to a Bourbon tasting at TIQA two weeks ago, after giving a book talk at a retirement community in York (where I was regaled with drinking stories from the adorable elderly crowd). The event was held in a private room at TIQA, past their large dining room, and was set up much like a beer festival. The only misstep was that all the high-end Bourbons were at one table all together and so a big line formed. But that gave me plenty of time to talk to people I probably wouldn't have otherwise while waiting.  


The featured Bourbons were all from Sazerac and Jim Beam - I know there's many listed above, but check out this family tree of Bourbon from the King's County Distillery Guide to Urban Moonshining and you can see that, despite the variety, they're all from two parent companies. 

I tried five tasting pours, knowing I couldn't handle much more than that - props to anyone who was able to make it through all 19 available. 

I started with the Maker's 46, described in the tasting notes provided as aged in barrels with seared French oak staves with intense flavors and complex notes of vanilla and caramel. The "46" comes from the original trial number which the distiller aged a bit longer. 

Selections from the Beam, Inc. family
Still not willing to brave the line for the high-end stuff, I turned to the neighboring table for some Eagle Rare 10 year. My intention was to compare it to the 17 year at the other table, but once I got to the front of the line, I just went for the Pappy (obviously). The 10 year was drier than the Maker's 46 with a richer flavor. 

I snagged a sample of the Blanton's Single Barrel to sip while in line, enjoying its sweet, citrusy taste. It's really interesting how wide the flavors within the world of Bourbon can be. 

The Pappies

Pappy Van Winkle has quite the following, making its bottles hard to find, so I was excited to try the 20 year. Fortunately (for my wallet), the extra years made it a bit too richly flavored for me, and I enjoyed the 12 year more. (The 10 year is bottled at cask strength, and I've found that the higher alcohol content isn't for me). 

While I'm not sure of these Bourbons' availability here in the state (check Maine Spirits for availability or ask your liquor store to order you a bottle), I do know that TIQA has the remainders of these bottles -- including the Pappys -- on their shelves. So while supplies last, you can catch some of these fine Bourbons at TIQA's bar, in addition to their regular selection (which includes Nikka, a Japanese whiskey). 

Bourbon selection at TIQA - photo provided by TIQA

I attended this event as a guest of TIQA's. I did not receive any compensation for this post, and the opinions and copy contained wherein are mine.

December 4, 2015

Preview of Rhum Tiki Bar at Bramhall

Last Tuesday was the much-anticipated tiki party at Bramhall, acting as a preview of Rhum, the new tiki bar from the owners of Bramhall and Nosh. I hope you were able to make it, because it was a blast. Bramhall is the perfect place for a subterranean tiki party on a cold, rainy December night. 

If you couldn't come, no worries, Rhum will be open early next year, which will be the perfect time to cozy up and enjoy some tropical drinks and amazing seafood snacks. 


The party started with a special ladies-only rum tasting for the women of the Portland Spirits Society. Kevin Clarke, the liquor rep, led us through a tasting of four aged Mt. Gay rums: Eclipse, Black Barrel, Extra Old, and 1703. They ran the gamut from smooth and sippable, smoky and Bourbon-like, and spicy and strong. 

My favorite was the Black Barrel, a blend of rums made with a pot and column still and aged in charred Bourbon oak barrels. (If you're into nerdy rum talk, I think this is an interesting review of the rum, getting at the changing trends within the industry.)


We were treated to a preview of the menu during the reception - starting with a great spread of cheese and charcuterie. Next came the Two Island Creek oysters, stacked on a silver sea turtle tower filled with crushed ice, then bites of Mahogany clam ceviche with avocado, tomato, and tortilla chips, resembling guacamole.

My favorite was the hamachi crudo, small spoons filled with squares of fish, daikon radish, and apple and a sesame vinaigrette. The tender pork spare riblets, served over slaw, were a hit, as were the toasts covered with chicken liver pâté and a tamarind shallot chutney.

Once our pre-party was over, the place was packed and the tiki drinks began to flow. I tried a frozen painkiller (rum, coconut, pineapple, nutmeg) that was delicious. Others enjoyed mai tais, jungle birds, and fogcutters, all topped with orchids, plastic monkeys, and other festive tiki decorations. The party surely went late into the night, but after we chatted our friends, we slipped away to enjoy more snacks at nearby Boda.

Many thanks go to the team at Bramhall and Rhum for organizing this event. Rhum is definitely my most-anticipated opening of 2016!

November 20, 2015

Tequila: You're Gonna Need It

Forgive me, I think the (somewhat tired) trope of drinking to handle one's family on the holidays is still funny. Maybe because I don't actually need that particular coping mechanism with family (and I'm not seeing them until Christmas anyway). But regardless, whether you love or hate your family, having a quick go-to cocktail will come in handy next week.  

Discovering that I can make a really good margarita at home came about earlier this week, when, wanting a cocktail, I "meh"ed my way through all the possible mixers on hand: ginger beer, Coke, tonic water... I wanted something fancy that didn't require oddball ingredients that I likely didn't have. Knowing I had a full bag of limes in the fridge, I thought I could bluff my way into a semi-decent margarita. 

So I went into the wayback machine and reviewed this post from the tequila mixology workshop at David's in Kennebunkport this spring. The secret I discovered there? A recipe for margarita mix. Ah-ha! It's the difference maker between a serviceable, but lacking, homemade margarita and one of restaurant quality. 

Making the mix is easy enough; it's near equal parts of fresh squeezed lime juice and simple syrup, and a splash of OJ. The recipe I had made a few cups of the stuff, so I thought reeeeeal hard (my last thinking of the day before cocktail hour!) and scaled it back to a recipe that makes 2 cocktails' worth. 


The simple syrup might be the only hiccup in your home bar game: either you have the stuff on hand or you have to spend ten minutes making some and waiting for it to cool. I scoured and found this Thai Tiki 1821 Bitters simple syrup, but also have a great stash of the Royal Rose flavored simple syrups that would work well too.  

Assuming you find one that goes with the general flavors of a margarita (pineapple, lemongrass, and bird's eye chiles? Sure, why not!), you are good to go. 

Bonus: today is the release of Liquid Riot's agave spirit, which is also available in the bottle at area liquor stores. So pick some up to put a local twist on this tropical drink. 

Small batch margarita mix

2 oz. simple syrup
2.5 oz. fresh squeezed lime juice
1/2 oz. orange juice

Makes enough for two cocktails

Margarita

1.5 oz. tequila anejo
1/2 oz. Cointreau, Grand Marnier or triple sec
2 oz. margarita mix 

Combine all ingredients in cocktail shaker over ice. Shake and strain into rocks glass filled with ice and rimmed with salt (optional). Garnish with lime wedge. 

Enjoy the holiday! 

November 12, 2015

December Booze Events: Preview of Rhum Tiki Bar


If it's possible, I am the MOST excited about this next Portland Spirits Society event (new to the PSS? It's ladies who love booze - tastings, education, social, fun). 

I've long wanted to throw a tiki party at a Portland bar, and when I heard Jay Loring of Nosh and his business partners were launching a tiki bar, I knew they were the perfect people to talk to. Their new bar is called Rhum, and the chefs are Rebecca and Frank Anderson, who hosted the Hunter's Bend supper club for a while. 

So the tiki party is happening at Bramhall - the perfect underground, speakeasy-esque space to decorate with palm trees, torches, and flowers - on Tuesday, December 1st. The ladies of the Portland Spirits Society will get a private, VIP reception before the tiki party starts, with a tiki rum flight, snacks from the chefs, and a meet-and-greet with the owners and chefs. 

Buy your tickets soon - they're going fast! (I say that a lot, and it's always true, but especially so in this case. The tickets are almost half gone and they went on sale last night. You ladies love tiki!)

Other booze events of interest coming up (godspeed to all of our livers!):
  • Friday, November 20th - Liquid Riot's release of their agave spirit (aka tequila, but not legally allowed to call it that), 12pm-close, includes cocktails and Mexican food
  • Saturday, December 5th - Holiday rum tasting at Maine Maritime Museum, with yours truly! Rum will be provided by local producers Wiggly Bridge, New England Distilling, and Bartlett Spirits of Maine, tickets are $20/25
  • Sunday, December 6th - Repeal Day Ball from Rum Riots, fundraiser for the Portland chapter of the US Bartenders Guild, tickets are $10 and include $2 drink specials, a photo booth, and live music

October 28, 2015

The Secret to Dining at the Palace Diner, Biddeford

Many a love song has been sung to Palace Diner in Biddeford, the resurrected dining car from Chad Conley and Greg Mitchell, chefs formerly of Gather in Yarmouth and Hugo's in Portland. 

What makes Palace Diner's food so special is not (for once) a "creative take on classics," but rather just that they nail the classics every time. The menu consists of traditional diner dishes: eggs, toast, corned beef hash, huge pancakes, tuna melts, burgers. And each and every one of those items is very likely to be the best version of it that you've ever had. 


Palace Diner is only open during the day (there was a brief stint of dinner service, but that ended shortly after it began), and the diner car only contains 12 or so stools at a counter. So if, like me, you have a day job, that means you're relegated largely to breakfast or lunch on the weekends, and there's frequently a long wait. Hence, the secret to dining at the Palace Diner: go early. 

Those famous Palace potatoes - parboiled, smashed, then deep fried

For any trip out of Maine, I've started it off with what is quickly becoming a tradition - stopping for breakfast at the Palace Diner. And a good road trip usually starts early, so you can be the first customer through the door of the Palace Diner at 8am. With their quick service, you can be back on the road before nine. 

It may seem simple, but if you can beat the hordes of sleepy kids down to Palace on a weekend, you won't end up waiting for an hour in the parking lot, but rather be feasting on the Deluxe sandwich, a breakfast sandwich of eggs, cheddar, and jalapenos on an English muffin. 


And no visit to Palace Diner is complete without some of their French toast. It's available as once slice or two, and I usually order a slice to share. It's hands down, the best French toast I've ever had. I didn't really understand the appeal of French toast until I had theirs. 

This is how it's supposed to be - custardy in the middle, crunchy on the edges, and bruleed on top, giving it a crackly, caramelized sweetness. There's a river of butter and real maple syrup. 


Don't miss the lunch either; while I don't have as much experience with it as I do the breakfast items, I loved the tuna melt, the perfectly fried chicken, and have been eyeing the burger (or Palace Royale) for months. Someday I'll surely want a burger at 8am... 

In summary: go, and go early, so you too can enjoy the fabulous diner fare at Palace. 

October 15, 2015

Review of Mi Sen Noodle Bar, Portland

Eating out on a Monday and Tuesday night in Portland can cause a bit of head scratching - so many restaurants are closed on these weeknights, especially as we head into relatively slower seasons. Fortunately, Mi Sen Noodle Bar is open on these early weekdays, causing me to land there twice recently for some great noodle dishes. You should head there any night of the week (except Sunday, they're closed) when you're in the mood for some filling, inexpensive, and delicious Thai food. 

First off, where? Mi Sen is located at 630 Congress St. in the Arts District, in the strip next to Sun Oriental Market, the post office, and Coffee By Design. Many people struggle to come up with where it is mentally, but I'm sure you've walked or driven by it many times without noticing. 

The decor is fairly modern for a Thai restaurant - there's definitely Thai touches, but it's bright (a little too bright) and open with black furniture, and mirrors and art on the walls. The menu offers starters, noodle soups, noodle entrees, and rice dishes. The rice dishes are fairly standard selection of curries and larb, but I think the noodle dishes are where it's at. 

Drunken Noodle with shrimp ($11.50)

The first time I went we shared several plates of appetizers - the crispy shrimp rolls ($6), adorable triangles of crunchy and sticky chive cakes ($5.45), and the crab rangoon ($5.50) which actually contains identifiable pieces of real crab. 

On my first visit, I had the Tom Yum with chicken ($5.45/$8.45), a delicious spicy coconut broth with mushrooms and noodles. It comes with cellophane noodles, but you can substitute in any kind of noodle, and they have a wide variety. Our server was happy to recommend a type of noodle for the dish. 


Someone in the group ordered the dry noodles on our first visit and raved about it, so I ordered it as my entree on my second. And now I'm obsessed with it. It's noodles mixed with a spicy and tangy sauce, topped with bean sprouts, green beans, green onions, cilantro, and ground peanuts. I loved it with the sen ba mee noodles, which are curly egg noodles, like the ones in instant ramen. I can't get enough of the flavors in this dish, plus it's amusing that it's called soupless soup (although there is quite a bit of sauce, so it's not a dry dish). 

The only misstep I experienced with Mi Sen was the takeout I ordered once - pad thai and larb gai didn't live up to my favorite versions from Vientiane Market. But that's fair - I love those versions so much that they're hard to compete with. Hit up your favorite Thai takeout joint for your weeknight standards, but head to Mi Sen for their unique (and inexpensive!) noodle dishes. 

October 5, 2015

Ladies Love Whiskey and Upcoming Book Events

The DISTILLED IN MAINE tour continues! I have book events scheduled through the end of the year, and as you can probably imagine, they're pretty exciting, as they come with the promise of alcohol! I think a lot more people would excel in the study of American history if it always came with a few cocktails. 

I've already one under my belt, which went great, at Maine Historical Society, with Steve and Johanna of Vena's Fizz House serving up a delicious gin and grapefruit cocktail they dubbed The Meadow. 

This Friday, I'll be at the Yarmouth History Center at 7pm, giving a talk about the history of alcohol in Maine. The specific cocktails are still being worked out, but they're sure to use Maine-made spirits and be delicious. Samples of Cold River spirits from Maine Distilleries will also be provided. Tickets are $25 for non-members and $20 for members. 


In a few weeks, I'll be headed down to Kennebunkport to present a workshop with Joel Souza, the bar manager at David's KPT, in partnership with Table, the culinary event program of the Kennebunkport Resort Collection. 

I attended a Table tequila mixology workshop back in the spring, led by Joel and a Casamigos rep. We learned about how tequila is made and how to make four tequila-based cocktails. It was a great time - a nice mix of education and delicious drinks, so I'm excited to be part of providing that same experience for a group. 

I'll be presenting findings from my book's research about the Kennebunks and their history with alcohol, while Joel mixes up related cocktails, on Saturday October 24th at 3pm. Tickets are $35 and include an hour-and-a-half workshop with four cocktails. A $50 ticket includes a signed copy of Distilled in Maine.


Finally, at the end of the month (on the 27th), the ladies of the Portland Spirits Society are headed to Liquid Riot Bottling Company to nerd out over some whiskey. We'll be learning from Liquid Riot staff about the ingredients used to make whiskey and how they affect the resulting spirits' flavors. We'll sample both Liquid Riot's whiskeys (they have at least 2 that I know of) and some national brands for comparison. 

Get your tickets soon - I'm thrilled to say that all of the PSS ticketed events have sold out - you ladies are thirsty for whiskey! Tickets to this event include four tasting pours of whiskey and all the knowledge that Liquid Riot staff drops on us - plus the company of other women with such superb tastes as yourself. 

Photo courtesy of Liquid Riot/Instagram


September 30, 2015

Fall Raspberry Picking and Donuts Galore

The seasons have changed here in Maine, both literally as the fall equinox has passed, but more so that the weather caught up with the calendar. Summer stretched through the middle of September, hitting 80*F two weekends ago. So while my friends and I thought we were setting off for the ultimate fall activity, apple picking, we ended up acting as though it were mid-July. 

We headed out to Limerck, about an hour southwest of Portland in the rural countryside of York County. Our destination was Libby & Son's U-Pick, not for the apples necessarily (since I'm participating in the Out on a Limb apple CSA share again this year), but for the raspberry picking. 

Who knew fall raspberries were so abundant? I always thought they were a weak shadow of their summer fruiting cousins, but at Libby & Son's, we found rows of raspberry canes dripping with ripe berries of all sizes and even a few rows of golden raspberries. We quickly filled a few quarts with berries and then headed back to the farm stand to be ferried off to the apple trees.


Apple picking is a convenient excuse to eat apple pastries - first and foremost, the apple cider donut. The ones at Libby's are very dense and almost like they're undercooked (they're not, they're just very moist inside). We devoured them quickly before heading out to wander amongst the apple trees. 


It was actually my first time picking apples, and we chose to picking in the fading rows of the Paula Red trees, although I was eyeing the nearby Honeycrisps. My friend A. wanted to avoid them, as they're a club apple variety, which involves some politics I'm not familiar with. A little more research is required...

After the orchard, we swam in the Saco River and then headed to Funky Bow Brewery to enjoy a beer in the late afternoon sunshine. Turns out it was Funky Fest with 10 York County breweries, food trucks, and live music. We were just in for a pint, so we had the brewery's yard all to ourselves. We stretched out on lawn chairs and sipped G String pale ales. 


At home, I froze my raspberries for making into jam, smoothies, and pie at a later date. While the golden raspberries taste the same as red ones and were harder to pick (think about it, how do you tell if a golden raspberry is ripe when the unripe ones are white too?), they are beautiful when mixed in with the red ones. 

I loved the experience at Libby and Son's, but there's many an orchard in Maine that fries up apple cider donuts. I even went so far as to contribute a map to Eater Maine comprised of all of the recommendations I received for the area's best ones. 


My first donut map for Eater prompted me to make some detours during my work travels to some of the recommended spots - first, Congdon's in Wells, a very old school "family restaurant" and bakery. I figured I'd shoot the moon and get a half dozen - I entertained the thought of eating only half of a raised donut so I could enjoy half of a different flavor too, but I ended up scarfing the whole thing without a second thought. I shared the other flavors, which received rave reviews as well. 

A day trip to Kittery allowed me to go by Lil's Cafe on the foreside and get a glazed cruller. I've heard so much about these eggy pastries, but have only ever gone to Kittery at night when the cafe is closed. The cruller did indeed deliver a great combination of crispy fried exterior with a shockingly sweet glaze. 

Next I'm off to Thompson's Orchard in New Gloucester to check out their apple cider donuts, this time on a fall adventure that now has the weather to match. 


September 16, 2015

Fall Garden Harvest: Jalapeno Poppers and Basil Pesto

Football season has returned! And while it's a strange time of year when football and sailing season overlap, I so enjoy the return of fall Sundays spent inside watching TV, eating hearty football fare, and drinking a few beers in the afternoon. 

This past Sunday was actually not sailing weather out on Casco Bay, so we were free to enjoy the games guilt-free. As has become an annual tradition, we harvested our garden's jalapeno plant and made poppers out of our spicy, bountiful pepper harvest. 

Purple gloves and jalapeno poppers means football - go Ravens!

First, A. squeezed his man hands into my gloves and began preparing the peppers - slicing and deseeding them. I prepared the filling of cream cheese and shredded cheddar. 

Is it just me, or is the availability of cream cheese-filled jalapeno poppers diminishing? I have no time for cheddar cheese-filled peppers; the one true, correct option for stuffing spicy peppers with is cream cheese. 


We then just coat the stuffed peppers in egg wash and breadcrumbs and freeze some for future football games. Just thinking about a freezer full of poppers for snowy football Sundays makes me feel cozy. 

While frying is obviously the best way to cook a jalapeno popper, baking is a nice sane substitute. (Maybe Santa will bring me a Fry Daddy? Hello, football Santa?) Bake them at 350*F for about 30-40 minutes, or until golden and some have started to ooze. 


Try topping your poppers with seedless raspberry or blackberry jam - far superior to serving them with sour cream or Ranch dressing, since that verges on creaminess overkill. 

I also pulled up half of my gigantic basil plant (tree) to make some pesto for the freezer. 


I whizzed up a relatively small batch (about a cup) in my food processor with Parmesan, walnuts, garlic, and olive oil. But there's still tons left in the garden, so I'll make another batch and freeze it...but then what? 

I don't find pesto heats well (cheese melts, the oil breaks) and it often becomes mealy in the freezer. I don't particularly enjoy pasta salads tossed with pesto - they're always dry and lacking. Which is too bad, because when it's fresh, basil pesto is amazing. If you have good pesto uses, please let me know!


These frozen herb silicone starter trays are made by Ball and are available online or in some big box stores. You can also use an ice cube tray - either way, I transfer the cubes to a freezer-grade plastic ziptop bag, labeled and dated, after they're frozen.

September 10, 2015

Making Kombucha + Preserving Maine Summer Vegetables Fast

Business up front, party in the back! Tonight, I'll be at Boothbay Craft Brewing for trivia night from 4:30-8pm with copies of my book Distilled in Maine for sale. Tomorrow night, I'm reading and giving a talk about the book at the Maine Historical Society at 5:30pm. Steve from Vena's Fizz House will be mixing up cocktails using a local spirit. Tickets are $10-15.

Next, I'm coordinating a very exciting Portland Spirits Society (a group of women interested in learning about booze) event - a Bourbon and boozy chocolate truffle tasting with restaurant Grace and Dean's Sweets on October 1st at 6pm. The tickets are $25 (plus service fees) and include four samples of Bourbon and chocolate truffles. Spots are limited and tickets are going fast, so get yours soon if you're interested! Ladies only, please.

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Now onto some recent food projects... my kombucha is finally finished! It tastes great, but it's not as fizzy as the store-bought stuff, so if anyone has any tips about a secondary fermentation, hit me up.

When we last chatted about kombucha, that intriguing, tangy fermented tea drink, I was growing my own SCOBY or starter from a batch of store-bought booch. Well, grow it did, and after a week, I had a new SCOBY that was ready to go.


I followed the recipe from Drink the Harvest by Nan K. Chase and DeNeice C. Guest, a beautifully done book that details how to make meads, ciders, syrups, and juices from fresh fruit and herbs. 

Once I grew the SCOBY, I was ready to make the actual kombucha. To start, I brewed a batch of strong tea (2 cups of water, 8 organic black tea bags) and stirred in a cup of white sugar to the hot tea. I then let it cool down to room temperature and added 2 quarts (8 cups) of filtered water. 

I poured this mix into a glass one-gallon container from Ball (not a canning jar, but good for fermenting) and added my new kombucha SCOBY, plus 1 cup of the tea/kombucha liquid in which it was growing. (This extra cup of liquid is to ensure that the next batch of kombucha is properly acidified so no nasties grow in it before the kombucha bacteria/yeast do their naturally acidifying thing.) 


Above, you can see the first kombucha SCOBY I grew, over top of the one that grew in my one-gallon container. SCOBYs will grow to fit the container they're in, and so the second one is very wide. They're both in a cup of kombucha that I reserved, in a jar in my fridge, waiting until I need to make another eight cups of kombucha. 

After ten days of fermenting, I tasted the kombucha and found it to be pretty tangy like I like it. I strained out the SCOBYs (reserving one cup of kombucha to go with them) then filled three quart jars with kombucha. 

I was hoping to achieve a secondary fermentation in order to make it a little carbonated by adding a bit of honey and letting it sit, covered, at room temperature. Alas, no significant carbonation built up, so I strained it again and transferred it to the fridge for storage. 


I added a bit of honey to the jars for my secondary fermentation, as suggest in The Art of Fermentation, hoping the kombucha yeast/bacteria would eat up the honey and produce some fizz. But I also read that kombucha needs sugar, not honey, to ferment, so maybe I should have added sugar instead. 

Finally, I added some blueberry juice from Worcester's Wild Blueberries, to one of the jars, sent to me in my Box of Maine, a box of Maine-made goodies. I was thrilled to remember I had the juice in my fridge, because making fruit juice seemed like a daunting hurdle and probably wouldn't have happened. But now I have plain and blueberry homemade kombucha! 

Kombucha
Adapted from Drink the Harvest by Nan K. Chase and DeNeice C. Guest

2 quarts, plus 2 cups filtered water
1 cup white sugar
8 black tea bags
1 kombucha SCOBY, plus 1 cup of SCOBY liquid

Boil two cups of water to a boil, and stir in sugar. Stir to dissolve. Add tea bags and let steep for 10 minutes. Remove tea bags and pour tea into a glass jar or ceramic crock with at least a half-gallon capacity. Add two quarts water and let cool to room temperature. Add SCOBY and reserved kombucha to the tea. Cover and let stand for 7-10 days.

Begin to taste kombucha after one week. When the flavor is to your liking, remove SCOBY and 1 cup of kombucha for your next batch. Filter kombucha and pour into jars or bottles. Add in 1/2-1 cup of fruit juice, a few tablespoons dried herbs, or a handful of fresh herbs for flavor, if desired. Keep in the refrigerator and use within one month. 

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After vacation, I returned home to crisper drawers full of CSA vegetables. I guess I'd hoped they'd magically disappear while I was gone? Fortunately, none of them had liquefied, but they needed to be moved along, and fast. After all, there was another share arriving in short order. 

Flipping through my new copy of The Backyard Homestead: Kitchen Know-How by Andrea Chesman, inspiration struck. She has a recipe for a vegetable base that uses up 8 cups of vegetables and stocks your freezer for future meals. 


I chopped up every soup-related vegetable I could find: onions, celery, carrots, sweet peppers, summer squash, fennel, garlic scapes, and Swiss chard. I sauteed it until crisp-tender in a large stockpot, then added about two cups of tomato puree that I'd made in a separate pot with my garden tomatoes. 

The whole thing made about four pints, or eight cups, of what I'm calling vegetable base. It's thick, so I can see diluting it with stock and adding beans, lentils, potatoes, and/or meat to make soup or just thawing it and serving it over some grain like couscous or quinoa, again with beans or meat. 

I don't know why, but I felt so damn satisfied that I'd managed to get rid of heaps of produce in such a short time and in a way that I really feel like I'll use come cooler weather. Give it a whirl!

Frosty jars from the freezer

Disclosure: I received complimentary copies of both books I mention as review copies, as well as a free sample of the Box of Maine service. 

September 2, 2015

Dining Out Casco Bay Islands: Down East Feature

First, the business! I'll be reading from Distilled in Maine and sharing stories of Maine's alcoholic past and present at Maine Historical Society on Friday, September 11th at 5:30. What - that's cutting into happy hour, you say? I hear ya. Cocktails will be provided by Steve from Vena's Fizz House. Tickets are $10 for MHS members and $15 for non-members. Hope to see you! 

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I was asked in early July to write a feature for Down East magazine, and I was extremely! excited! One, I'm always excited to write for magazines, and two, the feature was about eating out on Casco Bay islands. The Island Issue is on stands now - pick it up to see my seven page spread (!!!) of dining on three islands in Casco Bay: Peaks, Great Diamond, and Chebeague Island. 

But then there was a catch: a short deadline, made even shorter by my family's visit over the upcoming weekend. So I had about a week to visit the islands and write the piece - which meant I visited three islands in three days. It was a whirlwind tour, but certainly a worthy challenge. 

After my friends and I caught the ferry back to Portland, we really felt we'd gotten away - more so than if we'd driven to Cape Elizabeth or Yarmouth for dinner. The islands are special places, and when you visit, you feel like you're part of a club or at the very least, capture some of that feeling you get when you're on vacation, far from your daily responsibilities. Check out September's Down East for my write-ups as well as some behind-the-scenes tidbits below. 


We thought it'd be great to sail to Peaks Island on a Sunday for lunch at Milly's Skillet, the new food truck on the island, or The Cockeyed Gull, an adorable shingled restaurant I've always wanted to visit. Unfortunately, our sailboat's steering gear had other ideas and we ended up being towed back to Portland before we could dock at Peaks. Whomp whomp. 

But a schedule is a schedule, so we hopped on the ferry and motored back out to Jones Landing. I ordered aggressively from Milly's: fish chowder (not normally green - the hue is borrowed from the picnic table umbrella), fish tacos, a lobster roll, and fried Brussel sprouts. 


The lobster roll was a hit - the brioche bun was thick and sweet, with a nice, buttery crunch. There was tons of lobster meat and was enough to split for $18. Portland Food Map recently shared the update via the Forecaster that owner Molly Ritzo will open another truck in Falmouth on Route 100, so look for Maine Mountain Trader to get a taste of Molly's cooking if you don't make it out to Peaks before she closes for the season. 

But there's still plenty of good weather forecasted this summer in which to check out the Cockeyed Gull. After our food truck lunch, we headed to the Gull and sat on the deck overlooking the water. While we ordered several things, my favorite dish was the risotto with peas and mushrooms, topped with scallops, shrimp, or chicken. I went for grilled scallops - I can't get enough of them. 


When I saw that the Gull made their own desserts, I had to order a slice of key lime pie, even though we were all groaning with discomfort from our double lunches. The pie didn't disappoint, tart and creamy with a nice crunchy graham cracker crust, even though we were seriously pushing the limits of reasonable consumption at that point. 


The next night, we caught the ferry from Portland to Chebeague Island. I'd never been, and we loved the luxury of being picked up by the friendly young guy from the Chebeague Island Inn in a van that shuttled us from the southern end of the island to the restaurant, three miles away. 


We dressed up for the occasion, as the Inn is a little more formal, although like most things in Maine, it manages to be refined and relaxed at the same time. I have to admit that dinner at the Chebeague Island Inn would be out of my weeknight price range otherwise, but you could manage a less expensive version by sticking to the burger and a beer. 

The arugula, tomato, feta salad was zippy with strong flavors from the Aleppo pepper and pickled watermelon rind throughout (and room temperature, which is a rarity). We didn't love the mussels, that while local, were dry rather than in a broth for slurping and sopping. 


Aside from the burger, which was salty and rich with onion rings on it, the seared scallops over white asparagus were my favorite entree. The other fish dish we ordered was a little overcooked, and thus dry, so stick with the scallops and the burger. If nothing else, the porch of the Inn is a great place to enjoy a cocktail during the sunset. 


We were on track to miss the ferry back to Portland, so we opted to take the shorter ferry to Yarmouth and fortunately one of our dear friends was available to come pick us up in Yarmouth. The ferry ride from Portland is lovely, but it does take longer, so be more prepared than we were to call it an early night. 


Lastly, I headed out to Great Diamond Island to Diamond's Edge with my honey. We enjoyed a romantic date on the lawn of the restaurant - until the rain began and forced us onto the deck of the restaurant. 

I'd been to Diamond's Edge several times for drinks in the past, while out sailing, but never for dinner. The menu is huge, so there's surely something for everyone. The standout for me was the fried oyster, pork belly, and spinach appetizer - all served over a bold mustard-Porter sauce. 


We both enjoyed our entrees, an island bouillabaisse packed with tons of seafood and the filet mignon - classics that were satisfying in their familiarity. Instead of dessert, we retired to the bar for a nightcap, watched the Red Sox with a few other people, then strolled down to the ferry dock when we saw its lights appear around the corner of the cove. 

It's pretty special that we're able to pop out to an island in Casco Bay for an evening, letting you leave behind the rhythms of daily life to enjoy a special late summer meal. If you're the summer bucket list type, I suggest adding an island drink or dinner to your list as we enjoy these last few weeks of my favorite season in Maine. 


August 27, 2015

BBF Travels: Lyon Distilling Co. St. Michaels, MD

On the way to the Outer Banks of North Carolina for our annual week at the beach, A. and I made a detour to St. Michaels, on the Eastern shore of Maryland, to revisit some of my old haunts and to check out some new ones. I lived there almost ten years ago (!!), teaching sailing at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. Since I left, there's new restaurants, a craft brewery, and even a small distillery, but perhaps unsurprisingly, the crew at the only bar in town is still the same. 

I first tried Lyon Distilling Co.'s rum when I visited Maryland in the spring, heading to two liquor stores in the Baltimore area until we found a bottle of their dark rum in stock. It's a sweeter rum with a rich caramel flavor, and it mixes well with a spicy ginger beer or in a tart Mai Tai. It's also delicious sipped on its own. 


On the day of our visit, we rode our bikes from the maritime museum down the main street to the old mill district - where the brewery, winery, and distillery are conveniently grouped together. I didn't even known about these mill buildings when I lived there, but much like Maine's mill towns, these old buildings have been turned into studio spaces, boutiques, and makers' shops. 


The tasting room of Lyon Distilling has a great industrial feel, and while there's just tastings of the spirits on offer, it would be a lovely spot to hang out for a while and enjoy a drink. There's a library of craft cocktail books - A. picked up a copy of And A Bottle of Rum by Wayne Curtis and I eyed Forgotten Maryland Cocktails: A History of Drinking in the Free State by Gregory and Nicole Priebe (another History Press book!). 


We tasted small sips of the unaged rum, the dark rum, and the Sailors Reserve - rum aged in used Bourbon barrels. The unaged rum is very bright - it's made from cane sugar and molasses, while the dark rum is sweeter, with some homemade caramel stirred into the rum. 

The Sailors Reserve is a higher proof and not as sweet, due to the aging in bourbon barrels. We even tried the corn whiskey, surprisingly sweet for a white unaged whiskey, and were excited to learn of a rye whiskey in the works. 


After the tasting, we were off on a tour of the distillery - and it was the cutest, smallest distillery I've ever seen. 

Our tour guide was Jamie Windon, the very enthusiastic partner of Ben Lyon, and the other distillery owner. Her sister works in the tasting room and the three of them (plus an intern) are the only employees. Windon works on the sales, distribution, and administrative stuff, while Lyon distills - making 5,000 gallons a year - not a lot for a company, but a lot for one man, Windon laughed.


Lyon and his one employee ferment molasses, sugar cane, and water in 55-gallon drums for a few days, then distill the rum wash in a series of small pot stills. These small columns on the stills help to keep lots of flavor in the final spirit, so they're used for whiskey and rum over the taller column stills that help make more neutral spirits like vodka. 


After the rum is distilled, the clear rum is aerated and bottled, while the dark rum has some homemade caramel added to the batch. Lyon melts some of the cane sugar that's used to make the rum and lets it caramel, before dumping it into the rum. The Sailors Reserve is aged in small one or three gallon barrels - the picture below shows the bulk of the barrels that Lyon Distilling uses. 


Right now, Lyon rum is found in D.C. and Maryland, but the bottles sell out frequently, so your best bet is to head to the distillery. We enjoyed a local Dark and Stormy at Eva's in St. Michaels later in the evening, then headed to Carpenter Street Saloon for a few Yuenglings and to watch the preseasons Ravens game. 

Fortunately for my nostalgia, not much has changed in St. Michaels since I lived there, save for the the welcome addition of a fantastic craft rum distillery, and it's hard not to be happy with that kind of growth.