The Blueberry Files

South Portland Elevation Burger Review

2012-01-20T10:24:00.000-05:00

Elevation Burger, in South Portland, is the newest location of the made-to-order, organic, grass-fed beef burger national chain. I was treated to dinner and chatted with the franchise owners on Monday night and left feeling good about what was going on both inside and outside of my stomach.

Elevation Burger is part of the new fast food trend, where your burgers are cooked to order and the quality of the ingredients is touted at every turn. I even spied a Michael Pollan quote on my milkshake cup backing the "grass is greener" theory behind E.Burg's (can I call you that?) grass-fed beef.

However, out of a desire to respect our wallets, apparently, E.Burg also provides the freestyle Coca-Cola machine, with over 100 soda flavors and does not boast organic ingredients across the board.

So, the food. A rather simple menu (until you get into toppings) presents beef burgers, cheese burgers, veggie burgers, and combinations of the two. You can also go vertigo and order up to 10 patties on one burger.

The toppings are all free and include standard lettuce, tomato, onion, but also balsamic mustard, blue cheese dressing (which does cost extra), and Elevation sauce, which is thin, tangy, and tomato-based.

Comparisons to 5 Guys are inevitable.

I ordered my burger 'Oiriginal,' with cheese, which is lettuce, tomato, and Elevation sauce. I figure if that's how the man started, I should check out their Platonic ideal of an Elevation burger.

And I am not one to pretend to know how to distinguish between different kinds of ground beef. The burgers tasted beefy to me and didn't have the crap cooked out of them. I was pleasantly surprised to see bits of pink throughout my burger patty.

The cheddar cheese is a nice taste variation from American (although I do think that on a cheeseburger is one of the only places a Kraft single belongs). And while these pictures don't really show, the burgers are two pattied.

The fries are fried in olive oil, which after a while, adds up to a pretty rich, distinctive flavor. Coupled with the size of the orders, I didn't come close to finishing my fries, but wasn't overwhelmed by the sheer volume of them either (ahem, 5 Guys).

I would be remiss if I didn't mention that the interior of E.Burg is built using energy efficient lighting and sustainable building materials. It's also aesthetically pleasing, which always feels nice to eat in.

E.Burg might open themselves to a bit more criticism than the run-of-the-mill fast food chain, as attempts at moral standards in dining always invites scrutiny. But if you stop to think about all the waste, both at the restaurant and in the production, generated by chain restaurants, there's no defense of eating at most, regardless of how good/cheap their burgers are.

But Elevation Burger makes good burgers that you can feel good about eating. While I certainly housed a lot of food (probably 1,000 cals. worth- thanks a lot, calorie counts), I didn't come away feeling bad, sad, or greasy.

In fact, I'm already thinking about the next time I can get my Elevation on.

Fried Maine Shrimp

2012-01-18T10:59:00.000-05:00

Shrimp, shrimp, glorious, fried Maine shrimp. It's the shrimpin' time of year, folks, so pull out all the recipes, and get in as much as you can while they last.

I made these for the Ravens game on Sunday, and they took a lot longer to fry than I expected- the entire 3rd quarter, ack!

Needless to say, I will not be missing a minute of the AFC Championship this Sunday.

I used a batter from the Joy of Cooking and fried them for about 5 minutes in lots of hot canola oil.

Fry Batter

from Joy of Cooking

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

3/4 cup beer

2 eggs, separated

Mix dry ingredients, two egg yolks, and beer. Cover and let sit at room temperature for 2 hours. Whip egg whites until stiff, but not dry. Fold into batter until incorporated.

Dip shrimp and fry away!

Rhoda kept a close eye on the shrimp for us.

Pei Men Miyake

2012-01-16T22:38:00.000-05:00

Pai men Miyake, at 188 State Street in Portland, is one of the restaurants forming the food lovers' corner in Longfellow Square. When the restaurant opened, it was billed as a Ramen bar with a few appetizers. Since then, their menu has expanded to include not only several different kinds of Ramen, but sushi rolls, several appetizers, and yakitori grill.

In the beginning, I went early and often, but fell off in frequency as more restaurants around Portland vied for my attention.

But now that I'm a West Ender, walking to the corner for some appetizers and rolls is a fine weeknight option. On this particular night, A. and I found the restaurant fairly full at 7:30pm, and so we grabbed seats at the bar. We ordered an appetizer each and some sushi rolls.

A.'s gyoza were fairly standard pork dumplings, but had a nice contrast between the tender wrappers and the crisp char.

The special of short rib buns with creme fraiche and pickled beets attracted me, but in the end, I wish I'd ordered my favorite pork buns. The buns on this version were tough, and the beef didn't offer the same unctuousness that the pork belly does.

The sushi rolls are always sublime though. A. and I ended up ordering the same rolls, the spicy tuna with avocado. While this roll is my favorite anywhere, at Pai men Miyake, they do a particularly nice job with the added touches of spicy mayonnaise and slivered almonds.

We made short work of the rolls and could have gone through several more. But we decided to call it a modest night and just finish our sake.

However, these sweet little stacks of Japanese flavored macarons caught my eye. Since I've never had one (!!!) before, I'll be sure to try these, as I think they're the only place in town to find them.

While it may seem odd to review the noodle bar without trying the noodles, here, a bowl of Ramen is quite the commitment for your appetite. So Pai men Miyake is also a great place to have a few small bites in a casual environment.

Top 10 Hottest Quarterbacks in the NFL

2012-01-11T14:51:00.001-05:00

And now a break from our regularly scheduled programming:

1. Mark Sanchez: Mark is clearly the hottest quarterback in the league. His all-American, yet scruffy good looks make him the top earner. Coupled with his humble persona, his love of his team, and his youth, you can overlook the apparent reality that he will not be the Jets’ next Joe Namath.

2. Aaron Rodgers: Rodgers is up there- he’s aaaalmost tied for #1 with Mark. He has the skills, the brooding dark eyes, the scruff, and the fantastic record. With his sense of humor, you feel like he’d be fun to go to the bar with. And then watch all the girls give you dirty looks, since you’re with such a hot guy.

3. Ryan Fitzpatrick: Fitzpatrick is hot with or without his beard. But I do love a man who can grow a legit beard. Look at that thing! I’ve heard two separate people reference “Grizzly Adams” when describing Ryan’s beard. While his season with the Bills faltered in the middle, his Harvard education gives him a pass.

4. Cam Newton: Cam’s ranking is based on looks alone. I don’t know anything about his on-field performance, and his Wiki yields little of interest (other than that his older brother is a Ravens center, woot!). I’m not even entirely sure what team he’s on. (The Panthers? I never can tell those big cat profile logos apart.) Whatever, dude’s hot. Smile away, honey.

Disclaimer: Finding 10 quarterbacks in the league that areactually hot was a struggle. So afterthe top 4, they’re ranked in a “Meh, I wouldn’t kick him out of bed” kind of way.

5. Eli Manning: I will probably catch a lot of flack for including Eli, who I’ve heard called a mouth breather and the Retarded Little Brother. But he’s cute in a lost puppy kind of way. And it’s all about the angle in the photo (whatever you do, don’t look at his Wiki photo, eesh).

6. Tim Tebow: A polarizing choice for sure. And let me be clear- Timmy is hot in an ugly sexy way. But jumped from #10 to #6 when I watched him beat the Steelers last week (Hate those Steelers!!). His performance on the field and the sidelines is fun to watch. Guy is passionate. And passion of any sort makes a man hotter.

7. Alex Smith: Alex looks a little mischievous in this photo, which I like. In some shots, he looks a little like Ryan Gosling. And while I watched the Ravens thoroughly decimate the 49ers during the Thanksgiving game, Alex looked good on the field (OK, he looked good lying on his back, being sacked 9 times during that game!!).

8. Matt Ryan: With Matty, we begin the slide into all-American good looks, which don’t really do it for me. Matt is a good-looking man, but he doesn’t necessarily turn my head. He would have made a nice prom date.

9. Tom Brady: Oh yes, bring on the ire, New England. Ole Tommy down at number 9. Really, I am shocked at how many Maine men have argued with me over this ranking. I, however, am immune to the Cult of Brady, and do not think he’s that cute. Plus, he wears Uggs. His marriage to Gisele serves to make him hotter, since she’s so hot, but really, Brady’s kind of doofy looking. Give me Welker over Brady any day.

10. Tony Romo: Again with the doofy, all-American men, Romo made the Top 10 by virtue of the other 22 QBs in the league being so damn ugly. Plus I heard he was a jerk to Jessica Simpson. And he spends a lot of time in Texas. Can’t be good.

BBF Travels: Byrnes Irish Pub, Bath

2012-01-10T12:22:00.000-05:00

This weekend I took a trip up to Bath with Alexa and Andrew (A1 and A2?). I had an expiring Groupon to the Maine Maritime Museum and both of them had never been. Field trip!

Most amazingly, this was a field trip planned during football drinking time- and then we actually followed through. Yes, love it.

Here's A1 charting our course in the tugboat wheelhouse.

After lots of educational material on Maine's boatbuilding history and culture, we of course, needed some provisions. A2 is more knowledgable about the Bath area than us-who-never-leave-Portland, so he led us to Byrnes Irish Pub on Centre Street.

Save for a guy who came, sat, chugged a beer and left, we were the only clientele in the bar. The walls are covered in "if He doesn't turn their hearts, may He turn their ankles, so we will know them by their limping," style Irish blessings, countdowns to St. Patty's Day, and general indicators that these people know how to party.

Expecting traditional bar food (that is to say, not very impressive), I was pleasantly surprised with our nachos ($6.99) turn out to be so beautiful and delicious. We opted to order Cashelmole, a signature blend of guacamole, Cashel blue cheese, and sour cream. It was good, but was also slightly reminiscent of guacamole dip from the refrigerator section of the grocery.

I enjoyed the relatively unique toppings of shredded carrots and lettuce, but was slightly confused by the lack of salsa. Regardless, the nachos had really good cheese and diced jalepenos, which was a nice touch.

A1's salad, an Irish chef salad, was described as "crisp romaine lettuce and mixed baby greens with garden vegetables and topped with turkey, ham, cheese and hard boiled egg $8.99." Kind of meh, right? But I regret not taking a picture, because you need to see it to believe it. It was a beautiful display of vegetables and sliced meats and egg.

Add in some Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPAs, and I was sold. I recommend Byrnes Irish Pub as a great place to settle in with friends if you find yourself in the Bath area looking for some cheap, quality eats in a cozy bar.

And while it doesn't hold a candle to ours (ahem, A1!), I love that the Bath City Hall is lit up with red and green steaming lights- boat nerd alert!!

BBF Travels: Steak 'n Shake

2012-01-03T14:26:00.000-05:00

This Christmas vacation, after much anticipation, I made it to Steak 'n Shake, a fast food burger joint, known for it's titular steakburgers and milkshakes. This particular one is in Fredericksburg, Virginia, which I passed through in that special holiday I-95 traffic hell. Needless to say, it was a welcome break from the stop-and-go.

Steak 'n Shake approaches the fast food dining experience a little differently, with not only a drive through and a bustling take out counter, but a sit down restaurant too. Our food took a great while to come, so I'm not sure if they're pulling off the marriage of the two. A fast food burger that with the sit down dinner wait. Hmm...

But once it came, the food was good! The burger is made with a mix of sirloin, round, and T-bone, with a myriad of varieties. I stuck to a cheese steakburger. Although there is one they mix butter into. Mmmm). I had a vanilla milkshake too and was pleased as punch.

So after I'd digested my steakburger and thought on it for a few days, I decided 5 Guys is better. I'm glad I can cross Steak 'n Shake off the obscure burger chain list, and it is better road food than McDonald's, Wendy's, etc. but locally I'm glad we have our 5 Guys.

Bayou Kitchen Breakfast

2011-12-22T12:14:00.000-05:00

I just moved away from the Oakdale neighborhood (aw, miss you already roomies!) and, while compared to one of the Ends or downtown, there's not much out by USM and Woodfords corner, there are a few places worth venturing out Forest Ave. for.

My roommates introduced me to Bayou Kitchen, and it's been my go-to brunch spot for a while now. Well, specifically when I'm craving huevos rancheros. Bayou Kitchen serves the best one I've found in the city.

Photo by Corey Templeton of Portland Daily Photo

But Bayou Kitchen is easy to miss. It's across Deering Ave. from Artist & Craftsman Supply in a small, unassuming storefront. Once you step inside, you're greeted warmly and seated at one of the 25 seats in the place.

The menu has a Cajun bent, with grits, Andouille sausage, Jambalaya, and Gumbo. Like I said though, I've only ever had the huevos rancheros. Lots of black bean or beef chili and cheese, wrapped in a tortilla, topped with two eggs, sour cream and salsa. Pretty much all my favorite things together. And then, your choice of home fries or grits (skip the grits).

This is quickly turning into one of those one-plate places for me. You know the sort, where the one item you've had is so good you're afraid to order something else for fear of disappointment and regret. And I usually have enough of those served up with my morning after brunch as is.

But maybe I can return for lunch and not be tempted by the huevos rancheros; after all, they serve gumbo and Jambalaya, which might sway me.

So check out Bayou Kitchen for a brunch that's a bit different than the tried and true served up at Becky's, Miss Portland Diner, Marcy's, etc. Between the charming service and the southern food, I bet you'll find something that makes you want to return.

Pro tip: due to the size of the restaurant, I recommend getting out there early, as I've seen crowds piling up outside after 10am or so.

Obscure Holiday Cocktails, Vol. 3

2011-12-19T09:38:00.000-05:00

The third annual Obscure Holiday Cocktail party was a raging success! For the third (!!!) year in a row, local Portland bloggers gathered, each bringing an obscure holiday cocktail.

We had five cocktails, and only one (mine) was a bit iffy. Fortunately it came at the end of the evening, when no one cared too much. As usual, thanks to Uke for the cheese pairings. Spot on, natch.

The Christmas Bellringer, paired with a Caprichio De Cabra, a goat's milk cheese, was a delicious mix of Gin, Cointreau, Frangelico, and freshly squeezed orange juice. ~~Adam~~ Dawn (whoops!) of Appetite Portland contributed this cocktail and with its refreshing citrus and herbal flavors. The salty feta-like cheese was a nice foil.

I could have drank A. of Portland Food Map's cocktail all night long- a Greek Air Mail. A traditional Air Mail has rum, but A. substituted in Greek Metaxa (a brandy-wine blend). Shaken up with lime juice, honey, Q Tonic, Bitters and mint, the Air Mail was not too sweet or boozy- a totally drinkable cocktail. These drinks would make a good pitcher specialty drink for your holiday or New Year's party.

The Air Mail was paired with Keen's Cheddar, an English clothbound aged cheddar. I mean, clothbound cheddar. How can you go wrong?

The Lion's Pride, made with St. Germain, Gin, one egg white, dash Peychaud Bitters, Lime juice, and topped with lime zest and black pepper was adapted from a cocktail that Dawn and Adam had at Lion's Pride Pub in Brunswick. This cocktail was spicy, citrusy, and floral/herby, and made me want to get to Lion's Pride even more.

S. paired it with Valencay, a fresh goat's milk, covered in charcoal ash that was almost like a goat cheese mousse. It was... strange, but stood up to the tartness of the cocktail.

Whispers of the Frost, by Vrylena, was Bourbon, Sherry, Port, powdered sugar, served with slices of lemon and orange. I did not witness the particular alchemy that made these ingredients taste like a citrusy mulled wine, but it was strong and delicious. Perfect for sipping at night in front of a foggy window as you watch the snow fall on the pines.

Paired with a Bayley Hazen Blue, a raw, aged, cow's milk blue from Jasper Hill Farm in Vermont, a drier, saltier blue, helped to tone down the alcohol-y notes in the cocktail. A nice nibble.

Finally, my contribution of the evening, Tom and Jerry, a frothy egg, milk, bourbon, rum punch. It's like egg nog, but more finicky. Inspired as always, by John Meyers' The Land of Forgotten Cocktails column (do read his backstory on the drink to learn how the cartoon Tom and Jerry came to have their name), I tackled a more ambitious drink, involving whisking egg whites- by hand, ahem- and the words "be careful not to curdle."

Hmm, sounds like a great idea to attempt after 4 cocktails. Fortunately, everyone else was 4 cocktails in as well, so if it was a little curdled or strong, it went largely unnoticed. Or largely unsaid. Whatever, same thing.

I followed the Esquire magazine recipe, using bourbon instead of whiskey, because I'm apparently a "die-hard Dixiecrat," (and am OK with that). But I recommend using a larger glass, because between the bourbon soaked egg batter and the 2 oz. bourbon/rum per glass, in these cute short glasses, the drink was a little strong.

Uke gave up on matching milk and egg based drinks with cheese and went with Ghost Pepper Chili Salt Chocolate Bark and Chocolate Covered Marcona Almonds. The salty, spicy, and sweet combination of the drink and the chocolates worked wonders. Uke also brought great pickled beet deviled eggs, that would make a nice, if not labor-intensive holiday potluck recipe.

Again, we were so happy this year that all our cocktails turned out to be winners. I would recommend any of them to make for holiday parties or to spice up a slow winter evening.

Many thanks to Dawn and Adam for hosting us, my fellow bloggers for contributing food and drinks to enjoy, and you for reading. Happy holidays!

Taco Escobarr Review

2011-12-15T12:19:00.002-05:00

I have a problem, and its name is Taco Escobarr.

Have you seen my shit list? It's a piece of paper that says 'Taco Escobarr?'

Photo by Dawn Hagin

Sigh. I'm thinking, on one hand, it's not *that* bad, and if you write a strongly worded review, you may come to regret it for many reasons. Maybe I'm just crabby because it's raining heavily, I didn't bring lunch (or a raincoat), I'm wearing cute flats and tights, and I parked alllll the way in the back of the lot.

None of these things, however, excuse the greasy, declining taco experiences I've had at Taco Escobarr.

Photo by Dawn Hagin

I've eaten at Taco Escobarr, the newish, hip taco joint, opened by the Nosh Kitchen Bar guys, 7 times now. I've eaten at the bar, at the hightop tables; by myself, with loud groups, on a date; I've ordered burritos, all kinds of combinations of taco fillings, shells, and salsa. The only thing I haven't tried are the sides and desserts.

At first, I was enamored. The tacos are cheapish (3 for $8 or 3 fish tacos for $10), the salsa are nice and spicy, and the bar environment is fun. They have Miller High Life, Busch, and Maine Beer Co. on tap (not a complete list).

Photo by Dawn Hagin

I had good experiences with the puffy tacos, which are deep fried soft shells that puff up and crackle wonderfully when you bite into them. I was into the picadillo or ground beef filling. So far we're firing on all cylinders for a taco joint.

But then around my 5th visit, the puffy taco shell was greasy. And not very crispy. I thought, are they making these ahead? Sure enough, I peered into the open kitchen (past the not-to-busy-cooks, I might add) and saw a stack of pre-fried puffy tacos. That explains why my food came so very fast.

My most recent nail-in-the-coffin visit saw a very long wait for our food (30 minutes), withering treatment from our server (including a scraping off of toppings when J. pointed out that she requested her tacos plain), and the dreaded combination of greasy, soggy puffy shells and dried out pork filling.

However, most importantly (and infuriatingly), I will continue to eat there.

The taco bar is centrally located when you're out for First Friday or other Arts District partying (and have temporarily OD'ed Otto pizza). The tacos are cheap, better quality than $.99 tacos at Amigo's, and a crowd-pleaser if you're out with a group. Plus, there's an element of 'chasing the dragon,' in that I am hoping that their tacos will sing as they did on our first few encounters.

I know this is going to be controversial, so let's hear it. What say you of Taco Escobarr?

Veggie Cream Cheese

2011-12-14T10:45:00.000-05:00

I vascillate between being too lazy to make my own breakfast (aka really wanting a bagel, aka hungover) and being too cheap to pay for a meal that takes 5 minutes to consume. Yesterday, I was in the too-broke-to-justify-a-bagel camp (I was not, however, hungover. Go me!).

So I concocted this really quick, reasonable facsimile of a Mr. Bagel bagel with veggie cream cheese. I took about two heaping tablespoons of cream cheese, and mixed in grated carrot, broccoli, and onion. A little salt and pepper, and tada!

White scala bread from Rosemont Market is the best. Now I just need this Everything Bread + Bagel topping from King Arthur Flour, and I'll never want Mr. Bagel again (...ok, I didn't meant that).

Cook's Illustrated Cookbook Review

2011-12-11T20:50:00.001-05:00

I have mixed feelings about the Cook's Illustrated publications. While I am lured in by their promise of perfectly seasoned dishes at the end of the rainbow, I frequently find that the recipes don't mix with my style of cooking.

Rarely do I pick a recipe, go to the store, purchase every single ingredient required and come home to make the meal. Rather, I poke around in the fridge and cabinets, browse through a few recipes, and mix what I have with a few recipes I saw. Sometimes this means I sub an onion for a shallot (oh, the horror) or white wine for vermouth.

And this is where Cook's Illustrated and I fail to see eye-to-eye. Developed in 'America's Test Kitchen' these recipes have been deconstructed and tested from the ground up. So if they tell you to use a shallot, that means they've tried the recipe with yellow onions, without shallots, etc. When they say shallot, they mean shallot.

Chicken legs, over spinach, mushrooms, and polenta. With ONIONS. *gasp*

And I'm ok with people who seek a Platonic ideal of every dish they make (the uber chili?). I'm just not one of them. Ultimately the point of dinner is to satisfy a need. And if I'm in a mood to take some time to make it in a tasty way? Peachy. But I don't have all night here, people. Nor a limitless bank account. Sometime the shallot becomes an onion.

Recommendation? As a gift for a new cook, I'd rather give the Joy of Cooking or Bittman's How to Cook Everything. But this cookbook sure is extensive (800+ pages), has lots of great cooking tips that CI is known for, and may appeal to the cook that thrives when given meticulous, detail-oriented* instructions.

Thanks to Rabelais Books for providing the review copies for our Cookbook Review-o-rama. See the Portland Food Map for more book reviews from area bloggers.

*Alternate title to this post: 'Detail-Oriented Is Not My Middle Name.'

Cheesemaking Workshop with Appleton Creamery

2011-12-07T09:15:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, I took a cheesemaking class at the University of Maine, sponsored by UMaine Cooperative Extension and taught by Caitlin Hunter of Appleton Creamery. It was a nine hour (!!) long workshop and we made jack, ricotta, and mozzarella.

We started with the jack, which is an aged cheese; it'll be ready in February or March. That took all morning, and then in the afternoon we made ricotta from they whey of the jack and a 30-minute mozzarella (similar to the process I learned at Wolfe's Neck Farm last year).

Here Beth Calder, UMaine Extension Food Science Specialist (left) and a class participant, chat with Caitlin Hunter (middle) over 5 gallons of goat and cow's milk. The milk is resting in a sink full of hot water, as we slowly raise the temperature to 88*F.

Jack is a cheese that takes a mesophilic or 'warm-loving' starter. Adding a starter culture kicks off the acidification process (aka fermentation) and gives it that great cheesy flavor. After the culture was added at the right temperature and the cheese rested for a while, we added rennet.

I learned a lot about rennet and its sources from Caitlin. Rennet is an enzyme that causes the milk proteins to coagulate or stick together and separate from the whey. Since milk is about 89-90% water, with the rest being fats and protein, the process of acidification and then adding rennet makes all protein come together in a solid curd and pull away from the whey.

Rennet can come from animal, plant or fungus sources, and most rennet used in American cheese or available for cheese making is made in a lab, through the process of genetic manipulation, making it a GMO. Boo-urns. (This Madison Market article explains it nicely.)

Here Caitlin is cutting the set curd into 1/2-inch squares, which helps even more whey be drawn out of the curd. The drier the cheese, the smaller the curd, since small pieces of curd have more surface area, which allows more whey to escape from in between the tangles of milk protein strands.

We slowly heated the curd again, while stirring it, to help the curd shrink and release the whey. I could tell this step was where Caitlin's cheese making experience came in. Knowing when the curd was ready to be pressed requires a 'texture test' done by taking a handful of curd, squeezing it, and observing the results.

When squeezed, the curd should stick together and the pieces should have the texture of cooked chicken breast when pulled apart. Caitlin frequently stuck her hand in the curd, swirled it around, and invited us to do the same to feel the curds bounce off the backs of our hands.

This step took a long time, but once all the curd was sufficiently dried out, we let the curd rest for a few minutes and then strained the curd into a colander lined with a cheese cloth.

After all they whey had been scooped off and saved for ricotta making, the curd dumping began in earnest. 5 lbs. of curd when into that cheese cloth!

Then the curd was gathered up in the cloth, pressed firmly, attempted to be shaped into a round ball, and placed under a weight to rest for a few hours. The weight system was simple- two cutting boards above and below the cheese, with a large water-filled stockpot. The first pressing was 8 lbs. (a gallon of water), and then 25 lbs. (4 gallons of water).

The jack cheese needs to be aged for a few months (in the refrigerator, even), so the cheese was raffled off to a lucky person- my boss!

At first I was disappointed that I didn't get to babysit the cheese, then I realized that this really was the best outcome, as Kathy will take care of the cheese and then share it with me in March. Ha.

Caitlin brought a jack she made a few days ago, that was ready to be oiled. The cheese needs to be oiled every few days at the beginning of the aging process, so it can build a protective rind. Caitlin makes her oil rub out of cocoa, cayenne, and olive oil. Here's where you can get creative with spices, so Kathy is going to go with turmeric, cayenne, and olive oil.

While this may seem like a lot of overwhelming steps that have a lot of room for screwing up, I actually feel like this is an accessible aged cheese for the beginning home cheesemaker.

Ricki of New England Cheese Making has a nice picture tutorial of the jack recipe. When you see her do it, it looks so simple! I believe that I can replicate this cheese at home, and I'm excited to give it a try.

As a bonus, when you're done all of that, you have a lot of whey left over, which is perfect for making ricotta. While we strained out most of the curd for the jack, there is still a lot left in the whey that can be drawn out through further heating and acidification. Additionally, you can increase the yield of the ricotta by adding some whole milk to the whey.

All we did was heat the whey to 160*F, added some whole milk, kept heating to 180*F and added 1/4-1/2 cup of bottled lemon juice. Then, as the curds rose to the top, we ladled them off into these cute little ricotta baskets and let them drain. Voila, fresh ricotta! Dead simple. Again, check out Ricki's tutorial for the recipe.

Happy cheesemaking, kids! And if you ever see Caitlin's Beginner Cheesemaking Workshop offered in your area ($80), I highly recommend it. Totally doable skills.

Cheddar Apple Pie

2011-11-30T10:04:00.001-05:00

Lest you think I'm late to the party and trying to suggest pies for the Eating Holiday that just passed, know that I made this for no reason other than that I had a lot of spare apples and was headed to a friend's for movie night. And I'm no super baker- it's just easy to whip out an apple pie... assuming you have a few tools in your arsenal.

I have used this cheddar cheese crust from Gourmet magazine in my BLT pie before. And it's a weird crust, especially if you sub in lard for the fat. It was all crumbly (even though I'd added plenty of liquid) and so I just powered through and forced it to roll out and lay nicely in the pie pan.

Rather than stress over the aesthetics of the top crust, however, I used a snowflake cookie cutter to stamp out pieces and overlap them on top of the filling. This prevents the big hole that forms underneath the top crust when the filling inevitably shrinks during cooking.

I love using a food processor for making pie crust, and then this diggly (an apple peeler, corer, and slicer) for peeling apples. So if you have a few tools, a delicious apple pie is within an hour's worth of work.

My roomie J. made an apple pie the next day (apple pie off!) and hers was better! She makes the Old Fashion Apple Pie from Simply Recipes, which uses an almond meal crust. And it rules. So two good options- and that cheddar cheese crust is to die for (tastes kind of like Ritz crackers). Happy holiday baking!

Turkey Options in Portland

2011-11-18T12:33:00.000-05:00

It's almost turkey time, kids! Are you getting excited? I am. But that's because I'm going to Maryland to see my family, and I don't have to cook. I realize that's a weird thing for a food blogger to be excited about, but I'm happy to be skipping the canned vs. fresh, the traditional vs. updated spin, the brined vs. smoked debates.

However, in my duty as a Portland food blogger, I seek to keep you informed of your local turkey options. If you're like me, you've left your research to this weekend. So here is a list of where to find a turkey and how much it costs, both to your wallet and your conscience.

Trader Joe's

Just like last year, Trader Joe's is sticking with two straightforward options: brined or Kosher (both fresh, not frozen). Brined turkeys are available in 12-22 lb. increments at $1.99/lb and Kosher turkeys are 12-16 lbs. and $2.49/lb.

TJ's Turkeys are from U.S. farms in Minnesota, California and Pennsylvania and billed as 'All Natural,' which their website defines as "minimally processed with NO artificial ingredients, they never receive any antibiotics or growth hormones, and they are raised on a diet of 100% vegetarian feed." Note that the USDA does not allow the use of growth hormones in poultry or pork, so boastful claims of this are required by law anyways.

Whole Foods Market

Whole Foods has three options for turkeys: fresh at $2.29/lb; brined at $2.99/lb.; and all natural, free range, and local (from Misty Knoll, VT) for $3.99/lb, available in 12-20 lbs.

Whole Foods' turkeys adhere to these standards: no antibiotics, vegetarian diet, no added hormones, no added solutions (except when brined) or injections, complete traceability to farm.

I also heard the staff discussing breaking down a turkey for a customer, so if you are looking to feed a smaller amount of people, it sounds as if they'd be willing to cut the turkey up for you.

Rosemont Market and Bakery

Rosemont has turkeys available for pre-order and then available for pick up next Tues. and Wed. They are out of the Mainely Poultry turkeys, but just emailed to say they have turkeys from The Turkey Farm for $3.49/lb. If you've ever driven out 27 to Farmington, you've seen these turkeys! They live by the road in big screened-in pens. They look pretty happy (as happy as a turkey can look from the highway). The Turkey Farm does not use antibiotics, fillers, and uses vegetarian, GMO-free turkey food.

Hannaford

Hannaford is where things get a little weird. Strange things happen at 7:30am at the Forest Ave Hannaford. There are 5 turkeys options at this store: Nature's Place at $2.49/lb, Butterball at $1.29/lb., Shadybrook Farms at $.99/lb, and Hannaford at $.99/lb, and Marval at $.49/lb.

If you are concerned about the treatment of the animal, the Hannaford Nature's Place brand looks like it might be the only one that considers it. The others, not so much. Shadybrook and Marval are owned by Cargill, the number one privately held company in the U.S. in terms of revenue [Forbes]. Yikes!

At $.49/lb (and available in up to 25 lbs!!) Marval turkeys are cheap. Enter the weirdness. Despite the 'Limit 1 per customer' sign, there were two men loading up carts with giant, cheap, frozen turkeys. They were discussing with a meat department employee the availability of cases- one man said he'd like 5 cases if he could get them. I snapped a phone photo of the turkeys and hurried on my way, lest they saw me eavesdropping, and I ended up wearing cement boots in the bay.

Hannaford also has Tur-duck-hens! They cost $50.

So as usual, the most ethical, albeit expensive, turkey option is available through Rosemont. I think if you can make do with a smaller one, the Whole Foods or Trader Joe's options are nicely priced. If you have some feedback on the actual taste of any of these turkeys, I'd like to hear it.

(Or maybe you're just going to leave it all to your family, like I am!)

Also, Sharon at Delicious Musings does a nice round-up of local products to use in your dinner, and A. at the Portland Food Map has a Thanksgiving Resource Guide, including wine advice.

Pickle Reviews

2011-11-16T12:02:00.001-05:00

I've become obsessed with pickles lately- or rather I've tapped into my deep obsession; it was always there. In Brooklyn last month, I pickled up two quart jars of pickles to bring back and share with my friend A. (also a pickle devotee).

And last night, when I made a pickle snack plate, I realized I hadn't told you about my great new pickle find!

An aside: someone was recently complaining about pickle plates from his childhood. Like, the ones put out at parties by people in the 60s and 70s. The pile of yellow sweet pickles to be avoided, the pickled beets aggressively staining all the pickles red... Sounds like the pickle plate needs a makeover.

So here's what I think of three types of pickled products: McClure's dill pickles, and Brooklyn Brine's "Damn Spicy" dill pickles, and refrigerator dilly beans.

I found the McClure's brand at Smorgasberg and tried tasty samples of their whole garlic and dill pickles and their Bloody Mary mix. I also picked up two bags of Dill chips, one spicy and one regs. So good (maybe not as good as Lay's Dill pickle chips, but close). That's right, Dill. Chips. Try 'em.

What I didn't realize when sampling is that McClure's pickles seem to be pickled in a brine that is straight vinegar. That stuff is spicy! It makes you cough. But they're the best of the two cucumber pickles, with a nice garlic and dill flavor, and lots of crunch, since they're whole, small cukes.

But Brooklyn Brine Co.'s Damn Spicy pickles? Are DAMN SPICY. Like too friggin' spicy. Just tastes like burning. Since you're fishing your pickles out from in between a jalapeno and a habenero, it's no surprise. But dayum!! There's a pickle flavor in there somewhere, but my tongue was scorched.

While not a traditional cucumber pickle, the dilly beans are my favorite of the 3 pickled products I tried. (And I made them!!)

I've never made refrigerator dilly beans, but when I had a small bunch of green beans from my CSA this summer, I decided to go for it, rather than fire up the canner.

I used 2 cups water, 2 cups white vinegar, and a quarter cup of salt, plus a teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes (add more if you like it Damn Spicy!). I also added the additional step of blanching the green beans. Since they weren't being cooked in the canner, I figured I should blanch them to get the right texture.

After only a few days in the brine, with some garlic and dill, these beans were pickled! Different than dilly beans that had been canned, but just as good, if not better. They were so easy to make and ready to eat without feeling guilty for dipping into your stash of canned goods.

OK, other pickle recommendations? And did anyone hear the legend that you couldn't eat a pickle and drink milk together or you'd throw up? I was so paranoid about barfing when I was little, that I wouldn't eat pickles and dairy within hours of each other, just in case.

Garbage Cookies

2011-11-15T10:01:00.001-05:00

After my failed attempt at recreating the finicky momofuku compost cookies, I concluded that it'd be much easier to take your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe and just add a bunch of your favorite snack foods and candy.

So when I told someone I was doing so, they exclaimed, you're making garbage cookies! So apparently it's like, a thing. And I'm a little late to the party.

These cookies aren't too 'garbage-y' (er, yum); in addition to chocolate chips, I added peanut butter M&Ms and crushed pretzels. I was after that sweet-salty combo I love so much.

The cookies baked up perfectly after 12 minutes, and while at first I thought they tasted a little 'baking soda-y,' after a few days, that flavor seems to have evened out. (Tip: if you're bringing baked goods to someone and think there's a flaw, don't point it out before they try them! Chances are they won't notice.)

And I followed a tip I never have before- I froze extra portioned out dough! Now I can have cookies on demand. My favorite trick being to half cook them and serve them warm with vanilla ice cream. Yum.

Seasons in Maine

2011-11-12T09:29:00.001-05:00

I just got back from the Deering Oaks Farmers' Market in Portland, where the stalls are thinning and the crowds are slowing, but there's still plenty of great produce. Brussels sprouts; all manner of squash; heaping piles of kale, chard, and cabbage; wooden crates of apples... even cherry tomatoes and green tomatoes still.

And yet while we're experiencing a mild fall, there's a bite to the wind today, my fingerless gloves aren't cutting it, and my toes are cold in my Chuck Taylors. The signaling of a Maine winter to come is making me feel restless already, pent up, anxious about the winter blahs, and leaving me itching to do something, go somewhere.

Fortunately I'm road tripping it down to Maryland for the holiday in a few weeks, so that small adventure might take the edge off. But I am realizing that for me to survive in Maine, I need to plan a winter beach vacation. Something in March or April to somewhere warm, to see friends I haven't in a while.

Cooking and baking has always offered solace, but this time I'm not feeling it. I'm feeling a little raw, a little vulnerable, and planning meals isn't as comforting as it once was. I think I'll head on over to search for flights...

I'm planning two baking and cooking projects today, so stay tuned for some sweet and salty cookies and some great sides for the upcoming potluck season.

Cooking and the Single Life

2011-11-03T10:48:00.003-04:00

An old friend John used to make (and maybe still does) big batches of food and eat them for every meal. As you can probably guess, John was a bachelor at the time. As a happily coupled young twenty-something, I thought this was so strange.

I was enjoying domestic bliss, staying in a friend's house that had a fully outfitted kitchen (they were real people, when at the time, I was long-term housesitting and/or living on boats). My then boyfriend and I made elaborate meals in our borrowed house and ate well.

The idea of eating the same thing for several days straight didn't appeal to me. I thought it a) really weird to eat spaghetti for breakfast and b) the more obvious one, that you'd get bored during your pasta-a-thon.

But now, I totally get it.

In addition to being really busy lately, I don't have anyone to cook with anymore. So the other day, that same then boyfriend suggested I make this "ants in a tree" recipe. I have no idea what that name references (does it look like ants in a tree to you??).

But this thin pasta (or bean thread noodles) is dotted with clumps of ground pork, spiced with garlic and ginger, and more subtly, soy sauce, Sriracha, sesame oil, and topped with tons of chopped green onions. Apparently it's Chinese comfort food, but it makes for a great dinner/breakfast/lunch/lunch/lunch run.

Ants in a Tree
Adapted from Alton Brown's recipe

1/2 lb angel hair pasta
1 lb. ground pork
1/4 cup soy sauce, plus 2 tablespoons
4 tablespoon grated ginger
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Sriracha or other chili paste
1 tablespoons sesame oil
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
Plenty of chopped green onions
Sesame seeds for garnish

Combine pork, 1/4 cup soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and Sriracha in a bowl. Mix until completely combined and let rest for 30 minutes. In the last 10 minutes, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente (about 5 minutes).

While the pasta is boiling, heat a large cast iron skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add vegetable oil and saute pork until done (no pink remaining). Add the 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and the drained pasta. Remove from heat and toss until combined.

Serve with additional hot sauce, and garnished with green onions and sesame seeds.

BBF Travels: I Ate New York.

2011-10-27T11:01:00.003-04:00

I'll keep it short; it was hard to experience all the wonderfulness of New York food, knowing that these things were hours away from my home. I can imagine it's painful only to read about as well.

Smorgasberg, an awesome prepared and packaged food market in Williamsburg by the river.

Radegast Hall after shopping on Bedford Ave. in Williamsburg (and the Bedford Cheese Shop).

Food trucks on every corner, this one Mexicue and their short rib taco.

Momofuku saam bar and milk bar (pork buns and compost cookies, finally!).

DeKalb Market with food stalls and tiny boutiques in converted shipping containers. And yes, that is a chicken and waffle cupcake. It rocked.

The sweet Rose Water Restaurant in Park Slope.

All so awesome and yet so far away. Actually, my wallet might be OK with that buffer...

Fall Cocktails

2011-10-20T14:50:00.004-04:00

As the weather cools off, it's easier to go inside and have a drink, rather than frequent places I'd rather not be, but go to just because there's an outdoor deck. Fall sliding into winter provides an excuse to slow down, cozy up, and catch up with friends over cocktails, rather than shouting over live music.

Here's four places with great cocktails that I'm looking forward to revisiting now that the mercury is falling. Look to Appetite Portland for Dawn's recommendations of comfort food dishes to pair with your cocktails.

50 Local in Kennebunk recently served me The Remedy: bourbon, lemon, cayenne simple syrup, and a ginger sugared rim. This drink complements the atmosphere of the bar, being both warming and elegant.

Also try the mushroom tagliatelle while you're there. Fresh, fat noodles with a creamy sauce, studded with a variety of mushrooms foraged by the chef is not to be missed. Reminiscent of a mushroom stroganoff.

The Holier than Thou at Grace: St. Germaine, Grapefruit Juice, Sparkling Wine. I die every time I taste St. Germaine. Its floral, slightly herbal notes always are paired with tart juices, sparkling wines, and infused simple syrups or vodka. And it always works so well.

Local 188's the Beekeeper: Cold River vodka & Honeymaker dry mead, splash of St. Germain is another fantastic combination (although beware the beekeeper- it's drunk making!).

Zapoteca offers tequila in many forms, from straight up to mixed well with fruit juices and liquors to make tart and sweet margaritas. Also not to be missed, the warming tequila caramel bread pudding.

So if you haven't seen much of me lately or finally want to connect, let's grab a cocktail around town sometime soon. It's our consolation prize for not being able to sail, bike, wear bikinis, swim, and grill out.

Shuck Truck at El Rayo

2011-10-17T20:58:00.000-04:00

That's a $5 spread you see right there (including the happy hour beer).

El Rayo Taqueria has $1 oysters on Mondays, and today they had the Shuck Truck serving Cabin Cove Oysters from the Damariscotta River.

Oysters were briny, served with a salt-cutting red wine migonette. Sold out fast, but the Shuck Truck will be back. And hopefully we'll be seeing all manner of food trucks all over Portland soon anyway.

Italian Cold Cuts in Maine?!

2011-10-14T11:05:00.001-04:00

Look what I found! An Italian cold cut sub! I stopped in Brunswick for lunch after teaching a canning class in Bowdoinham on Thursday and ate at the Big Top Deli. A strange little place, with super friendly service, and weird toasted sub rolls, but a big long line nonetheless.

I needed to look no further than the second cold sandwich to find what I wanted for lunch: a Classic Italian sub with Capacola, pepper ham, Genoa salami, bologna, provolone, pepperoncini, lettuce, tomato, onion, oil and vinegar.

In Maine?!? An Italian that doesn't mean ham and cheese on a split top hot dog bun?? I about fell over. It's one food item I miss from the mid-Atlantic the most.

Other than the aforementioned weirdly toasted bun, it was pretty good! But it was probably nostalgia and hunger that carried me more than anything else.

Anyone else eaten here? It's kind of strange, right??

Slow Cooked Salsa Verde Pork Tacos

2011-10-07T12:25:00.005-04:00

This recipe has an unlikely source: GQ. But between the tantalizing pictures of piles of corn tortillas and a mess of slow cooked pork with tomatillo salsa and loads of jalepenos, I was drawn in. And surprisingly, the recipe was so easy to make.

The best part about this recipe is that it's apparently impossible to screw up. I know, I tried.

Did I mention I have a penchant for not thoroughly reading recipes? I frequently reference a college boyfriend that made me cry after some harsh words delivered during a botched dinner prep. What can I say? Details like how long something takes usually escape me.

I often get all the ingredients (uh, mostly) and then stumble over some detail like, "braise for an hour or until the meat can be easily pulled apart" when I start to prep the recipe. Minor details that then cause dinner to be served at 9pm or that recipe to be totally shelved until the weekend. Not a good time to be 'hangry.'

And while that happened with this recipe, I felt like I could shorten some steps and still get the desired results (maybe I'm missing something out of this world by skipping the hour-long "slow fry" step, but oh well).

So this recipe is adapted from a GQ recipe and meshed with one from Joy the Baker for a weeknight dinner. Adapted because I think the original is more of a weekend project, when it can have lots of time to slow cook. But I skipped the "slow fry" step (WTF is that anyway?) and just braised. The meat still fell apart tender and was friggin' delicious. And sinus-clearningly spicy. Yahoo.

Slow Cooked Salsa Verde Pork Tacos
Adapted from GQ and Joy the Baker

3 lbs. pork butt, trimed of any excess fat and cut into 1-1/2" cubes
1/4 cup olive oil
3 lbs. tomatillos, diced
1 large yellow onion, diced
6 cloves of garlic, diced
1 large spicy jalepeno, diced
1 large sweet potato, cubed
cumin
salt and pepper
corn tortillas
cilantro (optional)
lime

Heat a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and meat. Brown for about 10 minutes, until you've got some nice char on the meat.

Reduce heat to medium, add more olive oil (a few turns around the pan) and then add in onion, garlic, and pepper. Sautee for a few minutes and then dump in tomatillos. Add 1/2 cup water. The meat should be fully submerged; add more water if it's not. If you have salsa verde on hand (like I did), add one pint (16 oz) of salsa.

Cover the pot and simmer stew for about an hour, maybe more. While the meat is cooking, toss the cubed sweet potato with olive oil, cumin, salt and pepper. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast at 400*F. Mine took about 20 minutes; not very long, so keep an eye on them.

Test the meat after about an hour; when it pulls apart easily, it's done! Shred with two forks until it's a nice mush of tasty, spicy, Tex Mexi goodness. Serve in heated corn tortillas with cubed sweet potatoes, garnished with cilantro, and a squeeze of lime.

Easily makes 12-15 small tacos.

Dinner at Zapoteca

2011-10-04T14:53:00.000-04:00

My recent dinner at Zapoteca, the new, fine dining Mexican restaurant on Fore St., was a mixed bag. Let's break it down short and sweet.

Pro: Drinks

Left to right, the blood orange margarita, a regular margarita, and a guava 'rita. All tasty, all served from a friendly bartender, and different levels of sweet to suit your tastes.

Con: Noise level

We sat in the dining room back towards the kitchen on a Saturday night at 9pm. And it was so very loud. I had trouble hearing my company and the server.

1/3rd Pro: Ceviche trio

The Ceviche Veracruzano, a whitefish marinated in lime juice with jalapenos, olives, tomatoes and avocado was great. The other two in the trio, a Maine shrimp and a lobster, weren't anything to write home about. Neither are a traditional ceviche in that the meat is steamed rather than 'cooked' from the acid in the dish (Anestes actually pointed this out to me) and needed salting.

Pro: Guacamole

'Nuff said.

Pro: Enchiladas

At $17 a dish, the enchiladas drew all of us in for our entrees. Above is the one I ordered, a Maine crab and chipotle shrimp with a creamy green chile sauce. The refried black beans were also tasty and the arugula and pickled red onions were a bold garnish.

The Enchilada de Puerco or pork with caramelized onions was pretty spicy; it almost made my sister's face melt off (or maybe that was all the tequila?), but it had great flavor if you could get past the heat.

Amy's vegetarian stuffed poblano peppers (stuffed with mushrooms, goat cheese, and pumpkin seeds) was so tasty she reportedly didn't even miss the meat.

Pro: Mexican Chipotle Chocolate Torta

I am not a big fan of dense chocolate desserts, so when the ladies sprung for this, I didn't expect to be all that into it. But the spicy chocolate, topped with candied orange peels and almonds was a surprising flavor combination that really got my attention.

Con that ended up being a pro: Classic Vanilla Flan

Look beautiful, tasted awful. Such a disappointment, as custard desserts are my favorite. But when I alerted the server (who was so great throughout the whole meal), he zipped back into the kitchen to try one, quickly seconded my assessment, and removed it from our bill.

Since the enchiladas at Zapoteca are the cheapest entrees (the others being more in the $25-$30 range), I think the role this restaurant will fill best in my dining repertoire is drinks and apps/dessert with friends. Best to sit at the lively bar and sample the great tequila and drink menu and share some nosh, rather than struggle to be heard in the dining room for a full meal.

Happy Hour at the Thirsty Pig

2011-09-22T14:31:00.001-04:00

I was really excited when I saw the Thirsty Pig come into town. Not to dwell on the negative, but Joe's review of the previous business (and some unflattering newspaper profiles) made me cringe and snarl when I walked by the storefront.

And apparently locals felt the same way, since after only a year, we were freed from corporate branding at 37 Exchange Street and instead welcomed into a great bar that focuses on two of my favorite things: beer and tube meat.

So Friday happy hour at the Pig has become a pretty standard way for my friend K. and I to start the evening. $2.50 Shipyard draughts (they're probably out of the Summer by now, sad) and a good layer of meat to lay down before your night of drinking.

I am a sucker for a hot dog, especially one for $3.50 on a grilled bun with a side. The Pig's other sausage offerings include Sweet and Hot Italian, Keilbasa, and chicken. Each one comes with enticing toppings and condiments, although I customize my hot dog with a local combo: mayonnaise and relish.

The grilled bun and the hot hot dog warm the mayonnaise a little bit (stay with me) and the relish provides a nice, tangy crunch. The grilled hot dog is meaty, juicy, and snappy, but not so as to be an impediment to easy eating. (An aside: someone just told me that a foods' ease of eating carries as much weight for him as how it tastes. Mind boggling, but I'm starting to appreciate that.)

The baked beans that came with my dog were a little dry, but that pickle is one of the best I've had around. It's a la Po'boys and Pickles, a half-sour maybe? Very tart.

A very critical part of any grilled tube meat is the bun, and the Pig pulls it off well- a buttered and toasted split top bun. The salty crunch of the bun adds a nice textural element, whereas most soft white rolls simply serve as a vehicle, rather than a player in the overall taste.

On this particular Friday, our Old Port happy hour crawl was cut short by an invite for a sunset sail. Not a bad way to end a week, I'd say. And I'll see you tomorrow, Thirsty Pig!

Zucchini Pasta Ribbons

2011-09-18T08:50:00.000-04:00

A simple recipe to help you use up all the great produce we're experiencing this time of year...

Zucchini ribbon pasta. Use a peeler or a mandolin slicer to get long, thin strips of zucchini and combine with as many or as few fresh vegetables as you have on hand. Here, I used fresh corn off the cob, cherry tomatoes, sliced in half, sauteed sweet Italian sausage, crumbled goat cheese, and chopped basil.

If you saute the zucchini ribbons gently, until they are softened and starting to become translucent, they transform into something more than I expected from squash. Be careful not to overcook them, and you won't even miss the pasta in the final dish. Plus, you can eat twice as much!

O-Rama: Breakfast on the Go

2011-09-12T15:19:00.001-04:00

Breakfast on the go is kind of my specialty this summer. Without boring you with too much detail, there were a lot of changes in my life that led to me losing my appetite and generally being uninterested in food (great for a food blogger, I know!).

So I was happy when I was able to eat anything, regardless of how healthy or socially acceptable it was. My biggest hit was corn tortillas and Quesa Chihuahua quesadillas, introduced to me by my roommate.

The biggest problem with breakfast on the go though, is usually you have to buy it. And at $4-$5 a day, adds up over the week. But a treat for me is the everything (or "super" as they call it) bagel, toasted with lite or veggie cream cheese from Mr. Bagel.

I hit up the one on Forest Ave. which requires careful navigation through the tight, crowded parking lot. But once inside, you're met with a bevy of beautiful bagels, coupled with friendly and efficient service. The only stumble I had on my first time in is navigating the iced coffee station.

I ordered an iced coffee and was cheerfully handed a cup. With no explanation. And iced coffee setups vary widely around town. Some make your iced coffee for you, while others hand you a cup of ice and let you pick from different flavors of chilled coffees.

But Mr. Bagel hands you a cup and leaves you to fend for yourself. There's an ice machine that looks like a home appliance (a bread machine, maybe?) and pitchers of coffee, different flavors and roasts. Uhhh... I actually had to ask for help the first time (excuse me, where's the ice?), but now I'm an old pro.

There's a lot of talk about bagels in Portland. Alls I know is I like the ones that come out of Mr. Bagel: chewy, salty, and very dense without being too bready. For an on the go breakfast, this is a good stop, but I don't recommend eating a bagel while driving to work- it makes a royal mess!

You can read more O-rama: Breakfast on the go reviews from other local bloggers by visiting Portland Food Map.

BBF Giveaway: Hood New England Dairy Cook-Off Tickets & Hotel Stay

2011-09-08T13:33:00.001-04:00

Update: Congrats to 'Pgudas' the winner of two tickets to the New England Dairy Cook-off and a night's stay at the Portland Regency Hotel & Spa. Not surprisingly, their favorite dairy product was butter. And thank you all for participating

The 3rd Annual New England Dairy Cook-off is coming up! Held at Ocean Gateway Terminal in Portland on November 6th, 2011, one home cook stands to win $10,000 in the contest. If you have an original recipe that uses a dairy product, make it a Hood one, and submit your recipe here. Recipes entries are due September 12th; visit www.HoodCookOff.com for more details on how to enter.

Past winners include Katherine Stetson of Bath, NH with her Apple Butter Aebleskivers with Maple Chantilly (Um, Google Image search Aebleskivers and you'll see why she won, yum) and Laurie Lufkin of Essex, MA with New England Buttermilk Pumpkin Cakes with Sour Cream Apple Caramel and Dried Cranberries. This year is Maine's year!

If you aren't the type to make up your own recipes, you can still attend the event by entering to win two tickets to the event. The kind folks at Hood Dairy are giving away two tickets to the event and a one night stay at the Portland Regency Hotel & Spa on November 5th, 2011.

Simply comment on this post with your favorite dairy product (mine: cheese, duh), and I will randomly select one winner on Saturday, September 10th. Entries close on Friday, September 9th at 12am EST. This sweepstakes is open only to those over 18 and legal residents of the United States.

158 Salmon Bagel

2011-09-07T17:06:00.002-04:00

Salmon bagel at 158 Pickett St. Cafe changed my life. I am obsessed!

Boda "very thai" kitchen + bar Review

2011-08-30T13:25:00.001-04:00

When bloggers reviewed all 13 Thai restaurants last year, I missed out on what I heard was the best one of the bunch, Boda. I waited until the last minute (like I do with all my homework assignments) and found myself staring down the 'Closed' sign on Boda's door.

But I've been to Boda several times since the Thai-o-rama, and just never written about it here. So here's to me finishing what I started.

Boda is located at 671 Congress Street, which puts it at Longfellow Square in the ever expanding foodie corner there. It's hip and modern inside, with an open front and seasonal sidewalk tables. Their approach is street-vendor and tapas inspired skewer bar.

And while I can't vouch for the authenticity of the place, I enjoy the small plates approach. Boda's skewers, however, I've never been impressed with. Especially the tofu skewers ($4) ; they just tasted like grill to me.

The Miang Kum Som-oh is not to be missed though. The "bite-sized pummelo fruit salad [is served] on betel leaves w/ toasted coconut, peanut, lime, ginger, shrimp & shallots in a palm sugar dressing ($5)." As you can see, these fruit salad bites include a lot of great Thai flavors, and it comes together nicely in a mix of bitter, crunchy, sweet, and herby.

The group required some convincing to order the quail eggs ($7), but once the little darlings arrived, my friends were quickly won over by the yolks' creamy taste and texture. "Tastes like butter!" someone happily exclaimed.

The Wolf's Neck Beef Salad ($13) is great too; thinly shaved red onion and cucumbers accompany strips of beef with a lime-chili dressing, and plenty of mint and lemongrass to keep it interesting.

I never would have ordered the Kee Mao Noodles ($11 Vegetarian), but my friend K. did and I was impressed with the appeal of the dish. She asked for extra vegetables, and our server offered to ask the kitchen to add different vegetables, rather than just more peppers and onions. So it came with a nice assortment of perfectly stir fried veggies, and the noodles were cooked just right too.

While we didn't have dessert Friday night, but opted to finish our beers (great assortment of beers on tap), I know the coconut cream black rice pudding is delicious. I crave it.

So about Boda, someone said to me, you can get the same things at any Thai restaurant, but for a few dollars cheaper. I'm inclined to disagree, since Boda has consistency that so many other places lack. You can be happy with their curries, their unique appetizers, or a salad. At so many other Thai places, you can only order one or two solid dishes and be disappointed with the rest of your food.

Boda may not be your go-to for your Friday night take-out Pad Thai, but it is a nice place to spend an evening with friends, sharing small plates, catching up, and drinking amongst the hip downtown crowd. So for that, I like it.

Do Not Poke the Pies

2011-08-15T08:44:00.000-04:00

The original PSA

Summer-O-Rama: Lobster Rolls

2011-08-08T08:50:00.000-04:00

This month, local bloggers team up to bring you reviews of lobster rolls around town (see the Portland Food Map for the round up). As usual, I waited until the last minute, so my plans to check out the new food truck at For Williams, Bite Into Maine, were thwarted.

But that's OK, because in the end, the Porthole is a better place to spend a rainy Sunday afternoon than Portland Head Light. I was excited to go, as I've always had a good time and good food at the Porthole. (I've raved about their brunch before.) Plus, I had my good friend A. in tow yesterday, so all signs pointed to yes.

But 3pm is a weird time to go to a restaurant, so there were some service hiccups (no, it's cool, I love going to the bar for refills and extra napkins, thanks).

And when you're excited about a lobster roll- the cool lobster salad mixing with the buttery, salty, crunchy bun- getting a sandwich with two pieces of crumbling, dry brioche is disappointing. With a squeeze of lemon, the lobster salad was nice (nothing but chopped lobster and mayo). But the sandwich bread didn't add anything and didn't even hold up for very long.

But as another friend pointed out later, a lobster roll needs to have a container to be successful. Sandwich style doesn't cut it. All the lobster ends up on your plate instead of in your mouth. The split top bun is necessary, so a departure from it (and a poorly executed one at that) doesn't do anything to improve the classic roll.

I didn't find the best lobster roll in town, but I really enjoyed talking to people about their lobster roll preferences. I've yet to met a person who doesn't have an opinion, and usually they suggest the best rolls are from places up and down the coast. This makes me think that eating a good lobster roll is less about the lobster and the bun and more about the scenery.

While the Porthole is scenic, my longing for a buttered, toasted split top bun overcame the quality of the lobster salad and the view. I'll let the Porthole stick to what it's good at: Sunday Funday and beers on the deck. But my quest for the best (I'll even take good!) lobster roll in Southern Maine continues.

Portland Cupcakes, Round II

2011-08-03T15:41:00.000-04:00

Late last year, I met Dawn of Appetite Portland and Shannon of Edible Obsessions quickly to scarf down several samples of local cupcakes. We went for the easy to procure ones, sold out of a retail shop. After we published our reviews, other bakeries, most run by just one baker, asked to be included in the round up.

Since our options of cupcakes expanded, we expanded the tasters as well, to include Vrylena, Jillian of From Away, and Rebecca of Maine Foodie Finds.

We tasted various flavors from seven different bakeries. Some were dry, some chocolate bitter, others left a greasy, buttery film coating my tongue. The worst tasted artifically fruity; Shannon hit the nail on the head when she said, Fruit Loops.

But despite the sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, there were still reminders that it's a beautiful world out there in the Portland cupcake scene.

My favorite was the first one I tried (which I'm sure affected my palate. I couldn't even get excited about the admittedly great GF Peanut Butter Chocolate cupcake from Bam Bam Bakery that I had last).

This carrot cake with cream cheese frosting from the European Bakery in Falmouth was a revelation. I fell in love with the carrot cake/cream cheese combo all over again. The cake was very moist and the frosting wasn't too sweet, a common ailment for cream cheese frosting.

Another of my favories was the chocolate with chocolate ganache from Sugar Hill Bakery. I'm not a huge chocolate dessert fan, and this one really wowed me. It was a light chocolate ganache, not a thick, heavy fondant-like layer.

I'd say it even beat out our reigning champion, Scratch Bakery in the chocolate cupcake match-up, although Scratch's did win over any other filled cupcake we had. We tried the chocolate pistachio, which was filled with their amazing vanilla pastry cream.

And sadly, YLime Gourmet's cupcakes were improperly handled before our tasting, leaving us with a poor representative. I carried them across town on a hot afternoon, watching sadly as the buttercream frosting melted and streamed off the cupcakes.

However, I did sample one of YLime's chocolate, coconut with caramel icing from Coffee by Design. It was amazing. I'm sure if we'd had a fresh sample at the tasting, it would have ranked very against the competators.

Cupcakes; tasted! Verdict: seek out Y-Lime's, Scratch Baking Co's, Sugar Hill's, and European Bakery.

BBF Travels: Duck Donuts, Outer Banks

2011-07-27T08:40:00.000-04:00

Mmm... donuts on vacation, what more could you want? I'm down in the Outer Banks of North Carolina with my family for a week. (Much more successful than last year's trip, in which we had to evacuate for a hurricane.)

So we of course have to sample all the local fried dough. My sister was virtuous and ran to the donut shop; I sat on the porch and drank coffee until it was time to go meet her with the car.

While Duck Donuts has several locations throughout the Outer Banks, we're staying in Duck, so we visited the original shop- a tiny little storefront tucked into a soundside row of shops.

And you gotta love a place that displays their process proudly (like taffy pulling or popcorn shops). I particularly enjoyed watching the exuder drop dough into the river of hot oil, as the donuts floated along like rubber ducks in a Blue Danube carnival game.

Duck Donuts has lots of options for flavoring your donuts, which they do to order. Glazes, sprinkles, coconuts, etc. But we went with chocolate glaze and cinnamon sugar. I feel the cinnamon sugar is the true test of a good donut.

These donuts are almost like a potato donut (seems like something they would make in Maine). They're cake donuts, but they are so moist. Usually cake donuts are dry and unappealing, but these were pretty awesome.

And, of course, it helps that they were fresh out of the fryer and enjoyed on a porch overlooking the ocean. Tough life.

Taco Trio in South Portland

2011-07-17T08:46:00.000-04:00

I'd been hearing so much about Taco Trio that I became a little obsessed with it (also, it's really easy to find yourself chanting, tacos! tacos! tacos!, a phenomenon I feel will not stop with all the new taco joints opening).

Last weekend, A. and I biked into South Portland and were really excited to find Taco Trio. However, they were closed (Sundays). This further contributed to the obsession.

So last week, we called all our girlfriends and piled into my roomie's car (chanting, no doubt). Taco Trio was to be had.

I ordered a trio of tacos ($9): carne asada, chorizo, and pescado. The best part about the tacos is the salsa bar. I sampled a few and found the hot ones to actually be hot. I settled on a medium roasted tomato salsa (the one in front of the sour cream in the photo below).

Unfortunately, none of my tacos stood out as my favorite. The steak was tasty, but a little dry (the salsa and fresh lime helped), the chorizo and potato was good, but again a little dry, and too sweet. I guess I'd have to go with the fish taco, but felt it was overwhelmed by the amount of lime sour cream-mayo it was topped with.

A. loved her carnitas taco (seen in the middle with pico de gallo and mango salsas), and I snuck a bite. The seared pork was crunchy and tasted great. I'll go with that one next time.

Overall, I'm sure I'll return to Taco Trio. It's very bikable from Portland (although I don't know if eating three tacos and biking around would be very wise), and if you head out there on Thursdays, you can check out the new South Portland Farmers' Market nearby between 3pm and 7pm.

I enjoyed my tacos, but wasn't necessarily blown away by any of the flavors I experienced. Everything was good, not great. For Mexican food in Maine though, as long as we're not approaching Margarita's or On the Border territory, I'm happy.

Oh, and I fell in love with Horchata, so I will definitely be returning for some of that.

Summer-o-rama: Strawberries

2011-07-11T12:07:00.002-04:00

Strawberries are here! Summer is here! Aaaand... I'm officially a bad blogger. When the temp rises above 75 degrees, and the sun shines for more than two days in a row, I'm MIA from the online community. I'm still eating, cooking, and generally cavorting around town, but the incentive to write-up my good times is lower when the warmth and waves beckon.

This month's Summer-o-rama theme is strawberries. And I've been strawberry picking, made strawberry jam, and have frozen several pints of berries. I fully intend to make this Pickled Strawberry Jam recipe from Christina Tsoi of the momofuku empire.

Any minute now... after I sail, bowl, have happy hour on the deck, meet friends for lawn sports, bike to Taco Trio, you get the idea.

But if you've made a unique strawberry jam, let me know how it turn out? I am totally intrigued by adding vinegar to strawberries, especially the chocolate or espresso balsamic reductions from Vervacious.

I especially appreciate this blurb from the bottom of the Pickled Strawberry Jam recipe:

"Serving suggestions: Spread the jam on toast, use it as a filling for crepes or cakes, or swirl it into sweet buns or coffeecake. Mix it with an equal amount of cream cheese to make a spread. Or it may be mixed with an equal amount of butter for spreading or baking, or for blending with confectioners’ sugar and a pinch of salt to make a frosting for cake or cinnamon buns."

I always struggle to find uses for jam other than eating it on toast. Which is not a bad way to eat it, but I loved all these other creative ideas for use.

Please visit Portland Food Map to see what other bloggers had to say about strawberries in our Summer-o-rama round up.

Roasted Corn Avocado Basil Salad

2011-07-05T14:48:00.001-04:00

I went to visit my folks in Maryland this weekend, where summer is in full swing. I wore my bathing suit all weekend- in the sprinkler, the kiddie pool, and the creek (all with my 5-year-old nephew). I sat on the screened in porch and drank wine and saw fireworks on Saturday night. It was all pretty rad.

But the best part about being in an area that 3 weeks of summer weather ahead of Maine? The produce.

On the way back from the airport, I insisted that we pull over at the roadside stand that was selling tomatoes, melons, corn, and peaches. We bought a quart of perfectly ripe peaches and a half a dozen ears of local sweet corn.

And then there was this lunch: roasted corn and avocado salad with basil white balsamic vinaigrette.

I was inspired by a roasted corn salad that had come with my mom's fried catfish at dinner out the night before. Seeking to lighten up our lunch, due to the heat, I roasted the corn and some zucchini on the grill and served them over chopped romaine and avocados. My mom added the raspberries in at the end, and it all came together so nicely.

And then later in the weekend, this happened. Steamed crabs and Yuengling, y'all. I can die happy now.

Basil White Balsamic Vinaigrette

5-10 basil leaves, chopped (depends on the size, 5 big or 10 small)

3 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

4 tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper

Muddle basil in vinegar and let stand for 10 minutes. Whisk in sugar, salt, and pepper. Slowly pour oil in a thin stream into the vinegar mixture while whisking. Serve over grilled corn and zucchini on a bed of romaine lettuce with chopped avocados and raspberries.

Portland Greek Festival

2011-06-26T21:39:00.000-04:00

The Greek Food Festival was this past Thursday through Saturday. And yes, that's the title of it. I like that they don't try to make it about any other aspect of the culture than the food. We're just here for the loukoumades.

My friends live right across the street from the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, so every year they have a party at their house. It's genius, because you can slip across the street, make a beeline for the gyros, and then return to your beer and game of Cornhole.

While the tent is a festive place, with music, and lots of socializing, I'm just here for the food.

It's like Sophie's Choice in there, deciding what to order. Fortunately, you can do like I did and just get one of most everything. With the Greek fest happening once a year, why pick?

But my favorite is the gyro. Hands down. Soft pitas, warm beef, and a ridiculous amount of tzatziki. The only thing I would like is fries inside, like they do in Greece. But in Greece, they wouldn't have given you a bathtub of tzatziki to go with your gyro, so it's a fair trade.

And the baklava, ohhh, the baklava. Why didn't I get a stockpile? Who are these Greek grandmothers making this stuff and how do I get to know them?

And it's actually OK that I can't get loukoumades more frequently than once a year. These donuts, covered in honey, nuts, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugar are to die for. They disappeared way to fast. And being right across the street was dangerous, as we were tempted to go get 4 more orders.

Should I start going to the Greek Orthodox Church as a ploy to get more Greek pastries? I'm not above that, you know. But see you next year, Greek fest!

Can It Foward Day: August 13, 2011

2011-06-23T11:18:00.000-04:00

Get ready, kids. Canning season is upon us. Strawberries are coming out at the markets, Pick Your Own fields are opening, the Cape Elizabeth Strawberry Festival is this weekend.

Don't know where to begin? Take a canning class with me (only $10 and locations around Southern and mid-coast Maine). Then, practice with your friends, especially on August 13th, so you can be a part of Can It Forward Day.

If you're someone who likes to learn from the Internets, check out my How to Can Dilly Beans post or tutorials on the National Center For Home Food Preservation's site.

Happy canning, and please share what you plan on putting up this summer!

Novare Res Japadogs

2011-06-20T21:43:00.000-04:00

red snappy dogs. nori. pickled ginger. kewpi mayo. sesame seeds. wasabi. beer.

oh yes.

BBF Travels: the Squealing Pig in Ptown, Mass

2011-06-17T09:29:00.001-04:00

I was in Provincetown, Mass on Cape Cod last weekend, for the first time since I sailed there on a boat with kids. I was excited to do all the things that looked fun the first time around, but that I hadn't been able to partake in. Namely, drinking.

On my first visit, fresh off the boat, we see an underground bar called the Foc'sle. Being boat nerds, we were so excited to come back and try it. So when I found a gallery called the Foc'sle in P'town this time around, I thought I'd ask the guy about the bar. (OK, and oddly enough, this Foc'sle gallery is owned by the Rogues Gallery guy. Small world!)

He pointed me to the Squealing Pig and told me some confusing story about owners and signs and this place. OK, whatever, guy, I'm just gonna go drink beer and eat oysters there. I'd already scoped this place as some place I'd like to hang out. Oysters? Belgian beer? I'm there.

So we stopped in for a happy hour bite (before returning later for Game 6 and 'Gansetts). My mom, my friend A. and I ordered up pints, a dozen Wellfleet oysters and a bowl of fries dusted with Parm and truffle oil.

Is there anything better than those three things in a nice bar with the people you love? I think not.

Our first half dozen of local Wellfleets was served with cocktail sauce with lots of fresh horseradish. The next half dozen, we got with wasabi, ginger, and soy sauce. The second batch of toppings was amazing, complimenting the oysters, rather than overwhelming them like cocktail sauce tends to do.

I was so tempted to put this pint glass in my purse, but was a good girl and did not (it has the Squealing Pig logo on the other side).

This is the summer brew, a hefeweizen from Cape Cod Beer in Hyannis. I'm really starting to get into hefes, and this one is a great summer seasonal. For me, summer beers can taste too filtered and devoid of taste. But this one was rich, yet light, and full of hefeweizen flavors.

This place would fit right in in Portland, but since Ptown has a little more, um, eccentric bent, it seemed like a rarity to me. I was so happy to have found it (and just two blocks from our place on Commercial Street!), and was totally won over.

"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig."

Ice Cream-o-rama

2011-06-13T05:00:00.014-04:00

The June O-Rama installation has a summer theme: gelato and ice cream, and so I stopped by Bard Coffee to try Gelato Fiasco's gelato affogato.

I'm happy to have had the chance to try Brunswick-based Gelato Fiasco. It seems I'm always hearing about all the great things in Brunswick, but since I'm loathe to leave Portland, I've yet to experience El Camino, Lion's Pride Pub, Frontier Cafe, or Great Impasta.

So I love to see a local vendor offer Gelato Fiasco, so I can stay in my Old Port comfort zone, yet taste some great gelato. Since Saturday was a rainy, blah day, I went with salted caramel affogato (with a shot of espresso poured over it).

You can see the sea salt caramel on the left in the above photo, next to Grape Nuts (bleh, that flavor is lost on me).

But the salted caramel affogato was awesome. Caramel (salted or not) can be a little cloying, but the bitter espresso flavor balanced out all the sugar. Every now and then a little salt came through after a satisfyingly crunchy grain.

And Bard Coffee is so fantastic. Everyone there is so friendly, patrons and staff alike. And on this particular day, Pete Miller was there with his acoustic guitar and his band mate with an upright bass. I curled into a leather sofa, listening to the great music, sipping/spooning my concoction, being so happy to be home in Portland.

Portland Fermenting Workshops

2011-06-08T09:48:00.001-04:00

Fermentation is one of the oldest forms of food preservation, and lately, there's been a resurgence in the popularity of fermented foods. Many people are interested in the taste and health benefits, but don't know how to ferment successfully. Fortunately, nature does the work if we provide the right conditions for fermentation.

If you're interested in learning how to ferment and taking home a quart of started veggies, check out the Fermentation Workshop Series I'm teaching at the Urban Farm Fermentory in Portland. Our first class is kimchi, next Wednesday night. For $20 you'll receive 2.5 hours of instruction and take home recipes, fact sheets, and a quart of started kimchi.

In the meantime, check out the batch of kimchi I started in preparation for next week's class. I am following the recipe from Wild Fermentation by Sandor Ellix Katz and it takes about a week to fully ferment. In case you've never had it, kimchi is a spicy Korean condiment. It's slightly sour, tangy, and spicy. And it's a great way to use up all the random vegetables in your fridge or leftover from your CSA share (you can add green beans, peas, seaweed, Jerusalem artichokes, etc).

To start, I brined all of the vegetables (Napa cabbage, carrots, and radishes) overnight in a strong salt water brine- which helps to soften the vegetables. The next day, I drained them, reserved the brine, and tasted them. They were unpleasantly salty, so I rinsed them well.

Then I finely chopped up one large shallot, half a yellow onion, two Serrano peppers, and three garlic cloves. I also grated three tablespoons of ginger (which is a lot of ginger!). This spice paste is where you can make it as spicy as you'd like. You can add more of any of the above ingredients, as well as green onions and leeks.

I mixed the spice paste and the sliced vegetables together well and packed them tightly into a quart jar. There was a bit of brine emerging from the vegetables, but not enough to cover them, so I added in some of the reserved brine.

Then I weighted down the vegetables with a water-filled 12oz. canning jar and placed it on a plate to catch any brine overflow. I'll leave this on the counter (at about 68 degrees F) for a week and then move it into the fridge for longer term storage.

Check on your fermenting veggies daily; taste them (with clean hands!), and make sure they are fully submerged below the brine. Any exposed veggies will be vulnerable to mold.

Right now, the salt is inhibiting any toxic microbial growth (aka the nasties), and in a few days, the bacteria lactobacilli will begin to produce lactic acid through the fermentation reaction. Once the bacteria have used up all the sugars and starches, the process will be complete and the acidity level will make the product safe for long term storage (4 to 6 months in the fridge). If I wanted to, I could heat-process this product in a boiling water bath, but that would kill all the gut-friendly organisms (aka probiotics).

If you'd like to get your hands clean (heh) with me to learn more about this process, I hope to see you at the Ferm next Wednesday. Registration can be taken online through the UFF's Skills Classes page, and there are plenty of other fermented topics to explore all summer long.

Maine Foodie Tours

2011-06-03T12:03:00.000-04:00

I have a new summer gig that I'm excited to share with you- I'm a guide with the Maine Foodie Tours in Portland! These tours are a lot of fun, whether you're a local or from away, and the best part, of course, you'll get to hang out with me for 3 hours.

The tour I'm guiding is a 2-1/2 hour walking tour of the Old Port. We'll stop into local merchants and sample their products, while learning about the history (culinary and otherwise) of Portland and the food industries that drive our state economy.

And as you can see from the above picture of samples at the Vervacious stop, you get a wide variety of Maine-made products, including seafood, sweets, beer, mead, and cheese.

The tour covers about 1.5 miles in town and really highlights what makes our town and state so special. Not that I've seen them all, but I feel like few towns do as good of a job integrating local products with the tourist and service economy.

On the Maine Foodie Tour, you get a chance to learn about these industries (cheese, blueberries, craft beer, potatoes, seafood) while sampling the final product in a locally-owned shop. I mean, it doesn't get much better than that, right?

And you get the chance to watch a grown man play with a plastic lobster- where else can you find that? (OK, don't answer that question- I know the answer.)

And I'll admit that the first time I heard of the tour, I was a little apprehensive. Like, have you ever been on a duck boat tour? Sure, they show off the great city we live in, but I wouldn't be caught dead on one.

But after a few minutes on the Foodie Tour, I knew that this was something I could own and be proud of. I'd love nothing more than the opportunity to show off the rich cultural and culinary scene in Portland to both visitors and locals who seek to learn more about their hometown.

And for $41, you get a sample at each 7 stops, and 2 1/2 hours of edu-tainment. In addition to the walking culinary tour, there's a trolly tour and a walking chocolate tour of both Portland and Freeport.

So if you're looking for something to do when you visit Portland this summer or a unique way to entertain those out of town guests, check out the Maine Foodie Tours and maybe I'll see you on a tour!

BBF Travels: Cappy's Chowder House in Camden

2011-06-01T16:05:00.000-04:00

This past weekend I went camping in Acadia National Park on Mount Desert Island. Much fun was had, from campfire-side beer drinking, to lawn sports in Bar Harbor, to an aborted, but still fun, hike (due to the fog/mist).

Fortunately the weather cleared for the second half of the weekend, as we toodled back down the coast. We stopped in Searsport to get our thrift on and in Camden to say hi to my sailor friend Ryan, who had just come back in from a windjamming sail on the Lewis R. French.

He gave us the local scoop on the best pizza in town, but it being Memorial Day, it was closed (OK, Memorial Day and lunch time). So we hit up Cappy's Chowder House, a place I'd been for happy hour fried food and beers.

And while we were a bit miffed by the tourist prices, we had a good lunch. I went all in for the haddock Reuben with curly fries. It was delicious. A bit intense, but with Morses' sauerkraut, fried fish, and melted cheese, you can't really go wrong. It even reheated well the next day for a leftover lunch.

A. had the fish tacos, a much needed redo after our weird fish taco burritos in Bar Harbor (Gringo's, I'm looking at you).

And while not pictured, S. and K. had an amazing looking peanut butter chocolate pie and the 'Common Ground' burger, a veggie burger, respectively. We enjoyed some local brews (me a Shipyard Summer and A. a special Shipyard brew made for Cappy's). And of course, everyone was really nice to us, and we caught this awesome face full of nautical crap on our way down the stairs.

This place makes a great drinking hole and a stop for fried food, but be prepared to leave about $3-$4 more dollars behind than in a local joint, since they're working the tourist angle.

Lemonade Day Recipe Contest

2011-05-26T07:10:00.002-04:00

Last Saturday, I was a judge at the Lemonade Day Recipe Contest at the Children's Museum and Theater of Maine. I was entertained by nonchalantly answering, 'Oh, judging a little kids' lemonade contest,' when asked what my plans were for the first nice Saturday in a while.

The contest was a kick-off for National Lemonade Day, June 5th, where kids across the country are going to set up their carefully planned lemonade stands. They've been testing recipes, creating business plans, marketing schemes, and budgets.

The grand prize winner of the recipe contest (selected from 5 finalists out of 16 submissions) received a serving pitcher for their lemonade stand.

The judges ranged from a teacher, a Parks & Recreations Department supervisor, to a chef, and me, a food blogger. Lemon Head there, in the background, was the (slightly creepy?) mascot for the day.

After all the sips had been slurped, and all the contestants quizzed about their business acumen, the judges retired to the judging room (aka the children's play kitchen outside the theater).

And in the end, we were all won over by Haley and Emma's "Lemon Love" pink lemonade. These cute sophomores from Bowdoin and Topsham created the best tasting recipe, with fresh raspberries and slices of lemon. Absolutely delicious, and perfect for the almost hot day we had last Saturday.

Congratulations to Emma and Haley, and good luck with your lemonade stand!

Haley & Emma's "Lemon Love" Pink Lemonade

Simple Syrup:

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup water

Ingredients:

2-1/2 cups fresh squeezed lemon juice

1-1/2 cups "superfine" sugar

2 cups 100% cranberry/raspberry juice

1-1/2 quarts cold water

4 lemons thinly sliced for garnish

1 pint fresh raspberries for garnish

1 bag ice

Make a simple syrup. Bring 1 cup granulated sugar and 1 cup water to a boil in medium sauce pan over high heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Let cool 10 minutes on stove top, then refrigerate until chilled. (1 hour)

While simple syrup is cooling, juice lemons. For maximum juice place washed lemons in microwave for 30 seconds. Roll lemons with hand FIRMLY on counter. Cut in half and place one half at a time on juicer. Squeeze, squeeze, squeeze until you can't get anymore juice out. Repeat until you get 2-1/2 cups. Pour lemon juice through a fine mesh strainer to remove the pulp (if desired) and any seeds.

In large pitcher add lemon juice, 1-1/2 cups superfine sugar, 2 cups cranberry/raspberry juice, simple syrup and 1-1/2 quarts cold water. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate until ready to serve - up to 1 day.

To serve, in each glass add ice cubes and garnish with lemon slices and fresh raspberries.

Note: 4 small lemons will yield about 1/2 cup juice.

Makes 3 quarts.

Petite Jacqueline Review

2011-05-15T11:11:00.000-04:00

I'm sensing an upheaval.

As you may know, Local 188 has been my go-to restaurant in town for a spur of the moment, quality, moderately priced dinner. I know their white fish special will always be good, they have great small plate starts, their cocktails and wine list are great, and the ambiance can fit most any occasion.

But Petite Jacqueline is sneaking up into those categories. It's name has started to spring to my tongue faster than Local's in response to the question, where should we eat tonight?

While this may be a short-lived phenomenon, as I've only been to Bistro PJ twice, whereas Local has stood the test of time, I believe the restaurant has the makings of a 'short list' restaurant. That is, one I'll recommend to out-of-towners, one for friends looking to entertain, and one that I can count on to deliver a reasonably priced, great meal whether it be a Wednesday or a Saturday.

Petit Jacqueline focuses on French classics- without a twist, just straight-up. I heard someone describe the menu as entry level culinary school 'French Cooking 101,' which, to me, is not a detraction. In Portland, there are very few 'classics' in the new restaurant category- everyone is reaching for something new. But Steve and Michelle Correy (of five-fifty five) are turning out classics that are simple and good, and can be unexpected if you (like me) are not too familiar with well-executed French classics.

The menu is heavy on the meat- rich preparations of charcuterie, from the trotters ($8) you see above to the charcuterie plate ($9), on this night including pork pate and chicken liver, bacon-wrapped terrine.

The trotters were not my favorite, served cold, and a little too 'springy' (ie. too cartilaginous), but the country-style pork pate was silky smooth and creamy.

Entrees are reasonably priced, from $12 to $26, with $18 being the average. M. returned to his favorite, the Tartare Frites, a blue plate special on Thursday nights. The mound of steak tartare is gently seasoned (not too much truffle oil, like some) and served with a sous vide egg that creates a richness within this dish.

And the frites are pretty spot on (my ultimate test being whether I still want to eat them once they've grown cold).

On this particular night, I tried the Steak Frites, but found it did not surpass the Fluke Meuniere as my favorite entree to date. The steak is a hangar steak, and while it was cooked and seasoned well, the cut of meat just wasn't to my liking. This is not to say I didn't enjoy it, but it's memory didn't follow me around the way the fluke's did.

This meal was enjoyed with a carafe of their house white (C'est La Vie, $11) and finished off with a scoop of espresso ice cream. I've also had their banana Nutella hazelnut crepes (delicious) and would expect that they make a stellar creme brulee.

Only after dining at Bistro PJ twice, did I realize that this restaurant is doing what few other new restaurants in Portland have done. While many restaurants open with buzz, as this one did, few deliver on expectations. Petite Jacqueline seems as though it will appear regularly in the places I visit when I feel I've earned a nice meal out and don't want to risk disappointment.

Burger-o-rama: Homemade Burger

2011-05-09T12:00:00.000-04:00

Last burger post for a while- thankfully not because we are burnt out on them, a la Thai-o-rama. But no, after a diner, a pub, and a fine dining burger, time to put your meat where you mouth is (uh, what?).

Best homemade burger.

And let me just say, usually the best burger is one someone else makes for me. That's the reason we go out to eat- no? To taste things that we are incapable of (for whatever reason- lack of time, money, or skill) and to have someone else clean up the dishes.

But here is my attempt on the eve of a great late spring Sunday Funday in Portland. I sourced good ingredients: Seaside cheddar (described by the cheese guy at Whole Foods as the perfect burger cheddar), a mix of ground sirloin (Whole Foods) and local ground beef (Farmers' Market), maple dry rub bacon (Whole Foods), and Claussen pickles.

Pressing rounds of meat between parchment resulted in thin, even thickness burger patties. A little bit on the grill (in which 3 women are tested in their charcoal lighting, burger flipping skills), topping with cheddar, hungrily consumed sitting on the porch drinking Geary's Summer (the best local summer brew, in my opinion).

Really, the best burger is one enjoyed with friends, and if you need some help with your burger recipes this summer, check out Food & Wine's 10 Favorite Burger Recipes.

District Burger

2011-05-05T11:40:00.011-04:00

This burger-o-rama thing is making me pay way more attention to people's burger recommendations. I almost accosted a friend-of-a-friend at the Snug when I overhead him say some new place had "the best burger in town." This from a self-proclaimed burger aficionado.

He was talking about the burger at District. And since that night, I've heard that superlative used many times to describe the bacon cheeseburger at the hot new place in town.

So M. and I trotted down to the bar at District for their burger. It's funny to go to a place just for one thing. Do you take a menu? Pretend to consider other items? Or cast aside all pretense and say, "we both want the burger." Yes. Decision.

We started with drinks- I forget this one's creative name, but I tried the Stoli, lemon, ginger simple syrup, rosemary cocktail. It didn't taste like much. Maybe I'd had gum in the car on the ride over. It seemed silly to send it back- it had alcohol in it after all; but it was so neutral it might as well have been Stoli and soda.

But burgers! Yes, beautiful burgers. This burger had the ultimate bun (buttered, toasted Brioche), tender beef, (with three colors as a good medium rare should be), soft butter lettuce, and salty cheese and bacon.

And that was the hang-up: too much salt. M. and I stopped eating after a few bites in to talk about how salty everything was. We counted salty cheese, bacon, butter, meat crust, and mayonnaise.

Salt overload. That drink that tasted like water came in handy.

We told the bar back- I really hope he told the kitchen. And that everyone who agrees with me does too. Because this burger could sing, if the kitchen put. down. the salt shaker.

I have not crossed the District burger off the list, and will try again soon. Hopefully it's evolving. Their brunch certainly indicates that they will perfect this burger.

Pioneer Woman's Sesame Noodles

2011-04-30T15:15:00.003-04:00

Are you familiar with the Pioneer Woman? Is that a bit like asking 'are you familiar with Oprah?' The Pioneer Woman is a blogger in Oklahoma who has spun a nice story about how she came to be a ranch wife and mother.

She has three books (two cookbooks, one childrens'), gives away All Clad cookware sets, Kitchen Aid mixers (actually had four custom painted mixers donated for her giveaways), and reaches millions of readers. She's like a blog guru. If one's into that sort of thing.

But as with all popular things, there is backlash. Hate on her made up persona, hate on her "brand," hate on her cooking.

I'm gonna stay out of all of that. But I will tell you that I've made two of her recipes that I like very much. One is an Asian marinated flank steak and the other is these sesame noodles.

Both involve soy sauce, honey, chili flake, sesame oil, ginger, and garlic. All good things.

And while these noodles seem to verge into junk food territory, aside from the sodium (and general lack of vegetables), I don't think they're too bad for you. But still they seem like late night or single food.

They come together quickly and disappear just as fast. I'd imagine the variations are endless (adding meat and all sorts of veggies), but so far I've only stuck with the simple version. Spicy, salty, full of flavor. Just like I like it.

Simple Sesame Noodles

Adapted from the Pioneer Woman

1/4 lb. thin spaghetti or Vietnamese rice noodles

1/2 cup soy sauce

3 tablespoons grated ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon chili flake, or more

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

chopped green onions

sesame seeds, for garnish

Boil noodles until al dente in salted water. While noodles are boiling, mix soy sauce, ginger, garlic, chili flake, sugar and whisk together well. Whisk in sesame oil, vinegar, and vegetable oil (in a slow, thin stream until fully incorporated). Drain noodles and toss with sauce. Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds. Eat!!

Giada's Almond Citrus Olive Oil Cake

2011-04-26T08:53:00.000-04:00

Did you know that big grocery stores are closed in Maine on Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas? This makes no sense to me. But apparently, as a leftover "blue law" (laws that enforce Sunday as a day of rest), retail stores over 5,000 feet are to be closed on these three Christian holidays.

I thought Maine was 'Open For Business' now? No? Whatever.

The end result of this law is that you get an Easter potluck full of dishes made from Colucci's, Paul's Food Center, and Rosemont Bakery. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

I made this Almond Citrus Olive Oil cake because I had all the ingredients and didn't have to go to the store. That never happens- especially not with baked items. But the stars aligned, and the cake was good.

Does that sound like a line from Genesis? Unintentional.

But divine cake. Great for a potluck (unless it's a potluck where the only other dessert is a perfectly light, flaky, cool, creamy lemon icebox cake that trumps your cake).

The cake is moist, because of the olive oil with a sweet, crunchy almond powdered sugar topping. Served with a citrus compote (or blood orange marmalade like I did), I just found out this cake is also good for breakfast.

I slightly adapted a Giada de Laurentiis recipe, to make it a bunt cake. I read in the reviews of the recipe that when baked in a 8" cake pan, the cake overflows. I recommend reducing the cooking time if you chose to bake in a bunt as well (I baked it for 35 minutes and it was slightly overdone, but still great).

Almond Citrus Olive Oil Cake

From Giada de Laurentiis

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons orange zest
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/4 cup whole milk
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted, coarsely crumbled
Powdered sugar, for sifting

Preheat oven to 350*F. Lightly oil a bunt pan. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl), beat sugar, eggs, and zest together until pale and fluffy.

Continue to mix while adding milk slowly until fully combined. Slowly add oil (drizzle in a thin stream) until fully combined.

Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Pour batter into pan and sprinkle with chopped, toasted almonds. Bake for 30 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Let cake cool for 10 minutes; remove from cake pan onto a cooling rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with blood orange marmalade.

District Brunch Review

2011-04-21T15:10:00.010-04:00

My dear friend Uke introduced me to brunch at District. I have elevated her to 'dear' status, because of the food there. Without her, I would have just read any number of reviews that left me with the impression that it was good, but that I shouldn't rush over. Not negative, but not get. there. now (unlike Petite Jacqueline- get there now- or rather after I've been sat).

But I'm here to set the record straight, although brunch is as far as I can elaborate. But for brunch in Portland? District. Go to District. I ordered a Bloody Mary to start and perused their short-ish menu, which has a mix of breakfast and lunch items. Was tempted by the Soft Shell Crab Benedict special (until I saw the big X through it), but then landed on All You Can Eat Chicken and Waffles.

I'll let that sink in for a minute.

Uke was nice enough to share her charcuterie plate with me, since I was the only one at the table who didn't get a starter (saving all the room in my stomach, you see). We all enjoyed the short rib terrine (front), the rabbit rillette (upper right), and the lambs tongue and pear confit.

Only complaint? Not enough toast. Why?!?

OK, I'm delaying this, putting it off, teasing you.

Here's Uke's steak and eggs, the best looking steak and egg I've seen a while. Didn't ask her how it was, because, well....

Blam.

Because chicken and waffles, fool!

Chicken: tender, moist, boneless, but not in a creepy chicken tender way, crispy cornmeal coating. Waffle: well, it was a waffle, but great base for the real maple syrup, chicken, and housemade sriracha.

So, all you can eat for $12, but I sadly (so sad!) only made it through one order. Was a struggle to finish even. Belly hurt for the rest of the day (OK, until I had Sunday Funday chicken wings at Binga's that night). But I woke up the next day, and said, I want chicken and waffles... and pretty much every day for the rest of the week.

It's almost the weekend again, anyone want to go to District with me?

Two Lights Lobster Shack

2011-04-19T10:13:00.001-04:00

The Two Lights Lobster Shack in Cape Elizabeth is open for the season! That must mean that warmer weather is approaching. You wouldn't know it from the weather forecast (uh, does 51 degrees count as warm?), but I'm all for signs of summer.

Two Lights sits on the Cape, which sticks waaaay out into the Atlantic Ocean (well, compared to Portland), so the view is very dramatic. Crashing waves, wheeling gulls, lighthouses, all that.

The decor inside the shack is pretty dramatic too- old wooden tools and bridle bits. Lots to look at while you wait for your food.

So you order at the counter from a pretty standard menu: sandwiches (including PB&J- but, why??), salads, "boats" (or platters), soups, and sides. While the call of fried shrimp is always heard, this time I went for the big guns: the lobster roll.

(And a whoopie pie, of course.) The lobster roll here is served as all traditional ones are: on a buttered, toasted, split-top bun. It's stuffed with lobster tail, claw, and knuckle meat, and topped with a pickle, a glob of mayonnaise, and a dusting of cayenne. Under all the meat, there's a few iceberg lettuce shreds lurking.

After I awkwardly spread my mayonnaise around, attempting to evenly distribute it (futile), the roll disappeared pretty fast. Lobster rolls are great because they're a nice blend of cool lobster meat, and the buttered toasted bun. A little crunch from the lettuce and the crispy bun provides nice texture contrast, but it's all about the lobster.

If I'd made this roll at home, I'd have chopped the lobster up smaller, since I don't like to drag the contents of my sandwich out with a bite. But some people might like the bigger pieces of lobster. I found it, again, awkward.

Next time, I'm sure I'll heed the call of the fried shrimp, and I'm certainly looking forward to being able to eat outside, despite seagulls competing for my food.

Oh, don't you worry, Two Lights Lobster Shack, I sure will "Come Again."

Cupcakes with Salted Carmel Buttercream, Bacon Praline

2011-04-15T12:00:00.000-04:00

Does anyone else use baking in lieu of therapy? Or as stress relief? And I'm not just talking about the part where you eat a bunch of sugar and butter to feel better.

But I've found the act of baking- following a recipe and meticulously (sometimes ::cough::) measuring ingredients takes my mind off of a bad day. Or a series of unfortunate events, if you will.

So when I'd had a few bumps along the road one morning, I decided I'd make a batch of the trendiest baked goods I could muster. Cupcakes to start. Salted caramel in the frosting. Bacon praline on top.

Done.

I used Joy the Baker's recipe for Brown Sugar Cupcakes (side note: I love Joy the Baker, check her out; she's fun and lives in California with a cute cat).

Give Me Some Oven provided the recipe for the Salted Caramel Buttercream frosting, and Alton Brown the recipe for the bacon praline.

I apologize in advance for introducing these things into your life. They might take over. But sometimes you just need to retreat from life into the kitchen and let the trends guide you.

Do it. I won't judge.

Burgers Around Portland: Gritty's

2011-04-10T20:59:00.001-04:00

The third installment of Portland burger reviews brought me to a classic in the heart of the Old Port: Gritty McDuff's brew pub. Our topic this month was pub burgers; see the Portland Food Map round-up for more reviews.

I've grown to love Gritty's in my three years here in Maine. It's just busy enough to make you feel like you're hanging out where the cool kids are, but not too busy that you can't find a seat. The food is good, standard pub fare, the house made beer is good- it's a nice place to catch the Jerks of Grass and share a pitcher with friends.

It's also the home of Wednesday night burger specials ($5.99, regularly $8.75), and it's a pretty decent burger at that.

This most recent dining experience was in Freeport, a more family oriented Gritty's location (in that it was crawling with children when we arrived). The menu is similar, with some different additions, such as these summer squash fries we started with. They were on the salty side, but paired with some spicy mayonnaise, they were a good way to temper our hunger.

My burger came cooked the rare/medium rare I requested, after some difficulty. I discovered in the Portland location that there is actually a rare/medium rare button. This time around, I asked for the rare/mid-rare split, but experienced some push back from our server. He wanted me to pick one. Oddly, he said if I asked for it in between, the likelihood increased of the kitchen getting it wrong.

Whatever. I just don't want an overcooked burger. And sometimes that's a struggle in Portland bars. Overcooked meat really bums me out. Fortunately, this was not one of those times. Even though the bartender forced me to pick one or the other, he used the split button and I got a perfectly cooked burger.

I must rave about their fries. They're totally from a freezer bag, but they are my favorite kind of bar fry. The kind that's good even when they're cold. They really do it for me in a trashy food kind of way. The fries here are crispy, salty, and full of potatoey-goodness.

My only gripe about their burger is that it comes with lettuce and tomato, while anything else is considered an extra (read: $.75 upcharge)- including raw onion. So this can be an expensive endeavor if you want a bacon cheeseburger plus onion.

Next Wednesday night: you, Gritty's burger special. Do it. You won't regret it. You may not come away thinking that it was the best gourmet burger you've ever had. But assuming they don't overcook it (and they've been pretty consistent in my experience), you'll get a great meal for under $20- that includes your beer too, of course.

Brunch at the Porthole

2011-04-05T13:59:00.000-04:00

I have so many thoughts on brunch. I am getting a little worn out on musing about the weekend meal that is brunch though. There's just so much to consider: the food, the wait, the price, the coffee, the boozy drinks (if indeed it's that kind of brunch)...

Sigh.

I know, poor me. But to put my brunch fatigue to rest: the Porthole. Good food, no wait, great prices, hot coffee, and plenty of Portland character.

I have been many times, but a recent visit solidified my love affair. Nothing special happened, just that moment where you know- yes, yes I can eat brunch here many times.

You've had that moment, right?

My recent plate of biscuits and gravy wasn't even my favorite (I've yet to meet a restaurant version that beats my Bittman Cheddar Biscuits and Sausage Gravy), but for the price ($5.99), I'm willing to let it go.

The biscuits were great, the sausage was spicy, but the surrounding gravy tasted a little like... soup. Maybe the addition of celery and onions are to blame.

Their Eggs Florentine ($7.99), however, is delicious. I've yet to meet another Florentine in town that doesn't make you choose between meat and vegetables on your Eggs Benedict. And why should you have to?

M. likes to get the Lobsterman's breakfast- two eggs, home fries, toast, a pancake and your choice of meat, all for $8.95. I asked him to snap a photo of it for me, and this is what I got:

Yeah, you, mister.

The best thing about the Porthole is that it's not just a brunch spot. They serve breakfast and lunch during the winter and add on dinner in the summer. There's a great deck overlooking the waterfront, and it's the home of Reggae Sunday in warmer months.

...ahh, warmer months... sorry, got distracted.

The Porthole can be warm and cozy or cool and happening, depending on the time of year. It's the kind of place where you can spot your friends, mingle with tourists and the business happy hour crowd, and get your $5.99 All-You-Can-Eat Fish and Chips at lunch on Fridays.

And as I've learned, they serve a good brunch. Check it out, I hope you like it. But save me a table, will you?

M's Kimchi

2011-04-03T19:27:00.004-04:00

I would be remiss if I didn't tell you about M's kimchi. He also got really into the Wild Fermentation book, and I came home one day to find him brining up a huge batch of veggies. He used Napa cabbage, radish, carrots, green beans, and Burdock root.

After brining overnight, he drained the veggies and mixed them with a spicy chili, ginger, and garlic paste. After a few weeks fermenting on the counter, it was ready to go! It's nice and spicy, with a little fermented fizz taste. And as you can see- there's a lot, so it's a good thing we like it.

So now let the creative applications of kimchi consumption begin!

Portland Buffalo Wing Off

2011-03-30T10:51:00.010-04:00

Mmm... chicken wings. *Homer-like noises*

My thoughts on wings: they must be crispy, saucy, hot and come with a good, creamy dressing (Ranch or Bleu cheese dressing are both fine with me). And that's it really! Why is it so hard to find a good wing in town, then?

A recent Sunday Funday had M. declaring a 'wing off.' First, we hit up Sebago Brewing Company in the Old Port, the home of the previously held best plate of wings in town.

Pluses: usually crispy, plenty spicy, will bring you ranch, bleu cheese or both, and... the best part: wings are served whole. *Insert flapping arm-as-a-chicken-wing demo here (think about it...)* So for $7.99, a half dozen, is really a dozen!

These are our go-to wings, plus I like their beer. Winner! Right? Right?? Not so fast.

So, after consuming two big beers here, it seemed like a good idea to head up the hill to the Stadium. Here they serve Binga's Wingas, which come in a myriad of flavors. (Usually a bad sign. Don't try to get fancy- just make good Buffalo wings!)

And... even worse, they come either breaded or smoked. I say, no thank you to both. But, forcing my hand, I'll go with breaded. Just hoping it's not too breaded.

We ordered two half orders: Buffalo and Redneck (maple and Buffalo). At $6.49 for a half order, and a half order being 6 of the wing pieces, not the whole wing, these are decidedly more expensive.

But, here comes the upset... Redneck wings, FTW! I loved them. Buffalo is pictured above, and they were OK. But the sweet and hot combo of the Redneck Buffalo blew me away. Good thing they were placed in front of me, so there were no fights.

Even though the Stadium only serves "blanch" (HUH?) aka bleu cheese and ranch, I really loved how crispy these wings were. You know the deliciousness that results from a crispy fried coating softened by some sticky, hot sauce. I can't stop thinking about them.

I rather regretted the wing off in the middle of the night, but let's just know that the next time I'm ready for wings (I'll need a few weeks to recover), that I'm heading for these Redneck wings at the Stadium!

M. would probably like me to disclose to you that he still considers Sebago's wings the best in town.

Also, I have railed against the breaded wings at the Stadium before. But I am prone to changing my mind- hence my blog, where I can chronicle my flip-floppery.

Fermenting Away

2011-03-24T15:39:00.010-04:00

I did something and didn't tell you about it. *gasp* I know- in a world of TMI, you're thinking, thank God. Someone keep their mouth shut about something.

But sometimes I need a meal off. Like, I just want to go to a bar and eat a burger without taking pictures. Or notes. Or thinking about it. (Too bad, shouldn't have participated in the Burger-o-rama!)

Then there's those times where I start something, don't document it, but then want to share it with you. Fortunately for me, the sauerkraut I started is still around, bubbling on the kitchen counter.

It all started when M and I's friend Matt visited from Haiti. (He's been working there building schools for a year. He has to leave periodically to renew his visa and let his various aliments heal. And he comes to visit us and we have weekends full of debauchery and eat all of his favorite foods.)

Matt loves all things fermented (drinking, eating, and making). Before I took the Master Food Preserver course, I ate some fermented pickled beets that Matt had made. They were smoking. Not like, smokin' but like, literally. Smoking. I don't know that I would have tried them knowing what I know now! (He still insists they were perfectly safe.)

Most recently when Matt visited, we went and toured the Maine Mead Works facility, watched some mead violently fermenting, and inspired by all the talk of DIY fermentation, I started some sauerkraut.

I had two small to medium sized heads of green cabbage in my crisper from my winter CSA share. I shredded them using my awesome new mandolin slicer and made a brine of 1.5 tablespoons of salt to 1 quart of water.

Usually, you salt the cabbage as you slice it, but I thought that since the cabbage was (shamefully) old, that it probably did not have a lot of moisture to draw out of it. So I just skipped that part and created my own brine.

I packed the kraut into washed quart jars and weighted down the cabbage below the brine with plastic bags full of brine. I used brine instead of water, so that if the bag were to puncture and leak, it wouldn't dilute the salinity of the kraut brine.

And that's it! I left it to ferment on my kitchen counter- that way I can check on it every day. And after two weeks, it's definitely kraut-y, but the cabbage is still very crunchy. So I'm going to let it sit for a little longer before transferring it to the fridge.

Also inspired by Matt's visit, was my purchase of the book, Wild Fermentation by Sandor Ellix Katz. It's an awesome book that details how fermentation works, and then the process for making your own fermented veggies, yogurt, Kombucha, beer, wine, and on and on. Stuff I've never even heard of.

And someone asked how my fermented pickles went from last summer. I didn't tell you that the end result was gross. They ended up in my friend's compost. I have no idea what went wrong, but I read in Wild Fermentation that any number of things could have happened. But after a few weeks, they tasted terrible. Like awful sea water. Sad. I'll try again when the cukes are back!

And I'll be sure to take lots of pictures for you. :)

BBF Travels: Box Hill Pizzaria

2011-03-22T08:49:00.003-04:00

When I was younger, I was fascinated that companies could call their product 'the best' without any verification. I remember, in particular, being struck by a beer label that claimed their beer was better than any other. I asked my dad, who says? and he responded, no one, they just say that. *Insert mind boggling*

Well, here you have it, ladies and gents- according to Box Hill Pizzaria, the best crab cake anywhere.

That's right, anywhere.

Pretty amazing, huh? Yes, of course, I mean the crab cake, but the superlative too.

My only regret was how full it made me- I attempted to take the other half to go, but since it was 70 that day, and it sat in the car for 3 hours, I decided to toss it.

Or more like others decided for me. 'Cuz I might have, it was that good.

P.S.- Best. blog. ever.

BBF Finds: Salted Herbs

2011-03-15T12:33:00.006-04:00

Look what I found!! Spotted in the refrigerator section of pickles and bacon in the Portland Hannaford. It's Mailhot's Salted Herbs. Now, you know I heart their sausage, so I was excited to see a new-to-me French Canadian product. The ingredients are simple: salt, parsley, leeks, and scallions.

Now what to do with it...

Google taught me that herbs were preserved in salt before refrigeration was widespread. My co-worker with French Canadian relatives tells me it's used in pork pie. And of course, I infer that you can put it on anything relevant- meats, eggs, in soups, stews, etc.

But does anyone know of any other traditional uses? Educate me!

Update: After polling all the French Mainers I know, I believe there is no one specific use for herbes salle. Rather, it's just used in French-Canadian cooking, from omelettes, to soups and stews. Basically, if you'd add herbs or salt to it, you can use salted herbs.

This jar does need to be refrigerated and probably can last as long as it'd take you to use it. I'd keep it 6 to 8 months to be safe and of course, discard it if you notice any mold. It can easily be made- see this Food in Jars post for tips on making flavored salts or sugars.

I Love Maine Mead Works

2011-03-14T15:30:00.000-04:00

I'm just gonna title the post that way, so you have no doubts as to what I think of our local meadery.

And maybe you've heard of and love Maine Mead Works too, since their popularity is on the rise. Maybe you've sampled their product at a Greendrinks or eyed up a bottle at the Portland Public Market's Maine Beer & Beverage Co. But have you ever toured their production facility or sipped their mead while chatting with the staff? If not, get thee to Washington Avenue.

Located at 51 Washington Ave. in Portland, Maine Mead Works' new facility houses all aspects of their production, from brewing to aging, bottling and shipping. There's also a retail store and a tasting room (my favorite part).

For those of you who think you don't like mead but are willing to have your minds changed, head on down to the meadery on a Saturday between 12 and 5pm. There, you can sample the line of Maine Mead Works' mead, from the Semi-sweet to the Dry Hopped, from the Lavender to the Special Reserve (if you're lucky). Their honey wine is a lot lighter, thinner, and more delicate than the thick, syrupy, dessert mead that you may have had.

My favorite variety is the Dry Hopped Mead, where they add Cascade hops (the ones used in Sierra Nevada Pale Ale) to the sweet mead, giving it a distinct herby flavor.

Their mead is great on its own, but would pair well with lighter dishes and seafood. It makes great gifts, as it is uniquely Maine, made with all local honey, fruit and herbs. And the staff are about the friendliest people you could hope to meet, happy to answer any of your questions about the fermenting process and their patent pending custom equipment.

Maine Mead Works is a great place to spend a while, as their new space is very posh and inviting, whether you are entertaining out-of-town guests or just want another reason to be proud of the great vendors we have here in Portland.

Maine Restaurant Week: Fuel in Lewiston

2011-03-10T11:04:00.014-05:00

While perusing menus of restaurants participating in Maine Restaurant Week (which continues through this Saturday), there was a lot of 'meh'ing in my head. Nothing against any of the Portland restaurants, I just felt the need to shake my late-winter dining blues by thinking 'outside the penninsula.'

When I hit upon Fuel in Lewiston's menu, I immediately emailed Dawn of Appetite Portland. It sounded like a menu worth driving 45 minutes for, and it would satisfy my culinary wanderlust. Sold.

But when I told people my plan, I was met with a lot of wrinkled noses and some "Why?"s. For those of you from away, the Lewiston-Auburn area (or L/A) gets pretty thoroughly trashed down here in Portland. The stereotype is that there's not much going on- some people make it sound like it's a Superfund site or something. Not being a Mainer, I hold fewer regional biases; although I have been pretty thoroughly traumatized by driving down L/A's plentiful thoroughfares filled with strip malls and fast food restaurants.

But once you wade through all of that, Lewiston has a cute, burgeoning downtown area. The two cities have followed a typical pattern of industrial decline followed by urban renewal. And it must be noted, that Lewiston is home to Bates College, one of Maine's big 3 private colleges. And where there's college students and professors, there tends to be cultural and culinary spots of interest.

And I found Fuel to be a cross-section of the white, middle-class population in the area, a mix of old and young, with middle-aged ladies sipping lemon drop martinis and dudes in Bruins jerseys watching the game at the bar.

But really we're here to talk about the food. I went with Choice #3 from the Restaurant Week menu, which began with white asparagus cooked sous vide, then grilled. It was served with a sous vide egg and brown butter bread crumbs.

We also added a charcuterie plate, which was unremarkable, and duck rilettes, which were pretty great. The asparagus was all things good- runny egg, crispy bread crumbs, and some asparagus to emulate health. However, it was very rich and tended towards the greasy side as I got near the end.

My entree was a lamb sirloin, roasted and served with grilled red grapes, radicchio, and endive, served in a red wine sauce. There was a cheddar polenta cake hiding under the big, beautiful piece of meat.

For me, the meat took center stage. The accompanying ingredients had too many faults to create a cohesive meal (overwhelmingly bitter greens, boring polenta, salty wine sauce), but the lamb sirloin alone was excellent. The meat was prepared very simply, but with enough salty, crunchy bites to let the inherent flavor of the cut shine.

It was the dessert, however, that made me feel like all the bickering over directions en route to Lewiston was worth it. Chocolate torte with Maine sea salted caramel, malt powder and Guiness ice cream. The torte was fluffy and mousse-like, with rich chocolate, crunchy malt, and a salty caramel sauce. The combination of varied texture and great flavors came together to elevate this dessert to more than the sum of its parts.

The first two of my courses are offered on the regular menu, so while you may not make it up there for Restaurant Week (although you should- at $30pp this menu is a bargain), you can still try the great lamb sirloin. My delicious dessert is not featured on the regular menu, but I trust that their pastry chef knows her stuff, and that you will be happy with her dessert du jour or her other preparation of the chocolate torte.

So if you ever find yourself suffering from post-traumatic strip-mall syndrome in downtown Lewiston, I recommend you check out Fuel for a modern twist on some French classics.

Maple Bacon Biscuit Bake

2011-03-06T21:58:00.007-05:00

This breakfast bake is great for two reasons. First, the obvious one: maple bacon. Say no more. Second, the buttermilk Bakewell Cream biscuits. Light, fluffy, yet flaky, and crispy on top.

Now does this say "Maine breakfast" or what? Maine maple syrup and Bakewell Cream. For those of you not in Maine or New England, Bakewell Cream is a leavening agent made in Bangor, Maine and the defining ingredient in these traditional biscuits.

So to make this delightful brunch treat, you spread a mixture of cooked, chopped bacon, maple syrup, melted butter, brown sugar, and a little flour in the bottom of a baking dish. Then you drop large tablespoons of biscuit dough on top of the bacon syrup mixture and bake it all up. When the biscuits are browned, you invert the pan onto a serving plate and all the melty, sugary goodness drools out on top of the biscuits.

Or at least that's how it's supposed to go. The biscuits turned out great, but for whatever reason, the bacon syrup mixture wasn't very liquidy. It kind of burned into the bottom of the pan and stayed there when I turned the biscuits out. Eek! But no complaints from the group of men I fed these to.

I've actually had this same problem with the Monkey Bread I made from King Arthur Flour too. I was expecting more of a syrup than a hardened sugar topping. Hmmm... anyone have any ideas what's going on?

Regardless, this recipe is awesome- for the biscuits alone! But top anything with a bacon syrup mixture, and I'm sold. If you're in New England, pick up some Bakewell Cream and give these biscuits a whirl, so you understand the magic.

Revisiting Sonny's

2011-02-28T19:00:00.019-05:00

I say 'revisiting' because I went in the first month Sonny's opened and was not too impressed. We had some underwhelming entrees and service snafus, but I didn't tell you about it, since I figured they needed a while to warm up.

Photo by Corey Templeton, via Portland Daily Photo

But now they've been open for over a year, so I decided (based on my love of Local 188) to take M's sister and BIL there for dinner during their visit. Sonny's won out as the not-too-risky choice for dinner. We figured we'd get a solid dinner and hoped for something on the level of Local 188, Chef Jay Villani's other restaurant.

But in the end, we just got solid (well, the cocktails are stellar). And while solid is not bad, it's just not elevated to the quality of dining found at 188.

Like I said, the cocktails are excellent. We started with drinks (I recommend the 99 Problems- Cava, ginger, simple syrup, and lemon) and appetizers.

And aren't our appetizers pretty? We had the Maine shrimp tacos (or shrimpacos as the food runner said), seared scallops, and a fried avocado. The shrimpacos were the best- spicy, creamy, crunchy, with a bite from the pickled red onions.

M. and I shared their poblano pepper and Manchego cheeseburger with a side of yam fries. And we also ordered their Caesar salad.

The burger was good- the yam fries are great- but I really loved the Brioche bun the burger came on. The poblano peppers were a distraction for me, but the burger was cooked right (like, not much at all).

And the salad was awesome. J. said, why did you order a Caesar salad? and for a moment I was stumped. But, I love Caesars- they're a no-brainer for me. Though when they're bad, they're really bad. However, this one had lots of dressing, cheese, good croutons, and a topping of white anchovies. Delicious.

S. and J. took the same approach to their entrees- sharing the house salad and the fish special, mahi mahi with a curry spice rub and a ginger coconut sauce. It was awesome. I heard the house salad was great too, but didn't sample it myself.

I love Sonny's interior- the redesign really shows off the spectacular building with remaining elements of an old bank- and their cocktail list. And I struggle to put my finger on what is missing from their culinary offerings. But after this meal, there was nothing that stuck in my head. No, 'how did they do that,' no 'I can't stop thinking about...' So while Sonny's offers a great libations and is a fancy hang-out spot, I will be saving my appetite for Local 188.

Edamame Hummus

2011-02-23T14:33:00.006-05:00

I have been whipping up a whole lotta weird stuff lately. I've been scouring the pantry in an effort to use up things I have, rather than buy new stuffs. Turns out? Stuff in the pantry you haven't used is there because... you don't use it. Wow. So I've been stepping outside my culinary comfort zone with some of these things.

But that's what potlucks are for! Fortunately, you don't have to attach your name to the dish you bring. You can just add it to the table and then feign confusion when someone asks about the dish.

This edamame hummus was at a potluck too small to hide behind however. But I have nice friends, so no one complained.

I used this recipe from The Delicious Life, which is written by a very entertaining woman. But I felt like this recipe needed some more oil or liquid- something to make it creamy rather than chunky. But it tasted pretty good, so if you have a bag of frozen edamame in your freezer, give this recipe a try.

Edamame Hummus
from The Delicious Life

16 oz. bag of frozen edamame
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 c. water or chicken stock
2 tbsp. sesame oil
salt and pepper

Cook edamame according to package, then drain. Place in an ice bath to cool. When cooled, drain edamame and remove all their little skins. This can be done while watching Oprah, and by squeezing the bean at one end- it will pop out of its skin.

Add lemon juice, garlic, and edamame to food processor. Pulse until finely chopped. Add water or stock and sesame oil. Process until well blended. Season with salt and pepper.