The smell of the onions and garlic cooking slowly on the stove seems to get my guests up a bit earlier than usual. This hearty dish is good fortification for a day of hiking the Goat and Western Head trails in Acadia National Park.
image:karrotbear.wordpress.com
Continue reading “Nested Eggs” »
The following recipe comes from Kyra Alex’s “Quick Bites” section of her cookbook, Cooking in the Moment: Four Seasons of Cooking on an Island in Maine. What a delicious dessert! Kyra always has amazing things cooking at her Lily’s Café and Wine Bar in Stonington.
image: anediblemosaic.com
Okay, every so often you need to get off the island. It clears your head and reminds you of why you love the island so much. This is a version of a delicious lentil salad I had at Prune in New York City. (Editor’s note: The owner of Prune, Gabrielle Hamilton, recently released her acclaimed memoir Blood, Bones, and Butter.)
image: earthydelightsblog.com
This is a deliciously crunchy, not-too-sweet wafer cookie that comes via Linda Greenlaw and her mother, Martha. Since ginger is a natural sea-sickness remedy, Linda touts these cookies as the ideal mid-morning snack aboard a fishing boat.
image: everylastcookie.blogspot.com Continue reading “Linda Greenlaw’s Ginger-Almond Wafers” »
My husband Jim and I lived in Pennsylvania for a few years and it didn’t take me long to make friends with Ginny Brehmer, a fellow Mainer. Ginny was from Machias—a true Down Easter—and was a fabulous cook. She shared this delicious sweet potato casserole with me and I have been making it ever since.
Ginny Brehmer’s Sweet Potato Casserole
Martha Greenlaw, Recipes From a Very Small Island
2½ pounds sweet potatoes
4 Tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted if potatoes are not hot
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup milk
2 large eggs
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pecan topping:
¾ cup pecans
½ cup packed light brown sugar
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 Tablespoons (½ stick) cold unsalted butter
Butter a 9 x 13-inch baking dish or other similar shallow baking dish.
Scrub potatoes, but in 2- to 3-inch chunks, and boil in salted water until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and when cool enough to handle, peel. Mash with a potato masher (you should have about 4 cups) and beat in the butter, sugar, milk, eggs, salt, and vanilla. Spread into the prepared dish.
In a food processor, pulse the pecans until chopped medium fine; remove. Add the brown sugar and flour to the work bowl and process to remove large lumps. Cut the butter into chunks, add to the work bowl, and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the pecans and pulse once or twice just to combine. (Or you can make this topping by hand.) Sprinkle over the sweet potatoes. (The casserole can be made several hours ahead and refrigerated. Return to room temperature before baking.)
Preheat the oven to 350°. Bake the casserole until heated through and the topping is golden, 30-45 minutes.
Serves 8-10.
This recipe can be made with nearly any type of fish. I’ve used salmon, haddock, pollock, and hake, but I like cod best. The cakes can be shaped and refrigerated for up to a couple of days before frying, and the chili mayo can also be prepared ahead. It’s a nice alternative to traditional tartar sauce.
Fresh Cod Cakes with Chili Mayo
Linda Greenlaw, Recipes From a Very Small Island
Chili Mayo
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup plain fat-free yogurt
1 Tablespoon chili powder, or to taste
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1-2 teaspoons jalapeño salsa (optional)
Fish Cakes
4 bacon strips
1½ pounds (about 6 medium) all-purpose potatoes
Salt
1 pound fresh cod
1 large onion, chopped
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
Freshly ground black pepper
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
2 Tablespoons light olive oil
For the chili mayo, whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve.
For the fish cakes, cook the bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crisp, 10-12 minutes. Drain on paper towels, leaving the drippings in the pan.
Peel the potatoes and cut into ½-inch cubes. cook in boiling salted water until soft, about 10 minutes. Drain and transfer to a large bowl.
Bring a skillet of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the cod and poach in simmering water until the fish flakes easily with a fork, 5-8 minutes. Drain and break or chop into small chunks and add to the potatoes.
Cook the onion over medium heat in the bacon drippings until slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Add to the potato mixture. Crumble the bacon and add it to the bowl along with the eggs and the tarragon. Work the mixture together with your hands until well blended. Season with black pepper and additional salt to taste. Shape into 8 cakes about ½ inch thick. Spread the flour onto a plate; dredge the cakes in the flour.
Heat the butter and oil in one very large or two smaller frying pans. Cook the fish cakes over medium to medium-high heat, turning once, until browned and slightly crisp on both sides and heated through inside, about 10 minutes. Pass the chili mayo for spooning on top.
Serves 4.
When I am in the mood for something warming on a cold winter night like tonight, I love to make this curried shepherd’s pie. Depending on who is having dinner with us, I use lean ground beef or ground lamb. It is delicious and satisfying with either, and can be made a few hours ahead of time and put in the oven when you’re ready.
image: en.petitchef.com
This crabmeat stuffing is easy to make, versatile, and tastes oh-so-good when paired with chicken. Also great with lobster, haddock, and shrimp. Try this crab stuffed chicken recipe; it will soon become a family favorite!
image: companyscoming.com
It’s not to late to order that last minute gift for the person on your list who has everything. Give them the gift of Maine Food & Lifestyle magazine, a gift that will continue giving all year long with great recipes, local chef profiles, in-depth articles, and stunning photography.
Happy Holidays!
Give the gift of Maine’s only food magazine, and make someone smile this holiday season. We’ll include a gift letter stating this gift is from you, along with the recipient’s copy of the current issue to start them on their way.
Happy Holidays to you, your family, and your friends!
Melanie Hyatt & Jim Bazin
Don’t put that grill away just yet! Give it one more workout with this Barbecued Lobster with Lime and Chili Butter recipe from Isle au Haut cookbook author and talented home chef, Martha Greenlaw.
image © Jim Bazin 2010
Find Martha’s recipe in her “Notes From Isle au Haut” column in the new issue of Maine Food & Lifestyle magazine, available now!
What’s cooking in Maine? Find out in the new issue of Maine Food & Lifestyle magazine, at a retailer near you this week! Area chefs in restaurants from Ogunquit to Stonington express their versions of “The Essence of Maine” with stories to share and recipes you’ll want to try at home.
Image © Jim Bazin, 2010.
A strong focus on the Midcoast with chefs in Thomaston, Rockland, Camden, and Lincolnville who share interesting personal stories and great recipes, this issue is chock full of great taste!
Lots of fantastic features including Café Miranda, Thomaston Café, Curtis Custom Meats, Pig Kahuna, Farmer Kev, Provisions, Cliff House Resort, Bluefish, New Food Business, regular columnists, and more.
On the cover we proudly feature the seasonal colors of Maine Crab Soup by Melody Wolfertz of Rockland’s In Good Company.
For a delectable time, subscribe now!
Any fish lover knows halibut is arguably the filet mignon of the fish world. Meaty and wonderful grilled, the halibut in this recipe is perfect centerpiece for utilizing the last of the fresh, end-of-summer vegetables like corn and tomatoes.
image: sundaypaper.com Continue reading “Halibut Steaks with Corn and Tomato Salad” »
I love fresh salsa with grilled fish and this is an unusual (and very colorful) salsa, made with blueberries and corn. I like to make it in the summer when both are in season.
Continue reading “Linda Greenlaw’s Grilled Salmon with Fresh Blueberry Corn Salsa” »
When I invited my gourmet group to the island one weekend, my friend Petey brought along this salad for lunch the next day. Everyone loved the combination of chicken, sprouts, water chestnuts, and the mild curry dressing. It’s best made the night before.
image: notmartha.org
Beautiful summer mornings on the island should not be spent in the kitchen, but when the cove is socked in with fog there’s nothing nicer than baking up a batch of blueberry muffins and enjoying them over a leisurely breakfast at the kitchen table, watching and waiting for the fog to lift.
image: roadfood.com Continue reading “Foggy Morning Blueberry Muffins” »
It’s Maine wild blueberry season, time for the Union Fair, and time to put those sweet berries to use in our favorite recipes. Here’s a great one, simple and oh-so-delicious. Hooray for Maine’s wild blueberries!
Blueberry Crisp image by Robin Presta
This exhibit at Blue Water Fine Arts Gallery in Port Clyde, going on now through August 15, showcases the virtuoistic hand and delicate sensibilities of internationally recognized artist Barbara Ernst Prey who has painted powerful, vibrant views of her surroundings for three decades. On display are 30 poignant watercolors, Soliloquies, unspoken reflections on island life as a microcosm of sustainability: islands telling a story of sustainable life.
image: Netmender, Watercolor, 22″ x 30″ courtesy of Barbara Ernst Prey
The first question people inevitably ask me about living year-round on an unbridged island is “how do you stand the winters?” And they mean it existentially. It’s true: spending a dreary Maine winter on a sea-circled rock with 40-60 other souls can take some adjustment. The coastal curious, however, seldom intuit and ask about one of the biggest changes a person has to make- how one thinks about, shops for, and prepares food.
Maine’s smallest off-shore islands have no year-round restaurants or cafes. They certainly do not have drive-thrus, take-out, or delivery. Some of them don’t even have a grocery store. The island stores that do exist have limited offerings and limited hours, especially in winter.
Isle au Haut, where I live, does have a store. In the summer it is open seven days a week, from 10:30am-3:00pm Mon-Sat, and 11:30pm-1:30pm on Sundays. For year-round residents it is almost surreal to be able to pick up groceries on a daily basis- provided they can make a hole in their workday.
Even Grocery Shopping Takes Planning on Isle au Haut: See Winter Store Hours (image courtesy of Morgan Witham)
During the summer, I try my best to sample as many fried clams as possible at the seasonal clam shacks up and down the New England coast. Which is better—clams coated in batter or crumbs? Depends on a lot of factors, such as the freshness of the clams, the quality of the oil, and other things, but when everything is right I tend to prefer batter. If the clams are large, I like to “squeeze the bellies,” which means pinching the belly to get the gross black goo out, but truthfully, by the time the clams are coated with batter and fried, you can’t see the goo anymore and it really doesn’t taste bad.
image: nytimes.com
I can’t think of a better way to glorify a corn muffin than to add some juicy ripe blackberries. These are wonderful served warm with a pot of honey butter alongside. I heat a smooth rock from Boom Beach here on Isle au Haut while the muffins are baking, wrap it with a kitchen towel, and place it in the bottom of the serving basket to keep the muffins toasty warm.
image courtesy of themodernapron.blogspot.com Continue reading “Blackberry Corn Muffins” »
