The Days of Damariscotta

So this past weekend Emmy and I took a trip up to Maine. Specifically, to Damariscotta, Round Pond, and Pemaquid.

Our arrival in Damariscotta was accompanied by the most fantastic lunch on the planet, ever. Now, I know I've talked about this place before but it bears repeating: "The King Eider Pub" is the best place to eat, period. It's my favorite restaurant, hands down.

We had, of course, the baked brie with honey and split, at my reccomendation, the BBQ'd salmon sandwhich. Just dump the sauce all over everything and go to town. This is feel-good food at its best. They also have a raw oyster bar. Like, a whole bar devoted to oysters. And several people we asked in town said, quite without prompting, that the King has the best chowder on the penninsula. All other options were "okay, but King Eider's is the best".

Then, we went beach-combing at Pemaquid Point, picking up a good couple bits of sea glass and forgotten pottery. I like to think of it as Litter Patrol.

We returned to Round Pond, where we were to spend the night, and got our ice cream fix at the famous Granite Hall Store. I had the Bear Tracks. Yum, now that's summer.

The next day we had coffee from the shop by the book store, right downtown in Damariscotta. Did you know they make their own whipped cream? I mean, wow. #bestcoffeeanywhere

And then it was on the Fort William Henry, where we met some Living History folks (professional re-enactors) who fired off muskets, answered our million questions about clothing, culture, and history, and told us that a normal soldier's ration in the 1760's-era was dried peas, bread, salt pork, and molasses. In fact, you just missed lunch where we had dried peas, bread, salt pork, and molasses. Can you guess what we're having for dinner?

All in all, they were a hoot and really informative. Emmy and I wandered around the site where the living history village is planned to be implemented in the next couple years (donate please!), saw a wattle & daub house (combination of clapboard and cob), and visited the graveyard. Did you know that the soldiers at the fort had their food shipped up from Boston? I mean, how interesting is that? In the years before the Revolution the soldiers, who had the perfectly good town of Bristol just a couple miles away, had non-local food. They didn't even keep pigs, cows, or chickens on site in the fort, just repair services like a blacksmith.

Also, in its day the fort cost 20,000 British Pounds. If the cost of 1 lb of tea in that era is 20 Pounds, or two weeks' wages, then the fort cost roughly 1,000 lbs of tea. A normal weekly wage was about 8-10 Pounds. So it would have then taken the average man 38.46 years at least to pay for the cost of the fort, if he was donated everything else he needed to live. (Emmy wants you to know that my source for wages and cost of tea is 1800's, not 1700's. Specifically, Jane Austen's era.)

So, that's my nerd bomb for the day.

Onward to lunch! We took a quick trip from the fort over to the Seagull, a place right next to Pemaquid Point. As was earlier illustrated we could have gone right back to King Eider, but I know for a fact that the Seagull keeps "fish chowder" on their menu all year long so that's where we went. I had the fish chowder, Emmy had the clam chowder. Chowder, wicked, and lobster, is it any wonder I'm in love with this girl? Sigh.

Then, once more, on our way out of town we stopped at the Rising Tide Co-op, and vowed to pick up a local Maine cheese. We choose Eleanor Buttercup, Hahn's End Cows Milk. It was spicey and deep, with the light taste of New England, but with a strangeness to it that reminded me of blueberries crossed with peppercorns. It tasted, I kid you not, exactly like Maine. I don't know how I know this without all the palette training I did at Fromagination, or its equivalent, but I do. It was Maine through and though.

The cheese is always revealing, it seems. It has more to say about the land it comes from than nearly any other food.

Happy eating!
xoxoxo,
Kim & Emmy

Farmer's Market Update

So last week we arrived once again at the Meredith farmer's market after a whole afternoon of rolling over the back roads and getting lost in the fields of Sanborton.


~We picked up little yellow plums, sour and yet mellow in taste.

~Two large homemade dill pickles.

~Fresh ice cream from the Guernsey cows in New Hampton. Wowza!

~Oh! And actual maple sugar. Not candies, not lolipops, just plain-olde sugar. I am so excited about this, like you don't even know.

~And we also got a tub of Guernsey chevre!


I would just like to report that this is the cutest farmer's market ever. The creamery always has milk, cheese, and yogurt available, as well as her ice cream recipe. :) Yum!

And for those of you looking for a northern, local alternative to sugar cane, I've got your answer. Obviously, there are several options: Honey, Sorgum (and it's ilk), or Maple Sugar.

Now, in my search I have never found a place that sold looks-like-sugar-maple-sugar. I was advised, by the maple-selling gentleman, that the best place to get large quantaties of this is to visit a sugar house in the spring. Local and sustainable, imagine that! :)

Also at the market were: eggplant, summer squash, several breeds of garlic, peaches, nectarines, meats, goat milk soap, flowers, herb plants, and mustard!

xoxoxo,
Kim & Emmy

ps. I love discovering tiny markets where you can actually buy everything you need to survive.

Abroad In Wolfeboro

So just this past week my sister and I took a jaunt across Lake Winnipesaukee. Well, not across, per se, more like around.

Gosh darn it don'tcha kno tha's a luung wae aroond.

Basically, it took forever and the traffic congestion right in town was pretty awful. But, I was on a mission. A cheese mission. I was looking out for the Wolfeboro Wine Cellar, which, as it turns out, doesn't exist. But I did find a couple intersting other places.

We had lunch at the Brick Oven Bistro, which was packed for lunch. Cheese pizza for us. Alright as pizza places go, though it was really busy.

We also stopped by a cooking supply store, Butternuts, and picked up some local cheese at last! There were two particular ones that caught my eye: the "Cheddar Bites" from Maplebrook Farm down in Bennington, VT and Maple Chevre from Blue Ledge Farm in Leicester, VT. The bites (curds, they were CURDS, in NH no less! I admit I let my inner geek out just a little when I saw them) were two days old and had so lost their squeak, but they were delicious nonetheless. The only disappointing thing is that the proprieters didn't seem to know that freshness in curds is paramount, but then, that's the food nerd in me. I could taste the cheddary-ness and they were coolly sweet. I can't wait to check this place out. And then the chevre! Mon dieu! Sweet, creamy, goat's milk with a touch of maple syrup. How much more local can you get? Mmmm.

Our first stop, actually, was probably the most welcoming environment: Winnipesaukee Chocolates. Excellent service, decor, and products. It reminded me a good deal of a smaller Gail Ambrosias (east Madison), and there were a couple truffle flavors that I can safely vouch are unique to the store. There was the olive oil truffle, dark and smooth yet light, the vanilla & white chocolate truffle, creamy and sweet with a bitter shell, and my favorite, white birch ale truffle. I mean, white birch ale? Made from local trees from a local brewery. How cool is that?! We also picked up a chocolate bar called Sap House Cove, dark chocolate with huge chunks of maple sugar. Do I even need to describe this one? Go out and order one right now. A very favorable experience and atmosphere. I know where my Christmas chocolates are going to come from! :)

See ya!
xoxoxo,
Emmy & Kim

That August Taste

It's what I've been searching for these past couple weeks; that perfect August taste. We're still here in Meredith, New Hampshire doing yoga and job hunting as hard as we can. In the meantime we're busy making big dreams and hoping that we'll have enough money before it snows to actually do cool things.

For example, I have a Facebook link to Fromagination, my cheese shop back in Madison. Obviously I can't just go in whenever I want anymore, but I still get their updates. Recently, as I understand things, there was a national cheese competition. Jasper Hill Farms won, a prosperous creamery in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. I encourage you to go and check them out. We'll be making a visit for sure, just as soon as the funds are available.

Tonight we're watching the meteor shower. My parents' backyard overlooks the Wheel of the Milkyway, so it'll be particularly splendid.

But, back to food.

We've had several interesting dishes in the past week or so, all centered around seasonal foods even if the farmer's markets around here aren't that big, or on our normal schedule to visit. We've made:

~Fruity Bruschetta (staring peaches)

~Sauteed Chicken Breasts w/ Peaches

~Roasted Red Pepper Corn Bread w/ Bacon

~Northern Italian Tortellini Soup (w/ tomatoes)

and

~Red Devil Squash Creole

Out of everything we made, I can easily say that the most delicious thing was the chicken breast recipe. It hit every note that I love and I'll share it here with you today. If you want to see any of the other recipes just comment below and I'll put it up. Also, for clarification I am working out of two books: From Asparagus to Zucchini for my veggies, and Fruit Cookbook: Fruit-Filled Recipes Soups to Desserts by Nicole Routheir for my fruits, of course.

Sauteed Chicken Breasts w/ Peaches:

~4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, trimmed of excess fat
~salt & pepper
~all-purpose flour
~2 Tb unsalted butter
~1/4 C thinly sliced shallots
~1/4 C balsamic vinegar
~1/4 C chicken broth
~1/4 C heavy/whipping cream
~2 large ripe, but firm peaches (or 1 lb)
~2 Tb shredded fresh basil (trust me, you want it fresh)

1. Use a meat pounder, flatten each breast so that it is roughly the same thickness throughout.

2. Season the breasts with salt and pepper (use more salt that you think you'll need, trust me!), then dredge through the flour, shaking off the excess.

3. Melt 1 Tb of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and saute until cooked through. Cut into the thickest part and make sure that it is cooked all the way through, white, but NO PINK. Transfer the chicken to a plate and cover with plastic wrap while you make the sauce.

4. Add the remaining 1 Tb butter (I also used a little wine to bring the burnt chicken bits up off the bottom of the pan, a wooden spoon is good for this). When the butter is melted, add the shallots and saute until tender. Add the vinegar and cook until reduced by half, forming a thick glaze. Add the broth and the cream, along with any juices that may have collected on the chicken plate. Cook again until reduced by half and lightly coats the back of a spoon. Add the peaches and toss until just warmed through. Removed from the heat and stir in the basil. Adjust salt & pepper as desired.

5. Take your chicken and spoon some sauce over it.

6. Wow.

That's all for now, bye!
xoxoxo,
Kim & Emmy