What's Going on in the Garden?

After a month of work, we had to tidy up and head out to Cape Cod for some family vacation time. Of course, leaving the garden in July means several things: watering, mulching, weeding, dead-heading flowers, capturing Japanese beetles, fixing the electric fence, and harvesting. We did all of our garden chores and then crossed our fingers that it will all still be there, bigger than before, when we get back.

We harvested nine beautiful beets for my Mom's Mom. She loves them.

I ran into a sizable spider near the lettuce patch.

I picked an entire basket full of green beans and dragon langerie beans to bring to our family.

The radishes were thinned to one inch apart and then watered and mulched to keep in the moisture. I ate the thinnings for my lunch, with quinoa and cucumbers (from the garden!) and parmesan cheese. Yum. Maybe when we get back there will be little tiny radishes to eat.

The tomatoes are not ready yet, but getting there....

Bean Teepee

The bean teepee was one of my first garden tasks. I weeded and mulched it with hay when the bean plants were only about a foot high. I trained the shoots to climb up in spirals around the teepee poles and then patiently re-trained them when they went astray.The beans are scarlet runner beans and rattlesnake pole beans, when they are ready we will eat them like string beans: straight off the vine!

The movie spans from July 6 to July 27.

Blueberry Heaven

Wow.

Needless to say, I ate a lot of them.

Tableland

One of the hallmarks of a good movie is whether or not I fall asleep while watching it. Tableland had my whole family wide awake until 10:30 pm one night, cheering and laughing and genuinely excited until the end.

Tableland is a "culinary expedition" documentary about one man's trip across US and Canada in search of real local food communities, establishments, farms, and people. The film showcased the momentum that surrounds the move towards a more sustainable food system by giving the people who are active in this movement a chance to speak and tell their own stories. From an enthusiastic British Colombia oysterman, to passionate local food chefs, to organic wine makers, to farmers with their hands in the soil, everyone interviewed showed such positivity and thoughtfulness about their part in the Food Revolution.

The film was simple, well-organized, and beautifully illustrated with scenery from both the countryside and city. The central message was really one of hope for the future and passion for food. This film set itself apart be being educational, but also uplifting, and most of all very inspiring. I would highly recommend it to anyone who loves food, feels strongly about the food movement, and wants to walk away from a film feeling like there is hope for our culinary and agricultural future.

Summer Minestrone Soup

Mom’s garden is starting to really produce, and so we had to come up with something that used a lot of the vegetables that are available: herbs, zucchini, green beans, carrots, kale, garlic, onions. Naturally, we thought of soup!

Minestrone is a traditional Italian soup that lends itself well to improvisation. The name means “big soup” and it is hearty, brothy and full of veggies. Whether you have a refrigerator full of odds and ends, a garden with too much going on, or have recently splurged at the farmers market, this is an ideal way to enjoy a little of a lot of things at once … and have enough left over for lunch or dinner throughout the week.

The ingredients for my recipe below are purely a function of what we had on-hand. I suggest that you take a look around your kitchen and see what you have that could work as well. Although we used leftover cooked rice, many times minestrone soup has pasta in it – a great way to use the last of some odd pasta shape in the cupboard. Add the pasta with the green vegetables (Group 3) and make sure not to over-cook it. Try adding diced potato or sweet potato in with Group 2. Substitute leeks for some of the onions, of add a little chopped fennel in with Group 1. Use chick peas or kidney beans instead of white beans. Any kind of greens work great (chard, collards), and fresh peas would be a good substitute for the green beans. Yellow squash or any other summer squash variety would work well in addition to, or instead of, the zucchini. The possibilities are endless, and the only thing that matters is that you have a big pot of soup at the end that tastes and looks as good as it is good for you.

Summer Minestrone Soup

GROUP 1
Olive oil
6 or 8 garlic cloves, sliced thin
2 medium onions, small dice
2 medium carrots, small dice
2 celery ribs, small dice
Large handful mixed fresh herbs, chopped together and divided in thirds, set two thirds aside (I used basil, parsley, summer savory, and oregano. You could also use thyme, cilantro, dill, marjoram, etc.)

GROUP 2
1 large can tomatoes with juice
8 cups water
1 can white beans, rinsed and drained
¾ c leftover cooked brown rice
½ c dry red wine, or more to taste
1 whole dried chili
½ tsp crushed red pepper
1 or 2 bay leaves

GROUP 3
1 small or medium zucchini, quartered length wise and sliced
Generous handful of fresh beans (I used green beans and dragon langerie beans), ends trimmed and cut into one inch pieces
½ bunch of kale, sliced into thin ribbons
1 ear corn, sliced from cob

GARNISH
Black pepper
Grated Parmesan Reggiano

Warm the olive oil in a large soup pot. Sauté Group 1 with one third of the herbs for several minutes, until tender. Add Group 2 and bring to simmer for at least 30 minutes, or more if you have time. Add Group 3 and one third of the herbs and simmer for another 15 minutes or so. Check seasonings and add more red wine, pepper, or salt to taste. Let the soup sit for a while, if you can, before re-heating and serving. Stir in the rest of the fresh herbs just prior to serving. Garnish with generous sprinkles of grated Parmesan Reggiano.


Good with salad and bread for a light and satisfying summer supper. Makes a lot … so be prepared for leftovers.


Don’t forget to vote with your dollar. Get your Real Food at the farmers market, it will taste better and you will feel better.

Green Bean Potato Salad

Two things happen this time of year: cookouts and green beans. Cookouts often require you to bring a pot luck dish, and once green beans start being ready in the garden they do not stop, so it’s time to eat them any way you can.

Potato salad is one of the mainstay dishes at a cookout or barbecue, but many times it is made with mayonnaise, which can be sketchy if it is a hot day and food is sitting out at all. Also, I know many people who do not like mayonnaise-based dressings at all, myself included. So I improvised a simple potato salad that is dressed with a shallot and lemon dressing and includes fresh green beans for color and crunch. I’ve made this twice, and both times it has been pretty popular. The first time was for weekday lunch food and it kept well all week, and tasted good every day. The second time was a barbecue and we had it with grilled salmon, green salad, Israeli couscous salad and grilled vegetables – a perfect summer meal to share with friends.

As I am currently on an intensive nutritional reading binge, I also put some thought into this dish from that perspective. Potatoes have gotten something of a bad rap due to their high glycemic index and starchiness. For this salad I prefer to use small new red potatoes, which have a glycemic index in the low 60s instead of the 90s (large white potatoes). In addition, adding green beans and lemon juice reduces the overall impact of the glycemic index further, making this a reasonable dish to eat. Adding green beans also boosts the protein content of the dish, so it ends up having a better nutritional balance. And the fat used is olive oil, which is one of the healthiest fats, and very tasty. Finally, I used turmeric in the dressing, which I learned has potent anti-cancer properties that are activated when it is combined with either black pepper or ginger. And, turmeric adds a nice festive color to the dish.

Green Bean Potato Salad

10 or 12 small red new potatoes, chopped into quarters or sixths
Generous handful fresh green beans, ends trimmed
¼ red onion, thinly sliced
¼ c olive oil
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 lemon, zested and squeezed
¼ tsp turmeric
¼ tsp black pepper
1 tsp Dijon or honey mustard
Salt to taste

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Blanch the green beans for 2 or 3 minutes, until they are bright green and still crisp, and then put them into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Add the potatoes to the pot and boil for 8 to 10 minutes or so, until they are easily pierced by a fork. Drain the potatoes and set them aside. Warm the olive oil in a small pan, add the shallots and cook gently until they are soft. Stir in the lemon zest, turmeric and pepper and cook for another minute. Remove from the heat and whisk in lemon juice and mustard. Taste the dressing and adjust seasonings according to your preference. Break or cut the green beans into one-inch lengths and toss with the dressing and sliced red onion. Fold green bean mixture and potatoes together.

Don’t forget to do your shopping at the farmers market. Green beans, new potatoes, red onions and shallots should all be available there this time of year. Support your local farmer!

What's Going on in the Garden?

I have been here in Maine for three weeks now. My garden tasks have mostly consisted of weeding, mulching, training beans to climb, snacking on alpine strawberries and watching plants grow. Oh – and killing Japanese beetles with my flip flops, or a spare rock if one is handy. Not necessarily a tough life at all.

 I have seen a lot change since I arrived. When I first got here, I wondered to myself if Mom had forgotten to plant part of the garden, because it just looked like a lot of tall grass and weeds. Turned out that was the squash patch! I spent 2 days on hands and knees weeding it and then another mulching it, after a rain. Now, the only green things are actual squash plants. How rewarding! (I do have to admit that weeding is a very satisfying activity for a neatnik like me.)


 
 
Buttercup squashes are a hard-shell winter squash. They are just starting to grow, and have a very cute shape.

 













Scarlet runner bean flowers on the bean teepee. I taught them how to climb the pole!

The sunflowers are volunteers that re-seed themselves around the garden every year. Mom has graciously allowed them to hang around and they are thanking her with some lovely blooms.



















We ate the first cucumber for dinner tonight! Sliced thin, with a little red wine vinegar and sea salt …. yum.

The zucchini onslaught is beginning. We’ve eaten the first one, but they are quickly multiplying before our eyes. Time to get creative …

We planted a new row of lettuces and radishes. We planted Easter Egg and French Breakfast radishes…both seasonal staples in my salads at home. Radishes will mature in 3 to 4 weeks, so I am hoping to be able to harvest some before I leave.

Alas, the wild garlic scapes are done now. They started flowering and will seed new volunteer garlic for next year. Who can argue with food that plants itself?

Farm Life

As far as I am concerned, ducks are not food. However, they can be an active and entertaining part of a farm that produces food. I believe there is truly a lack of good poultry video on the internet ... and ducks and chickens are so amusing! They run, cluck, quack, roll in the dirt, all the while just being their own busy selves, unselfconscious and unconcerned. These ducks live at Hackamatack Farm in Penobscot.   

Making Do

These days, it seems that everything is more complicated than it needs to be. Where cooking is concerned there are hundreds of cookbooks, thousands of recipes, uncountable food blogs every one promoting its own spin on a recipe or technique, as if a teaspoon or five minutes of baking or a certain method of mixing is really exclusive or copyrightable. But really, isn’t cooking generally pretty democratic? Each of us has the ability to make our own kitchen decisions, to add or change a little here and there, to re-invent dinner based on a whim or circumstance. We each have the power to be our own boss in the kitchen.

For me, and for many other cooks that I know, it is not so much about following directions to the letter to get a picture-perfect recipe replica (although that can be satisfying!), it is more about the creative flow that happens when I step into the kitchen. Lately, I have been talking to some Maine cooks about their own inspirations and joys in the kitchen. My Other Mother is the one who recently proposed the idea of “making do” – of using what you have instead of letting one missing ingredient get in your way. Since that conversation, I have talked with many others who savor the adventure of making do.

Part of making do is allowing food to be very, very simple. A six-ingredient dish (or meal!) can be even more satisfying than one with twice as many ingredients because its flavors are stronger and truer and less complicated. Allowing lentils, or kale, or carrots, or chocolate to shine with minimal accompaniment is many times more interesting than muddying up the palate with a pinch of this and a dash of that and any number of other ingredients. My own tomato and avocado salad is a great example of this. For two such fantastic foods, there is really nothing much needed to make them better than they already are -- a drizzle of olive oil and a dusting of sea salt is plenty enough enhancement. The mystique of gourmet French cooking, with all of its steps and sauces and preparations, has given rise to the impression that fine dining must be something difficult, complex, even unattainable for the average cook. But I believe that we know better … cooking good, simple food is possible for everyone, it is not exclusive or elusive at all.

Making do is also about being flexible enough to see a creative opportunity where someone else might see an insurmountable roadblock. How many times have you been reading through a recipe – or in the middle of cooking! – and realized that you were missing some “critical” ingredient? The last-minute trip to the store for that missing ingredient often expands to a mini shopping trip and you come home $25 later with the one ingredient you “needed” …. and five other things that you didn’t. Instead, what if you use your imagination and creativity to substitute that missing ingredient instead of going out to buy it? Many times, substituting in a recipe can improve it … whether making it lower fat, changing a flavor, or just making it more interesting to your own palate. By adding your own creativity you make the food your own, and earn bragging rights when you share it with your friends: “taste what I invented!” you can say when you sit down to eat together.

In this culture of over-abundance (and perceived scarcity!), making do is also about being content to use what we have. Our pantries and refrigerators are usually brimming with jars and bottles and packages that we once thought we needed and are now just gathering dust. How about using something that you already have? All of us have enough food in our homes to feed ourselves for quite a while, and yet we are always grocery shopping for something else. Every week I catch myself thinking “what do I want to cook this week?” instead of “what do I have to cook?”, but why not reverse the questions? That conscious shift to making do with what I have instead of imagining what I want is something that I’ve been working on. It may not always be easy, but there is real satisfaction in using up a quarter jar of dried beans, the heels of bread, or re-purposing some leftover rice from a meal in the past. Somehow, my meal gains a little more character when I know that I have made do with something that might otherwise have been wasted.

Philosophy in life and cooking are so frequently similar. Making do is about cooking in the present, being satisfied with what is available to us, being open to making small changes in our plans. In the end, maybe the most important question that we can ask ourselves every day, whether in the kitchen or elsewhere in our lives, is not “what do I want?” but ”what do I have?”. And then be creative and make do.

Blue Hill Farmers Market

I visited the Blue Hill Farmers Market this weekend, an obligatory stop on my tour of local food in Maine. It is held Saturdays at the fairgrounds and, like many farmers markets, is about 35% produce and 65% local craft and creation. The produce was beautiful and fresh, but what made this market unique was a weekly evolving food play that is put on by Small Change Theater called Food Rules.

Food Rules begins with a band of singing farmers in straw hats, aprons and rubber boots weaving their way through the market singing their theme song “Food Revolution”. The performance takes place in a field adjacent to the market with wooden crates and a small stage as the only props. It is an ensemble presentation and a mix of food story testimonials, contra dance, and current food issue topics. The theme of the play is the importance of food culture, the uniqueness of our own food stories, and the power that we have as individuals to stand up for our food rights. As an evolving and topical call to action, Food Rules was effective at sparking the interest of children and adults alike and focusing their attention for a brief moment on a critical and dynamic issue what we often take for granted: food.

What did I end up with in my market bag? In working to eat some of the abundant food that we’ve been cooking at my Mom’s house, I tried to keep my purchases to a minimum: golden beets to be boiled and sliced for salad, Easter egg radishes, local beefsteak tomatoes, fresh young broccoli, and a gorgeous purple cabbage. It always makes me proud to support the people who work so hard to grow our food for us.

Anticancer

Broccoli, mushrooms, ginger, turmeric, garlic, onions, olive oil, tofu, maybe some red wine … sounds like dinner, right? How about dark chocolate, raspberries, peaches, and plums for dessert? These are just some of the delicious building-blocks of the anticancer diet.


I just finished reading Anticancer: A New Way of Life by David Servan-Schreiber, MD, PhD. The book was recommended to me by a friend after hearing about my interest in the role of food in health. Anticancer was enjoyable and interesting reading, well-written from a personal point of view, and with a tone that underscores how relevant the topic is to everyone. While the book provides a broader perspective of cancer biology and physiology, and the environmental and lifestyle factors that influence its growth and development, there was a large focus on food and nutrition that definitely classifies it as a Food Book on my list.

Dr. Servan-Schreiber links the rise in cancer in Western countries since 1940 to the dramatic changes in diet that have occurred during that time. According to his research, today 56% of the Western diet caloric intake is from three sources that were non-existent until very recently: refined sugar, bleached flour, and processed vegetable oils. In addition, he points out that today’s factory farming techniques have radically altered the nutritional profile of meats and animal products by eliminating grazing and changing animal diets to be grain-intensive – resulting in a large imbalance of omega-3 vs. omega-6 fatty acids in Western diets. These radical and recent dietary changes all have the effect of feeding into the cancer biology and intensifying the growth and spread of cancers that our own immune systems could have otherwise suppressed.

Through clear narrative description, straight-forward charts and graphs, and both scientific and anecdotal evidence Servan-Schreiber manages to address this difficult and often depressing topic in a way that gives hope and also empowers the individual to take charge of their own physical, spiritual and emotional health. From a Doctor, this book is remarkably humble and presents a broad spectrum of holistic ideas about disease and health. A valuable resource for anyone interested in real information about the effect of food on health and disease.

Food Gone Wild

Asparagus is a classic Spring delicacy. Crisp, elegant, alive with early flavor, asparagus is one of the first in-season vegetables to show up ready to eat after a long winter. 

There are many fascinating facts about asparagus -- that it takes 3 or more years after planting for the first harvest, that stalks can grow 10" in a single day, that it is 27% high-quality protein, or a good source of vitamins A, C and folate.

However asparagus season in the kitchen is past. One of the exciting things about this plant is what happens after the harvest. The stalks are allowed to grow into a small forest, producing the nutrients that it will need for a productive crop the next season. I visited Hackamatack Farm in Penobscot this week and got a good look at a thriving asparagus forest. Another food gone wild. 

Spaghetti Agretti

Being something of a vegetable aficionado, it is not very often that I “discover” an entirely new vegetable. However, it was just my luck that I ran into Agretti and had a chance to experiment on the edge of my food experience.

Chase’s Daily in Belfast, ME is an indoor farmer’s market and kitchen that offers locally grown produce, handmade food – and cooking advice! The vegetables and flowers are displayed in rustic wash tubs on a simple bench underneath the current art of the month. Labels are hand-lettered on wooden shingles. Everything was fresh and luscious and so appealing. What first caught my eye was the bin of garlic scapes labeled “free”. I had to take advantage of that. And then, right next to the scapes, was a bunch of springy, feathery green stuff that I had never seen before: Agretti. Agretti looks like a cross between mammoth dill, grass and asparagus ferns and tastes crunchy and mild and watery and very lively.

Research tells me that Agretti (Salsola soda) is an Italian green native to the Mediterranean basin and was commonly grown at the edge of salty marshes, or irrigated with salt water. Agretti was grown in the past as a raw material for soda ash, which was used in glassmaking and soap making. The very friendly chef at Chase’s Daily told me that he has had Agretti in Italy, but also in Mexico, and he was the one who suggested some cooking methods to me … inspiring our improvisational dinner:

Spaghetti Agretti

1 bunch Agretti, in 3 or 4” pieces
1 bunch garlic scapes, in 3 or 4” pieces
2 c fresh edible pod peas, trimmed and halved
1 lb whole wheat cavatappi pasta
Parmesan Reggiano, shaved
Olive oil, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes

Boil a large pot of salted water. Blanch garlic scapes and peas for 2 minutes and remove. Blanch Agretti for about 4 minutes and remove when tender but still crunchy. Boil pasta until al dente. Toss everything together and top with shaved Parmesan Reggiano.

Thinning Peaches

I had to help Mother Nature out a little with the gardener’s least favorite chore: thinning.

According to resident experts, peaches must be thinned to 6” apart in order to allow enough room for them to grow and ripen, and avoid weighing down the branches too heavily. It was a tough job, as each green peach is so soft and furry, and they all look as if they deserve a chance to grow up big and juicy. I managed to complete my task, however, and with a bucket full of baby peaches to show for it. If only there was something to do with green peaches …

Tent Living

Part of my Self-Directed Independent Study curriculum this summer involves going “back to the land,” as they used to say when my parents were my age. This being a new millennium, however, I am not forging my way alone in the woods but rather toughing it out in my parents’ back yard …. in a tent. The accommodations are pretty lux, with a piece of foam for a mattress, plenty of wool blankets, and an outhouse located behind a stand of fir trees for privacy. I awake every morning at 4 am to the sound of a million birds greeting the dawn, which comes early here. If I am lucky, the crows keep quiet long enough for me to cover my head and go back to sleep. There is something so luxurious about laying in a tent and listening to the sound of wind in the trees overhead.

 With regard to self-sufficiency, I AM doing my fair share of foraging for food and luckily there is a garden only steps away and a field full of blueberries at my fingertips. Blueberry picking is part of my daily ritual and involves extended time in a crouched position, waving at horse flies, peeking under leaves, and competing with a stray ant here and there for my harvest. It is so well worth the effort.

Maine Coast Lunch

There is a fine art to summering in Maine, and even those who live here year 'round occasionally get a chance to experience the coastal high life. Maine is, after all, Vacation Land.

My mother and I had the pleasure of lunching in Bayside last week at the cottage of our good friend Martha. Bayside is a small summer community close to Belfast that originally started out as a Methodist summer retreat. The cottages are lined up next to each other along the beach, each has its own unique New England style, and of course the obligatory sun porch facing the ocean. The porch is the ideal place to relax in the afternoon, enjoy the salt breeze, and indulge in a classic Maine coast light luncheon.

Martha is well known for her gifts in entertaining and prepared for us a truly fabulous meal: fresh crab salad served in an avocado half over spring greens, cabbage slaw, buttery croissants, and fresh edible pod peas. The crab salad was mild and cool and delicate with only a hint of mayonnaise and celery and complimented perfectly by the creamy avocado. The peas were addictively sweet and crunchy. Martha told us that this was the favorite lunch that she and her mother Kay used to share on Bayside summer days. My mother and I were thrilled to take part in such a classic Maine tradition.

Food Gone Wild

Our neighbor Rosemary has a sense of style and color that is totally captivating. She wears blue dyed Doc Martens, has fairytale princess hair the color of rust and copper and fire mixed together, her home is filled with brilliant accents and splashes of color, and her garden could best be described as a cross between English cottage garden and lush Maine jungle. The garden is lush and wild, yet perfect for a stroll or quiet contemplation. Tall flowers, varied beds and planters, a grove of roses, swimming pool, several resident snakes, all surrounded by a weathered wooden fence with each picket capped with a terracotta pot.

While some gardeners strive for orchestrated rows of uniform plants, symmetrically composed layouts, and perfectly trimmed foliage, Rosemary’s garden reflects her pure delight in watching what plants do when left to their own devices. One of Rosemary’s pleasures lies in seeing what happens when a normally edible plant is left to thrive and flourish past the typical harvest cycle.

The carrot (left) and parsnip (right) here prove themselves to be quite compelling in their mature states and both have lovely flowers and add unexpected beauty to the garden.

I enjoy this type of observational gardening as well …. I grew a red leaf lettuce to six feet tall this Spring on my patio, just to see how far it would go if I let it. (lettuce is to the right of the poppies in the photo )

My Other Mother’s 6-Ingredient Brownies

One of my great joys being back in Maine is the chance to reconnect with my extended family, the residents of Circle Farm, affectionately known at The Hill People. I refer to our neighbor Marjie as my “other mother” because she fed, disciplined and nurtured me since I was born. Many of my early food memories are at Marjie’s house … eating matzo on the swing set in the back yard, pork chops for dinner (although my mom was vegetarian and Marjie is Jewish), Passover Seders, making fresh pasta on the counter top, Marjie’s son Josh feeding his little sister Johanna coffee and milk in her bottle, and of course dessert. Marjie is always prepared with something sweet and tasty, and most often some version of her fudgy chocolate brownies.

I got an impromptu lesson in brownie philosophy and execution on the 4th of July, after a conversation the day before about simplicity in cooking and knitting. Marjie has perfected her 6-ingredient brownies over the years and shared the secrets with me. I could not even begin to elaborate the depth and subtlety of the knowledge imparted to me, but it is sufficient to say that I have a renewed interest in the pursuit of The Perfect Brownie. Among the most critical tips I learned were the importance of cooling the chocolate & butter mixture to a thick and silky texture, and how to undercook the brownies just enough so that they end up perfectly fudgy and rich. The hardest part of all of it is waiting for them to completely cool before eating, but well worth the exercise in patience. They came out fantastic.

Marjie’s 6-Ingredient Brownies

4 oz baking chocolate
1 stick butter
1 ¼ c sugar
1 tsp vanilla or rum
¾ c flour
3 eggs
OPTIONAL: press dark chocolate chips and /or walnuts into the top of the batter before baking

Preheat oven to 325 and grease an 8” square metal baking pan. Partially melt chocolate in the micro wave, add butter and microwave until just barely melted with maybe a few lumps still left. Remove from microwave and stir until completely melted. Let this mixture cool until it thickens and the color darkens. Whirl the sugar and vanilla in a food processor. Add the cooled chocolate and mix briefly. Add the flour and mix briefly. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix for 5 seconds between them. The batter should not be over-beaten. Spread into the prepared pan and bake for about 23 to 25 minutes. The brownies should be set and have a smooth glossy appearance but not yet be pulling away from the sides of the pan. Don’t try the toothpick test in the center, they will still be gooey. Remove the brownies from the oven, they will continue to cook and you can watch the edges pull away from the pan and the top begin to split and crackle as they rest. Cool completely.

Blueberries!

The blueberries are early this year and plentiful enough to pick a bowl full  ... although I am holding out hopes for a good rain or two to fatten them up.

They taste like childhood to me. There is NO comparison to grocery store berries.

Homegrown Herb and Tea

First stop on my Maine food adventure! I was treated to tea time at Portland’s Homegrown Herb and Tea, by my friends Megan, John and Ellie Bea. This charming little shop is dedicated to “herbal teas handcrafted in the tradition of the old world apothecary and the ancient art of Ayurvedic healing.”

Homegrown is the kind of place where the very knowledgeable and enthusiastic owner will interview you from behind the tea bar and then diagnose the blend of tea that best suits your mental, physical and emotional state at the moment. After a few questions about my mental state, recent activities and specific taste preferences I was “prescribed” the Herban Cowboy … a grounding, tonic blend of sasparilla, astragalus, ashwaganda, orange peel and schisandra berries designed to stimulate testosterone and counteract my recent travelling. My tea was like a fragrant herb soup broth garnished with an orange slice and fresh raspberries -- it was yummy, and just what I wanted! We were also presented with a small plate of crumpets, lavender shortbreads, ginger cookies and scones for a perfect mid-day tea time.
 

The shop is located near the Old Port section of Portland and exudes inviting neighborhood coziness and quaint New England style. There are several seating areas for small gatherings including window seats, a tall wood bar, a cushion-filled alcove with a house guitar, fireplace chairs and a private tea room behind a beaded curtain. It is the kind of place where I could easily spend a few hours reading, sipping, and eavesdropping on diagnostic conversations with the customers. The owner indicated that she does mail order teas as well – but that her website is down and it's best to call for information (207.774.3484).