Mumbai to Maine!

A culinary adventure across the Atlantic

Max Flavor, Zero Labor – Mumbai to Maine’s Makhani for the win! Roasted Cauliflower Power!

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Mumbai to Maine Makhani Simmer Sauce | Whole Roasted SKORDO Tandoori Masala Cauliflower| Green Goddess Chutney Drizzle

Back in India, a Tandoor is an outdoor clay oven used heavily in Punjab. Masala refers to a spice blend. I’ve been hooked on the SKORDO Tandoori Masala blend available online and at their brick and mortar stores in Maine. It hits all the notes for me and saves me a ton of time not having to toast and grind spices from scratch. As a simmer sauce maker, I’m all about max flavor, zero labor when it comes to meals for the family.

Typically this cauliflower would be marinated in the masala ahead of time and then roasted in a tandoor at a high temp. With no access to my mobile HOMDOOR as it was still in storage from the winter, I decided to roast it in my oven and only marinated it for 2 hours while we enjoyed the most beautiful afternoon on the water in Boothbay, Maine.

I marinated this humble “cabbage flower” in the thickest Greek-style yogurt (fat-free believe it or not), SKORDO Tandoori Masala loaded with turmeric, cayenne, cumin, coriander and turmeric. No need to add in Kashmiri chili powder for added color and minimal heat as this blend already has it blended into it. I did however,  add in some ginger and garlic paste, a generous squeeze of lime, salt + pepper and whipped it all up like I meant business!

I brushed this tandoori masala marinade all over the cauliflower. A tip,  you need to really get in there with a grill brush, into all those cracks and crevices. I drizzled the entire thing with melted ghee. The more fat the better! If you are vegan be sure to use some refined coconut oil, avocado oil or extra-virgin olive oil.

Meanwhile, I pre-heated my oven to [email protected] 350 degree F , set the entire cauliflower into my Staub and roasted it off with no cover on for 45 minutes. I chose to keep this beauty intact with stem and base attached. It makes for a conversation piece as soon as you set it table-side, ready to carve and share it with family and friends.

I could not resist drizzled it with my herbaceous, green cilantro-mint chutney. What a huge hit!

Now here’s a tip and idea:  if you rather serve it with some rich buttery tomato masala gravy to make it a meal you can carve them into steaks , heat up a jar of Mumbai to Maine’s rich Makhani simmer sauce and pour it right over the steak and serve ( this will no longer be vegan since it has ghee, but still vegetarian). My daughter is now pescatarian, so she loves these cauliflower steaks for dinner with her mom’s Makhani,  Basmati Rice, hot green chutney and a big chunk of garlic-buttered naan. Scroll to the bottom to check it out!

Makhani is the Indian word for ‘with Butter’. This small-batch, handcrafted, luscious, buttery-tomato cream sauce is infused with an aromatic and authentic North Indian Mughlai spice blend. Toasted and freshly ground cardamom, cumin, coriander, peppercorns and a touch of heavy cream add just the right touch of added richness.

Makhani pairs perfectly with chicken (especially for a spicy Butter Chicken) but it also makes for a slam-dunk spicy Chickpea Masala, Paneer Masala, or my husband’s favorite, melt-in-your-mouth boneless lamb over steaming hot Basmati Rice and ghee-slathered garlic naans.

But for now, try it on the cauliflower, for a meatless Monday.

 

 

 

CHAMPAGNE LOBSTER: Champagne. Lobster. Butter. Cream. Perfection

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Champagne Lobster, in homage to the one and only Phil Koskela, the culinary mastermind behind this recipe. Thank you Phil for sharing it with me and the world!

I’ve been known to go to great lengths to prepare a magnificent meal and source the rarest of ingredients for someone I love. My mother did the same for us growing up and apparently I’ve inherited her penchant for pleasing. My parents made sure our birthdays were an opportunity to bring our friends and family together to celebrate and feast over my mother’s legendary Lamb Biryani.

Back in Mumbai, where I grew up, everyone in our apartment building knew my talented mother, Regina, was cooking up an Indian feast when she started roasting cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, cumin and Kashmiri chiles spices on her tava (cast iron skillet).  We lived on the first floor so by the time she was done, her aromatic garam masala would carry through the entire building. She cooked for at least 40 guests and then sent me to every neighbor with left overs the following day.

Cooking Indian food is no easy feat.  Sometimes it takes a day or two to prepare one dish. Roasting and grinding the spices; preparing the marinade to tenderize the lamb overnight; chopping pounds of onions for what seems like days; slowly caramelizing them in ghee, and then adding in all those freshly ground spices to the onions so they can bloom and release all that incredible flavor making for a rich, thick and memorable lamb korma. But that is the beauty of slow cooking and the results are outstanding and memorable.

But then, a simple but exquisite dish like Champagne Lobster came into my life and it was a game changer! And, the best part about this dish is since I now live in Maine, the lobster capital of the world, I can source lobster – steamed, shucked and ready to go with one phone call. But please don’t let this hinder you. You can now do the same thing by ordering your lobster here.

This decadent dish has only 4 ingredients: champagne, lobster, butter and heavy cream. Yes, I repeat, four ingredients. I could not get over how incredibly simple it was to throw together. Imagine the sweet and succulent lobster meat sautéed in rich melted unsalted butter picking up the floral and bubbly notes of champagne added in and the decadence of heavy cream bringing all the sweet, savory flavors together in under 5 minutes for a delicate and silky, smooth finish.

I can hear my husband’s voice saying, “For heaven’s sake, just share the recipe already!!!”

I’m all for sharing a story AND the back story. So stay with me, I promise, once you are done here, you’ll add Champagne Lobster to your repertoire forever!

BACKSTORY:

Years ago, I worked at the Boothbay Harbor Chamber of Commerce and kept hearing rave reviews about Champagne Lobster from the local community. So one year my husband, Guy, and I tried it for the first time on our anniversary. Get this, it was our anniversary and we barely said a word to each other while we ate this in dead silence . Then Guy looked up, his blue eyes piercing into my brown ones and said,  “You NEED to get this recipe from Phil!”

Phil Koskela, a local from Southport Island, Maine, put this legendary dish on the map here in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. Phil was the General Manager at the famous and beloved Rocktide Inn (no longer in operation) for 39 years. In that time he probably served thousands of Champagne Lobster orders and built up an iconic following for this exquisite dish. Phil always served it along side Rocktide Inn’s legendary popovers. ( I’ll save them for another post. )

So years later, I reached out to Phil and begged him for the recipe, promising never to share it. I told him I just wanted to surprise Guy for our  anniversary. Phil being as kind and gracious as he is known to be, started rattling it off. I didn’t even have a pen ready, so I literally memorized it over the phone.

Guy was in shock when I surprised him with it at our anniversary dinner. It was definitely a nostalgic blast from the past. But this time around Guy convinced me to go back to Phil and ask him for permission to blog about the dish and even do a fun video in homage to the dish and the man behind it! As soon as I got Phil’s blessing I reached out to another Maine culinary icon, Rod Browne Mitchell, the national authority on caviar and owner of Browne Trading Co, located on Commercial Street in Portland, Maine. I shared the good news that I had scored the recipe to this prized dish and went on to describe it. I added that I would love to collaborate with him on producing this piece which I now consider a gift from Phil — one that had to be shared with scores of lobster lovers out there.

Rod was all in! He and his fabulous team at Browne Trading Market, set aside one of the finest bottles of champagne, an 1851 Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve, a pound of the freshest shucked Maine lobster and 2 beautiful lobster tails for pickup.

So, here’s how I set the mood: I set the table first, chill the Champagne while I get my mise en place (prep for the dish) together. Then I turn off my kitchen lights, light a candle, pour myself a glass of bubbly, channel some Stacey Kent and get in the CL zone.

Check out the recipe below.  A couple of notes:

I added some Italian angel hair pasta to it because you need something light to soak up every last drop of that sauce.

Phil said you don’t need the most expensive champagne to make this dish. In fact Phil admitted that he used Cook’s Champagne for years because he was making hundreds of Champagne Lobsters a week. But it’s not everyday you splurge on lobster and champagne, so if you can afford to, just do it right and go all the way!

Special thanks to Rod Browne Mitchell, Browne Trading Company, for sponsoring the lobster and champagne for this post.

A huge thanks to Phil Koskela, for sharing the recipe. I’ve posted his iconic dish with his blessing and permission.

Phil Koskela, on his way to work one afternoon, I stopped him in his tracks and captured this pic of him outside the food store…!

Slowly poached lobster tails in a 1/2 cup of unsalted butter. You can skip this step if your lobster arrives already cooked and shucked. These came raw from Browne Trading Company so I cooked them gently.

Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve, compliments of Browne Trading Company

Rod Browne Mitchell, aka, ‘The King of Caviar’, owner of Browne Trading Company “has been operating out of the working waterfront in Portland, Maine, for almost 30 years. In that time Browne has developed an international reputation for sourcing only the finest imported and American caviars. Browne Trading Company also is the premier supplier of fresh fish, shellfish, and smoked seafood to both elite restaurants and home kitchens across the U.S.”

This has nothing to do with Champagne Lobster, but I could not resist capturing this when I went to pickup the lobster and champagne. The world’s finest caviar and beluga available at Browne Trading Company online or at the Browne Trading Market, Portland, Maine.

Mise en place for Champagne Lobster – Champagne, Lobster, Butter and Heavy Cream.

Champagne Lobster for two!

Be sure to set the table before you make the dish and chill the rest of that Champagne. You won’t want to waste anytime digging in. Don’t you just love these Nancy Buzer heart plates?

CHAMPAGNE LOBSTER: Champagne. Lobster. Butter. Cream. Perfection
 
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This 4 ingredient dish is the stuff that dreams are made of!!! Champagne, lobster, butter and heavy cream. Recipe by Phil Koskela, posted with full permission.
Author:
Recipe type: Entree
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 2 generous servings
Ingredients
  • 2 lobsters - claws, knuckle and tails - shucked and pre-cooked
  • ½ cup of unsalted butter
  • ½ cup of Champagne
  • ¾ heavy cream
  • 8 oz De Cecco Angel Hair no.9 Pasta, cooked al dente
Instructions
  1. In a heavy-bottomed skillet, on medium heat add the butter .
  2. Once it melts, add the cooked lobster and sautee for about 1 minutes on low heat.
  3. Now, take out the lobster, set aside.
  4. Add in the Champagne and bring it to a boil, until it cooks off.
  5. After a minute, lower the heat and add the heavy cream.
  6. Give it a good stir.
  7. Now add the lobster back to the pan and let it cook for another minute on simmer.
  8. The sauce will start taking on a pinkish hue from the lobster.
  9. Now, toss in that al dente angel hair cooked pasta and stir well.
  10. Add a few scallions for color and serve warm immediately but with a chilled glass of Champagne.

Mumbai to Maine Indian Simmer Sauces

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Mumbai to Maine Signature Simmer Sauces Variety Pack - Caldine, Makhani and SaagWelcome to Mumbai to Maine – Maine’s first Indian-inspired culinary brand!!!

There’s something wonderful about being the first to introduce something unique and special to the world. But I feel like it also comes with tremendous responsibility. I consider myself a culinary ambassador for my homeland, Mumbai and my Goan heritage, here in this beautiful state of Maine.

MY STORY

Let me tell you a bit about how and why these simmer sauces came to be.

At 16 years old, I left Mumbai and moved to Canada with my family, our lives packed in 12 suitcases. Fast forward, I am fortunate to call Maine my home now for over a decade.

The Castelino family: L to R: My gorgeous mother, Regina, two-year-old me, Karen (my six-year-old sister) and handsome Dad (check out those sideburns.)

So this idea for simmer sauces, started a couple of years ago when I had just lost my mom and found myself having this intense and nostalgic craving for my all-time favorite dish, her signature Caldine: a creamy, spicy, luscious coconut gravy with juicy shrimp. I knew I wouldn’t find mom’s Caldine on a shelf at the food store, as a frozen entrée or even at a restaurant.

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CRAVING COMFORT FOOD

In fact, I couldn’t find any comforting home-style Indian food at the grocery story that matched my expectations here in Maine. Everything tasted overly processed to me and one thing was for sure: it definitely did NOT taste like my mother’s home-style cooking.

Homestyle Red Lentil Dahl – tadka of ghee, red onions, garlic, ginger, red chilis, cumin, red chili powder, curry leaves and black mustard seeds.

So, I went back into my kitchen, dug out my mom’s heritage recipes and mastered each one. I was thrilled with the results and thought to myself, there have to be others who probably have never experienced authentic home-style Indian flavors. I was determined to find a way to make these unique mouth-watering Indian recipes accessible to anyone.

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INTRODUCING

After spending countless hours in my kitchen crafting batch after batch,  I am excited to introduce you to Mumbai to Maine’s shelf-stable Indian Simmer Sauce collection: Saag, Makhani and Caldine.

These savory simmer sauces are authentic, true to the specific region of India that they originate from and absolutely DELICIOUS!

  • Based on my family’s heritage recipes
  • Crafted with authentic, freshly ground spice blends.
  • Handcrafted right here in Maine.
  • For an authentic meal within minutes simply pour, add your choice of protein, simmer and serve.
  • These 16 oz, ultra-premium simmer sauces will sit pretty in recyclable glass jars on your pantry shelf for up to a year. I can assure you they will not last that long, once you give them a try. 🙂

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SIMMER SAUCE LINE

Let me introduce you to the star line up!

Caldine is a Goan inspired sauce from the West Coast of India, a creamy coconut gravy with an infusion of toasted coriander, cumin, Tellicherry peppercorns, Kashmiri chiles and the finest turmeric. You can read more about this hallmark Goan dish and why it holds the most special place in my heart here. You can see below, all I added was some fresh steamed Maine lobsters to my Caldine sauce and within minutes we had dinner on the table this past Mother’s Day!

Lobster Caldine: A true Mumbai to Maine original recipe! When you live in Maine, lobster is the only way to celebrate this iconic Goan dish.

Makhani is the Indian word for ‘with Butter’.  How could that get any better, you ask? Well, this ghee-tomato based cream sauce is infused with the finest Indian spice blends like toasted and freshly ground cardamom, cumin, coriander, peppercorns and a touch of heavy cream — because this dish is meant for royalty. Makhani pairs perfectly with chicken of course (are you a Butter Chicken fans, if so check this post out ???) but it also makes for a slam-dunk spicy Chickpea Masala, Paneer Masala, or my husband’s favorite, melt-in-your-mouth boneless lamb over steaming hot Basmati Rice and ghee-slathered garlic naans.

Makhani Murgh – (Butter Chicken with the Makhani simmer sauce.

Saag is the Indian word for leafy greens. Hailing from the North Indian state of Punjab, this hearty, vegetarian sauce is loaded with spinach, broccoli, aromatic and healing spices like Fenugreek and Garam Masala with a touch of cream . It’s often the go-to dish for the farmer because its packed with nutrients to sustain them for a long and hard day’s work in the fields. A home made aloo-fenugreek paratha would go so well with this dish. My mouth is watering already! You can put a vegetarian spin on this with cauliflower, chickpeas, sweet potatoes and paneer( Indian cheese) or add tender morsels of marinated lamb to elevate this thick gravy to another level of de-lish! We’ve been eating so much of this Saag in 2020 to stay healthy but also up our spice game in the kitchen on busy school and work days!

Murgh Saag ( Indian-style Creamed Spinach with Chicken)

There is no arguing, Indian food and its cultural influence are trending like never before. With restaurants not being as accessible as much during the pandemic,  people are cooking more at home now than ever! AND, they are looking for different ways to be creative in the kitchen and up their spice game by tinkering with ethnic cuisines that are bursting with bold and spicy flavors.

It is my hope you have fun with these sauces and leave my blog feeling inspired to add more flavor and spice into your everyday cooking! If you are ever craving a home-style Indian meal or feeling too exhausted after your marathon zoom work calls to cook up an authentic Indian meal, or like me you just miss your mother’s amazing home-cooking, simply reach for a jar in your pantry and within minutes you will be transported back to your childhood and to India with a single bite of my mouth-watering, rich and luscious Makhani, Caldine and Saag sauces.

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FOOD CONNECTS…..

At the end of the day, food has this power to bring people together and it also has the influence to transport you to your childhood or a special place you love.

Since 2015, I have shared my Mumbai to Maine story through my blog, podcast, social media channels and teaching Indian cuisine at Stonewall Kitchen Cooking School. I’ve done this with intention and passion, because it has kept me connected and rooted to my childhood in Mumbai and my Goan (Portuguese-Indian) heritage.

I am so excited to share this labor of love, my debut simmer sauce collection, with you right in time for the 2020 Holidays. It’s an homage to my talented mother, who was and will always be the best cook I know and a heartfelt love letter to my Mumbai.

I would love for you to be a part of my story going forward.

So please go ahead and send me a message via my blog, ask me a question about Indian food, order a simmer sauce or two or three. I would love to see what you cook up with them in your kitchen.

I encourage you to get creative and share your creations with me on Facebook @mumbaitomaine, IG @mumbai2maine.

Thank you with all my heart for joining me in my Mumbai to Maine journey in a jar. It’s going to be quite a ride, and I am so glad I get to share it with you.

Love,

Cherie Scott

Coffee By Design – Community in a Cup

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Photo Credit: Michael David Wilson, courtesy, Coffee By Design

Back in 1994, Mary Allen Lindemann and Alan Spear launched Coffee By Design in what was the sketchy neighborhood of Munjoy Hill, Portland, Maine.

During a recession, Munjoy Hill, was not the hippest place to launch a coffee business. But as you will hear in this podcast, Lindemann and Spear’s vision was never about just selling coffee it was focused on creating and building a diverse community around its coffee brand. They are also super passionate about the arts and have been credited as the leaders in the revitalization of downtown Portland’s vibrant and thriving creative arts scene.

So it should come as no surprise that after being in business for 25 years, Coffee By Design won the prestigious 2020 Macro Roaster of the Year award and proudly operates as one of 10 B Corp’s in the state of Maine. If you read up on the criteria for both, it’s no easy feat.

Coming off this prestigious win, I invited Mary Allen to the studio to share the remarkable Coffee By Design maker story and journey as part of Maine’s Bicentennial Food Podcast series.

Right after this picture was taken, Mary Allen Lindemann got on a plane to Africa and upon her return faced a daunting realization that COVID 19 was not going away anytime soon. Her next trip to Africa had to get canceled for fear she would not be able to return or deal with the unknown.

Here in Maine, businesses, especially small businesses, were grappling with laying off their valued employees while frantically applying for PPP loans and also trying to staying open within CDC guidelines, all while trying to stay alive, keeping their core teams safe and operational and NOT shut down shop!

The stress was surmounting all the way around. Mary Allen and Alan Spear and their teams…looked at everything with fresh eyes, reconfiguring how they would stay operational, make new signage, set up news ways of servicing their loyal customers.

But most important, they continued to serve their communities – hand delivering boxes of Maine Made treats and fresh coffee to nearby hospitals and to health care workers who were on the front lines working marathon shifts for days.  As she and her team took on the toll of having to lay off a large percentage of the CBD team, she took the time to get back on a call with me and talk about Coffee By Design  – through the Pandemic and beyond. What was the next chapter going to look like, with no playbook or anyone to turn to for answers.

Lindemann, Alan and their team decided to take an introspective look at CBD’s core values – the idea that you should as a business owner hold on to those values during your highest peaks and lowest valleys, resonated with me deeply and what provided them with a compass in a world that felt like it was spinning out of control.

I want to thank Mary Allen for sharing these thoughts with me in a follow up podcast. It was heartfelt, eloquent, and so deeply meaningful, I simply had to include it here, unedited, in her very own words:

I am a small business owner. The journey began 25 years ago when the doors to Coffee By Design first opened when the vacancy rate in downtown Portland was at 40%. I’ve gone from sleeping on the shelving in the basement of our first store to owning my own home and running five retail locations and a wholesale business, what began with 2 of us and a part timer became 65 strong. We’ve been through at least three recessions, the tail end of the AIDS epidemic and ‪9/11. After years of business growth for Coffee By Design and Portland (Maine) which is listed on almost every top 10 list as the City to be in, nothing prepared us for COVID-19 and the impact it is having on our community – locally and globally – our business and we ourselves.

We know we are strong. We have a community which supports all of us. We are Maine. Working together we will keep our team intact and bring them back home. We got this.

These are the words I say every morning I get up and go to work.

Yes, we are fortunate in that we are able to remain open and continue with a small portion of our business but having to furlough 50, 75% of our team who are like family soon after celebrating our 25th anniversary and becoming 2020 Roaster of the Year has brought us from the top of the mountain to the deepest valley.

The truth of the matter is I’m scared. I don’t know a single small business owner who doesn’t feel the same. Every tool in the emotional toolbox is being used in ways that we never even imagined they would need to be.

How do I bring my staff back and ensure that they can be safe. How do I instill in them that I’ve provided masks but they would prefer not to wear and believe the physical distancing is enough along with hand-washing and sanitizer everywhere.

We are afraid that we may get the virus and not be able to continue to care for our families and lead our team. An Asylum seeking friend of mine shared a phrase I had never heard before about sleeping trapped within one’s home to keep outside the danger. Ville Morte Dead City. But what if the danger is inside?

Do the numbers work? Do we have enough to hold on and if so for how long should the doors not fully open again longer than we hope.

Yes, we received the PPP loan money but will I be able to grow the business fast enough as a deemed essential business open in the midst of a state stay at home order at this point for half of that time I need to bring the equivalent of 48 full-time people back. How can I compete against unemployment when people are being given what in effect is a bonus check which means that weekly they are paid more than if they were working with me.

How do I ask people who are scared to go out side to come back out and work with others whom they can’t be sure are isolating appropriately when at home themselves.

On a daily basis, I feel I am being asked to bring people back to work, pay them less and be unsafe. How do I tell people if you don’t come back to work now I can’t guarantee that there will be a job later not as a way to get back but because if I don’t grow the business now, if I don’t come up with creative ways to re-think about what you do I can’t help for every body. I can’t bring everybody back as I had thought initially I could.

What if I should fail?

I think about A.A. Milne and Winnie the Pooh.  “You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think.”

This moment will define who we are as small business owners but more importantly, who we are as citizens of the world.

Mary Allen Lindemann

April 28, 2020

*Published with permission from Mary Allen Lindemann, co-owner of Coffee By Design .

 

 

 

MADRAS CURRIED CREAM LOBSTER PASTA

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Sunday dinners don’t need to be feast…but they do need to be a feast for the eyes!

Today was a PERFECT fall day!

I wanted to enjoy every minute of it. We woke up later than usual so I made the family a big brunch and had no plans on cooking up a big Sunday dinner. I typically make a a large Sunday supper from scratch. So I pulled out a pound of frozen Luke’s Lobster and a box of fresh Terra Cotta Pasta Co.’s hand crafted Egg Fettucine on my soapstone counter and headed out for a bike ride with Justus to our community dock.

As we headed down I felt inspired to throw a simple but flavorful Indian spin on our pasta dinner when we got back. I knew we would be starving. I was not in the mood to pull out my entire pantry…just a few ingredients.

Living in Maine, we are spoiled to be able to get a hold of the world’s freshest lobster caught by our local fisherman.

I pulled out some Maine-made ingredients to enjoy our Sunday lobster dinner! (And, chilled some Reisling, of course!)

SKORDO’s Hot Madras Curry powder
Casco Bay Creamery Co. unsalted butter
Stonewall Kitchen’s Organic Olive Oil
Oakhurst Dairy heavy cream
Farm-Fresh Asparagus & Shallots

This Curried Cream Lobster Pasta dish was too easy to throw together.  If you feel inspired be sure to check out www.lukeslobster.com and order the Lobster Pasta kit and put your own spin it.

The kit showed up within 48 hours, frozen, and with a fun recipe to make Luke’s Lobster’s amazing lobster rolls too!

Luke’s Lobster – all claw and knuckle and some of the best I’ve ever had in Maine. Sustainably sourced, traceable and the most important – delicious. Terra Cotta Pasta Co. – handcrafted fresh pasta, super flavorful and cooked to a perfect al dente.

I challenged myself to keep the core ingredients local Casco Bay Creamery – slow churned Oakhurst – gives back a percentage of every sale Skordo – an award-winning spice company on a mission to empower the homecook.

Egg Fettuccine cooked to perfection. Nice bite to it, lightly salted, loved the eggy taste.

Something about the combination of asparagus, Madras curry powder, a dash of olive oil at 400 for 20 minutes. I could eat this for lunch and dinner.

Mise en place for my Madras Curried Cream Lobster Pasta.

Browning up the shallots in unsalted butter.

Sautee up the lobster for a minute in the curried browned shallots.

A bit of heavy cream – because its the right thing to do!

Toss in the al dente pasta.

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The great folks Luke’s Lobster did send me their Lobster Pasta Kit and asked me to have fun with it. So yes folks – this Luke’s Lobster Pasta kit totally saved me tonight. I so wanted take in every possible minute of this beautiful fall day with the family – day light savings is coming soon – too soon.

Mom’s Goa Caldine – A Celebration of Life, Love and Lobster!

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Lobster Caldine: Lobster simmered in a coconut milk gravy infused with turmeric, coriander, cumin, chilis and vinegar

Mother’s Day has traditionally been an action-packed weekend for my family with fun dance recitals, graduations and parties to attend all over town. But not this year. For the first time I can remember, our weekend was unusually wide open. With this quiet time on my hands, I found myself thinking of my mother and missing her cooking more than ever. Vivid memories of her Goan Caldine (Kahl-deen), a mildly spicy coconut-based seafood stew, kept coming back to me.

Back home in Mumbai, my mother’s kitchen was her happy place. It was the only place she was truly in her element.  The entire apartment building knew my mother was cooking up a storm when she hand-crafted her exotic Indian spices on her well-seasoned tava (skillet). I remember coming home from Sunday school starving for a snack. The fridge was tucked in the corner of the kitchen and getting to it was like an obstacle course. I had to squeeze through mom and her gas stove to get to it. I’d find her hunched over sitting on the most uncomfortable wooden seat fitted with a crescent-shaped iron blade grating coconuts like her life depended on it.  I have no idea how she ever had the patience to do this by hand. Huffing and puffing she would sway back and forth angling those coconut shells just so, to get every bit of that white flesh out. Then she’d gather up the coconut into cheesecloth and give it a firm squeeze, wrangling out every drop of coconut milk. After adding a bit of warm water to the cheesecloth she would squeeze it again with everything she had left in those tired arms to get the second and third press of milk.

The entire process of making this creamy, coconut seafood stew seemed daunting to me. And yet just thinking about it made me feel closer to my mom now that she has passed on. I decided it was time to try to make mom’s Goan Caldine in my kitchen with my kids, Sophia and Justus.

Before I go on, I need to set the record straight here: I went rogue and did not hand-grate coconuts. I had to keep things as simple and safe with my three-year-old son Justus involved. So I made peace with opening a couple of cans of coconut milk instead. Sorry mom!

I texted Corey Pottle a friend of ours who is a local lobsterman to see if we could buy some fresh lobsters off his boat. We agreed to meet up on the east side of Boothbay Harbor where he docks Brandy’s Girl. I splurged and bought a half dozen, pound-and-a-half lobsters from him and his brother, Brian.

On the way home, my husband Guy suggested we boil the lobsters in briny water right off our community dock. So, we swung by the garage, grabbed a bucket, some yellow rope and headed down to the dock in his red-pick up. Without any hesitation Sophia got out of the truck, grabbed the rope, got down on her knees and tied a firm bowline knot onto the red bucket. Her time at sailing camp sure came in handy! We all watched intently as Guy sent the bucket over the railing.

Now, it’s time to fess up. We’ve lived in Maine for over a decade and never cooked a lobster at home. It’s just always seemed way too easy to order them steamed and ready to go from our local lobster pound. I knew this was going to be quite an interesting evening for us.

Back in my kitchen, I transferred the pristine, Damariscotta river water into a large pot and got a roaring boil going on the stove. Sophia threw in a lobster and based on the horrified look on her face, that may have been her first AND last time ever cooking a lobster. Thankfully Guy came to her rescue and got the job done. While the crustaceans cooked and cooled down, the kids and I toasted some shredded, unsweetened coconut, coriander and cumin seeds along with a handful of Tellicherry black peppercorns and Kashmiri red chilis in a dry cast iron skillet. In that moment, I felt like I was standing next to mom again watching her pan roast her intoxicating Caldine spice blend on a Sunday afternoon.

As soon as the spices cooled down, we ground them up in my spice grinder. I added the aromatic mixture into some coconut milk and blended it into a thick, savory coconut smoothie. Caldine gets its signature bright yellow hue from a heaping spoonful of yellow turmeric powder. I knew Justus would get a kick out of adding it in, so I handed him the miniature silver spoon in my masala dhabba (an Indian spice container), and watched his eyes light up as he did the honors. Meanwhile, like a seasoned sous chef, Sophia turned on the stove and added the coconut milk to the thick coconut paste in her favorite blue Creuset. With her trusty wooden spoon, she gave it a gentle stir while I shucked the lobsters over the kitchen sink.

In Mumbai, we never had access to lobsters. Mom always made her Caldine with either fish or shrimp. She would always buy an extra handful of shrimp from our fishmonger Kamli because she knew it would not be enough with me around. I would eat all the shrimp on my plate and then scour the pot and everyone else’s plates for another helping. I can still hear her say to me, “Cherie, you better marry a fisherman when you grow up!”

I gently added in the tender lobster claws, tails and legs. As the Caldine simmered away, the creamy, coriander-scented coconut gravy made me weak in the knees. I know mom would agree that these Maine lobsters really took her savory Caldine to the next level. The anticipation for our Caldine lobster dinner was building up. I made up a batch of steamed Basmati rice while the kids ran into the garden to pick a bunch of daffodils for the dinner table. That evening as we all savored the lobster Caldine together, I decided that this should be the beginning of a new tradition for the Scott family. We had so much fun from start to finish and the best part was it gave me a chance to reconnect with my Portuguese-Indian (Goan) heritage, cook with my kids and share stories about their grandma, the best home cook.  If you decide to give it a go, here’s our family recipe. (Feel free to skip the coconut grating!) But please do toast those whole spices as this secret step releases the essential oils. And if you are in Maine, do indulge in lobsters if you can. The succulent, sweet tender meat definitely elevated this iconic savory Goan dish to dreamy status.

Corey Pottle, a friend, neighbor and Boothbay Harbor lobsterman on his boat, Brandy’s Girl.

Sophia tying the Bowlin knot on our bucket.

Pristine, briny Damariscotta river water to cook up our lobsters.

Sophia and Justus checking out the crustaceans.

Sophia hard at work shuckin’ some Maine lobstah!

Mise en place for Lobster Caldine, Part 1.

Dried Coconut infused with turmeric, toasted and ground coriander, cumin, Tellicherry peppercorns, Kashmiri Red chillis and coconut milk.

Gorgeous Daffodils from our garden.

My sweet boy, Justus, with a single daffodil for his mommy.

My kids, Sophia, Justus and our labor of love: Mom’s Lobster Caldine.

My gorgeous mother (check out her dimples), me ( I think I’m 2-years-old), Karen (my sister) and my handsome Dad (check out his sideburns) back in our little apartment in Bandra, Mumbai, India.

Mom's Goa Caldine - A Celebration of Life, Love and Lobster!
 
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Lobster simmered in a coconut milk gravy infused with turmeric, coriander, cumin, chilis and vinegar
Author:
Recipe type: Entree
Cuisine: Goan
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 6 lobsters – claws, tails and legs
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
  • 1 cup of dry shredded coconut, unsweetened
  • 1 teaspoon peppercorns
  • 8 Kashmiri chilis
  • 1 tablespoon turmeric powder
  • 1 tablespoon coconut vinegar or white wine vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 3 teaspoons garlic paste
  • 1 teaspoon ginger paste
  • 1 can (400 ml) of unsweetened (full-fat) coconut milk
  • 4 tablespoons of unsweetened coconut cream
  • 1⁄4 cup warm water
  • Pinch of sugar
  • Salt to taste
  • For garnish: 1 jalapeno and fresh cilantro
Instructions
  1. In a skillet or cast iron pan, on low heat lightly toast the shredded coconut, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, peppercorns and Kashmiri chilis for 30 seconds.
  2. Once cooled, grind this spice blend into a fine powder. In a blender, add this powdered spice blend with a can of coconut milk on high speed for 30 seconds. Set aside this wet spiced coconut mixture.
  3. Note: Traditionally, at this step, this mixture is put into a cheesecloth and given a firm squeeze, extracting just the spice-infused coconut milk. ( I skipped this step because I prefer the actual pureed coconut texture in my gravy.)
  4. Meanwhile, on the stove, heat the coconut oil in a heavy based sauce pan and add the finely chopped onions and fry for 5-7 minutes on medium heat until light brown. Add the garlic and ginger paste and sauté on low heat for another minute.
  5. Now add the wet coconut mixture (or spiced coconut milk extract) with the coconut cream and water into the onion mixture and stir together, gently on low heat.
  6. Add the vinegar, sugar and salt. Stir and taste the gravy before adding the lobsters. Gently add in the lobsters and let it simmer for 7 minutes in the gravy with the lid on.
  7. Ladle the Caldine stew over steamed white Basmati rice. Garnish with diced jalapenos and chopped cilantro. This seafood stew only tastes better the following day. So feel free to make an extra batch. It’s well worth the extra effort.

Goa Xacuti…an homage to Chef Floyd Cardoz

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When I heard Chef Floyd Cardoz lost his battle to Covid-19 on March 25 I was shocked and felt a wave of deep sadness for his two sons, Peter and Justin; his wife, Barkha in New Jersey; his mother, Beryl, along with extended family in Bandra, Mumbai and his restaurant teams based in Mumbai and in New York City. I immediately texted my friend, Chef Melissa Kelly, owner of Primo, an award-winning ‘full-circle’ kitchen in Rockland Maine, who was at a loss for words. A few minutes later she sent me a text,  “I’m cooking Indian food to honor Floyd, can you be involved somehow?” I was so touched.

Chef Kelly had eaten at Tabla and the Bombay Bread bar and was a big fan of Chef Cardoz.  She was taken with his kindness, hospitality and the amazing food. She went onto share how he had brought Barkha and the kids to dine at The Old Chatham Sheepherding Company when she was executive chef there and won her first James Beard award for Best Chef, Northeast in 1993. “I admired him and his cooking for a long time,” Kelly said. “My first time meeting him. He was a kind, gentle soul with whom I connected instantly.” Sadly, they never cooked together.

I never knew Floyd. I never had the opportunity to dine at any of his restaurants but somehow he touched my life. I realized that we had quite a bit in common. We were both raised in Mumbai, in a bustling burb called Bandra, about 15 minutes from each other. I greatly admired his brother Kim Cardoz who was a fantastic local musician. I had never even heard of Floyd back in Mumbai, nor did I realize that he and Kim were brothers, until I heard of Floyd’s passing and read the numerous articles about his incredible career. I learned he originally went to college for Biochemistry and soon realized that the coat he truly wanted was the chef’s coat, not a lab coat. He had his sights on getting out of Mumbai and moving to New York and working with the best chefs in the world. He set his eyes on and attended one of the finest hospitality schools in the world, Les Roches, located in Switzerland, and soon found his way across the Atlantic to the big apple working for famed chef Gray Kunz at Lespinasse.

Back in 1997, he was the first Indian chef to elevate Indian cuisine with his smash hit restaurant, Tabla, in partnership with Danny Meyer from Union Square Hospitality Group.  One of my biggest regrets was not getting to eat at Tabla when I lived in the city. I was a college student back then at the American Musical Dramatic Academy, living on $3/day, and eating at Tabla was not in the cards.  But just knowing it existed gave me a sense of quiet pride. Thanks to Floyd’s hard work and passion, Tabla was more than an Indian restaurant, it was a statement to the world that world-class Indian cuisine had arrived in NYC!

In the following weeks after Floyd’s passing, I felt compelled to learn more about his life and career. I read hundreds of tributes and articles about Floyd. But it was one article on plateonline.com, written by a close friend of the Cardoz family, food writer Jacqueline Raposo, that deeply resonated with me.

“My heart breaks remembering him (Floyd) saying that his ideal “last supper” would have been his mom’s xacuti and Barkha’s saag gosht…,” Raposo writes.

I shared this quote with Chef Kelly who totally got it! Her mom’s eggplant Parmesan is legendary in her book!

We both knew Chef Kelly had to make the Xacuti in Floyd’s honor.

I felt inspired and took a stab at making my first chicken xacuti in my Maine kitchen while Chef Kelly decided to make her version showcasing Primo restaurant’s prized pork instead.

So, here’s to you Floyd Cardoz, in your honor, a dish close to your heart. Thank you for shining your light on your Goan culinary roots and Indian heritage. We are celebrating your life and legacy this week in Maine.

Goa Xacuti (pronounced SHA-koo-ti))

An iconic celebrated Goan dish bursting with complex flavor profiles of toasted ground coconut 🥥 infused with spicy red 🌶, coconut vinegar, star anise, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, fennel, Tellicherry peppercorns, turmeric, garlic, ginger, bay leaves, curry leaves, tamarind paste, onions, potatoes, 🥥 oil and fresh cilantro.

🌴Back in Bandra, my mom would labor for at least two hours over the xacuti prep after mass on Sundays or on special occasions. She hand-grated the coconut 🥥 using her old-fashioned grinder, no short cuts. Then she would toast the fresh coconut flesh on her tava (skillet) with whole spices and then grind it all up mortar-pestle-style. Lunch was always a late one. I’d hover around mom in our tiny shoe-box of a kitchen asking over and over again in anticipation: “I’m hungry, is it ready yet?”

Years later, in my kitchen, it seems like nothing’s changed…xacuti still takes patience and time (minus hand-grating the coconut) and I do believe it tastes better the following day! There’s something magical about the warm melange of spices resting together overnight that must take it to the next level. I still find myself hovering around the pot as the aromas get more intense. Only now it’s my two kids, Sophia and Justus, who impatiently ask, “Is the Xacuti ready yet, mommy????????”

   

I am so thankful to my Aunt Claire for sending along our family Xacuti recipe all the way from Dona Paula, Goa.

5.0 from 1 reviews
Mom's Goa Xacuti...an homage to Chef Floyd Cardoz
 
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An iconic celebrated Goan dish bursting with complex flavor profiles of toasted ground coconut infused with spicy red chilis, coconut vinegar, star anise, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, fennel, Tellicherry peppercorns, turmeric, garlic, ginger, bay leaves, curry leaves, tamarind paste, onions, potatoes, oil and fresh cilantro.
Author:
Recipe type: Entree
Cuisine: Goan
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • Xacuti
  • 2 pounds of boneless or boned in chicken
  • 2 white potatoes, each cut into ⅛ths
  • 2 large onions, finely diced
  • 1 cup unsweetened shredded dried coconut or freshly grated
  • 11/2 cups chicken broth
  • 4 tablespoons refined coconut oil
  • ¼ cup chopped cilantro - garnish
  • Masala Powder
  • 2 curry leaves, fresh preferred, or dry as substitute
  • 3 tablespoons coriander seeds
  • 2 tablespoons cumin seeds
  • 2 black cardamom
  • 2 tablespoons fennel seeds
  • 1 star anise
  • 2 Bay leaves
  • 2" piece, cinnamon stick
  • 8 cloves
  • ½ teaspoon peppercorns
  • ½ teaspoon black mustard seeds
  • ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 1 tablespoon Kashmiri chili powder
  • Masala Paste
  • 10 dried red Kashmiri chilis
  • 4 teaspoons garlic paste
  • 2 teaspoons ginger paste
  • ½ tablespoon tamarind paste
  • ¼ cup Goa Toddy Vinegar (Coconut or Heinz vinegar may be substituted)
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon salt
Instructions
  1. Xacuti Masala Powder
  2. In a cast iron skillet, dry roast the coconut on low heat until slightly brown, but not burnt. Set aside and allow the toasted coconut to cool down.
  3. In a separate cask iron skillet, dry roast the whole spices and the turmeric and Kashmiri chili powder on low heat releasing their essential oils. Add the dry spices to the coconut and allow to cool.
  4. Grind the coconut and the spices in a spice grinder to a fine powder.
  5. Set aside this mixture to cool down for 15 minutes.
  6. Xacuti Masala Paste
  7. Meanwhile in a glass bowl soak the dried red chilis in the vinegar for 30 minutes.
  8. Once the xacuti masala powder cools down, add the soaked red chilis with the vinegar to it and grind it all together making a wet xacuti masala paste in the blender.
  9. Now, in a dutch oven, on medium heat, add the coconut oil and saute the finely chopped onions and the curry leaves until translucent.
  10. Add the garlic and ginger pastes and cook for another minute, stirring frequently.
  11. Now, add the chicken and saute until the meat is browned, for about 5 minutes.
  12. Add the wet xacuti masala paste, tamarind, chicken broth, salt and sugar and stir well.
  13. Gently add the quartered potatoes, give it a good stir and bring to a boil.
  14. Turn down to a simmer, cover the dutch oven and allow to simmer for 30 minutes.
  15. Add the chopped cilantro and serve with steaming hot rice.

Saag Murgh, an Indian Classic, Creamed Spinach & Chicken!

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Saag Murgh | Spinach Chicken 🐔

This luscious spiced infused creamed spinach dish originated in Northern 🇮🇳 Saag Paneer (Indian Whole Milk Cheese), Saag Gosht (Spinach Lamb) are other variations of the dish.

If you choose to eat chicken or lamb you should cut up boneless skinless chicken thighs or a boneless leg of lamb into 2”. (Vegetarians please substitute chunks of  paneer 😉)

Marinate these chunks in a bowl with turmeric, cardamom, cumin, coriander powder, garlic and ginger paste. Add thick Greek yogurt, salt and the juice of an entire lemon. This will tenderize the chicken or lamb. Let it sit and get happy in the fridge for at least two hours.

Meanwhile, blanch the baby spinach in hot water and then place it into an ice bath to chill out.

Using only premium Indian spices (you can order them online at SKORDO- an award-winning small Maine family business – roast them gently on a pan on medium heat, then grind in small batches and set aside.

Next sauté the roughly chopped the onions in ghee with the ground spices and then add the tomato paste for the perfect acid balance to the warm spices. Now add the spinach.

Simmer this spice-infused spinach mixture gently until you are almost giddy with happiness. The kitchen should smell divine. You may now use your blender and purée this spinach. Add in the cream (because it’s the right thing to do!!!)

Do not skip the cream!!!

If wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to stop here and bathe in this luscious creamed spinach.

Now with two knobs of ghee melted into a Dutch oven on medium heat, sauté the marinated chicken or lamb or paneer for 4 minutes.

Add in the purée spinach (saag) and stir well. Bring to a simmer and cover for twenty minutes.

Now chill a bottle of Gewurztraminer – it pairs perfectly with spicy Indian food.

Set the table, heat up some Stone-fired garlic naan and brush generously with melted ghee and sprinkle with cilantro.

This is when I’m reminded I’m an impatient human being with no self-control.

I tear off a chunk of Naan and dunk it right into the pot of luscious, rich and creamy saag Murgh!

 

Saag Murgh - An Indian Classic...Creamed Spinach & Chicken!
 
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Indian spiced-infused cream of spinach and marinated chicken
Author:
Recipe type: Entree
Cuisine: Indian
Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • Saag Chicken
  • Indian spiced-infused cream of spinach and marinated chicken
  • Yields 6-8 servings
  • PART 1: To marinate the chicken
  • 2.5 pounds of boneless and skinless chicken thighs, cut into 2-inch pieces
  • 1.5 cups thick Greek yogurt
  • 2 teaspoons turmeric
  • 2 teaspoons of coriander powder
  • 2 teaspoons of cardamom powder
  • 2 teaspoons of cumin powder
  • 2 tablespoons ginger paste
  • 2 tablespoons garlic paste
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • PART 2: To makes the Spinach puree (SAAG)
  • 20 ounces of fresh baby spinach
  • 8 tablespoons ghee
  • 2 teaspoons of cumin seeds
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 2 black cardamoms, use only seeds
  • 3 serrano chilis,
  • 2 onions, roughly chopped
  • 2 teaspoons Kashmiri (mild) chili powder
  • 2 tablespoons garam masala powder
  • 1 tube of tomato paste (no spices added, salt-free)
  • ¼ cup of heavy cream
  • Handful of dried crushed fenugreek leaves or fenugreek seeds
  • Salt to taste
Instructions
  1. Directions for Part 1:
  2. Marinate: Mix the yogurt, turmeric, cumin, cardamom, coriander powder, garlic and ginger pastes, salt and lemon juice together in a large glass bowl. Add the chicken pieces and coat with the marinade. Cover with plastic, refrigerate and let the chicken marinate overnight or at least 2 hours. Remove the marinated chicken from the refrigerator and let it reach room temperature for a full hour. This is an important step, do not skip it.
  3. Direction for Part 2:
  4. Toast & Grind Spices: In a frying pan, on medium heat, toast the bay leaves, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, coriander seeds, cardamom seeds, black cardamom seeds (no husks). Set aside the whole spice mixture and allow it to cool down. Now grind these whole spices together in a spice grinder until fine.
  5. Meanwhile, in a large Dutch oven, add the ghee on medium heat. Add the roughly chopped onions and sautee for 5 minutes until golden brown.
  6. Now add the green chilis, the spice powder mix, garam masala, Kashmiri chili powder and stir for a minute.
  7. Add the tomato paste stir well and allow it to cook on medium heat for another 5 minutes until the mixture separates from the oil in the pot.
  8. Now add the spinach mixture and stir well.
  9. Take your handheld blender and puree this mixture. Set it aside.
  10. In a fresh pot, add the ghee on medium heat. Add the marinated chicken and stir well. Cover the pot and cook until the chicken changes color, about 10 minutes. Now add the pureed spiced-infused spinach mixture. Stir well and cover to cook for another 10 minutes on low heat. Add salt to taste. Give it another good stir. Now gently add the heavy cream (the creamier the better) and let it all simmer for another 5 minutes on low.

Maine’s Modern Day Willy Wonka

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It’s not everyday that a talented chocolatier and chocolate-maker stops by bearing hand-crafted organic bean-to-bar candy, cacao soap, cacao-infused spices and nibs of dark chocolate to share. This past Holiday I was thrilled to host Kate McAleer, co-founder of Bixby & Co, located in Rockland, to share her entrepreneurial story on Maine’s Bicentennial Food Podcast.

Bixby & Co. is an organic chocolatier and chocolate-maker based in Rockland, Maine. Women owned, co-founders, Kate and her mother Donna, recently made Maine food history as the state’s first chocolate-maker of organic bean-to-bar vegan smoothie bars– innovation in chocolate making at its best!

It took hours of additional paperwork, federal and state regulations, grant-writing, demonstrations and testing in the kitchen with their talented team to innovate at this level. It didn’t come easily, but it paid off. There are only a few other organic bean-to-bar chocolate makers in the country.

The thing I love the most about Kate is her grit. Kate has won multiple entrepreneurial pitch competitions and written multiple grants to fund her business from the ground up in the last 8 years with no outside investment. She’s not afraid of the paperwork nor the regulations. She’s also not interested in an exit strategy.  She’s in this for the long run and truly wants to build a chocolate company with a moral conscience. A creative collaborator, Kate recently worked on incorporating her chocolate nibs with Gelato Fiasco, Maine’s beloved gelateria. Last year, two-time James Beard award-winning chef Melissa Kelly and owner of Primo restaurant in Rockland reached out to Bixby & Co. to launch her 20th Anniversary ’20 Karat Primo Bar’ featuring Primo’s popular and addictive signature bar snack, roasted almonds with a touch of Calabrian chili and rosemary. The bar was uniquely sweet, salty but also contained spicy notes infusing the 70% dark chocolate. Hundreds of bars were produced but only 5 bars contained a hidden golden ticket.

Its fun collaborative creative experiences like these that inspire Bixby & Co. to continue embracing Maine and its community of outstanding makers while growing its brand. Kate recently collaborated with Maine’s only organic bourbon maker, Split Rock Distilling, located in Newcastle, Maine, to create a chocolate bar (Split Rock Bourbon 70% Dark Chocolate Bar.)

Bixby & Co. retail store located in downtown Rockland also houses Maine’s first bean to bar chocolate factory. The production area is fun to watch through a glass window. I stopped by with my family and enjoyed sampling our way through Pumpkin Caramels, Needhams, Maine Blueberry Jam Bonbons and Dark Chocolate Almonds. We even got lucky and got to watch a chocolatier at work.  I’m sure you’ll find it hard to leave without a 2 lb dark or milk chocolate handcrafted Lobstah in your hand! For now, check out the pictures below and be sure to listen to Kate’s inspiring story on the podcast.  If you can’t squeeze in a visit to Maine soon Bixby & Co. also ships its delicious candy through its website.

Kate enjoying her Mumbai to Maine chai before we hit the studio.

Co-founders of Bixby & Co., Kate and her mother and inspiration, Donna McAleer.

“Kate the Great!”

Sampling Maine Sea Salt and nibs of organic chocolate.

Award-winning restaurant Primo’s 20 Karat Bar made with Bixby Chocolate

What a feast for the eyes or for any Vegan chocolate lover!

Chocolate making in action

A two-pound dark chocolate hand-crafted LOBSTAH!!!

MAINE FOOD FOR THOUGHT

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Sarah and Bryce Hach

Sarah and Bryce Hach, co-founders of the international award-winning educational based food tour, Maine Food For Thought, sharing their story in the studio.

Meet Sarah and Bryce Hach – Maine’s food ambassadors!!! They are one of the reasons I felt inspired to produce this Bicentennial Food Podcast series.

With stellar non-profit backgrounds and a passion for all things food, they moved to Maine back in 2012 and came up with the brilliant idea to start a food tour with an educational twist. The tour was called Maine Food For Thought. (Isn’t that the perfect name for an educational based tour?)

Shortly after they kicked off the tour, in an almost prescient launch, Portland was voted the 2018 Restaurant City of the Year, Bon Appetit.

Sarah and Bryce are committed to sharing Maine’s food story – behind the plate.  They partnered up with restaurants and chefs who feel the same way. Each notable chef has created a dish that showcases a specific Maine food system while also bringing their own respective personalities and culinary flair to the featured dish. Check out the beautiful pictures below. 

UNION, The Press Hotel

New England Clam chowder with a Thai twist, a dish inspired by Union’s Executive Chef Josh Berry’s travels to Thailand. This East meets West, fusion-style chowder captures the essence of land and sea in Maine: clams, haddock, lobster oil, potatoes and celery but in a coconut-milk base, inspired by a Thai ‘Tom Ki Guy’- soup.

UNION’s gorgeous display of pumpkins sourced from farms all over the state of Maine.

EVO Kitchen + Bar  (Hyatt Place Portland- Old Port) 

Check out Matt Ginn’s Mediterranean-inspired Harra dish showcasing Maine’s humble but hearty potato.

A true reflection of “Maine’s urban sophistication and the rural yankee work ethic”- Bryce.

Per the tour: “Rural meets urban” potato dish flavored by an array of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern ingredients like leeks, garlic, fresh turmeric, and spices including coriander, cayenne, and cumin.

“Evo Kitchen + Bar’s Head Chef Matt Ginn marries Mediterranean techniques and traditions with the incredible bounty of Maine produce, fish and meat – connecting Maine’s urban and rural lifestyles into a single dish.” Matt was recently a ‘Chopped’ Champion! Go Matt!

Solo Italiano

It’s not everyday that a World Pesto Champion moves to Maine and opens a restaurant as beautiful as Solo Italiano.

Meet Chef Paolo Laboa who is a master at handcrafting handkerchief pasta (a work of art) tossed in an authentic Genovese basil pesto. The pasta is made with 00 grade flour and the pesto is made with Langorian Olive oil, both ingredients imported from Italy. The star of this vibrant dish is the Genevose basil grown right at Olivia’s Garden (a state-of-the-art pesticide-free greenhouse garden up in New Gloucester, about 45 minutes north of Portland.)

The pasta was as smooth as silk with a thin coating of the freshest pesto making this dish an explosion of delicate flavors.

No garlic overload in this award-winning pesto! I was in heaven and didn’t want this bite to end.

Solo Italiano’s owner and chef Paolo Laboa is from Genoa, Italy, where he was awarded the Best Young Chef in all of Italy and the winner of the Pesto World Championship.

Scales

So, I have to admit, I’ve been dreaming about this seafood dish since I left the tour. As we casually walked over to Scales where I devoured some of the best Mussels I’ve had in the longest time Maine’s sustainable initiatives with seafood farming, fisheries, aquaculture, kelp farming, lobster and climate change were all on the table for discussion as we dug into that cast iron skillet filled with Bang Island mussels. I tried to be as polite as I could waiting to see if anyone was interested in snagging  that last piece of crusty bread from Standard Baking co. 

Tender and sweet, these sea jewels were swimming in a broth that was so delicious, it was almost distracting. Bryce almost had my full attention. I wish I didn’t have to share that afternoon. 

Don’t you simply love the old fashioned scale and the sunlight pouring right into this glorious open kitchen?

Bangs Island mussels prepared with Maine cider, Raye’s Mustard, cream and dill served with bread with Maine grains from Standard Baking Company. Raye’s Mustard, located in Eastport, Maine, hasn’t changed since it opened in 1900. The mustard was originally used in the packing of sardines. Maine no longer produces sardines but Raye’s mustard is going strong.

East Ender

I was so stuffed by the time we left Scales, but somehow I managed to make room for yet another bite – an ooey-gooey lobster melt. This melt was so next level with 100% Maine lobster meat dressed in a lobster mayo that they make in-house with reduced lobster stock and fresh chives. The sandwich is topped with local Monterey jack cheese from Pineland Farms. The bread is from Southside Production bakery in South Portland.

Piccolo

After almost three hours of exploring the restaurant scene and eating one tasty bite after the next, we buttoned up this thought-provoking tour with a scrumptious dessert at Piccolo where Bryce shed light on food insecurity in Maine and global food waste. Piccolo is a leader in the restaurant community addressing food insecurity. Their culinary teams at Piccolo and Chaval (their sister restaurant) host community events to raise funds for various non-profit organizations focussing efforts on diminishing food insecurity.

Bryce addressing food insecurity, food waste as he wrapped up the tour at the Piccolo.

I loved that this walking tour was only about a mile long with approximately 5-6 minutes between restaurants. I can’t think of a better way to restaurant hop, and take in the historic district of Old Port on a beautiful late fall afternoon. Each dish was expertly crafted and tied right into a discussion about Maine’s food systems. I had the best time chatting it up with fabulous foodies from all over the country.  On my ride home from Portland to Boothbay, I felt a deeper connection to Maine. Bryce’s closing resonated with me all the way home:

“If you really think about it, we really do have a wide array of the food choices at our disposal everyday and what we decide to put on our plate is a reflection of our values and our circumstance. Hopefully today’s tour will spark in you changes you might make with your palate, your health, and your community in mind.”

Maine Food For Thought was an intimate culinary exploration that went beyond the plate.

It’s no surprise that within three years, Bryce and Sarah have already won a prestigious international award: WINNER, BEST FOOD OR BEVERAGE TOUR EXPERIENCE, by the World Food Travel Association’s 2019 FoodTrekking Awards for “Excellence & Innovation in Food and Beverage Travel Experiences.”

It was an honor to have Sarah and Bryce in the studio sharing their journey.  If you are ever in Maine, please do carve out time to take this tour and also eat at these award-winning restaurants.

I hope you enjoy their podcast. I can almost wage you’ll be catching the next flight to Portland or tempted to get in your car and make a reservation to enjoy some of that award-winning pesto or those Bang Island mussels.

Happy Listening!

 

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