Bar Harbor Inn Lobster Mac & Cheese
From A Taste of lobster and some tales too – this is delicious!!
Bar Harbor Inn Lobster Mac and Cheese
2 cups uncoooked elbow macaroni
2 tablespoons floor
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups milk or half-and-half
8 ounces Cabot’s grated Sharp Cheddar cheese
12 ounces cooked cleaned lobster meat cut into bite size pieces
4 ounces cracker meal
1 teaspoon paprika
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Bring large pot of water to boil. Add macaroni and cook until al dente, about 10-12 minutes.
- While macaroni is cooking, make white sauce by melting butter in saucepan and stir in flour to make a roux. Cook the roux for a few minutes, stirring continuously. Gradually add the milk; add 6 ounces grated Cheddar cheese, stirring constantly until melted. Add lobster to sauce. Add sauce to cooked macaroni.
- In a separate bowl mix cracker meal and paprika. Place macaroni mix in glass or ceramic casserole dish and top with cracker meal mix and remaining cheddar cheese.
- Bake for 1 hour or until top is golden and bubbly.
- Serve with fresh field green salad and crisp white wine.
Serves 4
America’s Castles at Newport
England has Buckingham Palace, France has Versailles, Germany has Neuschwanstein Castle, Russia has Mikhailovsky Castle and America has the Breakers, Rosecliff, Rough Point and the other “Summer Cottages” of the Industrial Barons of the 1800s.
The Breakers, home of Cornelius Vanderbilt, was begun in 1893 and is a 70-room Italian Renaissance-style palazzo inspired by the 16th century palaces of Genoa and Turin. Rosecliff was modeled after the Grand Trianon, the garden retreat of French kings at Versailles. The home of Doris Duke, Rough Point, with 115 rooms, was designed in an English manorial style, built with the intent of evoking the feel of an English country house. Besides the mansion the property consists of Prescott Farm, which allows visitors to see how early settlers on Aquidneck Island lived in the late 1700 and early 1800s. Homes like these were able to be built since there wasn’t any income tax in the USA. I also doubt if you would be able to find the craftsmen to do the intricate work that is so amazing.
Rosecliff has the most amazing sweetheart staircase that was featured in the “Great Gadsby.” I have visited both the Breakers and 
Rosecliff and was in awe of the beautiful woodwork, staircases and crystal chandeliers. However, my thoughts turned to , “could you imagine sneaking down to the kitchen in the middle of the night or seating in the living room in jeans and sneakers.” This just one of the tales from the Taste and Tales of Coastal New England.
The Taste and Tales of Coastal New England and A Taste of Lobster and some tales too can be found at the Newport Mansions Stores, located at The Breakers, Marble House, The Elms, Rosecliff, and on Bannister’s Wharf in downtown Newport.
Great Food at Blue Marlin in Essex, MA
Friday evening, I was visiting friends in Gloucester when we decided to go out to dinner. The original choice was the Windward Grille, but since we didn’t have a reservation we would have had to wait over an hour. Decided instead to go up the road a piece and dine at the Blue Marlin Grille on Rt. 133. We all started out with Clam Chowder and I must admit it was delicious. Could actually stand my spoon up, it was so thick with clams and potatoes. Told it won the Chowder contest at the Essex ClamFest. We all had something different, I did Surf and Turf with baked shrimp and tenderloin tips – excellent. Our waitress was great and considering it was graduation night and the restaurant was packed, everything arrived perfectly. Must also state they had excellent cole slaw – just right. You can have a peek at these guys if you have the idea of opening up a new restaurant of this franchise around your locality.
Clams and Essex are synonymous. Nearly 100 years ago at Woodman’s a mile or so down the road, Chubby Woodman in response to a dare, fried a few clams and an instant hit occurred. On July 4, 1916, Chubby and his wife Bessie, presented his Fried Clams to the residents of Essex during the parade. People across New England are always looking for the best Fried Clam. Personally, I don’t like a lot of batter, but others do. Be prepared for long lines.
Chubby and Bessie’s Fried Clams
26 ounces whole belly clams
12 ounces evaporated milk
4 cups corn flour
Lard (Crisco can be used). Do not use olive oil.
- 1. In a 4 quart saucepan, melt 2 3/4 pounds lard or vegetable oil to a depth of 2-inches in the pan. Heat to 350 degrees F. Using two bowls, pour evaporated milk into one, and corn flour into the other. In small batches put the clams in a hand-held strainer, and submerge into the bowl of evaporated milk to coat. Remove the strainer from the bowl and shake off the excess milk. Next dredge the clams until they are well covered with corn flour (you may want to use a clean dry hand-held strainer to shake off the excess flour).
- Carefully place the clams into hot lard or oil. Be careful, because lard will spatter. Cook in small batches, turning to cook both sides, until they are golden brown. Using a slotted scoop remove from oil. Shake gently to remove excess oil. The clams will take approximately 1 1/2 minutes to cook. The color is the most important. They should be a golden brown. Serves 8 (appetizer-sized servings).
For those few who have never been to Woodman’s, the restaurant is located on Main Street (Rt. 133), Essex, MA.
Courtesy of Woodman’s of Essex — Five Generations of Stories, 100 Years of Recipes
Recipes from Taste and Tales of Coastal New England
Potato Brunch Casserole for Easter Brunch
This recipe is requested every year for our Easter Brunch. The one thing different this year is that after 30 years our Easter Egg Hunt had to be cancelled due to SNOW, yes SNOW is still in the yard. Hard to believe, but in some places it is still at least a a foot deep.
Potato Brunch Casserole
Ingredients
One 32 ounce package hash brown
One pint whipping cream
16 ounce package of swiss cheese, grated
¼ lb. (1 stick) of butter, melted nutmeg
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Put all ingredients in an oven-to-table casserole dish; mix thoroughly. Sprinkle top with nutmeg.
3.Bake covered for 30 minutes; remove cover and continue baking for another 30 minutes until golden and bubbly.
Recipe can be found in Taste and Tales of Massachusetts
Station House 4 wins Rib Cook Off in Sarasota
This past Saturday I attended the 12th annual Rib Cook Off to benefit the Sarasota Fire Fighters Benevolent Fund. Thirteen teams from Station Houses from all corners of Sarasota County. Over 2,000 people attended and consumed over 3,000 pounds of ribs. It was a warm day for March, but everyone happily chewed on ribs and voted for the one they liked the most. My first stop was at table “M” which represented Station House 4 in Sarasota. I was very impressed with their product which I found to be moist, juicy and cooked just right. What really impressed me were the 8 different sauces (all homemade) which were available for you to try with their ribs. I continued through the event and tried several more some I liked and other not so much. Some were cooked too much, I’m not fond of crispy meat and others not enough.
Finally, the time came to vote and my choice was clear – it was the fire fighters from Station House 4. They also won first place in 2014. I believe what sets them apart from their competitors are their selection of sauces. Others had sauces, but they were bought at Publix. This pictures shows a father and son trying to decide which to choose.
They won the People’s Choice and were selected number one by the team of judges. The Florida Division of Forestry came in second and Station House 8 (located on Bee Ridge Road) came in third. Congrats to all the winners.
Cranberry Country Style Baby Back Ribs
Ingredients
4 pounds baby back pork ribs
salt and pepper
2½ cups fresh or frozen cranberries
½ cup water
½ cup sugar or honey
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup chili sauce
6 tablespoons red wine or cider vinegar
¼ cup chopped onion
¼ Worcestershire sauce Read more
Chubby and the Clam – Woodman’s celebrates 100 years
“The ubiquitous fried clam was invented on July 3, 1916 at Woodman’s in Essex. Whether on purpose or by accident, Lawrence “Chubby” Woodman dropped a clam or two into a fryer while he was making a batch of french fries and lo and behold, the fried clam was born. To true New Englanders, a fried clam must have the belly and they must be Ipswich clams; those small, yet ever so succulent, bivalves (shells consisting of two halves, or valves). The Ipswich clam is really a bivalve king, monarch of the mollusks. Dug from tidal flats along the Essex River, the clams must, by law, be taken only by a hand rake and not dredged.” Taste and Tales of Massachusetts
On Sunday, I saw an article about a new cookbook, Woodman’s of Essex — Five Generations of Stories, 100 Years of Recipes. Immediately e-mailed a fellow food, Heather Atwood of Gloucester, who said it was great. It came today and has all the famous recipes that countless thousands have enjoyed throughout the years, but one! I figured it would be the fried clam recipe and I was wrong, it is the fried onion recipe. So whether it is Nannie Woodman’s, Lemon Pie or the great cole slaw, they are all here.
Chubby and Bessie’s Fried Clams
- 26 ounces whole belly clams
- 12 ounces evaporated milk
- 4 cups corn flour
- Lard (Crisco can be used). Do not use olive oil.
- In a 4 quart saucepan, melt 2 3/4 pounds lard or vegetable oil to a depth of 2-inches in the pan. Heat to 350 degrees F. Using two bowls, pour evaporated milk into one, and corn flour into the other. In small batches put the clams in a hand-held strainer, and submerge into the bowl of evaporated milk to coat. Remove the strainer from the bowl and shake off the excess milk. Next dredge the clams until they are well covered with corn flour (you may want to use a clean dry hand-held strainer to shake off the excess flour).
- Carefully place the clams into hot lard or oil. Be careful, because lard will spatter. Cook in small batches, turning to cook both sides, until they are golden brown. Using a slotted scoop remove from oil. Shake gently to remove excess oil. The clams will take approximately 1 1/2 minutes to cook. The color is the most important. They should be a golden brown. Serves 8 (appetizer-sized servings).
For those few who have never been to Woodman’s, the restaurant is located on Main Street (Rt. 133), Essex, MA.
Courtesy of Woodman’s of Essex — Five Generations of Stories, 100 Years of Recipes
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