Too Many Lobsters?

Most of you know of my love of Maine.  And my love of fresh lobster when we travel there.  They're delicious, incredibly fresh and really reasonable.  In September, we often got them for $4.50-$4.75 per pound.  Even in June this year, usually when the prices are higher, we bought them for $6.50 per pound.

The great news for consumers in Maine is that the prices of lobsters continue to drop.  They're about 70% below the norm and at an almost 30-year low for this time of year.  Again, great for consumers.  But not so great for the lobstermen.  Unfortunately for us here in PA, the big lobster bargains are confined to the Maine area.  Shipping the soft-shelled lobsters plentiful this time of year keep the prices higher here.

The main reason for this drop in price is the great increase in the number of lobsters crawling on the ocean floor--more than lobstermen have seen in ages.  This is the result of a number of things, not the least of which is the change in climate--the unusually warm winters that we've had, which increase the water temperature, making it a better environment for lobsters to grow. 

Then there's the overfishing of cod and haddock in waters off the Maine coast.  These fish used to patrol these waters in the millions--often time eating young lobsters.  Now their numbers are depleted--lowering the number of the lobsters' natural predators.

It's gotten so bad that some groups of lobstermen have agreed to not going out to fish so the demand (and prices) will rise.  There are some reports that some have even issued threats to others who continue to fish.  Most lobstermen say that selling their catch for anything less than $4/pound means they're losing money. 

The problem even carries over international lines.  Many Maine fishermen send a large amount of their catch to processors in Canada.  With the drop in price, these processors are buying even more from Maine.  Of course, this is a problem for the Canadian lobstermen, who have blockaded the gates of some processors in an attempt to keep trucks carrying Maine lobsters to enter.  A Canadian court has granted a 10-day injunction keeping protesters from blocking the gates--at least temporarily. 

It sounds like quite a mess.

But some lobstermen are turning to other sea creatures to earn them income.  With the drop in lobster prices, some are hoping to start a trend toward scallops.  Scallops used to be plentiful in the Maine waters--and are making a comeback in deeper waters--but have been a bit fished out closer to shore.  So some fishermen are taking a shot at farming scallops. 

Scallops aren't like mussels, which can be "grown" on strings.  Scallops have to be raised in large cages so they don't swim away.  Before scallops can be farmed commercially, though, state and federal regulations have to be set and you know how that can go.  But hopefully, this will provide a viable alternative to lobstermen as they wait for the lobster catch to get back to normal.

Read more about the drop in lobster prices in this Wall Street Journal article.  Read about the Canada vs. Maine lobster wars in this article from NPR and about farming scallops in another NPR article.

Naked Lobster

As you know, I love lobster.  When in Maine, there's nothing better than buying live lobsters, cooking and eating them right away.  Delicious.

But there are those who, even though they love to eat lobster, have a hard time with killing their dinner right in the kitchen.  Not to mention the work it takes to get to the meat.

To me, that's the Maine experience--cracking the claws, sucking the meat out of the little legs, taking a big bite of tail meat while butter drips down your chin. 

I guess not everyone agrees with me.  Many folks just want to eat the lobster meat without the killing and cracking.  That's where John Hathaway comes in.

Hathaway opened a lobster shack in Kennebunkport, ME in 2001.  You know the place--plastic bibs, disposable tablecloths on picnic tables.  But what he found was that most people don't want that experience.  They just want to eat the lobster meat.

He found out about an accidental discovery in Louisiana by an oyster distributor who, while playing around with high pressure water to kill bacteria on oysters and extend their shelf life, discovered that the high pressure spray also shucked the oysters.  Hathaway wondered how this technique might work with lobsters.  He headed South to find out.

What he found may actually revolutionize how and where lobster can be shipped and how it can be sold and served.  What happened is that the live lobsters came out of the high pressure spray with 2 differences: they were dead and the meat was totally separated from the shells, but still on the inside.  So once the shells were cracked, the raw lobster meat just slid out.

Needless to say, Hathaway has changed his business plan.  He bought a huge machine that puts the lobsters under high pressure, killing them in 6 seconds and separating the meat in 6 minutes.  He sells to people who don't want to cook and dismantle live lobsters in their homes and to restaurants that save money (and pass some of the savings on to their customers) because they don't have to have space to store live lobsters.  Lobster meat can now be shipped at much less expense (you don't have to keep the critters alive) and can spread the Maine lobster to places that haven't known it before.

For my money, I want the fun of eating a whole lobster.  But I can totally understand the appeal of cooking with raw lobster meat without the hassle.  Read more about this interesting story in this article from Boston.com.

Mainely Food (Part 3)

So as our trip wound down, we took a nice easy hike along Long Pond (which is much bigger than what I would classify as a "pond").  The day started out a little overcast, but cleared up a bit as we started the walk along the shoreline. 



Looking down Long Pond.



The water is incredibly clear and still.  We got to a point further down the shore and Jake's young eyes spied a loon in the middle of the water.  He started making loon sounds ("Listen!  I'm communicating with the loon!") 

Fog over Long Pond.

After sitting for a while, we started back toward the car and the fog came rolling over the mountains, hovering over the water.  It was an almost surreal feeling.  The sounds of the loons calling, the low fog, bald eagles flying through the low clouds.  It was really cool.  Jake continued to make his loon calls, which resulted in a 2-second delayed echo.  He though that was pretty neat.  We did too.

Our last morning came (or what we thought was going to be our last morning) and we went for breakfast at Breakfast at Grumpy's in Southwest Harbor.  We didn't know anything about it, but it looked good.  And it was.

A beautiful setting right on the harbor (complete with yet another loon having breakfast).  It's a family-run place where everything is made from scratch.  Big portions (see the picture of the blueberry pancakes!), too.  Grumpy, by the way, is a really nice guy who has been in the food biz for almost 30 years. 

Plate-sized blueberry pancakes and
a 3-egg omeletat Grumpy's.

It was a good thing that we had this hearty breakfast, because the rest of the day was going to leave no time for lunch.  Soon after, we noticed the smoke coming out from under the hood and our 2 day stranding in Bar Harbor began.

Oh, sure.  We didn't need the added expense of the repair and the motel and the rental car.  But we did get a couple other good breakfasts at Cafe This Way and Grumpy's again.  And we got to spend another day and a half in Acadia--Jake back swimming in the 57 degree water at Sand Beach.

And we found a new casual dinner place in Bar Harbor.  The Side Street Cafe is a relatively new place (opened in '09) that is family-friendly and is known for their yummy burgers and macaroni and cheese.  You can "build your own" burgers and mac-and-cheese by adding your choice from a list of ingredients.  MB got mac-and-cheese with spinach and mushrooms.  I had a burger with goat cheese, bean sprouts, olive tapenade on a ciabatta roll.  Really tasty.  Jake loved the kid-sized burger, too. 



From burgers to fried seafood, from fresh steamed lobsters to trail mix while hiking, from Cafe This Way to Grumpy's--it was another great food adventure in Maine.  (Not to mention all the other great non-food stuff!)  Jake's already asking about when we'll be heading back. 

Mainely Food

Well, it's back to reality here in PA now that we've returned from a week and a half in the great state of Maine.  It was supposed to have been a couple of days less, but as we started our trip home on Saturday, we noticed some smoke coming from under the hood of the car--bad radiator.  No one was open to fix it until Monday, so we were "stranded" in Bar Harbor for a couple of extra days. 

We didn't need the extra expense of the repair, a rental car and a motel stay, but if we were going to be stranded, better there than on some highway in the middle of Connecticut or something like that.  So we got some more good food, more time in Acadia and a long overnight drive home from 4PM on Monday to about 3AM on Tuesday.

But enough about that...here are some highlights (both food and otherwise).

Mmmm...Burgers!

We made our usual stop in Freeport to visit L.L. Bean and got some lunch at Johnny Rocket's Original Hamburgers.  It's a chain, but I must say that the burgers were delicious.  Juicy and a really good crust on the outside.  We were pleasantly surprised. 

The weather was nice--sunny and in the mid-60's as we drove north for a stay in Boothbay Harbor.  We found a nice kid-friendly B&B there a few years ago, the Bayside B&B, and have stayed there for the last few years as a stopover on our way.  Very nice people and good breakfasts. 

Tasty treats at The Lobster Dock.

Boothbay Harbor is also home to The Lobster Dock, a great waterfront seafood place where Bobby Flay had a crabcake throwdown with the owner a number of years ago and where last year, Jake learned that he loves fried Maine shrimp.  It was getting cooler, but we still ate by the water.  Jake had shrimp and MB and I shared a seafood platter.  Haddock, shrimp, scallops and clams fried to perfection, not greasy at all, tender--so good.  We usually get ice cream in Boothbay Harbor, but it was pretty cold after the sun went down (an overnight low of 36!), so we skipped it until another time.

We visited one of our favorite finds of the last few years, the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens.  I'm usually not really into that kind of thing, but I really love this place.  A must-see if you are ever in the area.  Beautifully landscaped and cared for--a children's garden based on kid's books (many from Maine authors), a Garden of the Five Senses, Rose Garden, Kitchen Garden, scenic walking paths, etc.  A really cool place.  (Yummy food in the cafeteria, too!)

What a goofball.  Wonder where he gets that.

After spending much of the day there, we headed to the cottage we rented in West Tremont--on the "Quiet Side" of Mount Desert Island, which houses Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park.  MB's brother Pete and his girlfriend, Linda, joined us.  A nice comfortable house, literally just a stone's throw to the beach of Duck Cove--it gave Jake plenty of room to search for "treasures" on the beach.   

The back of the house faces West, so it's no wonder why the place is called Acadia Sunset.  This is the view from the back porch.

Ready for the table.

Of course, we were in Maine, so we couldn't go too long without eating lobster.  Very close to the cottage is a great lobster pound, Thurston's.  We've eaten on their dockside deck in the past, but this time, we bought live critters to cook at home.  They were something like $4.65/lb for medium soft-shelled lobsters.  You can't buy a fast food dinner for that! 

And they were delicious.  I steamed them with water from the cove--perfectly seasoning them.  Tender and sweet, dipped in butter and lemon.  There's not much better.  Jake was very proud that he ate his first whole lobster.  He did a good job, too!

Stop playing with your food!

Hungry yet?  Next time: working up an appetite hiking, some presidential ice cream and our favorite restaurant.

Musings

A lot going on lately--not all food-related.

I trust you survived Irene.  Even though it wasn't as bad as it could have been (or as bad as predicted), it was quite an experience.  We didn't even lose power for a second.  The worst we had were a few small branches down and our garden was sort of squashed by the wind.  (Our Brussels sprouts looked like fallen trees.)  My parents are still out of power (in Haycock, that happens with a nice summer breeze, it seems).  They hope to have it back by Thursday--maybe. 

The flooding in Vermont is devastating.  I saw on the Weather Channel terrible flooding in Jamaica Village, Vermont (see video below).  MB & I stayed in this little artsy village for a couple nights on our first trip to VT a number of years ago.  Sad to see it.  By the way, if you ever get to Jamaica, consider staying--or at least eating--at the Three Mountain Inn, just down the road from the video.  Great accomodations and wonderful food (ate rabbit for the first time here).  Just wait until the water recedes.

After a day's delay becasue of the hurricane, Jake started kindergarten today.  (No pics yet--I think MB took the camera with her when she dropped him off.)  Can't tell if he's excited or not--I think so.  I told him to practice strutting around saying, "That's right, I'm in kindergarten."  He looks like an astronaut with his big backpack on.  I'm looking forward to seeing how he does.  He loves to learn new things, so I think he'll be just fine.

I just read a short article on Philly.com about the "family tree" of Philly's restaurant scene.  These days, the city's food offerings are seen by many to be right up there with some of the great food cities of the world.  I still think that a meal that I had at Buddakan was the best meal I've ever had.  It was amazingly expensive, but worth it.  Read the article here.

How do you open this thing?

We're looking forward to our annual trek to Maine coming up soon.  Can't wait.  Jake's excited about fried Maine shrimp (he learned to love them last year) and he's going to try lobster again this year (he tried it a couple of years ago, but wan't crazy about it--a textural thing, I think). 

Saw on the news that any kind of chocolate (not just dark) might be good for you.  There are some out there who might take that as a call to go on an all-choclate diet.  You know who you are!  Good luck with that.

Whoopie!

Pretty much all of us know what a Whoopie Pie is--a yummy, cream-filled chocolate cake sandwich.  Anyone who has traveled a little bit West to Amish country has at least seen them being sold--if not tasted them. 

Years ago, when we first started going to Maine each year, we were very surprised to see Whoopie Pies being sold in Maine.  And they were everywhere--just like they are in Amish country.  We couldn't figure out the connection.

Now, apparently, there are battle lines being drawn between those PA Whoopie supporters and those in Maine.  It seems to have started when the ME legislature decided to pass a bill naming the Whoopie Pie the official state "treat".  (Blueberry pie seems to me to be a better pick, but hey, I'm no politician!)

A "Save Our Whoopie" rally was held in Lancaster County to show all those Mainers that the Whoopie started here in PA.  Most articles you read say that it's a light-hearted conflict, but you have to wonder if people aren't taking it a little bit too seriously on both ends. 

The "battle" has even caught the eye of The Wall Street Journal--in an article called "Bakin' Whoopie".  You can read the Mainer's point of view in an article from the Bangor Daily News.

Sad as this sounds, Mary Beth and I have actually discussed this issue.  Personally, I think that there must be some connection between the two places that lay claim to these treats.  Despite some very slight differences in recipes, they're basically the same in both places and are called the same thing in both places.  Sounds to me that somewhere along the line, someone moved from PA to ME (or maybe the other way around, but I doubt it) and took her Whoopie Pie recipe with her.  The rest is history. 

I guess it doesn't really matter.  Living near Amish country and traveling to Maine each year, I can get my fill of Whoopie Pies throughout the year.

Lotsa Lobsta

It's been reported that Maine's lobster harvest in 2010 was a record breaker.  Preliminary numbers show that 93.4 million pounds of lobster were caught in Maine waters, breaking 2009's record by over 12 million pounds.  Lobstermen get about $3.31 per pound, making this year's catch the 3rd most lucrative in history.

Still, a lobsterman's life isn't easy.  Because of the abundance of the critters, a lobsterman is only allowed by law to have one boat (as opposed to fishermen, who can own many boats).  From an article in the Portland Press Herald:

To keep their profits up, Maine lobstermen must maximize their fishing time, spending 14 hours a day hauling traps. That leaves them little or no time to sell their product, so they have largely relegated the job to lobster dealers, who pay lobstermen at the wharf and then find retailers, restaurants and other markets.

There are a number of lobstermen in Maine who are now forming cooperatives--teaming with chefs and marketing teams--in an effort to spread the delicious lobster to a wider clientele.

Much like I do as a personal chef, they are creating delicious dishes with fresh ingredients and freezing them.  Then they sell them on line or in grocery stores so people can enjoy lobster without much preparation and in a bunch of different ways.  Only about 1/5 of the lobster caught in Maine is consumed in New England, so freezing pre-made dishes not only allows folks in other parts of the country to enjoy it, but it gives other options to locals.

For my money, I still think that the best way to eat a lobster is fresh out of the water, steamed or boiled, with some lemon and butter. Not that I'd turn away something like lobster pizza, chowder or pasta. And that's what these co-ops are counting on.

Maine Locavore

You've heard me and others tout the idea of eating locally grown, produced and sold foods.  They're more nutritious, more flavorful, better for our environment and better for our local economy. 

But eating a totally locavore diet is not easy.  Think about it.  Say you wanted to eat food only produced in Bucks County or even Eastern PA.  What things would you not be able to use?  Salt and pepper.  Olive oil.  Peanut butter.  Certain spices.

Well, a 27 year-old woman from Maine, Katherine Creswell, decided to eat only food produced in Maine for a month.  It was such a success, that she's decided to try it for a whole year. 

Read an interview with her in the Boston Globe.  It's pretty impressive that she did this.  She did have to cheat on one item...soy milk (she's lactose intolerant). 

So, are you going to give it a try?

It's All About ME

The view of the harbor from our B&B in Boothbay Harbor.

Well, we've been back from our 2 week trip to Maine for a few days and I'm finally settled enough to get something written about it.

It was a great trip--we had really good weather for the most part, took some beautiful and fun hikes and, of course, ate a bunch of great food.  As you would expect, much of what I'll be writing about is food-related.

The drive up was pretty uneventful.  We always talk about how, once you cross the bridge from Portsmouth, NH into Maine, you can almost feel a palpable change.  You breathe in and know that you aren't dealing with the hubbub of the Philly suburbs anymore. 

We made our usual stop at Freeport and visited L.L. Bean and a few other stores.  Then it was on to Boothbay Harbor.  We used to drive straight through to our ultimate destination, but that gets pretty long and several years ago, we decided to stop a couple of nights in some other towns.  We've stayed in Boothbay Harbor the last 3 years in a nice B&B, The Bayside Inn--very kid-friendly (they have 2 kids of their own who were so excited to hang with Jake for a little while) and in a great location.

Our first ME dinner was at a place we visited last year.  The Lobster Dock gets great reviews and, if you're a fan of the Food Network show Throwdown with Bobby Flay, you may recognize it as the location of the Crabcake Throwdown episode (Flay won--a few nights later, we actually saw the episode on TV). 

The menu is HUGE, but we were in the mood for some good fried seafood.  I got a humongous platter of fried haddock, Maine shrimp, scallops and clams piled on a load of French fries.  MB got the fried haddock platter--a huge piece of fish over fries.  It was delicious: cooked to perfection--not a speck of grease on the paper plate, eaten on the dock overlooking the harbor.  Jake got a hot dog, but had his greatest epiphany of the trip--he loves fried Maine shrimp.

Maine shrimp are those little tiny shrimp--very tasty and tender.  I offered him one of mine and that was that--he probably ate half of the many I had on my plate.  He was so excited that he found something new to eat--and, as you will find out, he ate plenty of them in the coming weeks.



You can see the big menu
in the background.



 After dinner, we waddled over to the Greater Boothbay Ice Cream Factory--another place we've visited in the past.  Here they offer probably 70 or more flavors of homemade ice creams--and you can split the scoop, too (2 "half-scoops" of different flavors.  Very tasty.  Ice cream could be Jake's favorite food.

  

Artichokes (a member of the thistle
family--obviously) in the Garden of
the Five Senses.



Jake in the "bear cave".

After a nice breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, fruit, blueberry muffins and more, we headed to The Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens--a favorite of ours from our other 2 visits.  These gardens are relatively new and fairly unknown, but they are incredible--even in September.  Everything is done exceptionally well--from the walkways to the benches to the sculptures to the cafe to the gardens themselves.  They have a number of gardens including The Garden of the Five Senses, The Kitchen Garden and the incredible Children's Garden, which opened during the summer.  We literally spent all day there--much of it in the Children's Garden where Jake climbed in a tree house, hid in a bear cave and played in the fountains among other things.  It really is a must-see destination.

 

More fun at the Gardens.



Later, we went to nearby Wiscasset and had dinner at Sara's Cafe, a nice family restaurant with a great view of the Sheepscot River.  Admittedly, the food is so-so, but it's a good place to take kids.  They have very good desserts, too.  For the first time in a long time, we didn't stop for a lobster roll at Red's Eats, across the street from Sara's.  Sort of feels like something is missing not having stopped there, but as you will find out, there were plenty of lobster in our future.



Creme Brulee French Toast greeted us the next morning, our last in Boothbay Harbor.  After dragging our full bellies around town a little bit, we stopped at Ocean Point, a nice public area nearby.  Then it was off to the cottage in Brooklin.

 

In that area, one of the most famous and popular places to eat is Moody's Diner.  Opened in 1934, Moody's has been the place to get good, homemade comfort food.  Among the things we had there: Turkey Sandwich (with their own roasted turkey breast), Turkey Pot Pie, Blueberry Pie, Chocolate Cream Pie and a Whoopie Pie (The debate rages on about whether Whoopie Pies are a Maine creation or a PA Dutch/Amish thing.  They taste the same and my theory is that if they're both called the same thing, there must be some sort of connection between the two.  I should do some research about that.)  Anyway, we finally stopped at Moody's after passing it for the last 12 years.  Good stuff.

We made it to the cottage after going grocery shopping (the Tradewinds Grocery Store  in Blue Hill is great) and we were ready for the next part of our trip.

Next time:  Farmers' market, hiking and a meal at one of our favorite restaurants (anywhere)--Cafe This Way in Bar Harbor. 

Ahhhh....

Sunshine, upper-60's temps, fresh veggies, the bay out the back door and $4.50 lobster...am I in heaven?  Nope, I'm in Brooklin, Maine!

We spent a couple of days in Boothbay Harbor and now we're here in Brooklin (I'm currently at the cute little public library) and it's just the best place on earth.  Just came from a tiny, but really great farmers' market here in town (or village)--got some veggies, freshly made whole-wheat baguettes, fresh mozzarella and homemade blackberry/blueberry jelly.  Mmmm...

You'll hear more about our trip (probably more than you want to hear) soon!

The Wild Maine Blues

I've written before about the joy of climbing a mountain on a summer hike in Maine and taking a break to pick the tiny, sweet wild blueberries off of the bushes.  They're so good.

I just found an article from The Atlantic with more about them.  The writing is a bit convoluted in places, but it gives you some interesting info about these little blue pearls. 

By the way, you can buy wild blueberries in many grocery stores--either canned or (better yet) frozen.  Wyman's is the brand you should look for.  Wyman's jelly is mentioned in the article.

On another subject, I hope to see you at the Ottsville Farmers' Market on Friday from 3-7 or at the Plumsteadville Grange Farmers' Market on Saturday from 9-noon.  I'll be both places whipping up sample of tasty treats made from market goodies! 

Wild About Blueberries

I was reading Lynne Goldman's piece on blueberries in Bucks County Taste today.  It is indeed time to start seeing fresh blueberries in the markets.  Yum.  Tasty, versatile and really good for you.  Just want you want in food.

Lynne talks about putting some of them in the freezer for a treat during the winter months.  Always a good idea with fresh fruit.  The seasons are so short, you have to try to keep some for later--if you can avoid eating all of them first.  Jake loves eating frozen blueberries--it's like eating flavored ice!  It makes a real mess in his mouth, too. 

Of course, being the Maine fanatics that we are, blueberries always make us think of Maine.  If you've never had wild blueberries from Maine, you are missing out.  These tiny berries--much smaller than the ones you find around here--are incredibly sweet.  Sort of the essence of what blueberries should taste like.

And, if you visit during the right time of year (mid- to late-summer and even into September depending on the weather), they're everywhere.  In fact, wild blueberries cover an estimated 60,000 acres in the state.  They were first commercially harvested in 1840 and today, wild blueberry production brings $250 million dollars to Maine's economy.  You can find frozen wild blueberries in most supermarkets (Wyman's is probably the most common brand).

We usually go Down East in September, but a couple of years ago, we went in July and these pictures are from a hike up a mountain in Acadia National Park.  We took a break at the summit to drink some water and eat some berries.  A nice refreshing way to catch our breath.

So enjoy the blueberries grown locally while they last.  And if you can someday, drive north and eat some local berries right off the bushes.