minddancez's Profile
Mid Coast Maine VS. Boston
I live in the Boston area and agree that there are things in Boston not available in Maine, but I think midcoast Maine has some great spots (such as those mentioned above) and much better breakfast spots. Brown Bag and Thomaston Cafe are not to be missed, and I dream about the donuts at Willow Bake Shoppe. (Full Disclosure: my sister owns WBS, but I dreamt about them even before she owned it.) The molasses glazed, when they are still warm, are delicious. And Primo in Rockland is my favorite restaurant anywhere, especially if you sit at the bar.
Chestnuts picked up from trees in Harvard Square: safe to eat? what species?
For awhile, the American Chestnut Foundation had folks in the Boston area who would come to your yard and let you know whether the tree was, in fact, an American Chestnut or something else. They would take pics if it was bigger than a certain size -- some trees seem to have a natural resistance to blight for awhile. Check with the Massachusetts chapter: http://masschestnut.org/index.php
Where to find Cardoons?
Now that it is fall, I thought I would resurrect this question. Russo's today said they would have them for the holidays. Has anyone seen them anywhere else?
Where to find chicken parts for stock?
Hi,
I just recently went on a stock making spree. I got packages of chicken necks and chicken backs from Battambang supermarket in Lowell. They also had packages of chicken feet -- I passed on these this time. The stock is wonderful -- shimmery and shaky. I did pull a fair amount of fat off the top after letting the stock cool overnight in the frig. It was less than a dollar a pound for each: I believe I spent about 8 dollars total for the chicken parts, and got 3 gallons of stock.
I made veal stock the same weekend: Blood Farm in Groton from time to time has big bags of veal bones for about $10. I am on their list to call when they get them in. I use Anthony Bourdain's advice on stock making from his Les Halles cookbook. I froze about 2 gallons of stock and reduced the rest to about 3 quarts of something approximating demiglace.
