Maine Food Independence Day, Menu and Recipes

This July 4th celebrate Local Food Independence!

Flexibility, experimentation and having fun are key components to developing your local foods meals. The goal is to choose a menu that will incorporate as much local food as possible. Potatoes, beef, beans, salad greens, dairy, flour and strawberries are easy to find in Maine in early July. Farmer's Markets, CSA's, local Food Co-ops and home gardens are good places to look. If you are persistent and want to locate a particular ingredient that may not be at the market (like cider vinegar) try neighbors and/or farmers in your vicinity. If nothing else, you'll have a good conversation about local food.

Menu: Potato Salad, Burgers, Baked Beans, Green Salad and Strawberry short cake

Potato salad:
4 lbs Maine grown potatoes
Vegetable oil (about ¼ cup)
Vinegar (about ¼ cup)
Salt and pepper
1 C chopped sweet onion (chives, garlic scapes or scallions would work too)
½ cup chopped parsley
½ cup chopped celery or cutting celery (tastes like celery and looks like parsley)
6 hard boiled eggs, chopped
½ to1 cup Mayonnaise mixed with ½ to1 cup sour cream (it depends on how creamy you like it.)

Wash potatoes and place in a pot of enough cold water to cover the potatoes. Put a lid on the pot and bring it to a boil then turn it down to a simmer until potatoes are just cooked. Be careful not to overcook or they may turn to mush. Cube the potatoes and toss them with the oil and vinegar while still hot. Season with salt and pepper and chill.
When potatoes are chilled add the onion, herbs, Mayo/sour cream mixture and fold gently. Last of all fold in the chopped, hard-boiled eggs. Top with a sprig of parsley and serve.


Burgers
Everyone has their own particular way to cook burgers. I like to mix my beef with herbs and make ¼ lb patties, which we grill to order. Provide many toppings for the burgers such as cheeses, sliced onions, tomatoes, lettuce and an array of condiments. As far as making the burgers as local as possible, the beef is easy, as are some of the toppings. But the rolls and condiments present a challenge that you might want to work your way up to. I make my Maine-grown, whole wheat roll-dough in a bread machine. Then I roll out a thick log of dough (approximately 3 inches in diameter), slice it an inch or so thick and pat it quickly into flat discs that rise to a nice, not too bready, bun shape.
For condiments, rather than trying to make a Maine-grown ketchup or mustard try to think of something different to put on your burger. Of course if you have to have ketchup and mustard go for it and enjoy. The main thing is to incorporating as much Maine–grown as possible and still enjoy your food. But don’t forget about that jar of zucchini relish you put up last summer, or the plum chutney you were saving for last Thanksgiving and forgot about. You might just start a new fad in burger condiments. Part of eating local foods is opening up to different flavors and food combinations. Using local ingredients can lead to some surprisingly delicious discoveries.


Boston Baked Beans in Bean Pot
Recipe By: Durgin-Park Restaurant, Boston, MA
This is by far the richest baked bean recipe I’ve tried. It’s yummy, but feel free to reduce the amount of fat or sugar. Baked bean recipes are very forgiving as long as you keep an eye on the moisture level.

2 1/2-quart bean pot or covered casserole
1 pound of beans (The recipe recommends California pea beans, York State beans or small white beans but try to substitute a Maine grown bean. The Marifax bean is my favorite as it holds its shape when cooked and has a rich texture.)
½ teaspoon baking soda (optional, it is said to prevent the gassy after affects)
1/2 pound salt pork (substitute ¼ lb of butter or ½ cup of vegetable oil if you omit the salt pork)
1/2 medium onion -- peeled and uncut
1/3-cup molasses and 4 tablespoons of sugar (substitute ¾ of a cup of maple syrup for the sugar and the molasses for a more local dish.)
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Soak beans overnight. In the morning, preheat oven to 325° F. Place the baking soda in a Dutch oven and fill half way with water. Bring to a boil and add the beans. Boil for 10 minutes. Drain beans in a colander and run cold water through them. Set aside.

Dice the salt pork (available in the bacon section of the grocery store) into 1-inch squares. Put half of the salt pork on the bottom of the bean pot, along with the onion. Put beans in the pot. Put the remaining salt pork on top of the beans.

Mix the sugar, molasses, mustard, salt and pepper with 3 cups of hot water and pour over the beans. Cover pot with lid and place the pot into the preheated oven. Bake for 6 hours. Check pot periodically to check the amount of liquid. Add water to the beans slowly as needed to keep them moist; do not flood them. Remove the pot from the oven and serve. Makes about 7 cups.

Strawberry Short Cake

4 quarts of cleaned and sliced strawberries (tossed in ¼ cup of maple syrup or honey)
8 Homemade biscuits (see following recipe)
1 pint of heavy cream, whipped and sweetened with 2 T of maple syrup

Slice biscuit and place on a plate. Smother with sliced strawberries and top with a dollop of whipped cream. Serve immediately.

Biscuits:
2 Cups of Maine-grown whole-wheat flour
½ tsp of salt (if the butter is salt free)
2 tsp of baking powder
4 T cold butter
1 Cup of milk

Sift dry ingredients into a deep bowl. Cut in the butter. Add the milk (add extra if the dough is too dry). Stir lightly until well blended. Drop from end of spoon onto a greased cookie sheet. Leave room for biscuits to spread. Bake in a hot oven, 450 degrees, for about 12 minutes. Best if served fresh out of the oven. Yield: 12 biscuits.

Green Salad
If you grow your own or visit your local market you’ll find an abundance of yummy salad fixings in July. The dressing is the challenging part. I’ll have to admit that in the summer I love a squeeze of lemon or lime on my salad, along with a drizzle with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. I have made a delicious dressing out of sour cream and herbs. Just flavor the sour cream with a variety of garden herbs, garlic and salt. Then thin it out with local cider vinegar or a drizzle of water.

Make sure your guest know they are eating a Maine-grown meal. Being a locavore is one thing, educating our communities about the benefits of eating local is quite another.