Lobster Rolls: Keep it simple

All that remains from our vacation to Cape Cod this year is a pile of dirty laundry and a dusting of sand on everything we took with us.  This year we spent the early part of the summer working on swimming skills for the boys.  As a result both boys are very confident in the water and enjoy hanging out in water over their heads.  Unfortunately I do not share this same confidence as Julian needs to duck under the water for a moment every few strokes to take a break.  We spent time on an ocean side beach with friends where Julian exalted in boogie boarding.  As I watched him one time, a wave tumbled him upside down before spitting him out on the beach.  When I asked if he was okay he flashed me a huge grin and said, "That was the best ride of my life."

Sebastian still approaches the ocean cautiously, preferring to stand at the waters edge watching our friends boogie boarding to getting on himself.  He stood and welcomed the boys, who are 13 and 19, onto the beach when they caught a good wave, pointing out where the best waves were, and establishing an elaborate scoring system for who was the most successful.  I love these glimpses into the differences between my boys in contrast with the many ways they are the same.

They both agree that lobster meat is not something they wish to try and fish should be enjoyed every few weeks at the most.  The problem for them is while on vacation I refuse to cook meat that is raised in a way I am uncomfortable with.  As we vacation every year next to the ocean this means I limit myself to eating from the sea.  I love this chance to play in the kitchen with what is usually a occasional treat.  Both boys continue to refuse to eat lobster, which means Lewis and I can indulge in a large lobster for dinner with the leftovers filling rolls for lunch the following day.  I was unsure if I would share the recipe here until yesterday when we attended a catered event that featured lobster rolls.   The sad truth was ours were so much better, and not only because there was so much more lobster meat in each. 

A really great lobster roll highlights the sweet taste lobster flavor without trying to upstage it.  Yesterdays catered rolls included fresh tarragon, a stronger flavor that clashed with the sweet lobster meat.  Personally I love tarragon in a dijon dressing or with a light hand in chicken salad, but it has no place in a lobster roll.

Lobster Rolls

1/4 cup mayonnaise

2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/2 tsp dijon mustard

1/8 tsp kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 to 1 1/2 cups lobster meat

sliced avocado (optional)

Favorite roll (I used a Portuguese sweet bread roll, I would also love challah or brioche rolls.  Purists would insist on New England Hot Dog Rolls)

Mix the mayonnaise, lemon juice, mustard, salt and pepper.  Fold the mayonnaise mixture into the lobster meat until it is evenly combined.  Pile the lobster meat on the roll and top with sliced avocado if desired.  If possible eat on a beach in the sun.

Baked Tomatoes with Cheese

Yesterday Lewis returned to work, officially ending our vacation.  A vacation that began with 2 days of  tantrums and whining, causing the adults to grumble, often loud enough for the children to hear, about why we go away on vacation anyway.  However then we settled in and had an amazing time.  Sometimes I feel we go away on vacation so we can really notice how the boys have grown and changed in the previous year.  It takes something that only happens once a year to really step back and witness who they are.  This year they are far more independent and confident; as a major vacation milestone they know agree to use all public restrooms, even the ones with auto flush toilets.

Every year they return with memories of the previous years and expectations of what they want to do.  At low tide Julian can often be found building a massive castle with a moat that can be taken by the ocean as the tide comes in.  As the water begins to lap at the sides he starts to scrape at them with a shovel and kicking the tops of the towers.  Unable to let the ocean complete the destruction without his help.  Sebastian often helps Julian to build the castle, but more often he spends his time collecting minnows and hermit crabs.  This year he did not collect them all himself and instead trained other children on the beach.  Once the tide starts to come in he unceremoniously dumps them all back in the water.

This year the WiFi on vacation was not strong enough to reach our cottage.  I could only check my email when we went out for homemade ice cream.  Which of course means it became even easier to convince me we all needed a treat, (that and discovering the amazing expresso ice cream that Lewis and I could not stop ourselves from ordering, even if it did cause me to lie in bed staring at the ceiling).  However no WiFi helped to make us less distracted.

Not having access to the internet also meant I had to wait to share this tomato dish with you.  Every year I bring the vegetables from my CSA share and my garden with us on vacation.  This year that meant I had an entire flat of tomatoes for the week.  I love being able to walk past the produce in the grocery store, smugly thinking of the produce I already have.  At the local farm stands heirloom tomatoes are $7.99 a pound.  As their value went up so did the responsibility.  Just eating all of them on sandwiches or on a salad was not enough, neither was allowing them to go bad.

The baked tomato dish I prepared was simple, peeling them being the most complicated step.  However the end result could be the center of your table, the main dish with a loaf of crusty bread and another vegetable.  The flavor of the mayonnaise becomes more subtle and balanced after baking.  It was subtle enough that Sebastian was happily eating the dish until Lewis said, "Mayonnaise as an ingredient.  Who would have guessed." At which point Sebastian put down his fork and decided he was done with tomatoes and I of course glared at Lewis.

I added fresh thyme to the chopped scallions but you can play with the herbs you add.  At home I would have baked it in a casserole dish, but there wasn't one in the cottage, so I used a cast iron pan.  Now that I am at home I think I will use a casserole dish.

Baked Tomatoes with Cheese
Adapted from Too Many Tomatoes, Squash, Beans, and Other Good Things: A Cookbook for When Your Garden Explodes


4 peeled tomatoes, or more or less depending on how many you want to serve (how to peel tomatoes)
1/2 to 1 Tbsp high quality mayonnaise per tomato half
1/2 to 1 tsp chopped scallions per tomato half (or more to taste)
fresh chopped thyme to taste
1 to 2 Tbsp grated sharp cheddar per tomato half

The amounts of toping are given as a range because tomatoes vary so much in size.  Also, this is an easy rustic recipe, to your taste.

Preheat the oven to 325° and butter a casserole dish or cast iron skillet that will fit all the tomato halves.

Halve the tomatoes from top to bottom. Cut off a thin slice from rounded side of the tomato halves so the tomatoes will stand up better in the dish.  remove the cores.  Place the tomato halves in the buttered dish.  Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise on each tomato half, sprinkle with scallions, thyme and freshly grated black pepper before topping each tomato with 1 to 2 Tbsp grated cheddar cheese.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.  When serving do not tell children about any ingredient they claim to dislike unless they ask a direct question.  If your spouse spontaneously offers this information glare hard at him or her to bore a hole through their head.

Blue Fish with Saffron Caper Aioli

Lewis and I have been vacationing in Cape Cod for over 10 years.  B.C. (Before Children) we used to car camp, first in Wellfleet and then in Truro.  However after Sebastian was born I could not face the idea of camping, not even the luxury tent car camping we always did.  My children are the kind who are into everything.  I often joked that I could hire them out as a baby proofing service, set them down on the floor and within 5 minutes they could find the most dangerous item in any room.  Camping was out because I could not figure out how to baby proof the world, really the whole idea did not sound relaxing to me.  Now we stay in a cottage with a tiny kitchen that I can only assume is well stocked for hot dogs and boxed mac and cheese.

Every year I bring a kitchen box with my most needed kitchen tools.  With the addition of my non stick saute pan, silicone spatulas, oven mitts, tongs, favorite knives, spices, pepper mill and anything else I remember to toss in the box, I can cook happily in even the tiniest of kitchens with the most motley assortment of pans.  However 3 years ago I had a new food quandry for vacation.  The previous summer, while on vacation, I read Michael Pollan's Omnivore's Dilemma and decided I was done with supporting the meat found in most supermarkets.  I would no longer buy meat from CAFO (contained animal feeding operations).  At home this was a simple decision to follow through on.  My favorite local store carries several options and I could always find something local in the reduced price section.  In addition I could easily buy a share in an animal directly from the farmer, further reducing my cost.

However the supermarket franchises in Cape Cod are not like City Market, so I was left arguing with myself over how to approach meat while on vacation.  I was not up for the task of bringing it with me, however I also knew I would not enjoy a week of CAFO meat.  The guilt alone would ruin the taste.  In the end I did not think of a solution until we went to the beach.  Somehow as a landlocked Vermonter I totally forgot seafood is local and wild in Cape Cod.

The other night I bought bluefish and was plotting in my head how to prepare it, trying to remember a tasty onion and lemon sauce I made last year.  I realized it was time to give up on that dish and move on.  Last year I added herbs in 4 inch pots to my "kithchen box," although technically they travel stuffed in a corner of the car, not in the box.  I always bring saffron as it goes so well with seafood.  Still plotting and thinking (and reading many bluefish recipes that called for spreading mayonnaise or mayonnaise and sour cream on the fish before baking).  I began by soaking some of my capers in water to temper their saltiness and to saute some onions.

Thinking of the mayonnaise preparations I suddenly remembered the saffron aioli my friend Cheryl went on about trying at The Bouillabaisse Bash I was not invited to.  I decided I could make a version that would be just right to spread on the fish before baking.  The end result was delicious, it had to have been as Julian asked me today if I would make it again, tonight.  Sebastian, on the other hand, tried a bite, tasted it slowly and after careful consideration decided he did not want any.  (Trust me, it tasted far better then it looks in this photo.  I decided this dish was too good not to post, even though none of the photos are good.  If nothing else I need to record the recipe for myself).

Blue Fish with Saffron Caper Aioli


1 Tbsp capers (preferably preserved in salt not brine)
scant 1/2 cup mini onions or shallots, sliced thin
1 Tbsp EVOO
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup white wine (I used riesling)
1/4 tsp saffron
1 Tbsp Champagne vinegar
3 sprigs lemon thyme (or use regular thyme)
1/4 cup sour cream (I did not have sour cream so I used half and half with 3/4 tsp Champagne vinegar mixed in and then allowed to stand for 10 minutes to thicken)
2 Tbsp mayonnaise
1 lb fresh bluefish

Preheat oven to 350°

If using salt preserved capers, soak capers in a small bowl of warm water to leach out some of the salt while prepping the other ingredients.  In a large saute pan melt butter and add EVOO, saute mini onions or shallots until tender and translucent.  Add wine, capers, saffron, vinegar and thyme to onions and reduce until it is a syrupy glaze, about a few Tbsp, basically until reducing any further means you will not be able to remove it from the pan.  (This took me a little less then 10 minutes, perfect for letting the half and half mixture become sour cream).

Mix sour cream, mayonnaise and reduced saffron glaze in a small bowl. Season aioli with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Line a baking dish with foil and place the fish on it skin side down, season the fish with salt and freshly ground black pepper and pour the aioli over the fish, spreading it all over the top.  Bake uncovered until cooked through and tender.  I baked mine for approximately 20 minutes.   Plate and serve.

Eating Your Own Young

Four years ago when driving home from vacation on Cape Cod Lewis looked at me and said, "Do you know when animals eat their own young? It's in the car coming back from vacation. At the time he said that Sebastian was 3 and Julian was 5 months. Julian had been sleeping when Sebastian started screaming to wake him up, then they were both screaming. Then out of sheer boredom, and everything that goes along with being 3, Sebastian stuck a piece of Smart Food, the cheesy popcorn, up his nose. We were on a section of the thruway without any shoulder so we had to fly off at the next exit and pull into someone's driveway to extract the popcorn. A week later Sebastian was sitting at the table happily eating Smart Food, while being watched like a hawk, when he asked, "Do you know where you shouldn't put Smart Food?" When I asked him where he earnestly replied, "Up your nose."

Well four years later what we learned on that trip still holds true, you shouldn't put Smart Food up your nose and when we drive home from vacation we understand why animals eat their own young. It was 7:00 p.m. and the boys were in the back seat throwing things at each other and yelling. We were all hungry but there was no way I was going to take my over tired boys who had been hog tied in to their car seats for 3 hours in to a restaurant. Happily at that time we got off the Thruway to get gas in Randolph Vermont and we discovered a wonderful barbecue cart next to the Mobil station.

When we began looking at the menu we were all grumpy. I snapped at the boys as they were their usual picky selves deciding on something they would eat from the menu. The proprietress was really helpful, answering all my questions as I tried to find food that would work. She even let us sample the pulled pork, ostensibly so we would know if the rub on the pork, and by extension the chicken, would be to their liking. Julian refused to taste it, but Sebastian tried it and immediately declared he wanted the pulled pork not the chicken. We were further accommodated in making up a meal combination to suit Sebastian's tastes as he does not like meat sandwiches. Actually, to be honest, when it comes to sandwiches he only likes cream cheese sandwiches, cheeseburgers or grilled cheese. Sebastian ordered a plate of pulled pork with french fries, Julian had a hot dog and Lewis and I split a combination plate so we could try the ribs, chicken, french fries and the pulled pork I already knew I loved.

My favorite from the sampler was the pulled pork, tender, moist and flavorful. I don't know what is in the spice rub that they use but it was not spicy at all without skimping on flavor. I enjoyed the chicken and ribs too, but as I am not a big barbecue sauce person the spice rubbed pork was more to my liking. The french fries were also really good, made with the skins on and I assume by the large bags of potatoes in their trailer, actually made on site from real potatoes.

The menu also listed pulled pork, steak bomb, mixed veggie and supreme cheese quesadillas so vegetarians can find something. The menu states they are all celiac and nut friendly. The shocking thing about this little roadside food stop was the number of cars we saw pulling in to the McDonald's next door.

I would love to be able to report that after that yummy meal we were able to all climb cheerfully back in to the car and finished our journey in perfect harmony. However if I wrote that it would be a lie. Instead we climbed in the car less grumpily then we had gotten out and finished our journey without anyone killing anyone else and the buzz from a great vacation not completely killed. I feel that is a large enough victory given the conditions.

Vermont BBQ

Route 66 Between the Mobil station and the McDonald's at the Randolph exit from Interstate 89 (after Labor Day), Randolph, VT
802-728-9013
Pauline Poulin and David Langhans
vtbbq@yahoo.com

Last night was the Vermont BBQ's last night next to the Mobil station until September. Until then they can be found at some of the Vermont fairs including Tunbridge and Barton.

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Foodie Fights or What Was I Thinking?

So far I have been really enjoying my summer with the boys. We are tending a community garden plot and really enjoying growing food in a higgledy piggdly dash of this little of that fashion. For example 2 of our broccoli plants in the middle of our row of 7 plants died. No problem, just plant the 2 okra plants that someone offers in the middle of the row of broccoli. We have tomatoes mixed with onions, eggplant in with the cucumbers, 3 cantaloupe plants in a little hill together and watermelons between the rows. The days we don't garden we have gotten together with friends, gone to the beach, visited our local science center or played in the backyard. It has been fun and relaxed, but at the end of every day I am exhausted and needing some down time.

In the midst of this I signed up for a virtual version of the Iron Chefs called Foodie Fights. There are 6 food blogs competing and we all have until Monday night to blog about a dish or meal that uses pineapple and basil. On Tuesday the 6 entries will be posted on Foodie Fights and voting opens. So somehow I have to fit this in while running around with the boys and falling down in my tracks at the end of the day.

Since I found out I was taking part all I can think of is pineapple and basil. Julian woke us up in the night because he "overflowed the banks." That means his bed was wet because he overflowed his diaper. After he was back in bed I lay awake thinking of dishes with pineapple and basil. So check in here on Monday and I will have posted and then on Tuesday go and vote for the best entry. I hope you think I have a winner.

-Robin