Friday, August 27, 2010

Bean Suppah....

I have always been intriqued by and always LOVED Bean Suppahs.

"Maine Bean Suppah" ~Sharon Kitchens - (Portland Examiner)

"According to the University of Maine's Folklife Center, the practice of baked bean suppers originated with the pilgrims who prepared enough food cooked on a Saturday to last through Sunday. The tradition of these dinners has been heavily influenced by early Native American Indians whose diet consisted of beans, corn and squash. These no frills events are memorable for the abundance of food and as a time and place for members of the community to congregate. Generally, the suppers are held in a public space such as a church, grange or firehouse.

The website Bean Suppah.org offers a crash course on the New England tradition of potlucks featuring Boston baked beans as the main dish. The site also offers information on how to incorporate more locally produced foods into your meals by providing links to community groups, Maine food sources and recipes using Maine sourced ingredients. The goals of the Maine Bean Suppah Project include supporting local growers by including homegrown foods at events open to the public and providing interesting historical information and food facts about Maine heirloom beans and bean supper traditions.

The Maine Bean Suppah project identifies traditional Maine beans as Yellow Eye, Jacob's Cattle (Trout Beans), Marifax, Soldier, Sulphur (Yellow China) and non-traditional as pea and kidney beans. Additional components of a traditional Maine Bean Supper include maple syrup, salt pork, bacon, onions and mustard. Customary dinner ingredients include carrots, cabbage, potatoes, honey, milk, cream, butter, cheese, eggs, tomatoes, green beans, pickles, apples, blueberries, cherries, fish and seafood."

While some people in our circle have poo-pooed them, to me they are one of the greatest traditions that I can participate in. While in Maine this summer, we attended three of them. My husband Guy went to a lot of them as a child, as that's what was done in Maine on a Saturday night. I can proudly say that my son Guy now enjoys them and actually loves the food served there.

Tonight I prepared a version of a Bean Suppah - complete with imported "red hot dogs" & B&M brown bread. I shared the meal with dad and brother and they loved it too! I think I will make this a tradition of our own, but not too often, so as not to spoil the uniqueness!

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Gone Country - This Ain't Nothin'

Every year when ever we went to Maine (it was 29 years this summer) we came away with what we now call a "Maine Song"; you know that song that you hear playing on the radio all the time, when you're in the car, pool and even in the store.

It started kind of innocently - we'd reminisce about something we did or where we were when we heard that song, and soon it became "A Maine Song". Sometimes we'd wait to see what song was played the most that trip, while other times it just happened - every time we got in the car - it was playing, or the time we went to camp, it was playing or if we were just hanging around the house, the radio would play it a dozen times.

Now even my son is into the game, he waits to see what song it's going to be. This summer, I really got into Country music a lot. The radio in the garage was tuned to a country station and rather than change it, I left it on for background noise. But as I was washing & hanging clothes or doing some other mundane chore, I actually listed to the words of many of the songs, and realized that that stuff was GOOD!

So this summer, by a unanimous vote, the following song is this years Maine Song ( I love it & love the video even more! - who'd thunk!!!!)

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Geocaching - a new hobby?

A few years ago I purchased a cheap GPS with the intentions of Geocaching, it never got off the ground.
Last week I got the bug again and joined Geocaching.com (hmmm...can't put a link in) I then took it a step further and visted L.L. Bean and purchased a Delorme PN-40, a bit pricy, but a device which would make the whole process a bit easier. (I hoped!)
Today I tried it out and found my first cache at a stop sign I have passed dozens of times, less than 1/4 mile from the house. Found four more after that - this could be addicting!



Saturday, August 7, 2010

"Be like the flower, turn your face to the sun."~Gibran

What a better way to start your day than with a field of bright, golden sunflowers!

There is a farm on Sweetser Rd. that has a huge field of these beauties! Someday I will have such a field!