BEEN COOKING…
Posted: September 28, 2026 in UncategorizedTags: cooking, dinner, food, martini, pork, recipe, recipes, ribs, seafood, Vesper
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MONHEGAN ISLAND, MAINE
Posted: September 27, 2026 in UncategorizedTags: adventure, beach, Maine, nature, travel, vacation
About 10 miles off the coast of Maine lies Monhegan Island, a small artists’ colony with about 70 year-round residents. For the most part, you walk the island. There are a few pick-up trucks that will carry your luggage to your hotel or rental. And there are golf carts for the older folks. But it’s an art and nature lover’s island.
Day trips from either Port Clyde or New Harbor, Maine, are the way most people go. But overnights are even better. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to stay on this island for a week or more, and its rugged beauty is quintessential Maine.
It had been quite a few years since my last visit, but my daughter and I went this past July, to see her mom, who teaches art classes on the island in the summertime. Sure, there are a few more golf carts than before, and it seems that there are more people that have discovered this well-kept secret, but it’s still a very special place to visit.
Finding great food on Monhegan Island is not a problem, especially if you like lobster! A couple of the hotels serve dinner (BYOB…there’s no booze served on the island, though beer and wine are available in the grocery store and there is a brewery.)
If you like hiking, there are plenty of dirt roads and trails in the woods to walk, and the views on this island are really quite spectacular, especially if you get to spend the night.
There’s also a crepe stand, something new since my last visit, and you can choose sweet or savory. I chose one with smoked salmon!
For fancier fare, The Monhegan House reigns supreme for wonderful, thoughtful dishes. Here are a few…
My daughter and I stayed on Monhegan for just a few nights, but it was a wonderful, relaxing trip. If you’re planning a coastal Maine vacation next summer, be sure to include a full day (an overnight is better) on Monhegan Island! But do what I did, and bring your own martinis!
I had Sunday brunch with friends last weekend at CAV in Providence, Rhode Island, for the first time in over a decade. I had forgotten how much fun this place is.
An awesome bar. Excellent food and service, and you’re surrounded by antiques… Which you can buy!
I will be back soon.
ASIAN SHRIMP WITH SWEET AND SPICY GRAPEFRUIT SAUCE
Posted: September 24, 2026 in Food, seafood, shrimpTags: Asian, food, recipes, seafood, shrimp, stir fry
Shrimp with an orange sauce is something you see on every Chinese restaurant menu. I didn’t have oranges, but wanted a citrus kick to my sweet and spicy sauce. I went with grapefruit and I never looked back!
Although I call this recipe “Asian shrimp,” I never buy my shrimp from Asia! Only wild-caught American shrimp will ever do. When you realize just how nasty Asian shrimp can be (farmed in over-crowded conditions, swimming in their own filth and fed chemical food pellets and antibiotics) you’ll never eat it again.
Green beans looked good in the produce aisle, so I used them, but feel free to substitute with broccoli, asparagus, or any veggies you like.
Chili garlic sauce and hoisin sauce can be found in most supermarkets, in the international foods section.
As long as you use gluten-free soy sauce and hoisin sauce (the brand La Choy is GF), this dish is gluten-free!
For the rice:
1 cup cooked basmati rice (I use Texmati brown rice)
2 cups seafood stock (I use homemade shrimp and fish stock, but vegetable stock will work)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 scallions, finely chopped
For the veggies:
1/2 Vidalia onion, finely chopped
1 lb. fresh green beans, washed and cut into 1/4′ pieces
1 teaspoon soy sauce
splash of peanut oil
For the shrimp:
2 dozen thawed, peeled and de-veined wild-caught USA shrimp
1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
juice and zest of 1 grapefruit
splash of peanut oil
Making your own seafood stock is easy: just peel the shrimp you’re going to use in this recipe, and place the shells in a saucepan full of water. Let it boil until you’ve reduced it to 2 cups. Strain out the shells and discard them. Then use the stock to cook your rice, according to the package directions. Once the rice is cooked, toss in the chopped scallions, mix well, and set the rice aside.
Add peanut oil to a hot pan and sauté the onions until translucent. Add the green beans and cook them until they’re al dente. Add the soy sauce, stir, and then pour the contents of the pan into the rice. Mix well.
Using the same pan, add a little more peanut oil and sear the shrimp on both sides. Don’t overcook them! Push the shrimp to the sides of the pan so that a circle remains in the middle. Add the chili garlic sauce and hoysin sauce and stir them together, then blending in the shrimp until the shrimp are covered with the sauce. Add the grapefruit zest and juice and stir until everything is combined and the sauce has thickened just a bit.
Pour the contents of the pan into the rice mix and combine. Add more soy sauce to the rice, if you like.
Trial run of a new recipe today. I can’t imagine it won’t taste amazing, especially since I’m using a Berkshire pork belly. The full recipe will be coming soon!
COLD CUCUMBER SOUP
Posted: September 20, 2026 in Cucumbers, fleur de sel, UncategorizedTags: cucumber, food, Greece, recipes, Santorini, soup, VEGGIES
The original cucumber soup recipe comes from Ikies Traditional Houses, a wonderful hotel in the beautiful town of Oia in Santorini, Greece. After a long, hot day of exploring the island, we would settle down to a refreshing bowl of cucumber soup. They were nice enough to share the recipe with us, and a few tweaks later, it’s my definition of perfect.
3 English cucumbers or 5 regular cucumbers, peeled, seeded and roughly chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 cup vegetable stock, preferably home-made
4 cups plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
Juice of 1 lemon
Sea salt and pepper
Peel, seed and chop the cucumbers and place them in a blender with the garlic, stock, 2 cups of the yogurt, mint leaves, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons of sea salt, and a grating of fresh black pepper.
Turn on the blender and mix well. Stop the blender and then add remaining 2 cups of yogurt and mix it by hand.
Pour the cucumber soup in bowls. Garnish with diced cucumber or radish.
To make the vegetable stock: rough-chop a few carrots, a few stalks of celery, and an onion, and put them in a pot with 4 cups of water. Boil until the liquid has reduced by half. Strain the veggies before using the stock. You can also roast the veggies on a sheet pan in a hot oven for a bit before adding them to the water for a more robust flavor.
I’m not just one of those nerds that likes to take photos of my food. I also really enjoy a well-made cocktail in its natural environment. Here are some photos that I’ve taken on my travels.
Christchurch, New Zealand
