Dishing Up Maine: 165 Recipes that Capture Authentic Down East Flavors

Brooke Dojny

Storey Pub., May 15, 2006 - Cooking - 288 pages

From the Atlantic Ocean to well-tended organic farms, Maine's landscape offers some of the country's best raw materials for rustic, hearty cuisine. To the natural bounty, add the independent spirit and quiet humor of the people, and it's apparent why chefs, farmers, fishermen, and artisans are drawn to the state. Their fierce pride, respect for the land, and lack of pretension are recognizable ingredients in all the food they produce.
Food writer Brooke Dojny counts herself among those who love the cooking of Maine -- the flavors, the oddities, the quirks, the people, the lore, and the language. Join her on a delicious journey through the foodways of one of our most diverse culinary regions, where tried and-true flavors and innovative creations live comfortably together on home dinner plates and restaurant menus.
In Maine, where the craggy coastline is so much a part of the state's image, there's no getting away from seafood. Both shellfish and fin-fish are enjoyed year-round. Lobster stews, salads, and pies; steamed mussels and fried clams; oven-roasted cod and seared halibut are just a few of the traditional fish dishes, so simple to make at home, that are represented here.
Dojny's love for the local produce finds its way into warming soups, bright side dishes, and entre es that pair native produce with fish and meats. And yes, Maine's growing season is short, but the people are resourceful. Pickled and preserved vegetables, along with salted and smoked fish and dried beans nourish throughout the winter months.
Dojny's tribute to the food of her adopted home boasts 165 recipes in all, including afew dozen from some of Maine's most accomplished chefs, and a sweet nod to those famous wild blueberries, in pancakes, muffins, pies, scones, and other baked goods. Local stories and food lore, historical facts and literary quotes, and a traveler's guide to hidden road food gems make this the ultimate food-lover's guide to the salty personality of Maine cuisine.

What people are saying

Review: Dishing Up Maine: 165 Recipes That Capture Authentic Down East Flavors

User Review  - Deana - Goodreads

This book was returned in my list of search results when, for a GR Group challenge, I searched for books containing both "up" and "down" in their titles at our library. Being from Down East Maine ...

Review: Dishing Up Maine: 165 Recipes That Capture Authentic Down East Flavors

User Review  - Deb - Goodreads

Had a tough time deciding a star rating on this one...it's a great book, visually and otherwise...but there were times that the author gave off this foodie snob vibe that got under my skin (like how ...

About the author

Brooke Dojny is the author of more than a dozen cookbooks, including Dishing Up® Maine, The New England Clam Shack Cookbook, and the AMA Family Cookbook, which won the 1997 James Beard Award. Dojny coauthored Bon Appetitrsquo;s Every-Night Cooking column, contributes to Down East magazine, and is a columnist at the Portland Press-Herald. She lives in Maine, where she can be found hanging out at clam shacks and farmersrsquo; markets.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Dishing Up Maine: 165 Recipes that Capture Authentic Down East Flavors
• Author: Brooke Dojny
• Photographs by: Scott Dorrance
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: Storey Pub., 2006
• ISBN: 1580178413, 9781580178419
• Length: 288 pages
• Subjects: Cooking / Regional & Ethnic / American / New England