Brown Sugar Bars

This recipe reminds me of something... the aroma and the taste. I have been racking my brain all morning trying to figure out what exactly the dish reminds me of. I want to say that it's something I used to bake with my grandmother, but that doesn't seem quite right.... I just cant put my finger on it.

 It was so simple: a crust base was made with brown sugar butter and flour. Spread on the bottom of a pan and baked for ten minutes.

Then topped with a coconut, brown sugar, egg mixture and baked again for twenty minutes. When done it's the lightest dessert. It melts in your mouth and smells just delicious.

This is a recipe you won't want to miss. Come in to the Blue Elephant today to have one for dessert or perhaps with just a cup of coffee. If you can't make it in today; be sure to make them at home at some point before too much time goes by!

Blue Elephant Cafe

12 Pepperell Square

Saco, Maine 04072

207-281-3070

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

Salt Cod Dinner

This recipe took a little more planning than some of the others have. One thing that has been wonderful about this cookbook is the ease of preparation and cook time. You can pick a recipe and more than likely you'll have everything on hand in your kitchen and if you don't then you'll only have to pick up a couple items at the grocery store.

However, I do like it when she throws these types of recipes into the mix. She talks about preparing and serving a traditional Maine dinner. A complete meal.

"Probably no old-style Maine dinner brings more favorable comments than a salt codfish dinner. The salt codfish placed on a platter with pork scraps, surrounded with boiled potatoes of uniform size and small buttered or sliced beets, the fish topped with a plain or egg sauce, not only looks good but is good." 
                                                                                                                                  ~Marjorie Standish

My dad was just telling me the story of how his grandfather, my great grandfather, used to catch cod, salt it and hang it out to dry on the clothes-line. Then go up to it and peal off the skin as it dried. It was a sort of delicacy.

For this particular salt cod dinner I bought the cod already salted. The directions were to soak it overnight to freshen it up. But once the fish was soaked,  it was ready to go. I boiled the potatoes as a side, and lightly simmered the fish. The sauce was made from trying out salt pork and making a roux with the fat, adding milk and pepper.




The Serving suggestion in this particular recipe was to the fish on a platter surrounded by potatoes. The fish is topped with sauce and finely chopped fried salt pork. It looked delicious. If you're looking for a new fish dish to try out, give this one a shot. And write to me and let me know what you think!

Blue Elephant Cafe

12 Pepperell Square

Saco, Maine 04072

207-281-3070

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

Simply Baked Scallops

Marjorie has a handful of scallop recipes in this cookbook. Scallops are a popular Maine seafood so I'm not surprised, but so far the recipes have all been very similar. They are very basic. This particular recipe simply placed seasoned scallops in a pan and covered them with a very little bit of milk. It was that simple. 

I was surprised how the milk had separated and become so watery when I took the ramekins out of the oven. It didn't detract from the taste of the scallops as they are still very good. Today we will be serving this dish with a warm baked potato. Come in and give this a try and if you like it... it will be an easy one to pull out of your hat for dinner at night during the week! 

Blue Elephant Cafe 

12 Pepperell Square

Saco, Maine 04072

207-281-3070

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

A Note From the Kitchen

It's now been well over a year since I decided I needed a project, and that project turned into cooking my way through Marjorie Standish's Cooking Down East Cookbook. For an added twist I decided to do this here at work, The Blue Elephant Cafe, located in Pepperell Square in Saco, where we serve breakfast and lunch Monday through Friday. Every day I choose a recipe from the cookbook, make enough to serve in our restaurant for a couple of days, photograph it and then blog about it. 

Most of the recipes have been wonderful; easy to identify with and fun to make and write about. Our customers love it too. Most of them are from Maine and are familiar with this cookbook. In fact it's been great because many of them have a story to share that goes along with the project. For example, one of our regular customers used to be Marjorie's dental hygienist. Another received this cookbook as a wedding present almost 30 years ago! Others will describe to me how their mother used to make the recipe I've made that day. It's been great - a great conversation piece and fun for all parties! 

As I round the corner to the finish line, it gets harder and harder to choose what recipe to make as I've done most of the exciting ones! I've made a lot of good food, and out of this project a lot of good ideas have come for both the Blue Elephant Cafe and for our catering division (the Blue Elephant Events and Catering). 

If you've taken the time to read any part of my blog I appreciate it! And if you have not seen your favorite Marjorie Standish recipe go by, please let me know and I'll be sure to make it right away. I'm always up for suggestions! 

So let the countdown begin.... only 85 more recipes to go, and I will have completely cooked my way through one of Maine's most famous cookbooks! 

Blue Elephant Cafe 

12 Pepperell Square 

Saco, Maine 04072

207-281-3070

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

Baked Haddock

I'm getting to the point where it's difficult to choose what recipe to make because I've done so many and there are so few left! I think I've decided to turn my focus to the fish section for a couple of reasons: I only have a few recipes left to complete, and they are always delicious and very popular.

Where to start though? I keep passing the Baked Haddock recipe so I decided to start there. I hadn't really read this recipe thoroughly, and I was expecting it to be a traditional Maine Baked Haddock recipe with the Ritz cracker crumbs or even just breadcrumbs and lemon juice. However, it was far from it!

The fish was seasoned in a pan with salt, pepper, paprika and lemon juice. Then Marjorie had me make a roux with butter and flour. Add to that dry mustard and milk. This is poured over the seasoned fish. The whole dish is seasoned with buttered crumbs and parsley.

It only takes 15 minutes in the oven and the end result is a delicious baked fish. Today we will pair it with a side salad and your choice of dressing for 6.00. Come on in and give it a try. I promise you won't be disappointed!! 

Blue Elephant Cafe

12 Pepperell Square

Saco, Maine 04072

207-281-3070

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

Blueberry Gingerbread

What an easy and different recipe! I really liked making this, and the end result was really good too. It is a soft, yet dense, gingerbread with blueberries mixed into the batter. It would be perfect with some ice cream or even whipped cream. I might be tempted to make it more in the summer than in the winter, but  it is definitely a keeper! 

I can also see it as a very versatile dish; it could be served for breakfast, brunch or dessert. So if you are looking for something easy to make for dessert and something different from the traditional gingerbread or blueberry muffin, give this one a try! 

Blue Elephant Cafe

12 Pepperell Square 

Saco, Maine 04072

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

Best Needhams

Needhams. They are apparently a well known dessert in Maine, however, like a lot of these dishes, I had not heard of them until I pulled out this recipe. I decided to make this recipe because it had mashed potatoes in it, and I thought it sounded like fun! 

My only issue with the recipe was that the whole bar was supposed to be dipped in chocolate which I was unable to do because the coconut mixture was too soft. I had let it cool like Marjorie said, but I think it needed longer, maybe even overnight, to cool. If I had let them cool overnight, then I would have been able to dip the whole thing in chocolate.

Regardless, though, they are delicious; very sweet but delicious. We still have some left so come in today and give them a try! You won't be disappointed! 

Blue Elephant Cafe

12 Pepperell Square

Saco, Maine 04072

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

Chocolate Bread Pudding

Since the original Bread Pudding recipe was such a hit the other day, when I was flipping through and realized there was a Chocolate Bread Pudding I decided this was an obvious choice! It had to be as good as the original right?

The method was pretty much the same as in the original recipe, however the ingredients are just a bit different. There is less sugar and obviously cocoa powder is added. It looks just like a chocolate cake and tastes like a very moist brownie! 

Both bread puddings are a hit and will remain in my repertoire!! 

Blue Elephant Cafe

12 Pepperell Square 

Saco, Maine 04072

207-281-3070

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

Nuts and Bolts

Are you from Maine? Did your Grandmother or Mother ever used to make Chex Mix or "Nuts and Bolts" for a snack around Christmas? Or perhaps any time of the year! 

Throughout my childhood my mom and grandmother would make Chex Mix from scratch, I believe it may even be this recipe though they never pulled out this cookbook. It was always around Christmas and it was always a special treat. To this day my dad especially looks forward to Christmas for the homemade Chex Mix, or "T.V. Mix" as he calls it. 

It's so easy and so delicious too. Simply melt butter or margarine, worcestershire sauce, garlic salt, onion salt, and celery seed together and pour over nuts and cereal. Marjorie recommends mixed nuts, rice chex, shredded wheat squares, cheerios and pretzel twists. Of course you can mix it up and make it to your own liking or follow the recipe exactly. 

Once the mixture is coated evenly it's baked in the oven for about an hour, stirring occasionally. 

Do you have memories with this recipe? If so write to me and tell me your story! I'd love to hear about it. We still have a few containers for sale at the Blue Elephant Cafe so come on by and grab a container for a snack later today! 

Blue Elephant Cafe

12 Pepperell Square

Saco, Maine 04072

207-281-3070

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

Bread Pudding

                                                                                I've never made, or eaten, bread pudding before pulling out this recipe. It was super easy and I would highly recommend it as a dessert to make if you are having company over or are in a time crunch.

"Bread pudding is made in a variety of ways. Flavor of this one is different, due to the use of brown sugar." Marjorie Standish

The list of ingredients is simple; bread crumbs, milk, shortening, brown sugar, egg yolks and whites, white sugar and vanilla. The pudding 

was so light and fluffy and I think this can be attributed to the method of beating the egg whites to a stiff peak and folding them into the rest of the mixture. In the future, after I have cooked my way through this Cooking Down East Cookbook, I would like to experiment with more bread pudding recipes and see if they are as good as this one! 

Don't hesitate to give this recipe a try sometime, you will not be disappointed!! 

Blue Elephant Cafe

12 Pepperell Square 

Saco, Maine 04072

207-281-3070

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

Steamed Chocolate Pudding

This is the second "pudding" recipe I have made where I would absolutely not call it a pudding. Maybe it's a Maine thing where the word you're saying actually means something else. As I was mixing the batter for the steamed chocolate pudding I was thinking to myself, "wow, this is a lot like a cake batter."

The method of cooking is where the recipe must get it's title. It's poured into a pan, or several pans, then set into warm water and placed in the oven. So it literally steams. However, when it was done baking it was in fact like a cake consistency. It also got rave reviews. We still have a couple left so come on in and give it a try and let me know what you think. What is your opinion on this so called pudding?!

Blue Elephant Cafe

12 Pepperell Square

Saco, Maine 04072

207-281-3070

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3

Fluffy Yellow Turnip and Scalloped Tomatoes

The Blue Elephant is back after a nice Holiday break and I'm kicking off the new year with some delicious dishes from Mrs. Marjorie Standish! Up first Scalloped Tomatoes and Fluffy Yellow Turnip.

The turnip dish was as basic as they get and if you like turnips that you're sure to like this recipe. It was similar to her fluffy potato recipe. The reason she calls it 'fluffy' is that the recipe calls for eggs, and you separate the yolks from the whites and beat the whites to a stiff meringue. Then fold it into the turnips (which have been mixed with all of the other ingredients). The whole mixture is turned into a greased casserole dish and baked in the oven for about an hour. When it comes out it has risen slightly and is light and fluffy, not to mention delicious.

The scalloped tomato dish I found to be a bit more complicated, though in fact it was actually so simple it should have taken me half the time to pull together that it did. It was sliced tomatoes, layered with a homemade breadcrumb and onion stuffing. That's it. But for some reason the way the recipe is written and the way the ingredients are listed it was very confusing.

The dish is flavorful and very good. We've paired the two together to make a meal and it goes something like this: Fluffy Yellow Turnip & Scalloped Tomatoes Served with a Side of Mixed Greens Topped with Fresh Shrimp Accompanied by a Delicious Onion Vinaigrette Dressing/ 7.00.

Come Give this meal a try! You won't be disappointed.

Blue Elephant Cafe

12 Pepperell Square

Saco, Maine 04072

207-281-3070

www.blueelephantcatering.com

https://www.facebook.com/blueelephantevents

https://twitter.com/#!/BlueElephant3