Tag: pie

Pie and an odd food discovery

Spotted along the East Coast Greenway: Chess pie and pig picking cake.

ecg-clayton-foodI know — bike rides are really all about the food (or for some, the beer).

And when we topped that hill into Clayton and reached Main Street, it was too early for lunch. But is it ever too early for something sweet?

I peered into the pie case at Nancy Jo’s Homemade and settled on a lemon chess pie. Chess pie is a southern classic; I discovered it in Occoquan two years ago. Amazingly, I couldn’t take more than a few bites. Into the rear bike bag it went, to be eaten further along the route and polished off once we got to the hotel.

ecg-clayton-pieBut this is what really caught my attention. It’s not something we have in New Jersey:

ecg-clayton-cake

Why the crazy name? The key ingredients seem to be a cake mix, canned mandarin oranges and canned pineapple. There’s no pig in it. But it does seem to be served at barbecues, and people there pick at the pig, I guess like we pick at the turkey leftovers after Thanksgiving.

There wasn’t exactly a stampede of riders with me into the bakery, so I couldn’t suggest that we share this half a cake. But you can bet I will be looking for a single-serving size further along the East Coast Greenway. Or riders to share something bigger.

I’m guessing I haven’t seen the last of boiled peanuts either.

A Maine food tour by bike: Blueberry and lobster … pies

I bet someone has found a way to combine the two, but for me, it was blueberry pie for breakfast and lobster pie for dinner.

Not together!

Though I bet someone in Maine has come up with a way to combine them.

Pie is an important part of bike riding, as you can see here and here.

I finally did get my own slice at Helen’s Restaurant in Machias — that was called breakfast. Like the one I had drooled over on Sunday afternoon, it was a thick helping of blueberries that spilled onto the plate. None of that gumminess in cheap grocery-store pies.

On the other hand, that slice cost a touch more than Clive’s proper breakfast of corned beef hash and two eggs. Worth it!

my blueberry pieThe day ended with lobster in Ellsworth. Instead of lobster roll, I went for lobster pie. So rich! Lots of lobster chunks drenched in a cream sauce, with a layer of fine bread crumbs as the “crust”. It plus the sides left no room for dessert. Not that the ice cream shop stayed open until 9 p.m.!

lobster pie

Some of the others went for a full lobster, and Chris, who calls himself a newcomer to Maine since he’s only been living here at least part-time since 1976, gave the tutorial in how to twist and crack it open.

lobster lesson cropped

A happy rider:

don eating lobster

And if you didn’t want that, there was lobster stew, lobster dip…

The Union River Lobster Pot is one of those seasonal restaurants that fills up early. So we had a bit of a wait. But here, the “bar” is chairs on the lawn, with a view of the river. And yes, you can get beer.

ellsworth river view

Blueberries!

Found some blueberries. Still looking for blueberry pie.

blueberry fieldWe have been told to stop for blueberries. Hey, bike rides are all about the food.

So when we spotted this blueberry field about three-quarters into our first day of our East Coast Greenway ride, we did. We focused on harvesting them by the handful. It felt a little like “Blueberries for Sal,” but without the bear.

The actual berries are smaller than the ones at home, and they’re grown on low bushes, not the high bushes at home. Our SAG driver said they serve another purpose — to act as fire breaks.

We saw someone harvesting blueberries as we drove to Calais yesterday. To me, it looked like he was using something similar to a tennis-ball hopper — push down and the balls (or berries) go in from the bottom, pushing up the balls (or berries) already there. Or was it some kind of scooper? He certainly didn’t seem hunched over, doing back-breaking work. Still, if it was hours in a field…

We’re still on the hunt for blueberry pie. Three of our riders have scored some, but it took a bit of sneakiness. The restaurant next to the motel in Machias had closed after lunch by the time they got in (and we can’t have been that far behind at 2:30 p.m.). But they waited outside the door until an employee wanted to head out, then bolted in and successfully pleaded for pie to go. They got the last three pieces of blueberry pie. And they just oozed blueberries. Look at that:

blueberry pie

I admit I drooled. Enough, I think, that one of them felt guilt-tripped into offering me a bite. And then I said no. Crazy! Apparently they felt badly enough that they offered a bit to the next person who came by. And Alan our mechanic said yes!

We’ll be at that restaurant for breakfast. Maybe I’ll get lucky? (Because I certainly won’t be eating eggs!)

Paah (that’s pie with a southern twist)

Well-earned dessert.

Yum! Wednesday night .. I’m one of those who couldn’t resist:

pie

 

Pie, pie, pie

Our find on the East Coast Greenway: Mom’s Apple Pie Bakery in Occoquan.

Pies, pies, pies.The food find of the trip? We came across Mom’s Apple Pie Bakery about two blocks off the route in Occoquan, Virginia. It made a list of the South’s best pies a few years back, and can claim a visit by Michelle Obama.

In another article hanging on the wall, “Mom” says her secret is to use less sugar than the recipe calls for so the fruit flavor can shine through. One of her employees says she grows most of the ingredients for her fillings. They bake about 100 pies per day on a weekend.

Buy a whole pie, or by the slice. I went for an almond amaretto chess pie. Delicious!

lots of slices of pie

 

Lots of choices, and benches outside to sit on.

This town is a great stop for cyclists, whether on the East Coast Greenway or Adventure Cycling’s U.S. Bicycle Route 1, part of a developing network of urban, suburban and rural routes. Saw some signs (and a long-distance cyclist loaded with panniers heading up a hill just before Occoquan).