Belmont Inn French Toast
Well, I never thought I would write a blog but here I am, sitting down at the computer sometime between checking guests out and checking new guests in, to write my first blog. What to write about? It seems to me that the goal of writing one blog post a week is going to call for more things to talk about than I can imagine but this first topic is easy. Food! I’ve loved feeding people since I was a kid and now I get to do it every morning during Maine’s busiest travel months of July through October. Cooking may be a small part of my job as an innkeeper at this Camden, ME Bed and Breakfast, but it’s the way I get to start my work days. Nice.
There will be other inn breakfasts that I’ll talk about over time but I’ll start with this one because it is almost entirely made of things Maine. The recipe is Gracie’s French Toast from Linda and Martha Greenlaw’s cookbook Recipes from a Very Small Island. There’s a lot to know about Linda and her mom, Martha, who live on Isle au Haut (the ferry leaves from Stonington, Maine, and in 2000 the year-around population was 79) but you’ll have to read it elsewhere. Maybe even in their cookbook. They each wrote an introduction to their book and throughout the book they talk about their lives on the island, their family and friends, and food. As you read through their book, you can feel the quality and depth of their relationship with each other.
Gracie is a good friend of Martha’s and her French toast recipe, which I make with the dried apple and cranberry sourdough bread from Borealis Breads, a Maine company dedicated to wholesome food made as often as possible with local ingredients, is just wonderful. Last summer a fairly quiet guest of mine, a man of a certain age (in other words, he’s had time to get around) said, after breakfast on his third day here, “You don’t know this about me but I am a connoisseur of French toast. I try it everywhere I go. And this is the best I’ve ever had!” Thanks, Gracie! Thanks, Borealis Breads!
Gracie’s recipe calls for soaking the bread in the batter and then freezing it. That kind of recipe is great for me since I can make up a lot of French toast ahead of time, double bag and date it, and keep it on hand until I need it. The frozen slices of French toast are basted with butter and then baked. When it comes out right, the outside is slightly crispy and the inside is oh so tender. I serve it with tiny frozen organic wild Maine blueberries picked at nearby Beech Hill Preserve; maple syrup I buy from a farmer in Warren, 20 minutes from the inn; and bacon from a local market. When possible (which is only in peak summer months), this breakfast starts with fresh fruit grown in Maine. And the coffee is always from Rock City roasters in nearby Rockland, Maine, because it’s the best locally roasted coffee I’ve tasted. Actually, it’s the best New England roasted coffee I know of. Send me samples if you think you know of something better.
Until next time, my best to all of you,
Anita
Tags: Belmont Inn, breakfast