Dinner – Lobster Salad on Goose Rocks Beach, Kennebunk, Maine
We started out the morning the same as yesterday, with two eggs over easy on Canadian bacon garnished with slices of Extra Sharp Cheddar cheese watching the market take off to the upside.
Then Suzette and I left to do some antiquing. There are many Antique stores along Route 1, so we looked for several hours. Suzette found a nice galvanized metal silverware and napkin holder for $15.00 that we bought. At around lunch she found a set of 9 spaghetti highball glasses and a pitcher for $40.00 that matched the ones Suzette have started to collect at home. Suzette was hungry, not having eaten anything for breakfast, so we consulted Trip Advisor on the best place for fried clams in Wells and drove out to the coast at Wells Beach to the Lobster Pound across the street from the beach.
We ordered a pint of fried clams for $19.99, an order of coke slaw, and two Samuel Adams’ Summer Ales, which were wheat beers. We took a seat at a window with a view of the ocean on one side and several large tanks filled with lobsters on the other side inside the restaurant. The fried clams were really plump and so fresh that only one or two even smelled clammy. We dipped them in tartare sauce and catsup, which made a nice combination sauce.
After lunch we drove back on Route 1 to the Hannaford supermarket at Kennebunk, where we bought some greens for salad and a few other provisions for the house.
We the went to the fish market and bought five 1 ½ pound soft shell lobsters that weighted slightly over 8 pounds for about $73.00.
Cynthia was not home when we arrived so we started a pot of water boiling as boiled two of the single lobsters for ten to fifteen minutes each. Then when Cynthia returned we asked her how she cooked lobster Abe she said, “Just throw them all into a pot of boiling water and boil them for fifteen minutes.” I suspect that one boils soft shell lobsters for less because the ones we boiled for a little less than fifteen minutes were solidly cooked as well.
Lobster Salad
I made the beginning of the sauce by finely mincing ½ of a large shallot and placing the minced shallot in a metal bowl and covering the minced shallot with reconstituted lemon juice and l letting it stand for about ½ hour to soften the shallot. Then after Cynthia and I picked the meat from the five boiled lobsters, I added about an equal amount of mayonnaise (about ¾ cup) and 1 T. of sour cream and stirred the sauce until it became smooth and creamy. I put the auction into the fridge to chill and thickens bit. I was not sure of the flavor and let Cynthia and Suzette taste the sauce and they both liked it. I knew that it lacked some ingredient, but it took a while for me to recall that thee missing ingredient was tarragon and we lacked that. I then folded enough sauce into the bowl of picked lobster meat to lightly coat the lobster with sauce. While I watched the market close, Cynthia made the salad with greens, spinach, a diced tomato, and a diced cucumber. Everything is so fresh and mature in flavor that salads are wonderful at this time of year. Cynthia dressed the salad with her wine vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper dressing. We packed the lobster salad and green salad in separate containers and used the new galvanized metal container Suzette had found at an antique store for $15.00 with silverware, cloth napkins, a votive candle and small jar to hold it, matches, and a bottle of Gavi Princessa. We also took a bottle of a Gruet Brut and four of the champagne glasses Suzette was given by her mother that had hollow blown stems that allowed bubbles of champagne to bubble up from the bottom of the stem plus four folding chairs and a small children’s’ folding metal table, a vintage tablecloth, and drove to Goose Rocks Beach.
When we arrived we carried our stuff onto the beach and Ricardo set up the table and chairs which put our butts on the beach but protected our clothes from the sand. The low child’s table was at a perfect height about 1 foot above the sand. We covered the table with the
We set up the table and chairs on the beach around 6:30. The tide was going out so there was no problem with waves. It was still full light and the sun was still casting light on the clouds. I poured the champagne and Ricardo opened the Gavi Princessa, Cynthia served the green salad and we passed the lobster salad around and each person piled lobster on their green salad and we still had lobster salad left that we had to finish after we ate our salads. We took some pictures and several persons walking past volunteered to take photos of us lounging around our table. We toasted Suzette’s 60th Birthday and thanked Cynthia and Ricardo for their friendship and hospitality to make it possible that we could celebrate Suzette’s 60th BD with them on this lovely beach in Maine.
After the sun set I lit the candle. Soon several groups came onto the beach and dug fire pits and built fires. After dinner we walked on the beach to the nearest fire and visited with Tim and Susan from Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Tim remodels homes and Susan teaches art and they were with their two sons, the youngest of whom was 19. After we talked for about an hour and warmed ourselves by their fire we packed up and walked past the other three fires and returned to our car, packed up, and returned to Cynthia’s house in Arundel.
We tried to find “The President’s Analyst” on Netflix but it was not available, so we watched a Trevor Noah stand up performance instead and then went to bed after a pleasant day of doing vacation things.
Bon Appetit
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