Maine, Canada and New Jersey - Our Summer Vacation
Wow, summer is over and school has started. I am not really sure where the time went but we had fun.
Our Uncle has a family cabin up in Maine that has been in the family for I don't know how long. It is located on Big Lake which is just one of the many lakes found throughout the state. My wife took me there once while we were dating but our kids have never had the chance to visit. We made plans to head east for a summer trip.
Luckily having your own cabin and kitchen means you can cook gluten free and where the cabin is there are not too many options to eat out anyway.
We packed the usual suspects: Jovial gluten free pasta, peanut butter, Udi's gluten free bread, Rudi's gluten free tortillas, Spicely gluten free spices, granola bars and other snacks, Justin's peanut butter cups and Pamela's pancake mix.
Searching online I found a Gluten Free Bakery in Bangor, Maine that was close to the airport. Raegamuffin's is a place to have to visit if you are in the area. It is a wonderful 100% gluten free bakery. We loaded up on baguettes, seeded bread, donuts, cookies, cinnamon buns and pizza crust. They also had pre made sandwiches on their homemade baguettes - so I picked up a few for myself.
Everything was delicious. We should have picked up more baguettes because the kids ate them up. All of the sweets were delicious.
Once we arrived at the cabin we did the usual cleaning of pots, pans and silverware so I could have some clean things to use to cook. The kids had an easy time of entertaining themselves with the cabin and dock and the lake right out the back door.
We did need some other items so in Princeton there is a supermarket for your eggs, milk, juice, etc. We picked up some fresh fruits and vegetables. I did have one new find Casa Visco pizza sauce. Gluten free and just what we needed for the pizza crusts I picked up at Raegamuffin's. It was really good with the right amount of oregano.
We took some day trips. Twice we made is to the town of Eastport. It is a neat town right on the water. Our destination was Quoddy Bay Lobster - I couldn't even find a website for it. As you head toward Eastport you will see the signs but in the town you'll head towards the waters edge since it is off the main street. The wife and kids had lobster rolls with butter. I had a good old fashioned steamed lobster. Cheaper than you would pay at any restaurant and oh so good and fresh. The steamer only cooks the lobster so no risk of any contamination. If you want a lobster roll bring your own GF hotdog bun.
One other great day trip was in the rain. Living in San Diego the kids don't get rain very often so it was as added bonus. Between Eastport and Princeton is Moosehorn refuge. We were told about the blueberry picking and we went to investigate. There are fields of blueberries for you to pick from and you are allowed up to one quart per person. The kids had fun picking and eating and we used them in our pancakes the following day.
Being close to Canada we also took a trip across the border. One of my goals was to find some Glutenberg beer and specifically their Red. I did and it was delicious and I brought some back to the cabin to enjoy the rest of the week. I really can't wait until its available in San Diego.
Another gem in Canada was the Ganong Chocolate Factory in St. Stevens. You can take a tour in the museum which tells the history of the factory and chocolate making. While on the tour it is all you can eat. And, everything is gluten free. Afterwards we stopped in the shop and picked up some treats, snacks and gifts. While I was there I found peppermint spears and licorice and they were both gluten free - this was the first time I had found GF licorice.
Another item we picked up was Covered Bridge Chips. These are Canadian kettle chips and GF. The BBQ was good but I had to try the Creamy Dill pickle flavor and it tasted just like a creamy dill pickle. They also had a lobster flavor chip which was more lobster flavor than Old Bay but still good.
And if you are in St. Andrews you have to visit Sweet Harvest. This quaint, little restaurant was super knowledgeable and GF friendly. The food? Amazing. I had a spinach and artichoke dip served with GF potato chips and for dinner a huge bowl of this Italian style tomato based chowder like soup with more seafood than I can remember. It was so good we got two servings to go and had it for lunch the next day.
How was the fishing? The kids landed some nice fish but seemed to have more fun catching shiners and blue gill off the dock. I think the wife one the prize for biggest bass of the week.
And what is more fun than catching frogs?
After more fun and fishing and board games we headed to Ocean City, New Jersey. We usually do a few weeks there each summer but this year we splint the time between Maine and NJ. One day we went crabbing in the bay. On the way to the boat we happened to see a boat that made me stop. It turns out the owner has had celiac disease for years. I asked if I could take a picture.
New Jersey was more for relaxing with the family as my brother and his wife met us at the house as well as my sister and her kids. The house was full but it was a lot of fun. We went to the beach, crabbing in the bay and played late into the night on the Boardwalk. One gluten free note was while I was on the Boardwalk we found Curly's Fries. It just so happens that the curly fries are fresh cut potatoes cooked in their own fryer and gluten free. The other spiral fries are seasoned, not GF and cooked in different fryers. They were really good and it was so nice to munch on some greasy fried food on the Boardwalk.
Then it was back to the airport and time to fly home and get back to work. If you are planning a trip to the Northeast plug some of these into your maps and make your way from place to place enjoying all of the safe and delicious GF food.
Until next time,
The Un-Gluten Guy
Our Uncle has a family cabin up in Maine that has been in the family for I don't know how long. It is located on Big Lake which is just one of the many lakes found throughout the state. My wife took me there once while we were dating but our kids have never had the chance to visit. We made plans to head east for a summer trip.
Luckily having your own cabin and kitchen means you can cook gluten free and where the cabin is there are not too many options to eat out anyway.
We packed the usual suspects: Jovial gluten free pasta, peanut butter, Udi's gluten free bread, Rudi's gluten free tortillas, Spicely gluten free spices, granola bars and other snacks, Justin's peanut butter cups and Pamela's pancake mix.
Searching online I found a Gluten Free Bakery in Bangor, Maine that was close to the airport. Raegamuffin's is a place to have to visit if you are in the area. It is a wonderful 100% gluten free bakery. We loaded up on baguettes, seeded bread, donuts, cookies, cinnamon buns and pizza crust. They also had pre made sandwiches on their homemade baguettes - so I picked up a few for myself.
Everything was delicious. We should have picked up more baguettes because the kids ate them up. All of the sweets were delicious.
Once we arrived at the cabin we did the usual cleaning of pots, pans and silverware so I could have some clean things to use to cook. The kids had an easy time of entertaining themselves with the cabin and dock and the lake right out the back door.
We did need some other items so in Princeton there is a supermarket for your eggs, milk, juice, etc. We picked up some fresh fruits and vegetables. I did have one new find Casa Visco pizza sauce. Gluten free and just what we needed for the pizza crusts I picked up at Raegamuffin's. It was really good with the right amount of oregano.
We took some day trips. Twice we made is to the town of Eastport. It is a neat town right on the water. Our destination was Quoddy Bay Lobster - I couldn't even find a website for it. As you head toward Eastport you will see the signs but in the town you'll head towards the waters edge since it is off the main street. The wife and kids had lobster rolls with butter. I had a good old fashioned steamed lobster. Cheaper than you would pay at any restaurant and oh so good and fresh. The steamer only cooks the lobster so no risk of any contamination. If you want a lobster roll bring your own GF hotdog bun.
One other great day trip was in the rain. Living in San Diego the kids don't get rain very often so it was as added bonus. Between Eastport and Princeton is Moosehorn refuge. We were told about the blueberry picking and we went to investigate. There are fields of blueberries for you to pick from and you are allowed up to one quart per person. The kids had fun picking and eating and we used them in our pancakes the following day.
Being close to Canada we also took a trip across the border. One of my goals was to find some Glutenberg beer and specifically their Red. I did and it was delicious and I brought some back to the cabin to enjoy the rest of the week. I really can't wait until its available in San Diego.
Another gem in Canada was the Ganong Chocolate Factory in St. Stevens. You can take a tour in the museum which tells the history of the factory and chocolate making. While on the tour it is all you can eat. And, everything is gluten free. Afterwards we stopped in the shop and picked up some treats, snacks and gifts. While I was there I found peppermint spears and licorice and they were both gluten free - this was the first time I had found GF licorice.
Another item we picked up was Covered Bridge Chips. These are Canadian kettle chips and GF. The BBQ was good but I had to try the Creamy Dill pickle flavor and it tasted just like a creamy dill pickle. They also had a lobster flavor chip which was more lobster flavor than Old Bay but still good.
And if you are in St. Andrews you have to visit Sweet Harvest. This quaint, little restaurant was super knowledgeable and GF friendly. The food? Amazing. I had a spinach and artichoke dip served with GF potato chips and for dinner a huge bowl of this Italian style tomato based chowder like soup with more seafood than I can remember. It was so good we got two servings to go and had it for lunch the next day.
How was the fishing? The kids landed some nice fish but seemed to have more fun catching shiners and blue gill off the dock. I think the wife one the prize for biggest bass of the week.
And what is more fun than catching frogs?
After more fun and fishing and board games we headed to Ocean City, New Jersey. We usually do a few weeks there each summer but this year we splint the time between Maine and NJ. One day we went crabbing in the bay. On the way to the boat we happened to see a boat that made me stop. It turns out the owner has had celiac disease for years. I asked if I could take a picture.
New Jersey was more for relaxing with the family as my brother and his wife met us at the house as well as my sister and her kids. The house was full but it was a lot of fun. We went to the beach, crabbing in the bay and played late into the night on the Boardwalk. One gluten free note was while I was on the Boardwalk we found Curly's Fries. It just so happens that the curly fries are fresh cut potatoes cooked in their own fryer and gluten free. The other spiral fries are seasoned, not GF and cooked in different fryers. They were really good and it was so nice to munch on some greasy fried food on the Boardwalk.
Then it was back to the airport and time to fly home and get back to work. If you are planning a trip to the Northeast plug some of these into your maps and make your way from place to place enjoying all of the safe and delicious GF food.
Until next time,
The Un-Gluten Guy
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