A Bounty of Goodies from the Chesapeake

The Labor Day weekend is fast approaching, telling us the end of the summer is near. On this perfect day with mild temperatures and low humidity, as I sit typing by the kitchen’s bay window … doors and windows open, looking out over the sunlit woods as the leaves of the trees gently flutter in the light breeze, colorful birds at the feeders, flowers still in bloom … I am reminded why I love this area so much.

The climate of the mid-Atlantic region, where Maryland is happily situated, is normally moderate with no big extremes in hot or cold. The geography of Maryland is similar to a miniature US; mountains to the west, ocean to the east, with rolling hills, farmland and the beautiful Chesapeake Bay in between. This landscape plays the perfect host to a bounty of goodies.

Sweet Silver Queen Corn

From the farms we have fresh berries, peaches, melons, peppers, squash and beans. Right now we are still enjoying the wonderful tomatoes and sweet silver queen corn that this area is known for. The bay is serving up rockfish (striped bass) and Maryland blue crabs … yum!

Farmer’s markets and roadside farm stands dot the landscape, making it easy to buy directly from the grower, you can’t get any fresher than that. The county’s farmers' market is held twice a week down the road. This is the place to go, not just for produce, but also for homemade jams, baked goods and fresh cheese, right from the farm.

This bounty quickly turns into wonderful dishes. There is no other place in the world to get real Maryland crab cakes. I wouldn’t think of ordering them anywhere else. Here we use generous pieces of jumbo lump crab and no filler, just a light crumb coating. We accompany them with creamy coleslaw and crispy French fries … double yum! Don’t want crab cakes? ... then sauté a rockfish or stuff it with crab, cook up some sweet corn and toss a tomato salad.

We even produce wine in the state. Although certainly not on a par with California, Oregon and Washington, it isn’t bad.

So although we must bid adieu to the summer, we look forward to the fall and its bounty … the crispness in the air, the gold and crimson leaves upon the trees, fresh apples, pears and winter squash, apple cider donuts, no crowds at the beach, catching up with friends ... maybe leaving summer behind won’t be so bad after all …