STATEWIDE

It’s time to enter designs for poultry coops in contest

The University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Maine Poultry Growers Association (MPGA) are accepting entries for the 2015 Maine Poultry Coop Contest until Nov. 1.

The contest recognizes poultry keepers – both hobbyists and farmers from Maine – who have valuable and creative ideas for coop use and design. Entries may be designed and used for any species of poultry.

Up to three photos may be submitted with each entry.

The first-place winner will be awarded $150; second place will win $100 and third place $50. Fourth- and fifth-place finishers will receive one-year subscriptions to Backyard Poultry Magazine. All entrants will get free 2015 memberships in MPGA, which is providing all the awards. Winners will be announced Jan. 14 at the State of Maine Agricultural Trades Show in Augusta.

For more information, contact Lynne Hazelton at 781-6099 or at lynne.b.hazelton@maine.edu.

Federal grants go to projects affecting local food economy

Maine has been awarded more than $600,000 in federal specialty crop block grants designed to strengthen and grow the local food economy.

Funding for the grants increased substantially under the new Farm Bill, according to U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, a Democrat, who helped author some of the bill’s local food provisions.

Maine’s grant will go to the state agriculture department, which will distribute the funds to 11 projects, including a joint project with the University of Maine to develop a hop industry in the state.

Other funds will go to a study of the effects of pesticides on honeybees and to a program to educate specialty crop growers about food safety rule changes.

Grants are also being awarded to Maine’s wild blueberry growers, maple syrup producers and potato farmers.

PORTLAND

Piccolo chef and Rosemont will widen cooking horizons

Piccolo, chef Damian Sansonetti’s country Italian restaurant at 111 Middle St., is partnering with Rosemont Market on five cooking classes that will focus on using less familiar meats, vegetables, grains and wines.

The series, called “Just a Little Bit Off,” is designed to inspire home cooks to become more familiar with less well-known products and preparations from traditional Western food cultures. Sansonetti will partner with guests from Portland’s food and wine scene to demonstrate techniques and recipes.

The classes are limited to no more than a dozen participants, and each will end with a meal prepared by the chefs. All classes will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The cost is $85 per class, or $375 for all five classes.

Here’s a look at the topics:

Oct. 11 – “Fresh Forever” will show how to preserve and prepare vegetables and will teach little-known uses for fresh eggs.

Nov. 15 – “The Coolest Cuts” will cover butchering basics, taught by Sansonetti and Evan Mills, Rosemont’s chief butcher. Participants will learn how to break down whole chickens and larger cuts of beef and pork. Includes imaginative preparations of offal.

Dec. 13 – “Happier Holidays” will cover meals and desserts for groups, with a focus on roasting and braising. Desserts by Ilma Lopez, Piccolo’s co-owner and pastry chef.

Jan. 10 – “Whole and Hearty” will show how pastas and grains such as rye, faro, spelt and barley can be used in winter comfort foods. Pasta making, including hand-kneading and coordination of shapes with sauces, will be covered.

Feb. 7 – “Language of Love” will feature perfect meals for two.

ROUND POND

Anchor Inn closing, selling memorabilia for charity

The Anchor Inn Restaurant in Round Pond is closing after 27 years, according to owners Rick Hirsch and Jean Kerrigan. The last day of service will be Sunday.

Hirsch and Kerrigan, who also own the Damariscotta River Grill and Red Plate Catering, are holding a silent auction of Anchor Inn memorabilia, including the Golden Lobster (a wine holder), limited copies of the Woman & Lobster print, an anchor lamp and more. All proceeds will go to local food pantries.

For more information or to make a final reservation, call 529-5584.

THOMASTON

Food and wine fest Saturday has local chefs and products

The second annual food and wine festival Taste of Thomaston will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, rain or shine, in heated tents on the grounds of Montpelier, the big white house just off Route 1 at the turn to Saint George.

Organized by the Knox Museum, the festival costs $12 for adults and $10 for museum members in advance, and $15/$12 at the door. You must be 21 or older for admission to the tents.

Participating local chefs include Melissa Kelly of Primo Restaurant in Rockland; Kerry Altiero of Café Miranda in Rockland; Scott Yakavenko of The Slipway in Thomaston and Manuel Mercier of The Youngtown Inn in Lincolnville.

Local specialty products will be available for tasting from Spruce Mountain Blueberries, Hootin Gluten Free Bakery, Fiore Artisan Olive Oils & Vinegars, The Highlands Coffee House, Thomaston Café and Bakery, Terra Optima Farm Market, State of Maine Cheese Company, Maine Street Meats and others.

More than 40 local food, wine and beverage producers will be at the event, and the Thomaston Farmers Market will relocate to Montpelier’s grounds Saturday.

For tickets, go to knoxmuseum.org or call 354-8062. Advance ticket prices are available until noon on Friday.

YARMOUTH

Harvest Dinner will raise funds for community garden

The Yarmouth Community Garden will hold its 12th annual Harvest Dinner from 5 to 7 p.m. Oct. 22 at Yarmouth High School, 286 West Elm St.

The dinner features pasta with marinara sauce made by the chefs at Gather, pesto sauce made from the garden’s organic basil, meatballs, mixed green salad, bakery breads and warm apple crisp a la mode.

Kids can make crafts and take home free pumpkins while supplies last. Adults can shop the silent auction, bake sale and raffle table. Proceeds provide the seed money to start next year’s garden.

Tickets will be available at the door and are $10 for adults and $5 for children under 12.

DEER ISLE

Weekend workshop to teach butchering and charcuterie

The Island Culinary and Ecological Center will present a nose-to-tail butchering and charcuterie workshop Oct. 25-27 at Bagaduce and David’s Folly Farms in Brooksville and at a kitchen facility on Deer Isle.

Master butcher Brian Polcyn will lead the workshop. Polcyn co-authored the books “Charcuterie” and Salumi” with food writer Michael Ruhlman.

Saturday sessions will demonstrate a humane on-farm slaughter and preparation for processing. The second day will begin with a farm tour and a discussion of hog husbandry and breeds. In the afternoon, Italian and American nose-to-tail methods of breaking down a whole pig will be demonstrated in detail. The group will prepare a traditional butcher’s supper in the evening.

Sessions on Monday include dry curing, sausage making, using offal and smoking fundamentals.

The event is limited to a small number of participants. The cost for the three days is $300. Make reservations by emailing events@edibleisland.org.

– Compiled by Meredith Goad, Staff Writer

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