PORTLAND

Whoopie pie throwdown will air on Dec. 8, 10 and 11

Cranberry Island Kitchen’s whoopie pie throwdown with Food Network star Bobby Flay will air at 9 p.m. Dec. 8, according to Carol Ford, one of the owners of the popular Portland bakery.

If you miss it the first time, the whoopie pie episode of “Throwdown! With Bobby Flay” will be repeated at midnight on Dec. 10 and 7 p.m. Dec. 11.

Ford and her business partner, Karen Haase, went head to head with Flay a few weeks ago at Grace Restaurant on Chestnut Street.

Flay typically surprises the people he wants to challenge on the set. Ford said she and Haase suspected that the Food Network crew might actually be from Flay’s show, but didn’t know for sure until Flay walked onto the set carrying a painting.

“It turned out to be really fun and exciting,” Ford said.

Judges for the throwdown were Cristin Walsh, the pastry chef at Grace, and Kathleen Fleury, the food editor of Downeast magazine.

The grapevine says that Cranberry Island Kitchen won the throwdown with its pumpkin whoopie pie, but Ford would neither confirm or deny that rumor.

And that’s not the only Maine throwdown Flay is showing this season. The famous chef also challenged Cal Hancock of Hancock Gourmet Lobster Co. to a lobster mac-and-cheese throwdown. Hancock’s version of the dish, Port Clyde Lobster Mac & Cheese, has won two Gold Awards at the International Fancy Food Show in New York. It’s made with Maine lobster, shell pasta and mascarpone-cheddar sauce and topped with panko bread crumbs, herbed butter, lemon zest and Parmesan cheese.

That show will air at 9 p.m. today and 7 p.m. Saturday on the Food Network. The judges for that episode were Jim Martin of Lucky Catch Lobster in Portland and Tony Poulin, head of the culinary arts program at Southern Maine Community College in South Portland.

 

Maine Farmland Trust to debut book at event

The Maine Farmland Trust will debut its first book at a reception from 3 to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Quimby Colony, 769 Congress St.

“From the Land: Maine Farms at Work” (Besaw Publishing, $20) profiles seven Maine farms through essays by John Piotti, executive director of the trust, and Bridget Besaw, an award-winning environmental photographer.

Some of the farmers profiled in the book will be at the reception, and there will be refreshments made with farm-fresh ingredients. Photographs from the book will be on display.

The book will be on sale at the event.

FREEPORT

Azure Cafe chef preparing turkey feast at local center

Chef Christopher Bassett of the Azure Cafe in Freeport will once again prepare a turkey feast for residents of Freeport and Pownal who have nowhere else to go on Thanksgiving.

The 7th Annual Thanksgiving Meal will be served at the Freeport Community Center, 53 Depot St., from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thanksgiving Day.

The restaurant teams up each year with Freeport Community Services to put on the event, which last year drew 120 people to the community center. In addition, 416 people were served meals in their homes.

The meal is free, but for planning purposes, those who would like to attend should call ahead with the number of people in their party. The number to call is 869-1005.

 

Simply Divine Brownies to host 2 tasting parties

Simply Divine Brownies will host two free Stocking Stuffer Tasting Parties in early December, one in Kents Hill and one in Freeport.

The Dec. 1 party in Kents Hill will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Apple Shed Bakery, 1625 Main St., where Simply Divine Brownies are made.

A Dec. 4 tasting will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Simply Divine Brownies’ Freeport store, Freeport Village Station, Mallett Building, 2nd Floor, 7 Mill St.

The tasting at the Apple Shed Bakery will also feature many of the bakery’s own products, including pies, cupcakes, breads, holiday cookies, jams, jellies, salsas and pickles. There will also be live bluegrass music by the LaClaires.

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