We had a blast at the Renegade Craft Fair. Watching people taste our unusual dishes and then bravely step into the video booth to share their wishes for extra time was nothing short of wonderful! We felt so welcomed, and guests who stopped by really seemed to love the experience. One of my favorite moments of the two days was when one fellow paused just before entering the video booth and said, “Thanks for doing this.” It made my weekend!
Chef and producer Erin King received complement after complement on her dishes, which is a pretty great feat considering she wasn’t serving up easy-to-please favorites like mac n’ cheese. The Renegade Menu included: Iraqi Pomegranate Soup, a spring dish often used to break a fast; Vinegar Pie, an old frontier dish that was later adopted by many thrifty cultures; and Pickled Fiddlehead Ferns, the fiddleheads a nod to Native American foraging culture, and the pickling an easier way to prepare and serve.
So many guests asked for the recipes that we’re posting them here. Enjoy!
Pomegranate Soup – Shorbat Rumman
1 pound dried yellow split peas
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
1 large bunch spinach, finely chopped
2 bunches parsley, finely chopped
2 bunches cilantro, finely chopped
1 bunch mint, finely chopped
Juice of 1 lime
3T pomegranate syrup
Salt and Pepper
Rinse and drain peas, removing any stones. Using a large pot, cook over medium heat in 6 cups of water until soft, about 45 minutes. Add water as needed.
Once soft, season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the scallions, spinach, parsley, cilantro and mint. Return to a simmer and cook 5 minutes. Off heat stir in pomegranate molasses and lime juice. Adjust seasoning.
Makes 8 cups.
Vinegar Pie
1 pre-cooked 9 inch pie crust
2 cups water
½ cup all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 eggs, beaten
6 T apple cider vinegar
In a heavy saucepan, bring water to a boil. In a small bawl whisk together flour and sugar. Add flour-sugar mixture to boiling water, whisking often. Cook until thickened, about 6 min.
Remove from heat and temper eggs with mixture, whisking constantly. Return mixture to saucepan and cook over medium low heat, while whisking, for about 3 minutes more.
Off heat, add vinegar and whisk until fully incorporated. Pour into pre-baked pie shell and refrigerate until set. Serve with whipped cream.
It should be noted that both these recipes are classics and so Erin’s renditions are culled from many online resources as well as cookbooks.
The Pickled Fiddlehead Ferns were made by Mike’s Maine Pickles available from Maine Goodies.
These photos taken by filmmaker and journalist Sarah Frank who manned the video booth for 1 Bite 7 Days. Thanks Sarah!
