Recipe: Lemon Ginger Scones

At our Freeport Maine Bed and Breakfast, Ruth sometimes falls in love with an ingredient and uses it frequently. Last year ginger was that ingredient. One of the most popular recipes she prepared was her Lemon Ginger scones - always popular and always good!

• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger
• 1/2 cup(1 stick) unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
• 1/2 cup crystallized ginger, chopped into small pieces
• Zest of 1 large lemon
• 2/3 cup buttermilk
• Egg mixture for brushing tops of scones:
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 tablespoon milk

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and place rack in middle or top 1/3rd of oven. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. 
   
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and powdered ginger. Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture with a pastry blender. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs. Stir in the chopped crystallized ginger and lemon zest. Add the buttermilk to the flour mixture and stir just until the dough comes together. Do not over-mix the dough.
4. 
   
5. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead dough gently four or five times and then pat the dough into a circle that is about 7 inches (18 cm) round. Cut this circle in half, then cut each half into 3 or 4 pie-shaped wedges (triangles).
6. 
   
7. Place the scones on the baking sheet. Make an egg wash of one well-beaten egg mixed with 1 tablespoon milk and brush the tops of the scones with this mixture.
8. 
   
9. Bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Makes 6 or 8 scones.

Tip:  Once you have cut the scones, they can be transferred to a cookie sheet
and frozen, then double-bagged for freezer storage.  When you want fresh
scones, take out the quantity you want, and bake as normal.  You may need to add a minute or 2 to the baking time.  You don't need to thaw scones!  Just
put scones on parchment-lined sheet while you preheat oven.

Spies, Flowers and Automobiles along the Maine Coast

Spring is the season to be in Maine! The weather is gorgeous today, sunny and heading for a high about 70 F, or so they say.

One of the nice things about the Maine coast is that many of the things to do are both indoors and out, so you can enjoy the nice weather, or get shelter from the harsher forms, and still enjoy the activities. Tickets for all these locations may be purchased (usually at a significant discount) during your stay at our Freeport Maine bed and breakfast.

Spies and military secrets abound this spring at the Maine Maritime Musuem, as their exhibit, Cold Waters, Cold War, traces covert military activity in Maine from Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery to the Very Low Frequency Transmitter in Cutler, and more. To enjoy the weather, afterward you can take a trolley tour of next door's Bath Iron Works, and see modern U.S. Navy ships being built, or take a lighthouse or nature cruise, as well as touring the other museum exhibits, buildings and grounds.

Spring has indeed sprung at the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens. Spring flowers are in full bloom, and there are literally dozens of event scheduled for garden enthusiasts of all ages. The photos of the current flowers, and exhibits are shown on the gardens blog.

Meanwhile, for the transportation fan, Owls Head Transportation Museum's upcoming event is their Ford & Chevy Auto Spectacular and Antique Aeroplane Show, this weekend, May 28 & 29.

In addition to the exhibitor vehicles for the Ford & Chevy spectacular, several of the Musuem's antique automobiles will be on display on Runway 17 including its 1932 Chevrolet Confederate Roadster and 1940 Ford Woodie Station Wagon.

The Museum will also demonstrate a few of its turn-of-the-century automobiles as well as give free rides in Ford Model Ts. Special children’s activities — including our popular styrofoam airplane-building workshop—and Museum tours are planned. There will be plenty of fun for the whole family.

The antique aeroplane show will begin at 9:30 a.m., weather permitting.

Each of these museums has shows throughout the season, so whenever you are planning your visit to Maine, there will always be something happening.

Freeport 9-11 Memorial

A parade arrived at noon today, bringing a steel girder from the World Trade Center towers in New York, to be used in a Tenth Anniversary Memorial in Freeport.

Speakers included US Sen. Olympia Snowe, as well as spokespersons for the rest of Maine's US delegation. The guest of honor was retired. NYFD Lt. Mickey Kross, who shared his commitment to the remembrance.

The steel girder will visit other Maine towns before being cut to be used in the memorial.

Freeport's Flag Ladies were recognized, along with the Masons and others , for making possible the gift of the steel from Ground Zero.

A Great Afternoon Indoors (Rain or Shine)

1908 Stanley Model K

It's a bit rainy in Maine this week, so our guests were looking for something to do that is mostly indoors. We quickly recommended the Owls Head Transportation Museum for an easy drive up US-1, and a nice day of exploring cars, planes, and more.

Just recently we made our first visit to the museum to see what they had to offer. We were surprised to find it considerably larger than we had expected, and filled with wonderful examples of antique autos and aeroplanes, plus a number of other interesting devices (like the Model-T snowmobile, or the Bi-Autogo - kind of like a large motorcycle, with a V-8  engine, a body like a car, and retractable side-wheels to keep it steady at lower speeds).

The aircraft include a Fokker Tri-Plane (think Red Baron), a Spad (Eddie Rickenbacker), and a Curtis "Jenny". You can even take a ride in a 1978 Piper Cub,  a 1941 Stearman biplane, or a 1933 Waco biplane. A bit pricey, perhaps, but the thrill of a lifetime!

Ruth's favorites were the Duesenberg and the Packard near the entrance (left)!  We also enjoyed the collection of antique MG's - there were several different models scattered throughout the museum - as well as the various old Model-T's and other wonderful exhibits of historic automobiles.

Fit & Flavorful! Freeport's 'Be Well' Weekend

Maine Magazine, Downeast Magazine and FreeportUSA are coordinating with L.L. Bean, Freeport's Casco Bay YMCA and others to bring together Freeport's first "Be Well Weekend" June 24-26, 2011, to celebrate outdoor recreation, with an emphasis on health and wellness.

Our Freeport Maine Bed & Breakfast is joining in the fun, offering a Fit & Flavorful getaway package for the event. The package includes

• Two nights at Brewster House Bed & Breakfast
• Heart healthy breakfast selections available
• Participation in the Be Well Weekend events
• Free maps and directions for several bike tour options around the area
• A welcome basket with healthy snacks and treats
• Two half-hour in-room massages (must be booked in advance)
• A Brewster House souvenir mug

For double occupancy queen rooms, the rate is $479 (tax included). Other room combinations are available. Check our availability page for information.

Participating in the Be Well Weekend are Casco Bay YMCA, and the Falmouth Wellness Solution, who will be hosting two days of outdoor activities like Zumba, Yoga, Pilates, Thai Chi, and many more on the L.L.Bean Discovery Park and in the Freeport Village Station. This event will give every age group a chance to try out the latest fitness trends in 30 minute increments. The schedule of events also includes the Freeport Farmers' Market, bike tours with Freeport Ski & Bike, an L.L.Bean Boot Fun Run, interactive healthy cooking seminars, health screenings and opportunities to explore Freeport’s mountains, wooded trails, coastal waters and desert!

Book early to be sure you are able to get the room and massage times you want!

Brewster House Honored by Select Registry

Brewster House was recently honored to be the only Freeport Maine Bed and Breakfast admitted as a member of Select Registry, Distinguished Inns of North America, the premier innkeeping association in the United States and Canada.

Select Registry requires its members to pass their rigorous Quality Assurance inspection, which Brewster House did in April of this year.

Out of the thousands of inns in North America, only an elite few will be invited to join Select Registry this year. Brewster House Bed & Breakfast joins approximately 400 other exceptional properties that are already members of the Association.

For our guests, this will mean they now have access to Select Registry's frequent stay and gift certificate programs, in addition to the specials and packages we have always offered. Other than this, you can expect the same great hospitality and accommodations that have allowed us to receive this recognition.

Founded in 1972 as the Independent Innkeepers’ Association by Norman Simpson, “the
Father of Country Inn travel in America,” Select Registry is an offshoot of Simpson’s popular and pioneering book, Country Inns and Back Roads. The name and logo of the organization were changed several years ago to reflect the group’s approach to marketing its selective and distinguished member properties. Originally established in the Berkshire area of New England, the nonprofit organization is now headquartered in historic Marshall, Michigan.

We are thrilled to be members of Select Registry's distinctive marketing organization.