Funny how some months seem to last a lifetime and others fly by in a flash. This morning I woke up and looked through my photos from the last few weeks and was happy to see the little moments that were captured. June has been filled with milestones in and out of the shop. Oh, and there’s a recipe in here for homemade quick pickled beets!
On June 1st Old Port SKORDO reopened! While closed, we focused on shop updates including new floors and fresh paint. Reopening was a reminder of how lucky we are to have this community of home cooks. The support has been overwhelming!
This photo looks hectic, but it makes me smile. Nothing like a backyard BBQ with your buddies! Julia and I were coming off reopening the Portland shop, looking ahead to reopening SKORDO Maine Mall and took a night to be together with good food and our guys.
Once upon a time I lived and worked onboard a 65’ sailboat. It was a wild and wonderful way to live and brought a pack of great folks into my life. That was almost a decade ago and now many of those boat folks have settled in Maine. Whenever possible, we all sneak out for a sunset sail in Casco Bay with Sail Portland Maine. Highly recommend for locals and visitors alike!
What’s better than oysters at the beach? An engagement at the beach followed up with oysters! My husband and I were asked to help with an engagement and did our best to serve as decoys and shuckers. Little behind the scenes info… I forgot utensils for the different toppers and we ended up using lady slipper shells as spoons. Very on theme.
This was a great day. After over three months of being closed, SKORDO Maine Mall started to come back to life. It was a massive team effort and standing at the shop entrance at end of day, looking back at tables filled with accessories, cookbooks and sets, felt a little like finishing a marathon. SKORDO Maine Mall reopens Thursday, June 25. See you then!
Two weeks running a neighbor has gifted us her CSA share. We’ve been leafy green rich in the absolute best way. Lettuce, citrus, cucumbers, pickled beets, ricotta cheese, and spinach pesto has been dinner a lot lately. Ten out of ten, would eat again!
Quick Pickled Beets:
Makes one large mason jar of pickles
- 1 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 tbsp Salt
- 3 tbsp Sugar
- 2 tbsp SKORDO Mulling Spices (hold the cinnamon sticks and cardamom pods)
- 1 tsp Ground Coriander
- 3 or 4 Beets
- ½ Fennel Bulb
- 1/2 - 1 Yellow Onion
Mix vinegar, salt, sugar, mulling spices and coriander in a medium bowl. Set aside.
Trim green from the beets and place whole beets in a medium-large pot. Cover the beets with water and bring to a boil for at least 30 minutes.
Shave the fennel bulb and place fennel into vinegar mix. Thinly slice the onion and add to the vinegar mix.
Check beets. Insert a fork into the largest beet. The beets are done when the fork goes in with ease.
Once the beets are ready, pour the hot water out of the pot and cover the beets with cold water.
Remove the beet skins by firmly rubbing the exterior of each beet under a stream of cold water.
Slice the beets into rounds and place them in a large mason jar.
Fill the jar with beets and then cover with the vinegar mix. Seal the jar and refrigerate. The beets will last for up to two weeks.
