Grist for the Mill
I am the epitome of the adage – to paraphrase George Bernard Shaw – “Those who can, do. Those who can’t, write.” Who among us isn’t in awe of the efforts and exploits of some of our neighbors? First responders, doctors and nurses, teachers, to name a few – professions concerning our health and well-being which I realize I could never do.
Our local food economy is rife with those careers for which we are eternally grateful: Cape Codders doing the work on which our very existence depends. Farmers tending the crops in ever-changing environmental conditions, restaurant kitchen workers frequently toiling in sweltering settings while front-of-the-house staff deal with all manner of personalities with grace and charm. Sitting atop the list of professions I’ve come to appreciate and respect: the commercial fisherman.
I don’t own a fishing pole. I don’t own a clam rake (despite saying “this is the year”, every year). I don’t own a pair of galoshes let alone chest waders. Thankfully, there are those to whom the sea calls, and they answer that call year after year. Captain Eric Hesse went on his first harpoon trip fishing for Atlantic bluefin tuna when he was still in high school. Over forty years later, he can still be found at the end of a 20-foot pulpit chasing those torpedoes of the sea. Hesse shares his story and that of the Atlantic bluefin, which has made a comeback through conservation efforts, in “Hunting Giants” with stunning commercial fishing photos by photographer David Hills.
Every good Hollywood script has the hero of the story down-and-out before making a triumphant comeback. In “The Comeback Quiche”, read how screenwriter Danny Fischer and his Emmy-nominated set decorator wife, Kim, bounced back – not only from the pandemic but also the Hollywood writers’ strike. They landed on Cape Cod and began producing decadent savory quiches with their new business, The Quiche Cart.
Some business endeavors are less of a pivot and more of a progression. Bill O’Neill is back with the story of Three Fins Coffee Roasters and their new coffeehouse and cacao factory in a former health club in Chatham. Learn how it all came about for husband-and-wife owners Ron Reddick and Catherine Bieri (and not some guy named Wonka) in “Three Fins Coffeehouse & Cacao Factory: Making Chatham Taste Good”.
For others, making tasty meals and catering memorable life events is in the family bloodline. Matt Lombardo, owner of Pink Door Catering & Market in Mashpee, comes from the family who supplied the backdrop for many big moments from high school proms (mine included) to weddings, reunions, and more at their Randolph function facility, Lombardo’s. Susan Fernald sat down with Matt and discovered the meaning behind the pink doors, and how he continues to honor the memory of his mother in “Pink Door Catering & Market – A Welcoming Sight in Mashpee”.
There are few sights more welcome than a freshly baked apple pie. Becca Miller shares her recipe and explains how wild apple trees dot the landscape of Cape Cod in abandoned orchards, fields, and woodlands. Each wild apple tree – and its fruit – is slightly different than the rest…much like us. Learn how in “Eating Wild – Wild Apples: A New Experience with a Familiar Favorite”.
And, if lobster is more to your liking, John Carafoli returns with a number of different ways to enjoy lobster meat in “What Do You Do with a 3½-Pound Lobster for Two?”
As fall arrives and brings its cooler temperatures, or “good working weather”, many of us will get outside, get our hands dirty, and get “doing”.
And we’ll (OK, I’ll) be there to write about it!
Larry
