Warm Bacon Crab Dip: freshly picked Chesapeake Blue Crab meat, soft cheese, homegrown scallions, fresh squeezed lemon juice, and a hardy amount of crumbled home cured brown sugar rubbed Hickory Smoked Bacon, baked until steaming hot and then sprinkled with slices of homegrown green onion; accompanied by home baked Corn Crackers made with homemade pressure cooked toasted corn stock,Anson Mills cornmeal, a splash of oil, homemade basil salt,  bread flour, and a puree of fresh local corn, all baked until golden brown. Served with Flying Dog Brewery’s Dead Rise Old Bay ale to complement the seafood flavor in the dip.

Hummingbird: all the juvenile ruby-throated hummingbirds are preparing for their annual migration.

Double Crust Tomato Pie: two layers of home baked, flaky Whole Grain crusts encasing slices of homegrown tomatoes, homemade basil salt (jar in left corner), mayonnaise, cornstarch, homegrown scallions, and sharp cheddar cheese; with a side of French cut homegrown green beans. Garnished with fresh homegrown basil and a tomato rose. Served with Off Color Brewing’s Troublesome; this lactobacillus fermented gose has the tart lemony / coriander flavor to stand up to the robust sharp cheese and the burst of saltiness to finish the tomatoes making for a great seasonal beer pairing

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Fluke Cerviche: fluke fillet from Captins Catch DE’s sliced on bias into ribbon segments, then tossed with (and macerated in) homegrown mint, freshly squeezed lemon juice, homegrown onion, freshly squeezed lime juice, extra virgin olive oil, homegrown cilantro, jalapeno peppers, homegrown tomato, and diced homegrown basil, before being sprinkled with homemade basil salt, a dash of black pepper, and garnishing herbs. Served with Mikkeller’s Betelgeuze, the lambic tartness went great with the Fish Cerviche while still being bold enough to withstand any heat from the jalapenos.

Personal Sized Cream Cheese Frosted Carrot Cakes with Carrot Glaze: Gramercy Tavern’s recipe for home baked Carrot Cake made with a shredded #carrots, butter, flour, eggs, sugar, cinnamon, and homemade bourbon vanilla extract; frosted with Cream Cheese Frosting before being glazed with a carrot glaze made from freshly juiced USDA Certified organic carrots. Garnished with a splash of carrot glaze, homegrown asparagus ferns, and wavy cut raw carrots. Served with Clown Shoes’ Space Cake IPA; the icing did a great job bringing the hoppy floral taste to the forefront, while the glaze kept the carrot’s fresh tasting earthy sweetness in check.

Macaroni And Cheese Pizza: (Front Pizza) home baked pizza topped with homemade macaroni and cheese and slices of ham, then sprinkled with a dusting of homegrown herbs (Rear Pizza) sage and buttered egg pizza with fresh mushrooms. Served with Green Flash Beer’s GreenBullet, a Triple IPA bitter enough to cut through the rich cheesy bechamel sauce in the mac and cheese and the butter.

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Snallygaster 2014: had a great time at Snallygaster dc last weekend. Learned a lot while sampling some great brews with interesting people and fantastic food. (proceeds benefiting Arcadia Food’s demonstration farm in Alexandria and mobile food stands).

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Frogmore Stew: this Carolina style Shrimp Boil started with Captins Catch DE’s fresh North Carolina shrimp, homegrown onions, lemon, slices of smoked sausage, homegrown tomatoes, potatoes, local corn, Old Bay spice, and fresh homegrown herbs; accompanied with slices of home baked whole wheat bread made in a Wood Fired Brick Oven. Paired with Flying Dog Brewery’s Dead Rise old bay ale, a beer made to commemorate McCormick Spice’s old bay’s 75th anniversary with proceeds benefiting the Maryland Department of Natural Resource’s True Blue program, an initiative to aid Maryland’s watermen.

Bottle Share: tried out some great brews at last weekend’s craft beer share and learned a lot.

Soft Shell Crab: a flax seed coated, tempura battered, fried soft shell Chesapeake Blue Crab sandwiched in between local corn and homegrown green onion fritters (made with Anson Mills corn meal) nestled on of a smear of homegrown chive remoulade with a side of corn and white peach salsa; encircled by a garnish of fresh corn puree topped with drops of sriracha; all presented on a slate. Served with Flying Dog Brewery’s Dead Rise Old Bay ale to complete this summer #seafood meal.