Long about
this time every year, I start to get this familiar restlessness. It never fails
– late March/early April is when it strikes. It’s this feeling that I need to
hop in the car, get on the Parkway, and head down the shore. It’s the draw of
the ocean. It’s the feel of the boardwalk against my shoes. It’s the salt air.
It’s the FOOD! But we’ve had a weird spring here in the Garden State, near 70
degrees in February and 30 degrees in April. The weather was not cooperating
with my annual ritual.
Thank
heavens for Deb Smith’s new book, The Jersey Shore Cookbook. Maybe
I couldn’t physically get to the shore, but I could get there virtually! As I
sat in my north Jersey living room, each page brought me another exit closer to
our beloved Jersey Shore. This book is literally a road trip down the GSP
(Garden State Parkway for you out-of-staters). Starting in Keyport and ending
in Cape May Point, I transported myself to a day at the beach and all the good
things that go with it.
Talking with
the chefs and the farmers, the bakers and the fishermen, the restaurant owners
and the dock masters, Deb has captured the essence of Jersey Shore cooking.
From breakfasts to desserts and every course in between, the book is packed
with delicious recipes direct from the people who live and breathe the shore
every day.
Being a
baker, I was particularly drawn to the page highlighting Mueller’s Bakery in
Bay Head. Sad to say, I have never been to Mueller’s but its crumb cake is
legendary. Since it usually sells out early in the day, I will probably never
get it unless I overnight in Bay Head (hmmm, there’s a thought…). They are also
famous for their blueberry scones,
the recipe they shared with Deb. 
Having a
container of beautiful blueberries on hand, I whipped up a batch. Seeing that
the recipe called for bread flour, I was concerned the scones might be heavy.
But fear not, these are light as air. Calling for two cups of fruit, there was
almost not enough batter to encase all of them. These are no wallflower scones,
people; they are BIG! I have secretly named them “My Big Fat Blueberry Scones.”
Don’t tell the people at Mueller’s!
Deb has
weaved a lovely tribute to the Jersey Shore in this book. If you spend any time
down the shore, you’re going to want this book. If you love to cook, you’ll
want this book. If you grew up in New Jersey and have since relocated, get this
book – it will instantly bring you back to those wonderful summer days where
the only decisions you had to make were what bathing suit should I wear today,
and what restaurant should we go to tonight.
I think spring
has finally arrived in New Jersey.
Today might be the perfect day for that road trip. I’m feeling hungry.
Recipe: Mueller's Blueberry Scones
Deborah
Smith
Published by
Quirk Books
