The New Chesapeake Kitchen

The New Chesapeake Kitchen JO H N S H I E L DS PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID W. HARP

Captain John Smith, upon entering the Chesapeake, wrote in his diaries that the fish were so plentiful “we attempted to catch them with a frying pan.” That method sums up classic Chesapeake cooking—fresh and simple. In The New Chesapeake Kitchen, celebrated Maryland chef John Shields takes the best of what grows, swims, or grazes in the Bay’s watershed and prepares it simply, letting the pure flavors shine through. Honoring the farmers, watermen, butchers, cheese makers, and foragers who make the food movement around the Chesapeake Bay watershed possible, along with the environmental and food organizations working to restore the Bay, the land, and food security, Shields promotes a healthy locavore diet and a holistic view of community foodways.

In this scrumptious book, enhanced with beautiful full-color images by former Baltimore Sun Magazine photographer David W. Harp, Shields urges readers to choose local, seasonal ingredients. Presenting what he dubs “Bay- and body-friendly food,” he advocates for a plant-forward and sustainable diet, one that

considers how food consumption affects both your health and the environment. Shields presents creative and healthy options that nourish us while protecting the Bay, including one-pot The latest cookbook recipes for meals like Fishing by the “Culinary Creek Seafood Chili, Old Line

Veggie Creole Oyster Stew,

and Spring Pea Soup with Tarragon-Truffle Oil. To round it out, this holistic cookbook includes directions for canning, preserving, and fermenting.

Ambassador of the Chesapeake” encourages us to cook in a way that is not only healthy for us but also for the Bay.

Shields offers many veganand vegetarian-friendly options, as well as innovative new takes on Chesapeake classics. You’ll find recipes for dozens of delicious dishes, from Aunt Bessie’s Crab Pudding and Hutzler’s Cheese Bread to “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Crab” Cakes, Blue Cat Seafood Hash, and an array of savory soups, braised meats, luscious desserts, and green breakfast smoothies—even recipes for a locavore cocktail party!

“There is a little bit of the Chesapeake Bay in my culinary heart, which looms large whenever I see John Shields has written a new cookbook. He brings back those recipes I associate with the region, writing about them so refreshingly they are new again. I feel so happy to have this book to read and cook from, and so will you.”

—Nathalie Dupree, coauthor of Mastering the Art of Southern Cooking “John Shields has done an amazing job showing us how to preserve the traditions of the region while also respecting the environment around us—he understands how important it is to maintain our local food economies so that future generations can also know the beauty and the bounty of the Chesapeake Bay.” —José Andrés, Chef/Owner, ThinkFoodGroup & minibar by José Andrés “The Chesapeake Bay is huge, but John Shields brings it right to your tongue! His recipes are distinctive and delicious, and remind us how our food choices relate to the environment. Think globally, eat locally and sustainably! Doing right by the Bay has never tasted better.”

—Will Baker, President, Chesapeake Bay Foundation “To eat a John Shields meal is to truly taste the Chesapeake. He understands how the food we

Table of Contents Acknowledgments Introduction 1 Starting the Day 2 Appetizing Bites

grow here shapes us, from the verdant fields around the Baltimore suburbs to the soft-crab

3 Soups and One Pots

delicacies and flaky rockfish caught on the Eastern Shore. His words are beautiful and heartfelt;

4 Oven Fired

his food even more so.”

5 Pasta and Flatbread

—Rona Kobell, Chesapeake Quarterly

“John Shields is the greatest chef of the Chesapeake, and he’s also the wisest—demonstrating that you don’t have to be a killjoy to be an environmentalist. This gorgeously-illustrated book mixes Bay-friendly culinary advice—such as the endorsement of farmed oysters and smaller

6 Beans and Grains 7 Salad Bowl

portions of meat—with local recipes so rich with flavor they feel decadent. You can save the

8 Veggies Galore

Bay without losing your taste.”

9 Bread Basket

—Tom Pelton, author of The Chesapeake in Focus: Transforming the Natural World “John Shields’s recipes, from the classics to the contemporary, continue to sizzle. The New Chesapeake Kitchen includes lots of yummy treats for perennials and millennials.”

—Barbara Mikulski, Senator (Ret.), Johns Hopkins University

10 Desserts and Sweet Treats 11 Puttin’ It Up 12 Cheers!

Key Local Resources Suggested Reading Index

Chef John Shields is the co-owner and proprietor of Gertrude’s Restaurant at the Baltimore Museum of Art. The host of PBS’s Chesapeake Bay Cooking and Coastal Cooking with John Shields, he is the author of The Chesapeake Bay Cookbook: Rediscovering the Pleasures of a Great Regional Cuisine, The Chesapeake Bay Crab Cookbook, Coastal Cooking with John Shields, and Chesapeake Bay Cooking with John Shields, 25th anniversary edition.

Asparagus and Crab Tart Crabs start “running” in the Bay just a few weeks before the asparagus of the Eastern Shore is at the market. So, in no time at all, there is plenty of both crab and asparagus to be found.

And they go together perfectly. This is a lovely recipe for a luncheon or dinner and, when served with a side salad, a complete meal.

Serves 6 to 8 Pastry Dough for a Single-Crust Pie (recipe follows) 3 eggs, slightly beaten

½ cup mayonnaise 2 tablespoons flour 1

teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

Freshly ground black pepper 8 ounces Swiss cheese, finely shredded (about 2 cups) ½ small onion, thinly sliced ½ pound fresh asparagus, tough ends trimmed, blanched, and chopped into 1-inch pieces 1

pound lump crabmeat, picked over for shells

Sprigs of thyme and sliced fresh fruit for garnish

Prepare the pastry dough and line a 9-inch pie pan.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Combine the eggs, mayonnaise, flour, thyme, and black pepper in a bowl and mix well. Gently stir in the cheese, onion, asparagus, and crabmeat. Pour mixture into the pastry shell. Bake until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Garnish each serving with a sprig of fresh thyme and sliced fresh fruit.

PASTRY DOUGH FOR A SINGLE-CRUST PIE 1½ cups all-purpose flour ¾ teaspoon salt ½ cup solid vegetable shortening 3–4 tablespoons cold water

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Sift together the flour and salt into a mixing bowl. Use a pastry blender or your fingers to work the shortening into the flour mixture until it is the consistency of coarse meal. Add the water 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing with a fork after each addition. Add only enough water to make the dough stick together. When you can form it into a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 15 to 30 minutes before using.

Twelve appealing chapters with nearly 200 recipes celebrate the riches of the Chesapeake region.

running head

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Side bars examine the issues and profile the talented folks at the heart of creating the new Chesapeake kitchen.

Sales queries: Kerry Cahill 410-516-6936 KPC@press.jhu.edu Media queries: Jack Holmes 410-516-6928 JMH@press.jhu.edu Marisa Dobson 240-434-2379 marisa.dobson@gmail.com

The New Chesapeake Kitchen

Publication date: October 2018 9 x 10, 288 pages 50 color photographs, 1 line drawing 978-1-4214-2650-1 $26.95 / £20.00 hc Also available as an e-book

J OH N S H IELDS PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID W. HARP

press.jhu.edu