Summer Road Trip to New England

My boys and I have just returned from a month long summer road trip to New England to visit college friends and old haunts. There are some very apparent changes in Boston and Cambridge but much of it remains the same. My favorite part of the trip was reliving memories through food native to the area. We dined on things as mundane and ubiquitous as pizza but their local pizza joints produce some of the most flavorful red sauces that make you want to devour the entire pie!

On a visit to see friends in Arlington, MA, I was taken to their Penzeys Spice retail store (www.penzeys.com). It was an aromatic experience. There were numerous variations of a single spice such as chili powder, paprika, cinnamon -- just to name a few. I fell in love with one particular fragrant blend, Sunny Paris, which consists of purple shallots, chives, green peppercorn, French basil, French tarragon, chervil, bay leaf and dill weed. It's delicious on sauteed chicken and pork.

We dined on clam chowder and lobster salad in Newport and lobster rolls and clam cakes in Galilee, RI. Also in RI, we had their local weiners from Weinorama (yes, that's what the place is called!).

On a day trip to Cape Cod, we were treated to a wonderfully creative field greens salad with corn dusted bay scallops with a horseradish dressing from the Belfry Inn & Bistro in Sandwich, MA.

On the sweeter side of life, we relished handfuls of fresh blueberries and strawberries from area farms -- the fruit was succulent and refreshingly sweet. We devoured pignoli cookies -- almond macaroons topped with pine nuts -- from a local Italian bakery -- mmm, that brought back fond memories of dining with friends in the North End.

We drove to Waterbury, VT to visit Ben & Jerry's factory store, which was great fun for the boys. They have a Flavor Graveyard featuring retired flavors. New England has some of the best ice cream such as Christina's and Toscanni's in Cambridge and Newport Creamery and Brickley's in Rhode Island, just to name a few of the places we visited. It must be the fresh air and green pastures -- a bovine heaven.

Crumbs Bake Shop in Westport, CT (www.crumbs.com) was a gem we stumbled upon in search of tasty cupcakes. It was a place that made us happy! Each cupcake was made of truly moist cake and topped with delicious, decorative icings. Some favorite flavors: Oreo, Smores, Coconut, Red Velvet and Chocolate with Chocolate Mousse filling.