It seems every magazine this time of year talks about favorite beaches. If you are a beach person, the pull of the sand and waves is strong and the whisper of the sea is constantly in the ear. Of all the beaches I have visited, the one to which I long to return is the Cape Cod National Seashore. Following the curved eastern edge of Cape Cod, the seashore was created in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy to preserve this beautiful piece of historic beach. The Cape Cod Seashore has little in common with the wide expanses of the Florida Gold Coast. The northern beach has a wildness to it that the Southern beaches lack.
Growing up in the rural South, this part of the country drew my attention. This very old part of the country, where the Pilgrims landed in 1620… picture postcard villages, tall church steeples and saltbox houses… is quintessential Americana. You can almost picture the wife of an l9th century whaling ship captain as she walks the “widow’s walk” on her roof, hoping to see the mast of her husband’s ship returning.
“If you’re fond of sand dunes and salty air, quaint little villages here and there, You’re sure to fall in love with Old Cape Cod.
If you like the taste of a lobster stew, served by a window with an ocean view, You’re sure to fall in love with Old Cape Cod.
Winding roads that seem to beckon you; miles of green beneath the skies of blue, Church bells chiming on a Sunday morn remind you of the town where you were born.
If you spend an evening, you’ll want to stay, watching the moonlight on Cape Cod Bay,
You’re sure to fall in love with Old Cape Cod.”
I’m not sure that I can add any to the words of this song. I love Cape Cod and could go back again and again.
As in most parts of the U.S., strip malls, fast food and bumper to bumper traffic threaten the historic and special atmosphere of the Cape, reducing it to homogenized “anywhere USA.” However, for just a minute, imagine you’re on one of the wonderful beaches on the Cape Cod National Seashore — smell the salty air; hear the shorebirds squawk and cry; feel the mist of sea-spray on your cheek, look out to sea and know that since man first arrived here thousands of years ago, this view has always been the same.
My favorite food on the Cape is Clam Chowder. My first taste of Clam Chowder was from the Campbell Soup Company. I was hooked and thought it was wonderful. As I got older, I realized that the canned version was just a shadow of the real thing. On my first visit to Cape Cod I made it a personal mission to taste every different form of clam chowder available. This version has just the right taste.
Clam Chowder
• 1/4 pound salt pork
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 3 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1-1/2 cups water
• 1 quart chopped clams — if fresh clams are unavailable, use an equal measure of a good quality canned clams
• 3 cups light cream
• 1/8 pound butter (1/2 stick)
Salt and pepper to taste
Cut salt pork into small dice and render in saucepan. Reserve the cracklings. Use fat to cook onion until golden. In 2-quart pan cook potatoes in water for ten minutes. Drain liquid from potatoes into 4-quart pan, add ring clams, and cook for 25 minutes. Then add light cream, cracklings, potatoes, onion, butter, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve in soup bowls with oyster crackers, a knob of fresh unsalted butter and some freshly ground black pepper. n
Fran Ginn is former chef/owner of The Back Door Café, who retired after 31 years in the food industry to be a grandmother. She can be contacted at fran@franginn.com.
