Grilled Orange Croissant French Toast 14 May 2013, 6:27 am
| Grilled Orange Croissant French Toast |
Let's just start with yum!
Light and fluffy and with that buttery croissant flavor we all know and love, the orange croissant French Toast is a great 'breakfast in bed' treat.
Ingredients:
2 large croissants
2 large eggs
grated zest & juice of one large orange (you will have some zest left over)
a splash of vanilla extract
a splash of orange extract
1/2 c whole milk (you can use any % milk you want)
Method:
Slice croissants open, set aside. Heat griddle. Whisk eggs, orange juice, orange zest, milk, vanilla & orange extract in a baking dish.When griddle is hot, grease with butter. Dip croissant halves in mixture, turning quickly. Place on griddle and grill until nicely golden, flip and grill other side.
Arrange on plate with the croissant inside up. Serve with warmed maple syrup.
Serves 2.
White Cedar Inn Bed & Breakfast 178 Main Street Freeport, Maine 04032
Copyright White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast
New website! 10 May 2013, 6:54 am
We're very happy to be able to launch our brand new website!Take a look:
White Cedar Inn
White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main Street Freeport, Maine 04032
Copyright White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast
O is for Owl's Head 23 Apr 2013, 9:14 am
| Owl's Head Lighthouse |
There is a shingle beach down a short trail where you can enjoy a picnic. (Stop at the Owl's Head General Store for sandwiches!)
Feeling brave? Head down the trail behind the lighthouse -
| Rock at the edge of the world. (Me hanging on for dear life!) |
White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032
Copyright White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast
E is for Elephant 20 Apr 2013, 8:34 am
| Elephant in Hope, Maine |
The 2 elephants are circus rescues who are over 40 years old. They've got a big play yard and a nicely done barn where they live. They are Asian elephants so more acclimated to the cold than African elephants.
It's an excellent experience for everyone to hear the elephants' stories and to get a pretty close look at them feeding and hanging out together.
It's ok to bring food (apples, carrots, watermelon) but feeding the elephants is not allowed. The elephants do appreciate the gifts, though! Apples and carrots can be hidden in their outdoor area forcing them to 'find' their food rather than just 'get fed'.
Elephants need the stimulation of working and foraging to keep healthy and to ward off boredom.
They are not performing elephants so they aren't going to do tricks while you're there.
For more information and to make an appointment to see the elephants, check the website - Hope Elephants
White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032
Copyright White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast
Bustins Island Connections 6 Apr 2013, 9:10 am
"It's a small world" is a trite saying but sometimes it's the only saying that fits. In a round about way, here's a story that starts with a 6 year old girl going to a summer camp on Bustins Island almost 100 years ago and ends with her granddaughter eating breakfast here this morning. Although, the story itself doesn't end here and will continue on for many more generations of Bustins Island summer people.Donald MacMillan, who grew up in this house after being sent here to live with his sister when the family finances went into decline, founded and ran a boy's summer camp called Wychmere on Bustins Island in early 1900's. This drew boys and sometimes their families to come to the island for the summer.
One such visitor was a 6 year old girl from Massachusetts. In 1917 she attended camp on the island for the first time. This began a generations' long love affair with the island. Soon after her return from summer camp, the cousins were excited to hear all of the adventures to be had in Maine and the following years saw many of her cousins headed north with her.
Then the great news expanded through the neighborhood and the kids across the street went to camp as well. The families reunited each year on the island in a story well-known to Mainers who run the ferries and the general stores and the summer theaters of Maine. The story of 'people from away' who are drawn to Maine in a yearly migration that only ends when they move here permanently or cease to be altogether!
Flash forward to the present generation and the ubiquitous Facebook. I friended the 'Lilly B's' Facebook page last year. The Lilly B is the ferry that transports everyone to and from Bustins Island from May through October. (You can head out to the island for a picnic and hike the 1.5 mile trail around the island.)
Our guest today is the granddaughter of the 6 year old who started the family tradition of coming to Bustins Island for the summer. She saw my comment on the Lilly B and realized she'd stayed here before and decided to stay again.
We have the history of the house, including info about Donald MacMillan in the guest book. She read that and then told us about her grandmother (now 101 years old!). Continuing the tradition, she still comes to the island in the summer and her kids are now the 4th generation to summer here.
And, as with every good Maine tale, there's a love story here as well. A grandson of the original 'kids across the street' married a local girl whose dad taps our trees in maple sugaring season.
All because Donald MacMillan ran a summer camp for boys over a century ago.
White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032
Copyright White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast
Casco Bay Room Redo 12 Mar 2013, 5:58 pm
| Before |
| After |
White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032
Copyright White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast
The Goldilocks Award 12 Mar 2013, 5:54 pm
We've noticed a trend now that we've been here for almost 10 years. (Wow, 10 years, can you believe it!) Some of you opt to stay in the same room, you've found the spot you like. But, some of you wander around. We hate to say you 'sleep around' but...This year we decided to honor a couple who have stayed in every room at least once. Thus, the Goldilocks Certificate was born. I know there are a few more of you out there who have done the same so you'll get one of these, too, next time you stay!
First recipients- Rob & Christin
|
Who
tried every bed in every room and found them to be not too soft and not too
hard, but ‘just right’.
|
White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032
Copyright White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast
Baked Oatmeal 12 Mar 2013, 5:34 pm
This is a real stick-to-the-ribs yummy winter breakfast. Make it in the large casserole dish and you've got an easily warmed-up breakfast for several mornings! No photos for this one. As yummy as it is, brown food just doesn't photograph very well.Ingredients:
2 cups rolled oats (don't use instant oatmeal)
1/2 c chopped walnuts (optional, but yummy!)
1/3 c sugar or maple syrup
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash of sea salt
2 cups milk (or soy or almond milk)
1 large egg (or 1 large banana, mashed)
1 1/2 tbsp butter (or oil or applesauce)
2 tsp vanilla extract (vanilla essence)
2 ripe bananas, sliced
1 1/2 c blueberries or other berry
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 and grease an 8" square pan. (Double recipe for the 9x13" pan.)
In one bowl mix the oatmeal, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and half the nuts. (If using maple syrup, add that to the wet ingredients instead.)
In a second bowl, mix milk, egg, half the butter and the vanilla.
Place the sliced bananas so they cover the bottom of the baking dish. Sprinkle 1 c of the berries over the bananas. Sprinkle the oatmeal mixture over the berries.Drizzle the liquid ingredients over the top. Gently shake the baking dish to make sure the milk sinks in. Toss the remaining berries and nuts over the top.
Bake for 35-45 minutes until browned and 'set'. (It will be like the bread pudding or the crisp when it is set.) Serve with warmed maple syrup if you want it really sweet.
The (optional) ingredients above are for the vegan version. It is a little 'banana-y' with the extra banana, but not too bad. We make the vegan version as it is usually what we serve when we have vegans staying.
White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032
Copyright White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast
Birding in Maine 26 Feb 2013, 6:44 pm
Are you a 'snowbird'? Many of these birds are! Some head north and some head south for the winter. But they all call Maine home for at least part of the year. Herring gulls, Canada geese, bald eagles and red tailed hawks are all year round residents.All of these photos were taken here in Maine at various times of the year. Only the bald eagle was not in the wild. The bald eagle resides at the Maine Wildlife Park due to a permanent injury.
(Remember, you can always click each photo to enlarge it!)
| Bald eagle |
| Black guillemots |
| Mourning dove |
| Eiders |
| Highway raptor (not its real name) |
| Gilsland Farm Audubon |
| Great blue heron |
| Cormorant with young |
| Sanderlings |
| Herring gull (yeah, we have a few of these!) |
| Northern mockingbird |
| Osprey |
| Osprey pair |
| Canada geese |
| Puffin |
| Canada geese |
| Sanderlings and a dunlin |
| Sanderlings, dunlin and a herring gull |
| Red breasted merganser |
| Cardinal |
Coming to Freeport to do some birding? Use this handy birding guide to places within an hour's drive of here for excellent bird watching! Most of the above photos were taken within an hour of here, the osprey were right in Freeport. For the puffins, your closest bet is in New Harbor. If you're Downeast, there is a boat trip out of Cutler or Bar Harbor.
White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032
Copyright White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast
Nubble Lighthouse 23 Feb 2013, 2:02 pm
One of the more famous of all the Maine Lighthouses:| Nubble light at sunset. |
| Banded herring gull. |
| Cormorant with juvenile. |
| Sunset at Nubble Light |
How to get here: take I-295 south to I-95 south. Exit at York Beach (Exit 7). At traffic light (Stonewall Kitchens directly in front of you) turn right. Turn left at the light on Rt 1A. Follow coastal route through York Beach to Cape Neddick to lighthouse. (About an hour and 15 minutes.)
Make a day of it and go to the Kittery Outlets. Walk on Long Sands Beach. Stop in at Noel's for a coffee and a snack. Take a really long walk on Ogunquit Beach and the Marginal Way.
| Marginal Way bridge. |
White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032
Copyright White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast
