Summer Blues
Inspired by the painter’s palette–we find, forage and fish our favorite blues: ultramarine, cerulean, cobalt teal, cobalt glass and phthalo blue.
Blueberry Coulis
Borage blossom sits atop of blueberry coulis drizzled over vanilla ice cream. How’s that for a rhapsody in blue? For edible flowers like borage, call Down-Island Farm. For ‘wild blueberries in a bottle’ (aka blueberry coulis) it’s $7.95 at Fiddlehead Farm, 632 State Road, West Tisbury.
Blue Corn Pancakes
The Shops at Aquinnah are like a magic carpet ride over Moshup’s legendary cliffs. Try their blue corn pancakes with blueberries, on the edge of the end of the Island as we know it. Blue corn pancakes, $9.00 + $3.50 for fresh berries. Aquinnah Shop, Aquinnah Cliffs.
Blue Potatoes
Nightshades on psychedelics. Try blue potatoes roasted, tossed with olive oil and thyme. Serve them in a red bowl to make your eyes wiggle. North Tabor Farm in Chilmark grows them. So does Bob Daniels. Forage for them at Vineyard Farmers’ Markets: West Tisbury, Down-Island, and Edgartown.
Architec Prep Mixing Bowls
Good things come in threes: each bowl sits still while mixing, pours easily, and stacks prettily.
Architec prep mixing Bowls, $29.99, LeRoux at Home, 63 Main Street, Vineyard Haven.
Fishing from the shore
For info on casting from the Island’s beaches, contact the Martha’s Vineyard Surfcasters Association.
Zada-Cakes
Whimsically groovy. A favorite of the contractors-who-lunch. Scottish Bakehouse, State Road, Vineyard Haven, $3.50.
Kitsch Wine Opener
Don’t be left out on the beach without your souvenir kitsch wine opener. It’s survivor gear at $3.95, Alley’s General Store, West Tisbury.
Blue Paring Knife
Small knife slices small things, makes a big difference: garlic, scallions, radishes. $9.99, by Kuhn Rikon, LeRoux at Home, 63 Main Street, Vineyard Haven. (Comes in other colors too.)
“Blues” by John Hersey
This fictional work, rising from Middle Ground is an ongoing conversation between a stranger and a fisherman about bluefish. Timeless in place, water, and recipes. Vintage press, at Island libraries and, Bunch of Grapes, 44 Main Street, Vineyard Haven, $15.00.
www.blueocean.org
Surf here for info on sustainable seafood, once you get past the mesmerizing effect of the homepage. Its sea images circulate in real time to wave heights measured by a NOAA buoy. Cool.
Maynard Silva
Island Bluesman 2/20/51–7/16/08
“Play it for Maynard!” If you’re lucky you’ll catch Johnny Hoy on stage, spurring on his Bluefish. Then they’ll dig a little deeper, darker, and dirtier, and you’ll dance a little hotter—evoking that musical grit in memory of Maynard. This man means so much to so many—for his musical growl, as a father to Milo, and husband to Basia. May he RIP in the ultramarine.
The blues live on, on-Island with Johnny Hoy and the Bluefish: CDs available at Above Ground Records, Edgartown. To make a donation in Maynard’s memory, give to Martha’s Vineyard Cancer Support Group, Box 2214, Vineyard Haven.
Blue Lollipop
Free at the Martha’s Vineyard Savings Banks. Now here’s something sweet to make you feel good about banking. And you just never know where you’re going to find a rainbow.
Blue Mermaid
Beware of the skinny dip with this mermaid. Don’t follow her in too deep, for she can hold her breath for a very long, long, time. Blue curacao, hypnotiq, pineapple rum, splash of lime. $12 @ the Sidecar Café and Bar, 16 Kennebec Avenue, Oak Bluffs.
Fish Platters
Serve your sushi on yin and yang fish platters by Aqua available at Bluefish, 11 Winter Street, Edgartown. Sizes and styles vary, priced between $20-$30.
Blue Cheese
Good mold makes stinking good blue cheese: salty, creamy, piquant. Trickle on some local honey, scoop up with sliced pears or apples. Yum! Fiddlehead farm cheese counter, 632 State Road, West Tisbury, and Cronig’s markets in Vineyard Haven and West Tisbury.
