I’ve looked at Saltwater Farm’s website so often, I feel like I’ve been there already. But I just recently stumbled across a post about their big summer foodie extravaganza on jauntsetter and was re-inspired. Not only is this place a farm overlooking the coast of Maine–with some of the coolest cooking classes out there–but they also round up a few chefs from Brooklyn every summer to do The Maine Event, at which they make cheese, forage for mushrooms, bake pies, and learn to preserve the bounty of summer. They also slaughter and butcher a chicken. While the timing isn’t quite right, I can’t stop thinking about trying to shoehorn one of their cobbler, buckle and grunts class into my trip to Maine next week. There are so many reasons to visit this beautiful state, but just in case you need one more, Saltwater Farm is as good of one as any.

I really love how thoughtfully designed the entire experience is. From their site, verbatim:
The space is designed around the concept of a summer kitchen. Native to the North, these kitchens are set away from the house, near the garden. They are a place where vegetables are gathered on tabletops, summer berries are preserved for the fruitless months of winter, loaves of bread are baked and set to rest, fish are filleted and smoked, tomatoes are left to warm in the sun and where a chef is free to cook as he/she pleases, undisturbed.

Classes are taught in a post and beam barn set on the oceanfront, in a farmer’s field. The kitchen is fully equipped with a wood burning brick oven, an open hearth for spit roasting, pastry ovens, a Wolf range top and a variety of specialty equipment such as deep fryers, sausage makers, pasta makers, an ice cream maker and more. An outdoor kitchen provides a wood burning grill, lobster burners and a smoker for meat and fish. A vegetable garden with over 100 seed varieties sits beside the barn, providing stock for the kitchen. A chicken coup beside the barn houses 8 laying hens, meat birds and 4 ducks, providing the kitchen with fresh eggs and meat.