Long, long ago, Maine used to be the breadbasket of New England. I kid you not. This was in the 1800s, before people headed west for greener pastures. However, there is a grain-growing, bread-making renaissance in Maine, culminating with a Kneading Conference in none other than Skowhegan, the mill town where my parents grew up. 

I had hoped to make it to this year’s Kneading Conference, but my schedule just didn’t allow for this to happen. When I read Marian Burros’s recent piece in the New York Times about the conference and the resurgence of grain growing and bread making in Maine, I was doubly sorry that I wasn’t able to go. 

Next year, I hope. In the meantime, I’ll be making bread.