>> NARRATOR: Coming up on Weekends with Yankee... >> AMY TRAVERSO: Look at 'em go!

>> NARRATOR: Richard and Amy visit Mayfair Farm... >> TRAVERSO: Oh, you're brave.

Hello.

Yes, you're nibble-y, too.

>> NARRATOR: A sustainable New Hampshire farm that's cooking up incredible dinners and raising healthy and happy livestock.

>> Oh, there's the queen.

>> RICHARD WIESE: Oh, right here with the dot on her.

>> NARRATOR: Then Richard suits up and gets up close and personal with the bee colonies at Red Bee Honey in Weston, Connecticut.

>> Is it the best?

>> WIESE: It is one of the most wonderful tastes... >> (chuckles): Right?

>> WIESE: ...in nature.

>> NARRATOR: And Amy makes some delicious cakes with baker, author, and TV host Gesine Bullock-Prado at her baking school in Vermont.

>> TRAVERSO: We're going wild!

>> This is what happens when you live in Vermont, you go crazy by not weighing your batter.

>> NARRATOR: And finally, we head to Maine to discover some magnificent islands for adventurers of every skill level.

>> What the Maine Island Trail has done is opened up some of the most beautiful pieces of land, the most beautiful environments, to everybody.

>> NARRATOR: So, come along with us for a once-in-a-lifetime journey through New England as you've never experienced it before.

A true insider's guide from the editors of Yankee magazine.

Join explorer and adventurer Richard Wiese and Yankee senior food editor Amy Traverso for behind-the-scenes access to the unique attractions that define this region.

It's the ultimate travel guide from the people who know it best, Weekends With Yankee.

>> Major funding provided by... ♪ ♪ >> Massachusetts is home to a lot of firsts.

The first public park in America, the first fried clams, the first university in America, the first basketball game.

What's first for you?

(birds chirping) ♪ ♪ >> Series funding provided by the Vermont Country Store, the purveyors of the practical and hard-to-find since 1946.

>> The Barn Yard, builders of timber-frame barns and garages.

>> And by American Cruise Lines, exploring the historic shores of New England.

♪ ♪ >> NARRATOR: Mayfair Farm is a beautiful family farm and catering business in Harrisville, New Hampshire.

Here, Sarah Heffron and her partner, Craig Thompson, raise sustainable pigs and lambs.

But that's not all.

They also produce maple syrup, award-winning cakes, and they host very special farm dinners to which both Richard and Amy were invited.

>> Good morning.

>> WIESE: How are you?

>> Good.

>> TRAVERSO: Good to see you.

>> Good to see you both.

We're a small-scale family farm.

We produce pork and lamb and maple syrup.

We have some pick-your-own fruits, make a bit of hay, and, um, host weddings and events and things like that.

>> TRAVERSO: Oh, look at these guys.

>> These guys are about four weeks old, these little ones down here.

>> TRAVERSO: They are cute!

>> Optimism and persistence are an awfully good place to start if you want to run a successful farm in this day and age.

There's plenty of things that'll get you down, and if you can keep getting back up again, eventually you can turn a corner and have some success.

>> TRAVERSO: (laughing) Do they have really good senses of smell, right?

Because they sometimes... >> And senses of humor.

>> TRAVERSO: Yeah-- oh, really?

>> Yeah.

>> TRAVERSO: Anybody?

Want to say hi?

Oh, you're brave.

Hello.

Yes, you're nibble-y, too.

>> Right here at this lamb barn, this is a group of 29 lambs.

>> WIESE: Oh, wow.

>> And, uh, they've just been weaned last week.

The best part about farming is probably newborn baby lambs.

>> TRAVERSO: Look at 'em go.

Hey, guys.

Hey, wait, what?

>> WIESE: Wow.

Amy... >> TRAVERSO: What?

What?

>> WIESE: Amy, they've had a great reaction to you.

>> TRAVERSO: I just got here!

>> WIESE: They must recognize you from the cooking sections.

>> There is nothing better than coming down to the barn in the morning and finding a ewe with a couple of twin lambs laying there next to her, the steam still rising off of 'em on a cold morning.

That's about as good as it gets, right there.

♪ ♪ You know, there's a real connection to the animals when you spend so much time with them, you know?

If you can't find me on a given day, I'm probably down in the sheep barn or over in the pig barn, just kind of sitting there on a bale of hay, watching what they're doing.

One of the reasons I farm is that I'm not really good for much indoors, and so I'd much rather be out in a pasture or in a barn at any given moment.

There we go.

>> WIESE: Well, I would love to see more of this farm.

It's just stunning.

>> Let's go for a walk.

>> WIESE: Sure.

>> TRAVERSO: I'm gonna go find Sarah in the kitchen and meet her and help out.

>> Okay.

>> WIESE: All right.

♪ ♪ >> NARRATOR: With fresh green tomatoes and kale picked for dinner, Amy heads over to meet up with Sarah.

Only two hours now until dinner.

>> I have always loved food.

My mom is a chef, so I grew up around her different food businesses, and I was always involved in some way.

And I tried to do different things.

I rode horses for a long time.

I got a master's degree in school counseling.

But my first love was really food, and so I just kept coming back to it.

>> TRAVERSO: So, Sarah, I recognize these tomatoes because we picked these earlier today.

>> I know.

It's the end of the season and they're what's delicious.

>> TRAVERSO: So the fried green tomatoes, uh, technique is to kind of make the green, less-ripe tomatoes delicious.

>> Yes.

>> TRAVERSO: So what kind of food do you like to cook?

I mean, how would you describe your style?

My favorite foods to cook are vegetables, or side dishes, and dessert.

My mom's advice was always, "Do anything but food."

I think it's a hard thing to watch your child do, to, you know, work so hard, sometimes 18 hours a day, and be covered in burns, and work in, you know, relentless conditions.

But once she realized I tried to do other things, she was very supportive and accepting when I pursued food.

And then she joined in with us.

>> TRAVERSO: So the ideal temperature for frying is usually about 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

But instead of getting out a thermometer, a quick way to find out if your oil is hot enough is to just take a little corner of whatever you're frying, dip it in, and, if it starts sizzling around, then it's ready.

And I'm smelling in this, in this kitchen something that smells a lot like bacon.

But I assume we're not having a giant bacon roast.

>> We're not having-- we are having a ham.

>> TRAVERSO: It smells amazing.

>> It's a delicious smoked ham.

>> TRAVERSO: And is this from your farm?

>> It is.

>> TRAVERSO: Wow, that's great.

>> Yeah.

>> TRAVERSO: Okay.

So these hams look so delicious.

>> We're just gonna slice them and serve them on a bed of leeks.

So the leek is a really nice purée.

>> TRAVERSO: Oh, nice.

(band playing soft jazz tune) (talking in background) >> I just wanted to welcome everybody to Mayfair Farm.

It is super-nice to have you guys here.

>> Tonight, we're doing a nice fall menu.

We have several passed hors-d'oeuvres.

We've got celery root on endive.

We've got some mushroom phyllos with foraged maitakes.

>> Please find a chair, and let's, uh, let's dig in.

>> We're gonna make a ham, and we're doing a maple and Madeira sauce.

Also making polenta with pumpkin.

Fried green tomatoes.

We're gonna have sautéed greens.

So, kale and spinach.

And also a leek purée.

>> WIESE: This is a five-star dinner.

>> Awesome.

>> WIESE: Listen, I just, uh, I know I'm not from New Hampshire, but I feel like, um, the spirit of New Hampshire is sort of really here at this particular farm, Mayfair Farm.

And I'd like to thank you for having us as guests.

You embody so many of the things that we hope to see in other farms.

The idea that it's this beautiful self-contained unit, that you grow things because you have a love of food, a love of the animals in here.

>> Maybe the best judgment of our success in life is how our children do.

And so, to me, I would think that I was incredibly successful as a farmer if my kids wanted to farm when they grew up.

>> My hope for the future of our farm is that it lasts, that it's sustainable, that it can stay in business, that it can always be open land, and that maybe someday our kids will want to run it.

>> WIESE: I'd like to really toast your excellent stewardship of this land.

Congratulations and thank you.

>> Thank you.

>> Cheers.

(glasses clinking) ♪ ♪ >> NARRATOR: We head south to Weston, Connecticut, Richard's hometown, and a place that locals call the happiest town in Connecticut.

This is also the home of Marina Marchese, a honey expert and self-described queen bee.

Along with her colony of bees, Marina is changing the way people appreciate honey.

>> WIESE: At what point do you put your face guard on?

>> So, you know, I will put it on, um, if I feel like I need it, but... >> NARRATOR: Richard suits up and gets ready for some real New England beekeeping.

>> WIESE: I've heard beekeepers say that they can tell sort of the mood of the hive.

>> We can, actually.

So, today, we can see that there's a lot of bees out on the entrance, because it's a very hot and humid day.

I was introduced to honeybees back in 2000, when a neighbor invited me over to visit their honeybees.

And at the time, I didn't know anything about bees.

I was actually terrified of honeybees, like most people, but the neighbor of mine, he was very, very calm, and I really started to get comfortable with the bees, because you can see, they're very docile.

What I'm gonna do is just give a little puff of smoke to the front of the entrance... >> WIESE: Okay.

>> And then I'll lift the lid, and you could give them a quick little smoke.

>> WIESE: What kind of mood are they in?

Can you tell?

>> Well, I think they're pretty calm right now.

But I'm gonna put my veil on just because I see that they're very active.

It slowly became one of these hobbies that just was so intriguing that one hive became two hives became three to seven.

Essentially, it was a hobby that turned into a business.

We've got honey here.

If you want, you can even stick your finger in and taste it.

Look, when I pop it open, it ooey-gooeys.

You can taste it.

(bees humming) Is it the best?

>> WIESE: It is one of the most wonderful tastes... >> (chuckling): Right?

>> WIESE: ...in nature.

>> The biggest misconception about honeybees is people mistaking docile, domesticated honeybees for wasp and yellow jacks, which are meat eaters, and those are the ones that you see flying around and come to your barbecue.

And honeybees really don't do that.

(orchestra playing "Flight of the Bumblebee") Oh, there's the queen!

>> WIESE: Oh, right here, with the dot on her.

>> Yeah.

See, she's much bigger, and she's crawling around.

♪ ♪ Each one of these boxes is a hive, and in each hive is one colony of bees.

And every colony of bee is essentially a family, and they have one queen bee.

She's the mother of all the bees in the hive, and she can lay up to 2,000 eggs a day.

>> WIESE: And how long does a queen live?

>> So, a queen could live about three to five years.

And she outlives all of her children.

The workers and the drones will live about six weeks.

>> WIESE: Six weeks?

>> They live for six weeks.

>> WIESE: Oh, my gosh.

>> They work themselves to death.

>> WIESE: I know this sounds like a very naïve question, but how do they make honey?

>> Essentially what they do is, they land on a flower and they sip up the nectar from the flower, and they put it into their honey stomach, and then they fly back to the hive to deposit it.

The younger house bee will put it into these little cells.

And then they cap it, and they will store it up for the winter.

>> WIESE: I'm so curious to compare this Weston, Connecticut, honey to honeys from around the world.

>> We can do that.

♪ ♪ I really love to do honey with cheeses.

You can just make a really beautiful platter, cut a piece of honeycomb right off of the frame, grab... >> WIESE: A piece of bread.

>> A piece of bread, and how about some ricotta cheese?

>> WIESE: Okay.

>> We just grab some of that honeycomb.

>> WIESE: Just grab that.

>> And take a nut, because honey goes with every single food group.

>> WIESE: Okay.

>> Here we go.

>> WIESE: Mmm.

That is so wonderfully fantastic.

This was the, uh, honey from here.

It has a very light taste to it.

>> Yeah, our honey... >> WIESE: I mean, it's very sweet.

>> Yeah, our honey's pretty light this time of the year.

There's nothing better than fresh honeycomb.

>> WIESE: I can honestly say, that is the best honey I've ever had.

>> I think the future is going to be just introducing the public into how amazing honey really is, and it just is not just this sweet liquid that you put in tea.

It can be used in so many different ways.

It goes with food, all kinds of culinary applications.

>> WIESE: Now, these are honeys from different locations?

>> This is a clover honey, and look at the color.

It's just really, really beautiful.

>> WIESE: So this is very light.

>> So this honey, we call it Red Currant because it's produced actually in a vineyard where they grow red currant.

>> WIESE: So that's the flavor I should be looking for?

>> Yeah, like a cranberry, a red berry.

>> WIESE: It actually has that raisin-y aftertaste.

>> Yeah, that cooked fruit.

And the last honey we have is a really dark honey with a little bit of a red tint.

And this honey is actually organic.

It has, it's like an umami honey.

It's very savory and very dark.

It's like... >> Yeah, like that licorice on there.

>> You're a good taster.

I really enjoy working with the bees because I feel like there's a lot of science there.

But then, I just really love that I could do the art and apply it to honey and sort of stage these beautiful tastings and, you know, admire the colors and the aromas and the flavors.

It's really, um, a sensory experience, working with the bees, but also with honey, so, um, my world's complete.

(laughs) ♪ ♪ >> NARRATOR: From Weston, Connecticut, we make our way north to beautiful Hartford, Vermont.

Here we find Gesine Bullock-Prado, baker, cookbook author.

She also runs her own baking school here, Sugar Glider Kitchen.

Gesine settled here after leaving a career as a successful movie producer in Hollywood, where she worked with her sister Sandra Bullock.

Now she's found her true calling and home in New England, in a former tavern built in 1794.

>> I fell in love with Vermont when my husband took me to New Hampshire, of all places, for a football game-- he went to Dartmouth College.

And then he drove me across the Ledyard Bridge, which goes across the Connecticut River into Vermont, and I just...

I sat up a little and I went, "Wait.

This, it feels different, this feels like home."

You can see that church steeple as you crest a hill.

I was, like, "This is it, this is where I want to live."

Amy, welcome!

I'm so glad to have you here, and I'm sorry it's so cold.

>> TRAVERSO: Well, I have to say, looking at this place, I mean, if you were looking for a New England experience when you moved here, you have got it with this space.

>> (laughing) And then there's cake inside.

>> TRAVERSO: That's so great.

Well, let's go make cake.

>> We are making a cake I developed.

It is both American and German.

So it has this lovely streusel in the middle, and then, in the middle of those layers, I put German chocolate cake filling, because, I mean, come on, get over it, it's delicious.

>> TRAVERSO: That's so cool!

>> And then, outside, caramel buttercream.

I just butter the bottom of the pan.

>> TRAVERSO: Okay, I'll do that.

Now, you talked about your German background.

Tell me a little bit more about that.

>> Well, my mom was German.

She was a great baker.

And we would spend half of the year in Germany.

So, I have kind of the German cake culture in my blood.

>> TRAVERSO: Right.

>> And I have American Oreos streaming through my system, as well.

>> TRAVERSO: (laughs) >> This is a combination of granulated sugar... >> TRAVERSO: Okay.

>> ...brown sugar, and some maple sugar.

>> TRAVERSO: Ooh, nice.

(mixer whirring) >> So, while we wait, we can start cracking eggs.

So, a nice firm whack on the table, and then you got your egg.

>> TRAVERSO: Okay, so I've got all the eggs in here now.

>> Yes.

So, this is looking much better, right?

Fluffy, lighter.

And we can add our first egg.

>> TRAVERSO: Oh, boy, okay.

Now, outside of the kitchen, are you a patient person?

>> No.

>> TRAVERSO: (laughs) So this is good discipline for you.

>> Well, this is what I love about baking, is that in order to do it right, you have to be patient.

>> TRAVERSO: Mm-hmm.

>> A lot of people will laugh.

It is scientifically shown to be a stress reducer.

I would rather do this than sit and meditate, any day.

And the smells are better.

>> TRAVERSO: (laughs) >> Now it's time to add the flour mixture and our buttermilk mixture.

Create a funnel-- I can even turn on the mixer... >> TRAVERSO: Is this how you do it?

>> Yes, I create a funnel.

So, if you hit the paddle as it's going, you're not gonna harm anything.

>> TRAVERSO: Right.

>> And you're actually going to get in the bowl, because, more often than not, I'm ready to put my batter in the cake pan, and then I look down behind the mixer, I'm, like, "Oh, half of my flour is on the bench."

>> TRAVERSO: (laughs) (mixer stops) >> We're just gonna eyeball this.

>> TRAVERSO: Okay.

>> Because we're being a little crazy today.

>> TRAVERSO: Okay.

>> This is how I go crazy.

>> TRAVERSO: We're going wild!

>> This is what happens when you live in Vermont.

You go crazy by not weighing your batter.

>> TRAVERSO: So, we're just trying to get an even... >> Even layer.

This is the streusel, which is toasted pecans, some brown sugar, and some cinnamon, just in a food processor.

>> TRAVERSO: Yes.

>> For the top bit of batter, I put it into a piping bag.

This is kind, a way of making sure that you don't pick up the streusel when you put the top layer on.

>> TRAVERSO: How much does being in Vermont inspire your baking?

>> It is such a pleasure being around so many local artisans.

Seeing these gorgeous ingredients and using them every day makes baking more of a joy than it already is.

>> TRAVERSO: That's great.

>> And now, into the oven.

>> TRAVERSO: Yay.

>> 350, depending on your oven.

>> TRAVERSO: Right.

>> For about 30 to 35 minutes.

>> TRAVERSO: Okay.

So these have been baked.

>> And cooled.

>> TRAVERSO: Okay, so what's the next step?

>> I first pipe around the perimeter of the first layer.

And the filling that we have is our German chocolate yumminess.

>> TRAVERSO: Oh, God, that looks so good.

>> And the second layer goes straight on top, and then do the same thing again.

♪ ♪ Now the third layer and last layer goes on top.

>> TRAVERSO: Oh, that's so nice and tall.

>> And, again-- I know, I love tall cakes.

Whoo!

>> TRAVERSO: (laughs) Oh, that's so nice.

>> You go all the way around.

♪ ♪ >> TRAVERSO: That is pretty.

>> It's looking great.

It'll refrigerate for, like, ten minutes.

And then we can finish it up, and we can party.

>> TRAVERSO: Great.

>> And eat some cake.

>> TRAVERSO: All right.

>> Are you ready?

>> TRAVERSO: I can't wait, I'm so-- yeah!

I can't, yeah.

>> Okay-- one thing I'm not good at with cakes is cutting a straight line through a cake.

(both laugh) I think it's because I'm cutting into my cake that's upsetting me... >> TRAVERSO: Right.

>> So I go sideways.

Prayer.

>> TRAVERSO: Look how gorgeous.

>> You got it?

>> TRAVERSO: It's so beautiful.

That swirl of streusel is amazing.

I'm gonna taste this.

>> Yeah, get in, get in there.

♪ ♪ >> TRAVERSO: Mmm.

Oh, that's so good.

This is amazing.

>> Well, thank you for baking with me, because I always love to make a big, tall cake for people I like.

>> TRAVERSO: (laughs) Well, thank you for all the techniques.

My cake baking is forever changed after learning these techniques.

I thank you for having us.

♪ ♪ >> NARRATOR: Next, we travel east to discover the beauty of the Maine Island Trails that span the entire coast of Maine.

♪ ♪ >> I first discovered the Maine Island Trail...

I can't even remember how long ago it was.

The trail really discovered me.

>> What the Maine Island Trail has done is opened up some of the most beautiful pieces of land, the most beautiful environments, to everybody.

So anybody can get in a kayak or a sailboat or some boat and get out here and enjoy these places.

>> We like to think that it has something for everyone.

>> I'm pretty sure there's ocean water in my vein.

>> The Maine Island Trail is a water trail from Kittery up to Lubec.

The trail was the brainchild of a gentleman named Dave Getchell, Sr.

He had been exploring the islands off of the coast of Maine.

If MITA, Maine Island Trail Association, created the dots that people could go island to island and create their own route.

The original islands on the Maine Island Trail were all state property.

And very quickly, private parties began to express interest in being part of the trail.

Within a few years, the number of private islands eclipsed the number of public islands.

>> My name is Alicia Heyburn, and I am a member of the board of trustees for the Maine Island Trail Association.

My family has an island that is part of the trail that was this asset that we had that my family was really excited to be able to share.

Every year, we get a beautiful report, based on the logbooks on the islands, of how many people visited, what the comments were that they left behind, which just is reinforcing the sense of reciprocity and generosity.

>> So if you're looking for your first experience on the Maine Island Trail, you can look up a guide, of which there are many all along the coast.

And then there are outfitters, as well, who will rent you equipment.

And often, the guides are working with the outfitters, so you get both in one.

>> I'm Zack Anchors.

I'm owner of Portland Paddle, a sea kayaking company that offers guided trips on the coast of Maine.

I fell in love with the ocean when I was a little kid, and my dad started sea kayaking and took me along with him.

And we went on these camping trips on the Maine Island Trail.

We just camped on all these magical little islands.

You know, being able to just, like, have a whole island to yourself is... (inhales deeply): ...like a dream come true.

I'm Suzanne Blackburn, and I'm a sea kayak guide.

Work for Portland Paddle.

So, I started whitewater kayaking in 1980 and then transitioned to sea kayaking in 1996.

So, I've been at it for a while.

But I think most of us, if not all of us, feel a, a responsibility to be stewards of the islands and stewards of the environment.

The coast of Maine offers such a variety of conditions: everywhere from something that a beginner kayaker would be really comfortable in, to conditions where more advanced kayakers can definitely challenge themselves.

Spring through the fall, the angle of the light on the water is just really spectacular.

It's just gorgeous.

So, one of the things that's really unique about the coast of Maine and the Maine Island Trail is that we have hundreds, if not thousands, of barrier islands.

So, all along the coast, there are really well-protected routes that give you a chance to see a lot of sea life and experience the ocean without exposing you to really big ocean swells and ocean wind and waves.

>> I see my job as just bringing people out into this environment that's so amazing and so beautiful.

The environment, it really does most of the work for me.

>> So, there's a poem that says that once you've slept on an island, you'll never be the same.

It's almost like a tiny little planet that is all yours for a short period of time.

And, and that's really what the Maine Island Trail is all about.

>> NARRATOR: For exclusive video, recipes, travel ideas, tips from the editors, and access to the Weekends With Yankee digital magazine, go to weekendswithyankee.com and follow us on social media, @yankeemagazine.

Yankee magazine, the inspiration for the television series, provides recipes, feature articles, and the best of New England from the people who know it best.

Six issues for $10.

Call 1-800-221-8154. Credit cards accepted.

>> Major funding provided by... ♪ ♪ >> Massachusetts is home to a lot of firsts: The first public park in America, the first fried clams, the first university in America, the first basketball game.

What's first for you?

(birds chirping) ♪ ♪ >> Series funding provided by the Vermont Country Store, the purveyors of the practical and hard-to-find since 1946.

>> The Barn Yard, builders of timber-frame barns and garages.

>> And by American Cruise Lines, exploring the historic shores of New England.

♪ ♪