The Maine 3-Pick

The State of Maine is known for many things. The natural beauty is legendary, but some of the goods it produces are famous far and wide, too. Here are nine choices that Mainers generally recognize as symbols of “home.”

1. Red Snappers. These are bright, red, hot dogs served in buns that are split so that when the dog is in place, the finished sandwich can sit on a plate face up, not face sideways. 
2. Moxie. This so-called soda is described by some as a cross between root beer and urine. It’s definitely an acquired taste, though I don’t believe it’s necessary to drink urine for the comparison. Not all Mainers drink Moxie, but it is uniquely a Maine beverage. 
3. Steamer Clams. Fried clams are for wimps. The best way to eat clams is steamed and slid straight from the shell to the gullet. 
4. Whoopie Pies. Other states have tried to claim that they’ve originated this sweet treat, but no one beats a Maine whoopie pie, a rounded, hand-held, chocolate cake sandwich with vanilla icing. That’s the traditional flavor. True connoisseurs have discovered variations that included pumpkin chocolate chip cookie with vanilla icing, chocolate cake sandwich with peanut butter-flavored icing, and whatever else they may fancy. 
5. Humpty Dumpty Potato Chips. I can’t say as these have a special place in my heart, necessarily, but I know a number of fellow Mainers that won’t buy any other brand. Commitment to Maine-made brands is commendable, I guess, but Dill Pickle-flavored chips at twice the price of every other company? 
6. Lobster Rolls. Now here is a Maine food I can get behind. Or into. I can consume it, is what I mean. Not every “lobster shack” makes a quality roll, but there are great ones to be found all over Maine. 
7. Ployes. Now to be honest, I never knew what ploye was until just now, when I used Google and a colleague to help educate me on the topic. The former gave me textbook and the latter gave me human interest. Ploye is basically buckwheat pancake, but rather than being eaten with syrup, jam is added, or brown sugar, butter, or whatever else strikes you. He recommended I try it. I probably will. 
8. Fiddleheads. These are a rite of spring in Maine, when citizens desperate for signs of life after winter’s doldrums, go to the swamps and seek the weeds that resemble the heads of fiddles, literally. Fiddleheads. They boil them, butter ‘em, salt ‘em, and eat ‘em. I’ve been told they’re tasty. I’ve been told I haven’t been treated to properly prepared ones. To me, they just taste like weeds. I’ve tasted weeds before.
9. Potatoes. I realize that Idaho produces lots of these, but Maine does, too, especially up in The County (Aroostook for folks from Away). I certainly hope that Humpty Dumpty makes their chips from Maine potatoes, but either way, Maine’s potato growers (or is it “potatoe” growers? Perhaps I should ask Dan Quayle) do a fine job, and I enjoy Maine’s produce. We also grow blueberries, which ought to be on this list, but aren’t. 

At any rate, there’s the List of Nine. If you could pick just THREE of these, which ones would you choose?