A Great Breakfast Sandwich With Breakfast Sausage From Laurel Meat Or Boarman's

I should have known that I already had the key to a great breakfast sandwich.

A few weeks ago, I asked for suggestions after trying the egg-cheddar-and-sausage croissant from Touche Touchet.  Folks recommended their favorites in the comments, but the '34 Act Gourmet came to my house with the answer.

Breakfast sausage from Laurel Meat Market.

I have extolled sausage as the gateway drug to try your local ethnic butchers.  Laurel Meat Market's loose breakfast sausage -- like the similar sausage that people love from Boarman's in Highland -- is the easiest gateway around.  Basic pork sausage flavored with sage and other spices.

We pressed out two patties.  I cooked them in a cast iron pan while two eggs fried in a skillet and some Wegmans bread toasted nearby.  Wegmans' bakery will slice any loaf, and the thin, even slices have made this a staple that I keep in the freezer for sandwiches or toast.

Simple and superb.  I try to find delicious meat because I'd rather eat a small amount of the great stuff than a daily ration of the mediocre.  Laurel Meat and Boarman's grind their own sausages, and they give a full-flavored mix that just tastes fresher and better every time.

We had superb breakfast sandwiches in minutes, then went on about our day.

If you're intrigued, check out a line of HowChow posts about meat and local butchers.  I did a survey of butchers a few years ago in a longer post about places to shop, and I try to code posts when they're about barbecue or grilling.

Worth Repeating: I Make The Best Burgers In Howard County, And You Can As Well

The Secret Is Meat From Laurel Meat Market

I make the best burger in Howard County.

I don't want to pompous.  I just want to catch your attention because you can make the best burger too. The secret is Laurel Meat Market, and I don't want them to be a secret from anyone.

Laurel Meat Market on Main Street is just across the line from Howard County, but it's a trip worth making because their ground chuck should be the star of your summer grilling.  They grind at the shop. You're not eating industrial product.  You're buying real meat that you can turn into special burgers one-third of a pound at a time.

You have two ways to do that.

First, you have the simple lesson from Mrs. HowChow's family.  Dice a clove of garlic and handful of onion for each burger.  Briefly mix them into the meat -- but don't press around enough to compact the meat.  If you make one-third-pound patties, those will grill up juicy and with more flavor than even many of the gourmet burger restaurants around.

Second, you can go crazy.  Laurel Meat Market will regrind your beef with spicy sausage or bacon.  The sausage-beef combo is called "firecracker mix," and either sausage or bacon will create burgers that will make your guests sit up straight.  With two or three parts beef to one part sausage or bacon,  I have gotten raves every single time -- even from folks who say that they normally try to avoid bacon.

If you want to get even-more specific, you can buy whole steaks at Laurel and ask them to grind your personal blend.  In 2011, Matt wrote me about how he created custom blends of chuck, sirloin and bacon.

Whatever you do, it's the meat that makes the best burger.  I'm sure of that -- and of the value of good buns from Wegmans or the Breadery (which occasionally makes the best hot dog buns that you'll ever find).  Honestly, you can probably do as well with the butchers at J.W. Trueth in Oella or Boarman's in Highland.  I have just never asked those folks to do any special blends.

This is part of a Worth Repeating series highlighting dishes and places that you should hear about even though they aren't new.  I'm suggesting sandwiches, Chinese, Cuban sandwiches, and other items that have been HowChow favorites for years.

St. Patrick's Day Fun Has Arrived: Corned Beef At Kloby's And Laurel Meat Market

If you live near a bar, you may share my trepedation about St. Patrick's Day.  I always think of portapotties and the year that a drunk guy wandered a mile through my neighborhood to pass out on a bench outside my house.

But just because it has become a beer company holiday doesn't mean that you can't have some fun on your own.

Kloby's Smokehouse on Johns Hopkins Road does an annual corned beef event.  They start today with smoked corned beef platters and barbeque sandwiches.  Bourbon may be an improper whiskey for St. Patrick's Day, but it is delicious.

If you want to cook you own, consider Laurel Meat Market. They were adverising a special on briskets that you could corn yourself.  They make their own sausages, so they're also a source if you want to do bangers and mash.

Laurel Meat Market Sells Its Own Spice LIne

Has anyone tried the barbecue spices that Laurel Meat Market is selling under its own name?

On top of the meat counter, Laurel Meat Market has a line of ground spices -- a "sweet BBQ" rub, a Cajun mix, and a "Western steak" seasoning.  I assume they've arranged for someone to package their private label line.

I'm a complete amateur when it comes to cooking meat.  I cook it rarely, and rarely do more than run a steak or burgers on the grill or a cast iron pan.  I love Laurel Meat Market for exceptional ground beef -- including the "firecracker" mixture where they will special-grind you some ground chuck with their house-made pork sausage.

The quality of the meats makes me think that the spices are probably worth checking out.  I don't really know how to use rubs or big seasonings on meat.  I'd love any suggestions.

Get Special From The Specialists: Short Ribs From Laurel Meat, Shrimp From Today's Catch

Shrimp from Today's Catch and short ribs from Laurel Meat Market

If you want something special, then you should start with the specialists.

The '34 Act Gourmet planned a special dinner, so he took the time to stop at some local spots for the main courses.  Short ribs -- bought from Laurel Meat Market.  Wild shrimp -- bought from Today's Catch in Columbia.

Shrimp and ribs with Korean side dishes

They're a little drive, but you should check them out for great food and a little advice.  Laurel Meat Market -- like the other local butchers like Boarman's in Highland and J.W. Trueth's in Oella -- cuts its own meat.  So you can talk to a butcher about special cuts like the chunks of rib that the '34 Act marinated and then grilled on his deck.

Those weren't thin-sliced Korean kalbi.  Those were fist-sized chunks that revealed bone as they cooked, then cut meaty and rich.  They were an exotic to me, and he went over the top by adding skewers of wild shrimp.

The '34 Act balanced the meat with some Korean side dishes that he bought at the H Mart in Catonsville.  The tang and spice of kimchi pairs perfectly with grilled meats, and it worked again here.  I completely over-indulged with an entire skewer of shrimp and three pieces of beef.

The local butchers and seafood markets provide special spots, a real chance to know your butcher or fish monger.  They get good stuff, and they will do special orders.  I need to update my guide posts, but the old ones provide a place for you to start.  Check out this 2009 post about butchers or this 2009 post about seafood markets.  But note that I don't update old links, so you may also want to scroll down the right column and just click on the labels for each market.

My Dream Of Whole Foods: Chicken Sausage

Pork andouille, chicken andouille, chicken brat, pork brat with hot dogs in back

We're still more than a year from the opening of the Columbia Whole Foods, but I have begun to dream -- and I dream of chicken sausage.

We hosted friends Sunday and centered the meal around sausages.  I learned to two things:  1) the bottled gas runs out on your busiest day and 2) people jump at good chicken sausages.

We had an array of links, including pork sweet Italian and pork andouille from Laurel Meat Market.  But I had bought more than two dozen chicken sausages at the Harbor East Whole Foods, and people jumped at the chance to eat the chicken bratwurst and chicken andouille.

Whole Foods makes great chicken sausages.  They're delicious.  They're zesty.  And they're leaner so you can eat two with so qualms.  (At least, you can eat two after you have rushed the second round of raw sausages off the quickly-cooling grill and onto a cast iron pan in the kitchen.  Mrs. HowChow opened windows avoid repeating last summer's visit from the firemen.)

I'm a huge proponent of sausages.  I have promoted them as the gateway drug to try local butchers and ethnic markets.  I recommend mixing the Laurel Meat Market hot Italian into both meatballs and into double-ground "firecracker" burgers.  And I relish a great pork sausage with great relish.

But I don't understand why Whole Foods and Harris Teeter are the only places where I find really good chicken sausage.  I like the raw links that you can cook whole or break up into pasta sauce or other dishes.  The chicken ones can have almost all the flavor with a fraction of the grease, and they convert sausages into something that I can eat regularly.

Apparently, I'm in the minority.  Laurel Meat Market makes a wonderful array of sausages -- hot Italian, sweet Italian, peppers & onions, bratwurst, etc. -- but they said they discontinued chicken sausages because they didn't sell that well.  Whole Foods often has four or six varieties in their butcher shop, and they're a variation from the Teeter's hot Italian.  I load up when we visit, and they'll get me into the store -- and buying -- when the Columbia Whole Foods opens in 2014.

The last timeline that I saw were the initial press releases that -- as reported in the Columbia Patch -- said the Whole Foods was aiming at late summer or fall 2014.  

The Last Week Without Wegmans - Hold The Buns (And Ask For "Firecracker" Mix At Laurel Meat)

Firecracker burgers from Laurel Meat Market

Wegmans opens to the public on Sunday, June 17, and I had to suffer through one final weekend wondering what life would have been like if they'd opened in 2009.

My burgers last night were special -- the "firecracker" mix from Laurel Meat Market where they take two or three parts ground chuck and regrind it with one part spicy Italian sausage.  It's a subtle difference -- a moist burger with a little more flavor than just meat, but nothing spicy.  Definitely worth checking out.  Definitely the fun of having a real butcher.  (The other great option is asking them to regrind some ground chuck with bacon.)

The bummer was that my buns were just okay.  I grabbed them from a supermarket.  They were fine.  But I couldn't stop thinking about the chatter about something call Kimmelweck rolls on the I Want The Columbia Wegmans Facebook page.  I don't know if they're right for burgers, but they sound different -- and probably are displayed next to a few other rolls that my supermarket doesn't carry.

My hope for Wegmans is that it will bring new options to the local scene -- cheeses, olives, baked goods, meats, etc.  I want good crusty rolls, interesting smoked fish, more bulk grains, imported sauces and crackers.  Other Wegmans have left us really happy with the choice of vegetables.  Mrs. HowChow is looking forward the prepared and semi-prepared aisle where you grab a marinated fish or a meat wrapped around to bring home to your grill or broiler.

Sausage: Make It Your Gateway Drug For Exploring Local Butchers And Ethnic Groceries

Chorizo selections at the Family Market in Columbia

Eat different.  That's a theme to HowChow, and it's a fun way to shake up your menu.

Start with sausage.  It's not even healthy, so it's totally easy.  The butchers around Howard County grind their own meat into a variety of varieties -- breakfast sausage at Boarman's, Italian pork at Laurel Meat Market, chorizos in Family Market or Lily's Mexican Market.  Even Harris Teeter sells excellent spicy chicken sausage.

Sausage sandwiches are easy -- especially if you can grab some good rolls.  Personally, I like the baguette at Bon Fresco.

Sausage in risotto

Beyond that, sausage is convenience food.  You can buy them one at a time.  You can freeze them and break them out (or break off a link) to add flavor to dinner.  My new find was the chorizo, Mexican and Argentine, at Family Market in Columbia.  Those make great tacos or omelets.

But my favorite use is defrosting a sausage and pulling it out of the casing to zip up kitchen staples.  Brown a bit, then add to pasta sauce.  Crumble a sausage into the first stage of any mushroom risotto recipe.  Start with any recipe that you find on the Web, and brown the sausage before you add the rice to the pot.  If you have a basic risotto recipe, a box of chicken stock, some dried mushrooms from an Asian market, and an onion can make risotto right out of the freezer and pantry when you haven't had time to shop.

Consider sausage your gateway drug.  It's a guaranteed find at any market, and then you look around for something else.  Make your own personal burger blend at Laurel Meat Market.  Work your way up to trying Steven Raichlen's Planet Barbecue and its suggestions.

Find yourself a meat market on last month's post about places to shop.

Grind Your Personal Burger Blend -- Or "Mix The Meat And Bacon At The Laurel Meat Market"

A true scientist knows that the best way to experiment is to change just one variable at a time.

But I had two inspirations since I last made hamburgers, so I ended up trying two innovations at once when I went back to the grill this month.  First up: kimchi.  On the menu at Mr. Rain's Fun House, we had seen a burger topped by kimchi and thought that sounded interesting.  Second innovation: bacon.

You wouldn't think bacon was a burger innovation.  But this wasn't bacon on top.  This was raw bacon ground into the chuck.  Laurel Meat Market ground me a special blend after Matt emailed me about how how the butchers there would make personal grinds.  Matt explained how he had figured that out:

My two go-to burger books are are "The Gourmet Burger" and "The Cook's Illustrated Guide To Grilling and Barbecue."  I can't remember which one mentions it, but one of the books talks about using a chuck/sirloin/boneless short ribs blend. The Laurel Meat Market doesn't have short ribs, so I just go with bacon.  I think it's three parts chuck, two parts sirloin, and one part bacon. Then I'll take it home and add onions or whatever else I feel like putting in. 

One Big Plate of Howard County: Laurel Meat Market Flank Steak On A Salad W/Gorman Peas

Step One: Flank steak from Laurel Meat Market.

Step Two: Snow peas from the CSA at Gorman Produce Farm in Laurel.

Step Three: Lettuce, radishes, and carrots from the back yard.

Shake it up with the spiciest sauce that you can expect from the people at Cook's Illustrated.

Flank steak turns out to be easier than a hamburger.  Salt and pepper on both side sides, then grilled on high heat for five minutes per side.  We ended up with meat that was cooked well on the edges, but firm and pink through the center.

Perfect cut for Mrs. HowChow, who doesn't like gristle.  A small flank steak easily makes four or five salads.  I made "Sweet-and-Sour Chipotle Sauce" from The New Best Recipes.  That was brushed on the meat, then served as the dressing on the simple salad.  It's actual flavor from folks who normally teach technique, not ethnique.

Spice isn't the wheelhouse of Cook's Illustrated's, which burned me out after a year or two of roasts, meats, and traditional vegetables.  But The New Best Recipes is a terrific reference.  They explain technique, but in about half the length of the magazine's articles.  It's great for problems like "I have a flank steak.  What do I do with it?"

These are just some of the places that you can get great food around Howard County.  I'm trying new cuts from Laurel Meat Market -- aiming for new recipes from Planet Barbecue.  Talk is that the Gorman produce stand could open next week.  The CSA had garlic scapes, greens, peas, and squash.  I don't know how they already have squash.  These professionals.

Maryland Crab And The First Harvest Of 2011

We ate the first contributions from the vegetable garden Monday night -- lettuce in a salad to go with Maryland crab cakes.

The Maryland crab has arrived at Laurel Meat Market.  It is $16 a pound for lump or backfin, and I went simple with crab cakes assembled with just a minimum of egg, breadcrumbs, scallions and mayonnaise.

Crab is a fun luxury.  Cakes are easy enough for a weeknight, and you can easily make four meals from a single container.  I'm sure the Maryland crab is available at Frank's Seafood in Jessup as well.

The garden has tons of lettuce this year.  It actually has tons this week.  I went crazy right after the thaw and seeded with enthusiasm.  Instead of leaving space for multiple plantings, I quickly exhausted my small garden.  So it's all ready at the same time.

I actually went back to the Main Street market last night for my favorite ground chuck.  I'd love to learn some more-intricate grilling, but I warmed up for the season with 1/3 pound burgers, sliced potatoes and eggplant.

Standing Rib Roast From Laurel Meat Market

If you're building a party around beef, then you need to buy it from someone who put as much effort in the butchering as you put in the kitchen.

Standing rib roast was the Christmas Eve centerpiece for my friend The '34 Act Gourmet, and he bought his beef from the professionals at Laurel Meat Market.

Unless you cook way more meat than I, you need professionals.  Roasts and steaks can be cut an endless number of ways, and they can be cut well or poorly -- a difference that will affect how your meat cooks, cuts and tastes.

The Gourmet's roast tasted delicious.  He had done research to know that he wanted a seven-rib roast and wanted the chine bone removed to make it easier to carve.  But the Laurel Meat Market butcher also suggested that they remove the ribs and tie up the roast -- something the Gourmet hadn't considered.

They did this and tied up the roast for me, which I learned is important - you want the roast tied up so that it stays together during the roasting process.  They estimated that a seven rib roast would be between 15 and 18 pounds.  I think the roast was close to 18 pounds.  Last year I bought a similar-sized roast from Harris Teeter because they offered a good deal on it.  I remember it tasting pretty good, but they did not tie the roast up.  I think the tying made a difference -- it kept the juices of the roast in.

With the roast in hand, the Gourmet was left to season, roast and baste for the day of the party.  He says he wishes that the butchers had left just a little more fat for basting, but the roast carved beautifully with my well-done pieces on the end and the red medium-rare through the center.

Half-Smokes At The Laurel Meat Market

Okay, so I said that I stopped buying pork sausages in favor of Harris Teeter's chicken links.  But I lied just a little bit.

I experimented recently with half-smokes from Laurel Meat Market because, well, it seems like the local thing to do.

They're lightly spicy.  Firmer than the chicken sausage, and we ate them in sandwiches.

Wild Rockfish At Laurel Meat Market

Finally, it's warm enough to grill, and you should knock the cobwebs off your Weber with the local treat of spring -- wild rockfish fillets like the ones you can buy at the Laurel Meat Market.

I bought an 18-ounce filet last week, and it became the perfect dinner.  A quick sprinkling with salt and pepper, a few minutes to heat the grill and to rub the hot grate with an oil-soaked paper towel.  That created the perfect, no-stick spot to grill the fish for about five minutes with the skin up, then three-to-five with the skin side down.

The rockfish came off moist and with the mineral flavor and the firm, but still flaky flavor that makes them so prized.  There can be a challenge to grilling a fillet that has sections that range from thin to thick.  Generally, I take fish off the grill and slice it to ensure that the thickest parts have cooked through.  The flesh turns opaque and flaky, so you should be able to spot any rare parts inside.  That system worked perfectly last week.

As much as I went seasonal with the rockfish, I reached to Chile for the the rest of dinner.  I made a quick salsa based on a nectarine.  I needed a taste of summer, and the Chilean nectarine smelled delicious.  I chopped up the nectarine, then chopping half a red pepper, half hot pepper and about a quarter of a red onion.   I squeezed on some lime juice and put that on top of the fish.  (The leftover salsa actually improved overnight, so I'd make it ahead if I could.)


If you are in Columbia or farther north, I'd suggest that you call Today's Catch in Columbia or Frank's Seafood in Jessup to see if they have rockfish.  Click here for a post about seafood markets in Howard County.

Taco Dinner From The 1970s

I come from a world where Mexican food came in a bright yellow box.

Before Taco Bell, before El Azteca in Clarksville, before R&R Deli served a dozen spectacular dishes from the Shell station, there was Old El Paso.

Old El Paso delivered Mexico in a box.  Or at least that was the idea.  Hard shells in a box, taco seasoning in an envelope, taco sauce in little bottles.  This was the world before salsa.  Taco sauce was thin and mild and left the fridge only on taco night.  We didn't even have refried beans until our babysitter taught my mother about them.

You can recreate the 1970s even in these days of "no trans fat.  Mrs. HowChow liked the burgers made with Laurel Meat Market's ground chuck, but she requested an Old El Paso night as well.  To be true OT, you need to limit yourself:  Old El Paso hard shells, the taco seasoning, iceberg lettuce, diced tomatoes and shredded cheddar.  Consider the canned green chilis, which were an innovation in the early 1980s.  But don't serve avocados, which are ubiquitous today but tasted inauthentic when I added them to our table.

No soft tacos.  No authentic corn tortillas from Lily's Mexican Market.  No chipotles.  Mrs. HowChow and I shared the same childhood strategies to put the cheese on the beef so you get a little melting along the way.  Top with the vegetables and crunch away.  It's not just nostalgia.  We really enjoyed dinner.

The final authentic touch would be eating until your stomach hurts.  As I remember, taco night involved no portion control.  My brother and I crunched taco after taco by the box, then made "taco salads" with the leftover fillings and the inevitable broken shells.  (The Old El Paso that I bought today had no broken shells.  They have clearly improved the packaging in the past 25 years.)

Next time, I might just whip up an appetizer that I remember from the same time -- slice green olives, stuff them with ground beef, then deep fry.  That's party food.  I'd get one before I was hustled off to bed.  It's the 1970s on a toothpick.

Old El Paso is a General Mills brand, so you can buy them at almost any grocery store -- and at Laurel Meat Market for a one-stop shopping with that delicious ground chuck.  For real Mexican, you should start at Lily's Mexican Market -- or just read all my posts about Mexican cuisine.

Ground Chuck at Laurel Meat Market

Despite what your eyes saw outside this weekend, I had a little taste of summer in my house.

As snow fell Saturday afternoon, I made hamburgers.  Mark Bittman's cast iron skillet recipe with some oven fries, a pickle, and sauteed mushrooms.  I had to walk next door to borrow ketchup because we were out of season, but burgers were a real pick-up meal on a day when we stayed indoors.

The key was ground chuck from Laurel Meat Market.  You can probably get similar meat at any of Howard County's best butchers like Boarman's, Treuth, or Beiler's at the Laurel Dutch Country Farmers Market, and it is worth the effort because ground meat makes all the difference.  Laurel Meat Market grinds meat for its hamburger.  Real cuts of meat.

I didn't know the difference until the New York Times started writing about industrial techniques used to scrape extra pennies from each cow.  Literally scrape.  Smart businessmen are figuring out ways to use fatty scraps -- formerly used for pet food and cooking oil -- to mix with meat for restaurants and supermarkets to sell as hamburger.  The NYT is writing about problems with the processes, but I was thinking, "What am I eating when the process works right?"

Seriously, I'm not preachy about food.  I won't repeat the NYT details here.  But I'm going to buy my hamburger in Laurel where they take pieces of chuck and grind them.  No pink slime.  (Okay, that's one detail.)  It's $3 a pound, but they'll give me exactly what I want so I save overall.  Plus, the burger was delicious even though it wasn't from the grill.   Four months to Memorial Day!!!

(Update: You should also consider Laurel Meat Market if you're looking for a large cut like a standing rib roast.  My friend got great advice and a nice piece of meat for Christmas Eve 2010.)

Laurel Meat Market in Laurel

I'm working my way through the Laurel Meat Market, and I'm having fun along the way.

The Laurel Meat Market is a small grocery on Main Street just over the line into Prince George's County. The produce and the packaged stuff are nothing special, but walking through puts you in the deli and butcher sections where you can find some special items.

Start with the butcher. I don't know meat enough to truly compare Laurel Meat Market to supermarkets. Certainly, Laurel butchers on site, so you can talk to the butchers and see some items that chains don't offer like freshly-ground beef, handmade sausages, and thick-cut bacon by the slice. I love the individual portions. Four slices of pepper-edged bacon beat an entire plastic-wrapped pound, and I'm a sucker for sausage -- both here and at other local butchers around Howard County. When it comes to the steaks, I like what I have had. Laurel Meat Market doesn't have the marketing of a Whole Foods or the just-slaughtered atmosphere of JW Treuth in Oella. Mostly, the steaks are on display, and I pick something for tonight's dinner. When I take the time to buy steak and grill, I pay attention to the cooking so I generally like the results.

Recently, I have bridged over to the deli as well. I started with pie. They sell whole pies that look hand-baked. Even better, they sell 99-cent slices. Perfect for me to bring home for a fun dessert. The French apple pie with raisins has been tasty. Now, I'm working through some deli meats. Laurel Meat Market roasts its own beef, and it's delicious. Thin-sliced, tasting of beef, and alternating between well-done and pink. At lunch, the market sells hot foods. I haven't been yet, but a nice review on Yelp talked up hearty, fresh, large servings and a "truck stop cuisine."

(Update: I'm now loyal to the ground chuck at Laurel Meat Market.  They grind meat into hamburger in the store, and it makes for delicious burgers, kabobs, chili, etc.  It also lets me avoid the factory-made ground beef where the grind crap and add pink slime.  Also look for fish specials like scallops and local wild rockfish.)

(Update II: You should also consider Laurel Meat Market if you're looking for a large cut like a standing rib roast.  My friend got great advice and a nice piece of meat for Christmas Eve 2010.)

Overall, I think Laurel Meat Market is a nice place if you want personal, professional attention or if you want to try something unusual on the grill. You should also check out the other local butchers -- including the Dutch Country Farmers Market in Burtonsville, Boarman's in Highland or JW Treuth in Oella.

If you go to the Laurel Meat Market, check out the Claeys Candies up near the checkout. If you are food shopping in Laurel, you should also check out the Middle Eastern groceries at Aladdin Food Mart on Main Street or the Mexican produce, butcher and groceries at the Panam Supermarket near U.S. 1 and Rte 198.

Laurel Meat Market

347 Main Street
Laurel, MD 20707
(301) 725-5855

NEAR: The market is on Main Street in Laurel just west of U.S. 1. You can get there by driving south on U.S. 1 and then right on Main Street or by taking Rte 216 east off I-95 and then left on Main Street.

Claeys Candies at Laurel Meat Market

I tried to eat the all-natural candies, but I came back to licorice flavor in the end.

Claeys is an Indiana company that sells bags of hard candies in everything from lemon to cherry to root beer.  At Laurel Meat Market and at the Dutch Country Farmers Market, they generally stock Claeys in sassafras, licorice and horehound.  Horehound is a natural herb, and I thought it would be good to try something that wasn't artificial.

If you like horehound, than this is the treat for you.  The flavor starts like root beer, but it ends bitter and just a touch harsh to me.  So I'm back to licorice -- even though it is artificial and way too harsh for Mrs. HowChow.  I have to pop a sassafras to clean the taste and get a smooch.

(Update:  In May 2009, the Laurel Meat Market had several other flavors of Claeys, including lemon drops that are naturally flavored although artificially colored.  They're nice too.  Lightly sour, then sweet.)

If you're just looking for candy, they're cheaper at Laurel Meat Market.  But the Dutch Country Farmers Market is great fun to check out.  If you're looking for candy, check out all the posts about candy.

Laurel Meat Market
347 Main Street
Laurel, MD 20707
(301) 725-5855

NEAR: The market is on Main Street in Laurel just west of U.S. 1. You can get there by driving south on U.S. 1 and then right on Main Street or by taking Rte 216 east off I-95 and then left on Main Street.

Delicious: Bacon at the Laurel Meat Market

Bacon is delicious, and it is best when it is thick, cut and maybe with pepper on the edge.

Go buy by the slice at the Laurel Meat Market in downtown Laurel. Great if you just want a few pieces of the good stuff and not a pound of the grocery-store bacon wrapped in plastic. Look for the plastic cow on Main Street just west of US 1.

(I know it's not Howard County, but it's just across the line. It's a real butcher, and I want it to be terrific. I hope you have better luck, although I'm going to try the steaks and sausage before I lose hope. The shrimp and scallops have never been better than Bloom/Giant, and the vegetables and packaged stuff are easy to walk past.)

If you are looking for a meat market, definitely check out J.W. Trueth in Oella. It's worth the drive. Or read my overall post on butchers in Howard County.

Laurel Meat Market
347 Main Street
Laurel, MD 20707
(301) 725-5855

NEAR: The market is on Main Street in Laurel just west of U.S. 1. You can get there by driving south on U.S. 1 and then right on Main Street or by taking Rte 216 east off I-95 and then left on Main Street.