Aroostook County’s Amish Community Draws Crowds With Fresh Pizza and Ice Cream
Aroostook County, Maine, is experiencing a surge of interest in its Amish-owned businesses, especially along a bustling stretch of Route 2A in Smyrna. The latest additions—a wood-fired artisan pizza stand and a homemade raw milk ice cream vendor—are drawing Mainers from across the region, eager to sample innovative, locally sourced foods.
At the heart of this culinary movement is The Back 40 Farm Market, a retail hub showcasing the Smyrna Amish community’s handcrafted offerings. Shoppers can find an array of goods, including fresh meats, cheeses, dairy, baked treats, and canned jams, all produced by the 26 Amish families who call Smyrna Mills home. These families support each other’s enterprises, which range from general stores and meat processing plants to storage building businesses and farm markets79.
The new pizza venture is run by siblings Leona and Milan Frantz, both in their early 20s. Every Saturday, they set up under a tent outside The Back 40, serving made-to-order pizzas from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Leona mills flour from local grains within 24 hours of baking, creating a light wheat sourdough crust that rises overnight for optimal flavor and texture. The pizzas are cooked in a portable wood-fired oven that reaches temperatures up to 850 degrees Fahrenheit, allowing each pie to bake in just two to three minutes. Toppings include house-made spiced tomato paste, shredded mozzarella and provolone, and farm-fresh peppers and pepperoni. The Frantz siblings also offer iced coffee and strawberry kombucha, the latter brewed by their mother7.
Meanwhile, Kenneth Miller, another member of the Amish community, has launched an ice cream stand just steps away. Using locally sourced raw milk, Miller crafts vanilla and strawberry ice cream, which he churns and freezes with the help of a vintage 1935 John Deere engine. The process relies on a traditional salt-and-ice method, with ice harvested from winter ponds and stored in thick-walled freezers built by the Amish. Miller’s innovative setup can freeze a batch of ice cream in about 20 minutes, delighting customers with creamy, old-fashioned scoops served in waffle and regular cones7.
These businesses are thriving thanks to a growing demand for fresh, locally produced foods across Maine. On weekends, The Back 40 often sells out of produce and baked goods, while lines for pizza and ice cream stretch well into the afternoon. Both the Frantz siblings and Miller plan to keep their operations running through summer and into early fall, continuing to showcase the ingenuity and community spirit that define Smyrna’s Amish population79.
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