Cooking in the West

In a normal year, we look forward to the end of the haying season, because there might be a little opportunity to take a short vacation before school starts. This year the hay equipment is about to get parked in the shed, but prospects of a vacation are pretty slim due to COVID-19. It is starting to look like our family vacation will be donning masks and braving a couple stores in Billings to purchase school supplies and school clothes in the hopes that no impending Covid meteor will fall from the CDC and prevent our schools from opening face to face.

The best we can do this year is reminisce about vacations past and dream about future vacations when the world becomes less viral. I would like to share a column written by my daughter Brooke in 2007. Apparently our family vacations were not quite as stellar in her memory as they were in ours?

Family Vacations

--by Brooke Metcalf Bare

My mother is "on vacation" in the wilderness this week cooking for fishermen, so I am trying to keep all of her irons in the fire meanwhile back at the ranch. In fact, for as long as I can remember, my parents have been more inclined to "vacation" by going on wagon trains, staying in run-down lodges, and riding horseback into wilderness areas rather than trying out scuba diving in Mexico, lying on beaches in Hawaii, or para sailing in the Florida Keys.

I guess before I was born they did go to Jamaica where my dad suffered sun stroke, heat rash, Montezuma's Revenge, and a nasty ear infection. His legs have not seen the sun since. Since I was born, we have gone on horseback adventures for "vacations" which usually last three days at the most, since according to them the place would fall apart if we are gone more than two nights.

My grandparents had a big roundup wagon that they used to take us on "vacation" in. In fact, one of my most vivid wagon train memories was when I was about four years old and a mule from another team ate my favorite hat--while it was on my head. It was a cute little red straw hat with a sheriff's star on it, and it matched my red ropers. He spit out the star, but I have feared mules since. That night the mule and his harness mate chewed several holes in our tent, which wouldn't have been a problem except that it rained all that night and the next two days. Another fond memory was when my brother and I had to stand in the back of the wagon holding shovels against the wheels to roll the gumbo off as we took a three mile per hour tour of all of the vacation destinations between Ingomar and Cohagen, Montana.

Despite my constant nagging about family vacation destinations, my parents adamantly prefer horse flies, cots, partially moth-eaten sleeping bags, outhouses, and the lack of opportunities for personal hygiene as opposed to lavish accommodations associated with more contemporary vacation packages. Thus, my brother and I have only seen the ocean twice, because my mother considers dinner at the local diner and going home to watch the Travel Channel a worry-free getaway, and only my father's face and arms have seen the sun in the 24 years since they went to Jamaica.

So, this summer, we will not be traveling to the Caribbean or Europe or Baha, or any other exotic destination. We will be going on a pack trip into the Scapegoat Wilderness where we will have the luxury of hauling our own water, bathing in the creek or a dripping bucket in the "shower tent", catching (and my personal favorite is cleaning) our own dinner, and lying awake at night listening for bears, which is actually a welcome diversion from trying to sleep in a well-used sleeping bag on a cot in a treated canvas-smelling tent with a bunch of snoring people and buzzing mosquitoes.

There is usually no lack of entertainment on our trips. Just watching my patient father fish is probably almost as hilarious as I imagine comedy night on a cruise ship would be. He does not appreciate the exasperating qualities of the monofilament line, so sooner or later the pole instead of the bait, the fly, or the lure ends up being flung into the water.

The best part about going on a family vacation is the bonding that takes place. By the time we get home, we are so "bonded" that we desperately need several weeks of our own space away from each other. The worst part about this vacation is going to be that there will be mules on the trip!

I want to share some of my favorite exciting but easy vacation-type recipes, because that's as close as I will come to an exotic vacation this year!

Shrimp Scampi:

1 1/2 pounds large shrimp (about 16 to 24)

1/3 C. clarified butter

4 T. minced garlic

6 green onions, thinly sliced

1/4 C. dry white wine

2 T. lemon juice, fresh if possible

2 T. chopped fresh parsley

salt and pepper, to taste

Rinse shrimp and set aside. Heat butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook garlic 1 or 2 minutes or until softened but not browned. Add shrimp, green onions, wine and lemon juice; cook until shrimp are pink and firm, about 1 to 2 minutes on each side. Do not overcook. Add chopped parsley and salt and pepper before serving. Garnish with lemon slices and parsley sprigs if desired.

Creme Brulee:

8 egg yolks

1/3 C. granulated white sugar

2 cups heavy cream

1 t. pure vanilla extract

1/4 C. granulated white sugar (for the caramelized tops)

Preheat the oven to 300ºF. In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is thick and pale yellow. Add cream and vanilla, and continue to whisk until well blended. Strain into a large bowl, skimming off any foam or bubbles.

Divide mixture among 6 ramekins or custard cups. Place ramekins in a water bath (large pan filled with 1 or 2 inches of hot water) and bake until set around the edges, but still loose in the center, about 50 to 60 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave in the water bath until cooled. Remove cups from the water bath and chill for at least 2 hours, or up to 2 days. When ready to serve, sprinkle about 2 teaspoons of sugar over each custard. For best results, use a small, hand-held torch to melt sugar. If you don't have a torch, place under the broiler until sugar melts. Re-chill custards for a few minutes before serving.

Steak roll-ups:

6 very thinly sliced boneless sirloin steaks, pounded

1 pkg. frozen spinach, thawed and drained

2 C. feta cheese (can use blue or even cream cheese)

1 pkg. Hollandaise sauce mix

Pound steaks flat and season with your favorite seasonings. Thaw and drain spinach and mix with cheese. Top steaks with cheese/spinach mixture. Roll up and put a toothpick through each one. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until desired doneness. Meanwhile, prepare Hollandaise sauce according to package directions. When steaks roll-ups are done, serve them drizzled with sauce.