Cooking in the West

We have been in the retail/food service business now for two and a half months, and many readers have asked how that is going? The answer to that is very well after the first couple days. The first couple days were not our brightest shining moments I can tell you.

On the first morning, patrons were lined up on the sidewalk fifteen minutes before we were supposed to open. We were fortunate that many customers were eagerly anticipating our opening. Our ribbon cutting ceremony was supposed to be the first thing that morning, but the Chamber of Commerce forgot it, so we opened anyway, and the fun times began. We were juggling retail sales and food orders as fast as possible, but it seemed that the line to check out was never ending. It was a great problem to have, but it did instill a sense of panic in all of us.

Between the four of us we had a lot of catering experience, but not a lot of restaurant experience. Catering is a much more controlled cooking experience wherein you work really hard, and then it is over, and you go home. About 10:30 a.m. on the first morning, I felt that it had to be time to go home. The system of ordering, preparing, and checking out that worked flawlessly in our imaginary planning meetings fell completely apart in practicality.

As the weak link in our team, I started out taking orders. This is not easy for a slightly senile person. The sandwich makers would ask, "What does no scribble scribble mean?"

I would reply, "Uh, let me see. Well, it is either no cucumber or something written in Chinese. I am not sure."

"OK, well would you ask that person who ordered the Rustler what they did not want on it?"

"Sure. Uh, yes, it was a lady with a green shirt. Uh oh, there are at least five ladies waiting out there in green shirts. Ok, just skip the cucumbers, and we will beg forgiveness if that is wrong. I knew we should not have named those sandwiches those cutesy names that I can't remember!"

The night before we opened, my daughter-in-law Shaye, who is the only person on the staff with actual previous sandwich shop experience, had suggested that we had to have creative names for the sandwiches. So, we called them Rustlers and Wranglers and Punchers and Cayuses, etc. The problem was we had not memorized them by the next day. I knew the Rustler was roast beef, and the Cayuse was chicken salad, but then my first letter system fell completely apart because the Puncher was a turkey sandwich, etc. I think some of the patrons learned the names before I did, so due largely to my ineptness I quickly got promoted from order taker to cashier.

Cashiering was more fun, but it was so tedious to look for the little box that said Rustler and push that and then push Cayuse etc. on the Point of Sales system. It was just much easier to add up the totals in my head, enter the total, and take the money or run the card. At the end of the day, the boss lady ran a report that showed her very little data. We had no idea how many Cayuses, Tenderfoots, and Bronc Busters we had sold. I said the answer to that was a lot, but Brooke did not think that was funny. I promised to do better the next day, because I was afraid that my next promotion would be to the dishwasher.

At the end of the second day, we completely reorganized the kitchen. We had to streamline this operation, or we would not make it through the week. We decided we were no longer following the Subway model where customers told us what they wanted on each custom sandwich. We moved to more of the McDonald's model where if you don't want something on your sandwich, you tell us and then most likely you pick it off yourself when we forget anyway.

The retail side was easier, but we did make one large first day mistake. Janie Carlson, one of our contributing photographers, came in and spied an amazing steak turner made by blacksmith Danny Halverson. She brought it to the counter where Brooke rang it up and said, "That will be $500.00."

Janie looked at Brooke like she was on crack and said, "What? Is it made of gold?" So Brooke showed her the price tag, and Janie politely declined to buy it. Later on we carefully examined the price tag and realized that what looked like 500 was really 50 dash, so we called Janie on her cell phone, and she came back for the $50.00 steak turner. She spied a beautiful hair on a cowhide jacket and asked, "How much is that jacket?"

I said, "Ironically it is $500. It is not made of gold, but it is a Linda Story custom made original."

Janie laughed and said, "Let's take a closer look at that price tag!"

Many of you have asked whether I got my wooden wick soy candles made in time for the opening, and the answer is no. However, when (not if) I get promoted from my present position as dishwasher, I will likely end up with the official title of custodian/candle maker, and then I will have time to make some amazing candles just in time for the upcoming holiday season!

One of the most fun things about being a camp cook for all those years was exchanging recipes with guests from all over the country who love to cook. My featured cook this week is Nancy Lord of Atlanta, Georgia. When she returned home, she sent me her favorite recipes that would work in camp or your kitchen. The Low Country Boil uses a prepared boil mix, but Nancy sent directions for the order in which to add ingredients and how long to boil each addition.

French Toast Casserole:

1 large loaf Italian bread (soft variety)

8 oz. cream cheese

cinnamon

1 1/2 C. Half and Half (or milk)

1/4 C. maple syrup

10 eggs

6 t. melted margarine

Cut most of the crust off the bread and cut into cubes. Spread a single layer of bread cubes in the bottom of a greased 9 X 13 pan. Cut cream cheese up in small cubes all over the top. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Spread another single layer of bread cubes. Whisk Half &

Half, maple syrup, eggs and melted margarine together. Pour over the casserole and gently press down so nothing is "floating" (If not quite enough liquid, pour a little more milk around). Cover and refrigerate overnight. Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes. Sprinkle it with powdered sugar if you like when it comes out. Serve with butter and syrup.

Beef Tips in Wine Sauce:

4 lbs of cut up lean roast (any cheap)

Medium onion (sliced)

1/2 # mushrooms (sliced)

1 cup red wine (cheap)

1 can beef broth (8-10 oz)

1 pkg. brown gravy mix

2 T. tomato paste

Cut roast in 1" pieces. Layer beef, onion, mushrooms in crock pot (or pot for oven or stove top). Sprinkle with gravy mix and tomato paste. Mix red wine and beef broth. Pour over top. Cook (or bake) until beef is tender. Serve over rice, egg noodles or mashed potatoes.

Low Country Boil:

Add Crab Boil packaged mix to water according to package directions. Bring to a boil.

Add potatoes (small red whole unpeeled), bring to boil, boil 10 minutes if small, 15 minutes if larger.

Add onions and beef sausage (cut into serving size pieces), bring to boil, boil for 5 minutes.

Add corn (small frozen ears), bring to boil, boil for 5 minutes.

Add shrimp (and crab legs if you like), boil just until shrimp are pink.

Cover the table with layers of newspaper, drain all the stuff well and put it in big pans to serve. Guests just throw shrimp peels on newspaper, which is rolled up when finished, and all the mess is gone!