Shoestring Gourmet: Winter Dining

by Alan Gore

December’s Shoestring was our annual holiday brunch, always one of our more well-attended events. As we noshed on Ken Brown’s pickled herring appetizer, Gerry Brazelton served mimosas (Korbel and Freixenet champagne with orange juice) to gentle us into the seasonal mood. The three-cook team of Joice and Chuck Braden and mother Janet Penney offered added some piquant appetizers: Canadian National sliced salame with black pepper and salmon rolls with cream cheese and dill. As the table was readied for entrees, Glenn Case set out homemade San Francisco and New England style sourdough bread, made from starters over 250 years old.

Now things got serious. Pat Hull brought out spicy Cajun chicken fruit salad to introduce our entrées. Ursula Gore’s crisp potato pancakes just cried out for Chuck and Joice’s cinnamon applesauce. Linda Brazelton served hot Mennonite casserole with ham and eggs. Though the day started cold, the weather turned so warm by the time we ate that the party expanded outdoors onto the sunny patio tables.

By now, every Shoestringer knows how to operate the Gore coffee grinder-brewer, which serves each cup fresh from scratch. Our much-anticipated dessert, Jane Khatiblou’s blueberry and peach crepes, sprinkled with powdered sugar and topped with whipped cream, was a fitting finish to a grand brunch.

Our theme for January will be the hearty foods of winter, and our host will be Pat Hull, who has brought us all those great Thanksgivings. Envision warming soups, bountiful salads, meaty stews and other stick-to-the-rib entrees, and rich winter desserts. We will be getting together on Saturday, January 12 at 6 pm. Please call Pat before Thursday, January 10 at 602-863-4855 to coordinate dishes.