Ecclefechan Scottish Tarts

When I asked my sister if I could bring a Scottish tart to Thanksgiving dinner, she said, "If (your wife) doesn't mind it isn't my place to judge."  So I brought one.

A southern Scotland tradition, these tarts are named for the village of Ecclefechan, a suburb of Lockerbie (much as Christmas is a suburb of Bithlo here in Central Florida).  They consist of a shortbread crust with a filling of sugar, eggs, nuts and dried fruit.  Some better known cousins include pecan pies, Canadian butter tarts, mince pies and shoo-fly pies.

I got the recipe from a friend we visited on vacation, Peg Murray. In addition to Thanksgiving, I've made them for office and church festivities where a number of people have asked for the recipe, so here it is.

Use two 9" tart pans (with removable bottoms) or 9" round cake pans lined with heavy foil.  Only bring the crust partway up the sides.

Preheat oven to 375°

Ingredients
Crust
3 c flour
8 oz butter, softened
6 T sugar
3 egg yolks

Filling
3 eggs
6 oz butter, melted
9 oz light brown sugar
3 T wine vinegar
12 oz mixed dried fruit ( I like to use Welch's Berry Medley - raisins, cherries, cranberries and blueberries -  but suit yourself)
3 oz walnuts

Directions
Crust
With mixer or food processor, whip butter.
Add all other ingredients and mix until it holds together in a ball.
Divide in half
Press into tart pans to form crusts

Filling
Chop fruit and walnuts until small - 1/8"
Mix all ingredients thoroughly
Divide between two crusts
Bake at 375° for 20-30 minutes

Serve at room temperature

Ith gu leòir!  (Bon appetit!)

Different Donuts

A Maple Frosted Donut topped with Bacon.  How could I not try it?

The morning after Thanksgiving in Ft. Myers, I asked my phone where to find the best breakfast. It recommended Bennett's Fresh Roast, right across the street from my hotel.  It was a great recommendation, and I had asked for the the best in town, not the closest.

The Maple Applewood Bacon Donut was indeed excellent, as was the cinnamon roll, which used a very flavorful extra cinnamony spice.  My wife enjoyed a seasonal donut with pumpkin pie filling in the center.

Bennett is about freshness: the donuts are made from scratch and the coffee is roasted daily, all on premises.  In addition to the usual glazed, chocolate, cinnamon and maple bacon donuts, you'll find Key Lime, Peanut Butter Chocolate, Orange Coconut, and more.

It doesn't stop with donuts. Next time I'm in town I'll try some Praline Bread Pudding. They also have soups, salads and sandwiches for lunch along with wine and beer. (Maple Bacon Donut with beer...no, I'd better not.)

Bennett's is located just west US 41 a block from the Caloosahatchee River. It has seating indoors and outdoors with plenty of parking and wifi.

The only downside I could find is that I don't live in Ft. Myers.  Maybe that's fortunate.

Bennett's Fresh Roast
2011 Bayside Parkway
Fort Myers, FL

Scottish Cocktail

"To a large measure of Scotch add one large measure o' whisky." - from The Tannahill Weavers

Sounds like a heap of fine sippin'.

Saucy Grub

There is good food and good fun, but Famous Dave's is really all about the sauce.  Its signature ingredient seems to be an extra scoop of cumin, giving it a more chili-ish flavor than most barbecue sauces.  First time visitors get a tour of the sauces from their Famous® server, ours was Famous® Amanda, who squirts samples of the five types onto a plate and leaves some chips for sampling them.  The chips, by the way, are excellent on their own.

Loaded Baked Potato

Chicken and Ribs

In fact, most of the grub we tried was quite good, from my wife's Fried Chicken Salad to Mom's Baked Potato loaded with everything including chopped pork.  My chicken was fork tender and juicy, the BBQ beans flavored with sausage and occasional chunks of jalepeño for kicks, and Cornbread right between the sweet corn muffins I like and the plain, crumbly bread many prefer.  Ribs were the weakest link: while juicy and fall off the bone tender, they had no real flavor of their own, though that did make them a good platform for enjoying the sauce.

This is a chain, but the good kind that gives a town another option without saturating the market. I've been to one before in the Atlanta area and all of Florida has only three.  But they seem consistently good and I'd recommend them anywhere.

Famous Dave's
12148 South Cleveland Avenue

Ft. Myers, FL 33907

We're #10! We're #10!

Doug's Grub started July 25 at #62 on Urbanspoon's ranking of Orlando food blogs.  Today it broke into the Top 10.  Check back tomorrow to see how we celebrated.

Texas Q in Winter Park

Sliders

When I'm hankering for a barbecue sandwich, the best one I know of in these parts is at 4 Rivers Smokehouse in Winter Park.  It's the Burnt-End Sandwich, a mix of brisket and pulled pork that works just right.  Add the BBQ Beans, some Collards and a big cup of iced tea -  you have Lunch!  If you don't like things mixed up, go with sliders, same stuff in multiple buns.

The sandwiches does make the trip worthwhile, but every thing else I've tried, including the beans and collards, is just a point or two above standard.  The one item that has disappointed is the Cornbread Salad.  According to the menu, this is "Crumbled cornbread served with a sweet tomato dressing over chopped Romaine and topped with bacon."  I was surprised that everything was well stirred, not tossed, making terms like "over...Romain" and "topped with" irrelevant and a lot less appetizing than the description.  Twice.

You may want to consider public transportation to get there as the parking is limited and the crowds aren't.  In the nearby neighborhood, authorities have posted, and presumably enforce, signs while some residents have curbs that can ruin a set of tires.

Overall, though, it's a decent place for Q, especially if you're hankering for a sammich.

Four Rivers Smokehouse
2103 W. Fairbanks Avenue
Winter Park, FL

Hope and Change

Servers, here's a tip.  When I hand you two twenties for a $30 tab and hope to keep it all by asking, "Do you need change?", you're wrong. I hear, "May I have all your change for my tip?"  I generally leave a decent amount, but if you request a gratuity, that irritates me and I will leave less.  If you say, "I'll be right back with your change,"  I appreciate your consideration and may even leave more than I had planned.

Words do matter.

Globetrotting with Nico

No Longer in Business
Nico Globos (loosely translated – “Nico the Globetrotter”) is a place to go and be charmed.  Its European personality pervades everything;  the decor, the menu, even the staff.  It's a friendly personality, maybe too friendly for some tastes but it works for me.

Nico Globos

Located in what passes for downtown in Lake Mary, far from the Heathrow bustle across the interstate, you first notice the outdoor dining area.  Local folk probably already occupy many of the five umbrella shaded tables, sip wine, read and perhaps charge a cell phone.  But before you get to the door, one of them may hop up and introduce herself as owner Anita and wish you a pleasant visit.

Indoors you find more continental flavors with iron chandeliers and sconces, stone floors, and wine barrels lining a narrow space, a half dozen booths on one side and a handful of tables for two on the other.  Anita apologizes for the paper menu, which I thought was unnecessary since it changes about twice a week.  I like this and a menu that changes often makes me more likely to come back often.  I'd hate to be a server trying to keep up, though.

Nico's House Salad

Now to the food, quite good for both of us.  For starters my wife has Nico's House Salad, which turns out to be the star of the evening; field greens, cheese, pears, nuts with a tangy sweet red wine vinaigrette.  I lead off with the Lobster Bisque, golden and properly smooth with tomato prominent in the flavor, which would be perfect with a pinch less salt.

Penne Past with Shrimp and Spinach

The entrees are Portabella (sic) Stuffed Raviolli sauteed in butter which would keep my lady's interest from start to finish (a feat) and Penne Pasta with Shrimp and Spinach sauteed in olive oil and spices.  There's too much food on my plate to finish it all.

To wash it down, I'm introduced to Turbo Dog English Style Brown Ale, the closest American beverage I've found to my favorite, Newcastle.

At $50+ for two dinners, a beer and no dessert, the pricing feels a little steep at what is essentially a neighborhood eatery.  But to be fair, on another occasion I made two lunches out of the $8 curried chicken salad.  Maybe I just don't do enough globetrotting.

Watch out for that guy in the next booth.

Nico Globos
124 4th Street
Lake Mary, FL

Crotchets

Crotchets are those posts wherein I display my crotchetiness.  For example:

I enjoy attentive servers.  They ask intelligent questions like, "May I refill your tea?" or, "Do you need more butter for your bread?"

I don't enjoy servers who demonstrate that they aren't paying attention by asking, "Is everything okay?"  That makes me feel like they are just showing the flag under management orders.  Or maybe there is something wrong with the food and they wonder whether I've noticed it yet.

And don't get me started on those who ask "How does everything look?" two seconds after they set it on the table.  I'm not an art critic, I'm hungry.

I Even Ordered the Haggis

Scotland's Saltire
The World's oldest national flag

In Florida, Scottish restaurants are as hard to find as Nessie, unless you include McDonald's and “Duncan” Donuts. As far as I can tell there is one place in the state that claims that designation, MacAllister's in Lakewood Ranch. I recently had a chance to stop by on a visit to Sarasota.

MacAllister's Grill and Tavern has two themes – Scotland and golf. In fact, I would say it's mainly a Golfing theme with a Scottish flavor. The outdoor seating looks nice but since it was raining we dined inside where the décor was tavern style with lots of wood, booths and golf. In our room, the walls held pictures of castles, golf courses and a tribute to Payne Stuart.

On the menu, a flag beside various items indicated Scots inspiration but that was actually a little confusing when the Seafood Pasta was marked as Scottish but the Highland Chicken wasn't. Many items were obvious, though, like Steak Pie, a number of Salmon dishes and Haggis.

Haggis and Tatties

On principle, I started with the Haggis and Tatties appetizer. Like most people, I'm not really fond of what Robert Burns called the “Great chieftan o' the puddin race”, but I actually found this version tasty: a slice of haggis wrapped with mashed potoatoes, deep fried, then topped with onion strings and served with a gorgonzola and whisky sauce.

My entree, the Edinburgh broil, was essentially a London broil given a Scottish name, a nice rosemary sauce, and another helping of tatties.  Pretty good for $10. My wife is a sucker for Chicken Pot Pie and said this was one of her better ones.

The (Scottish) Beer List

There is also a fair selection of Scots beverages, though I skipped them since my next activity for the evening was to be driving to Orlando in the rain.  Next time I will enjoy a bottle or two of Old Engine Oil.

Over all, the food is decent and the prices reasonable. It's a good place to go and pretend to be a Scotsman or a golfer for a little while.

MacAllister's Grill and Tavern
8110 Lakewood Main Street 
Lakewood Ranch, Fl 34202

Happy Burgerday to...

I went to a birthday party the other day and this was the cake.

Bellissimo Indeed

Bottom to top - Pollo Bellissimo,
Spinaci e Fagioli, Pollo Sofia and my wife

No Longer in Business

Angelo is the best thing about Bellissimo in Altamonte Springs.  He greets you with a handshake, a grin, a hearty "Buona sera!" and maybe kisses the ladies (well he gave my wife one, anyway - I need to explain the restaurant term bussing to him).  One of the partners, he makes the rounds of the dozen or so tables and makes sure everyone is having a party, even encouraging guests to chat with strangers at other tables.  It's a neighborhood place and he tries to make everyone feel like neighbors.

For Angelo to surpass the food is quite a feat.  I'm certain the restaurant is named for its Pollo Bellissimo and not the other way around.  Chicken breasts pounded pancake thin, sautéed and topped with mushrooms in a brandy balsamic sauce is without doubt the best Italian dish I have ever been served.

My wife claimed her Pollo Sofia was even better.  It was another sautéed breast covered with an herbal white sauce on a bed of spinach.  I tasted it and she does have an argument.

Spinaci e Fagioli

The accompaniments were also praiseworthy:  the sautéed veggies were well seasoned and flavorful (I usually consider zucchini strictly ornamental) and roasted potatoes coated with olive oil were light and delicious.  One side item, Spinaci e Fagioli - spinach and beans - sounded too interesting to pass up so I ordered it for myself.  What I got for my $3 was a family sized plate of white beans and properly wilted spinach that we shared and then took the other half home.

My half of the Caesar Salad

Only the starters seemed weak, the bread and the greens in the house salad were standard commercial fare, pleasant but not up to the rest of the menu.  To be fair, though, we split an excellent Caeser Salad on our second visit, so we'll probably go that route from now on.

If you live near Altamonte Springs and want to meet some neighbors over dinner, Bellissimo is a good place.

Bellissimo Ristorante Italiano
520 West State Road 436 - Suite 1112
Altamonte Springs

Fish Tacos? Eeuwww...er...uh...pretty good

Wall art at Fresh on the Fly

The ladies were hungry and I'd still never had a fish taco, so we paid another visit to Fresh on the Fly in Lake Mary.

Mom wanted fried shrimp but that only comes in a Po' Boy Sandwich, so she got the Po' Boy without the sandwich.  Her rating: the best fried shrimp in my life!  She's been eating them for over 80 years, so that opinion deserves some respect.

Wife had the same and called it good but the breading had a little too much black pepper for her taste.  (Full disclosure: she and pepper are not close friends.)

Fish Tacos with Red Beans & Rice

The fish tacos were surprisingly good, though the Spicy Pineapple Salsa, while tasty, was quite tame for me.  Pepper and I are best buds.  Next time I'll opt for the blackened fish instead of fried.  The real star of my order was the Red Beans and Rice, worth a trip on it's own.

Coconut Creme Bar

I like their desserts.  Rather than seeing how much sweet stuff you can cram down after your meal, they give you just  the right amount to top it off.  We split Key Lime Pie and a Coconut  Bar.  The pie was better than most I've had,  just a tangy filling and crust with a hint of topping.  If you do need a finish with some substance, the coconut bar is good.  Sort of a heavy cheesecake with freshly whipped cream.

Mom has gone home, now, so we'll have to find another excuse to eat here.   Red beans and rice sounds good for lunch tomorrow.

A New Game in Town

No longer in Business

A good burger starts with a patty that has been hand pressed just enough to hold together. At Line Drive Burgers in Lake Mary they know this and do it well.

If you're from one of those places where they think cricket is a game instead of bait, or that football is played with a round ball, the name might not tell you that at this burger shop, baseball is the game.  Inside, though, it's obvious from the wall decor and especially the menu.  The burgers come in five sizes - the single, the double, the triple, the Grand Slam and the Ty Cobb.  Keeping up with the theme, dogs and brats are available and even Cracker Jack, though I didn't see any popcorn.  Or beer.

I ordered a single and was invited to fill my cup and have a seat until my name was called for the fixin's.  When my burger was done, they slid it onto a warm roll and added my usual lettuce, onions ("fresh or grilled, sir?") with spicy mustard, and handed me the basket and my bag of taters.

"Fretatas" are thick, crinkle cut potato chips served in a paper bag and crunchy enough to be heard across the room.  They are flavorful, despite being unseasoned, and are not greasy.  I even enjoyed the leftovers at dinner.

There are only six tables and the four toppers will only seat four close friends, and business was brisk enough that I expect it to outgrow the place before long.  The owners cultivate a community involvement flavor by donating 5% of sales to charities (a different one each week) and by inviting artists to show their stuff on several chalkboards around the walls.

My only downside was that the water for the soda fountain seemed to need more filtering than it was getting.  Not a good flavor.

Single burger, Fretata and large drink cost about $9, more than I usually spend for lunch but I'll do it again.

On Broadway...

We have to go all the way to Broadway to get our pizza, but fortunately, Broadway Ristorante & Pizzeria is just down the street on SR 434 about where Altamonte Springs meets Longwood.  As the word Ristorante implies, there is more on the menu than pizza and it all looks very good, but we are just suckers for pie.  This is the best we've found without travelling out of town or back in time to college days (Mano's RIP).  The crust is relatively thin hand-tossed covered with a very New York Italian sauce with toppings sliced, chopped or sprinkled exactly right, for me anyway.

One thing I notice - call me weird - is when pizza and pasta places understand the two different lids for condiment shakers.  Round holes are for powders like Parmesan cheese: slotted openings are for the larger goodies, especially red pepper flakes.  As the picture shows, someone here gets it.

My only complaint is they no longer serve Newcastle, my preferred beverage with pizza.  The selection is still large enough I can choose from among Guinness, Bass and some other quite acceptable potables, but I still give them a hard time about it.

This neighborhood place seats about 30-40 inside with the bar and maybe twice that outside under canopies, where entertainers occasionally do their thing.

Tonight we had a large pie with mushrooms, onions and pepperoni, one beer and two sodas for about $27.

What Are Grits ???

I received the following information concerning grits in an email from one of the fellas up by Savannah:

 Nobody knows.  Some folks believe grits are grown on bushes and are harvested by midgets by shaking the bushes after spreading sheets around them.  Many people feel that grits are made from ground up bits of white corn. These are obviously lies spread by Communists and terrorists.  Nothing as good as Grits can be made from corn.

The most recent research suggests that the mysterious Manna that God rained down upon the Israelites during their time in the Sinai Desert was most likely Grits.  Critics disagree,  stating that there is no record of biscuits, butter, salt and red eye gravy raining down from the sky and that God would not punish his people by forcing them to eat Grits without these key ingredients.

A reasonable story but possibly inaccurate. 

How Grits are Formed. Grits are formed deep underground under intense heat and pressure.  It takes over 1000 years to form a single Grit.  Most of the world's grit mines are in South Carolina and are guarded day and night by armed guards and pit bull dogs.  Harvesting the Grit is a dangerous occupation and many Grit miners lose their lives each year so that Grits can continue to be served morning after morning for breakfast (not that having Grits for lunch and dinner is out of the question).

That was supposed to be Top Secret.  Gotta ask Hal. 

Yankees have attempted to create synthetic Grits.  They call it Cream of Wheat.  As far as we can tell, the key ingredients of Cream of Wheat are Elmer's Glue and shredded Styrofoam.  These synthetic grits have also been shown to cause nausea, and may leave you unable to have children.

Absolutely factual. 

The 10 Commandments of Grits.

    I.   Thou shalt not put syrup on thy Grits..

   II.   Thou shalt not eat thy Grits with a spoon or knife.

  III.   Thou shalt not eat Cream of Wheat and call it Grits, for this is blasphemy.

 IV.  Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's Grits.

  V.  Thou shalt use only salt, butter and red-eye gravy as toppings for thy Grits.

 VI.  Thou shalt not eat Instant Grits.

 VII.  Thou shalt not put ketchup on thy Grits.

VIII.  Thou shalt not put margarine on thy Grits.

IX.   Thou shalt not eat toast with thy Grits, only biscuits made from scratch.

 X.   Thou shalt eat grits on the Sabbath for this is manna from heaven.

AMEN. 

How to Eat Grits. Immediately after removing your grits from the stove top, add a generous portion of butter or red eye gravy.  WARNING:  Do NOT use low-fat butter. The butter should cause the Grits to turn a wondrous shade of yellow.  Hold a banana or a yellow rain slicker next to your Grits. If the colors match, you have the correct amount of butter.

In lieu of butter, pour a generous helping of red eye gravy on your grits.  Be sure to pour enough to have some left for sopping up with your biscuits.  Never, ever substitute canned or store bought biscuits for the real thing because they can cause cancer, rotten teeth and impotence.

Next, add salt.  The correct ratio of Grit to Salt is 10:1.  Therefore, for every 10 grits, you should have 1 grain of salt.

Now begin eating your grits.  Always use a fork, never a  spoon, to eat Grits.  Your grits should be thick enough so they do not run through the tines of the fork.

That last paragraph addressed the second problem with the grits in my previous post: proper grits should be about the consistency of mashed  potatoes.  If you need a bowl or a spoon, someone in the kitchen was thinking cream of wheat. 

The correct beverage to serve with Grits is black coffee.  

...poured into a saucer a few sips at a time and blown on until the proper temp (my grandpa's method).

DO NOT use cream or, heaven forbid, Skim Milk.

Not to mention powdered creamer. 

Your grits should never be eaten in a bowl because Yankees will think its Cream of Wheat.

IRISH BLESSING BEFORE EATING GRITS

May the lord bless these grits, 

May no Yankee ever get the recipe,

May I eat grits every day while living,

And may I die while eating grits.

AMEN

One last remark - the foregoing treats "grits" as plural.  Some hold the view that the term is singular (or collective) like "meal" and the grammatically correct question would be "What is grits."  Where the word came from isn't really known but could be a metathetic variation of "grist", much like ask and aks or chipotle and chipolte.

GOT GRITS? :-)

Southern Surprise at White Wolf

We often look for excuses to eat at the White Wolf Cafe, and my Mom visiting us this week made a good one.  She likes this place as much as we do.

A funky (do people still use that word) cafe in the middle of Orlando's Bohemian/Antique district, White Wolf started as an antique shop itself and visible price tags tell you that much of the decor is still for sale.

Cloths never hide the polished marble table tops (sides left rough) and that, along with the tile flooring, means there is nothing to dampen the busy restaurant noises.  To me this is just auditory decor, but it could bother some in my age bracket.

My wife ordered the Moroccan Salad, chunks of chicken breast tossed with bananas, raisins and nuts in chopped romaine with a sweet curry dressing.  She asked for the croissant in the picture, it usually comes with wedges of pita.

This is our mutual favorite and we often just order one to share - at White Wolf you always get more than you can eat.  

We didn't share this time, though.  My surprise was one of the specials on the chalk board - Country Fried Steak with sausage gravy, eggs and potatoes.  It's always been on the menu, but I had never noticed it amongst items like the aforementioned salad, Citrus Salmon Salad, kabobs and lasagna.

They call it country fried but I'd say chicken fried steak.  Wrapped in a thick but light, flaky crust, it was better than Grandma used to make, and I loved hers.  The gravy was loaded with sausage flavor and just the right spiciness.

I substituted grits for the potatoes and as good as the place is, they don't understand this dish.  It wasn't seasoned at all, and a second issue is visible in my picture.  Tell me what you think it is in the comments and check back in a couple of days for my upcoming post on grits.

Mom had the Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich, which was excellent despite not being a real Philly - no Cheese Whiz.  That's okay, I don't keep it in the house either.

The next day we had leftovers for lunch, with the wife and me splitting the remaining salad and steak.  Still yummy.

Sloppi Giuseppi

Tonight I threw together some Italian Sloppy Joes for dinner; simple quick and a little different.

Using	Do This
medium skillet olive oil	Heat to medium
1/2 green pepper, sliced thinly 1/2 medium onion, sliced thinly 1 garlic clove, minced	Add to oil and cook until pepper begins to soften. Remove from oil and set aside.
1 lb Italian sausage	Crumble into skillet and sauté until well browned. Drain fat and return veggies to the skillet.
14 oz jar of your favorite store-bought  spaghetti sauce	Add to skillet and let heat for about 10 minutes.
4 Hoagie rolls, provolone slices	Slice roll, line with cheese and fill with the sausage mixture.

Pancakes and Ponce de Leon

My theory about Ponce de Leon and the Fountain of Youth says that when the Spanish explorer discovered and named la Florida on Easter Sunday in 1513, spring break was in full swing at the native village of Daytona.  Seeing that the revelers were mostly under twenty years old and their behavior even more adolescent, he thought something in the water must be reversing the effects of age. He didn’t realize the coconut shells with little palmetto leaf umbrellas sticking out of them contained a liquid they called dai-quiri.

Okay, it’s just a theory, but thanks to his search for the Fountain of Youth, old Ponce got a governorship.  He was the first Florida promoter to use the Fountain story and today a number of places claim to be the site of his spring, including at least two different state parks.  One of them is Deleon Springs State Park, located in the west Volusia County town of Deleon Springs.  The town was known as Spring Garden until it changed its name in 1882 to hype a new resort.  See a pattern?

The park is worth a visit and in keeping with the youth theme, be sure to bring the kids.  They will love The Old Spanish Sugar Mill Grill & Griddle House where guests cook their own pancakes.

Most Florida parks have some kind of restaurant or canteen, but this may be the only one that has a wait time of an hour or more before seating guests, at least on a sunny Saturday morning.  That isn’t a bad thing, though, since there is plenty to do while waiting.  Within just a few steps is the rejuvenating spring (72º - works every time), with swimming, sunning, fishing, canoeing, and even spring diving for those with scuba gear. If you are in the water when your party is called, don’t worry: the dress code asks only that you dry off thoroughly before entering.

Inside, there are two rooms packed with as many tables as possible, each seating up to ten and having two griddles built into the top. Bare legs can feel the heat radiating from the underside of the table, but there is enough wooden tabletop surrounding the cooking surface to insure a safe distance and provide a place for the metal lumberjack style plates.  Servers deliver two pitchers to the table, one with a regular white batter (“It’s supposed to have the lumps,” they explain to newbies,) and the other a five grain blend, along with any toppings requested, which can include chocolate chips, pecans, bananas, peanut butter and other goodies.  All that is missing is a teppanyaki chef named Ranger Bob juggling spatulas.

Lacking a chef, the server gives a quick lesson in pancake cookery – spray some oil on the griddle, pour batter on it until it looks like enough, then add your topping.  When it bubbles, flip it and let it finish cooking.  The five grain mix takes a little longer. You are now a chef, please don’t juggle the spatulas.

The pancakes are good, depending, of course, on the chef’s skill, and they don’t really need the add-ins, although the Mrs. enjoyed some very youthful chocolate chips in hers.  The five-grain version had an interesting nutty flavor, but we kept going back to the plain.  It’s all you can eat, so whenever a pitcher comes up empty, another appears from the kitchen.  One minor disappointment: there is honey and maple syrup to drizzle over your cakes, but if you don’t want that Yankee stuff, they don't have cane syrup, only molasses.  It’s close, but not the same.

It isn’t all pancakes, though.  In addition, there actually is a kitchen serving up sides of bacon, sausage, ham and eggs, all tasty enough to complement the tabletop masterpieces, or if you just want to skip the flapjacks, they can bring you French toast, a sandwich or a salad.

As required at such places, there is a small gift shop where those who find “all you can eat” is not enough can purchase Old Spanish Sugar Mill Pancake Mix, as well as Florida survival gear like insect repellent, gator tail jerky and datil pepper sauce.

This is a place that every Central Florida resident should experience at least once, but don’t come just to eat.  Bring the kids, make a day of it and get young.

Belgian Decadence

This is my version of the treat sold on the street at the New York World's Fair. Vendors built a wall of whipped cream around the top of the a Belgian waffle and filled the interior with fresh sliced strawberries. I still don't think it's a real Belgian Waffle unless it features strawberries and whipped cream.

Ingredients:
• 2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
• 1 oz Grand Marnier liqueur
• 2 tbsp powdered sugar
• 2 Belgian Waffles
• Stiffly whipped cream
• Optional: cinnamon and powdered sugar

Mix the strawberries, Grand Marnier and powdered sugar. Let marinate for ten to fifteen minutes.

Place a freshly cooked Belgian waffle on a plate. Make a wall of whipped cream around the top and fill the center with the strawberries.

If desired, dust with cinnamon and/or powdered sugar.
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Strawberries done this way are also great for shortcake, especially if you use fresh baked biscuits instead of storebought sponge cake cups.