FOOD AND FIREARMS

In 1971, when I was 15, I learned two things: I loved the restaurant business and having a gun in my possession empowered me. I remembered that as I prepared a salad for dinner last night and was reminded of my first official, go-to-work, get-a-check job. I was hired at the Westwood Inn on Green Lake to work in the kitchen as a “salad girl.”

The salad bar concept was making its debut out this way in the early 70’s. Our salad bar at Westwood was a long table covered with a white linen cloth in the corner of the dining room. No sneeze guard, no ice compartments. It was laden with lettuce and all the fixings, salad dressings and soups and other accompaniments like cole slaw, potato saladin larger ice-filled bowls, and mountains of freshly baked popovers under a heat lamp.

My job was to prep dozens of heads of iceberg lettuce, the only choice of greens back then, by peeling the outer leaves, knocking the stem out of the bottom with one swift blow on a hard surface which left the core on the counter, and placing the heads in tubs covered with damp dish towels. On a Saturday night, we could go through at least a dozen or two heads. I also made up the dressings, exotic French, bleu cheese and Italian, and cruets of oil and vinegar available for the calorie conscious. I diligently patrolled the table, replenishing the bowls and keeping it tidy.

I loved my job and worked my way up to other positions: hostessing, waiting tables in the restaurant and serving and bartending in the cocktail lounge. Burt Lundberg played the organ on weekend nights and couples danced on the lower level glassed-in patio as the moon rose over Green Lake. Pretty romantic. It was a beautiful place to learn the ins and outs of food, which I never stopped being passionate about. 

On weekends, I didn’t get out of the kitchen very early and, after breaking down the salad bar and cleaning up my station, I would have to walk across the dark parking lot, lit only by tiki torches, across the road and into a gravel lot next to a wooded area to get into my car. My mother, always safety-conscious, made me carry a gun in the car. That was to protect me if I went in the ditch or had a flat tire on the way home and encountered a thug on a lonely country road. Where I really should have had the gun was on my walk to the car. For weeks, I was stalked by one of the creepiest men I have ever seen, with wild hair, a cock-eye and one black glove. But that’s another story. He disappeared in a night, never to surface again. Much like the old Westwood Inn itself. It burned to the ground on December 7, 1974. I, along with most of the staff, stood shivering in the snow, tears of sadness sliding down our frozen cheeks as we said goodbye to our dear friend.

I often relive my years at that lovely place and remember the fun we all had and the bonds that were forged. I think it is safe to say, most of us, if things were different, would be working there still.  

WESTWOOD WEDGE

1 head iceberg lettuce, cut into 4 wedges

Cherry tomatoes, halved

Bacon, fried crisp and crumbled (reserve 4 slices for garnish)

Bleu cheese

Bleu cheese dressing

Fresh cracked pepper

Place iceberg wedges on 4 plates. Top and surround with tomatoes. Drizzle bleu cheese dressing over lettuce. Sprinkle bacon and bleu cheese crumbles over top. Add fresh cracked pepper. Place 1 slice crisp bacon on top for garnish. 

SALAD BAR POPOVERS

1-1/2 tablespoons butter, melted

1-1/2 cups flour

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 large eggs, room temperature

1-1/2 cups milk, room temperature

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Generously grease popover pan or glass custard cups with softened butter. Place pans in oven for 2 minutes to preheat. Meanwhile, whisk together flour, salt, eggs, milk and melted butter until smooth. Batter will be thin. Fill popover pan or cups less than half full and bake for 30 minutes. Don’t open oven while baking. Remove and serve immediately with honey butter.

ARMED AND DANGEROUS BUCKSHOT BROWNIES

1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup cocoa

1/2 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup toffee bits

Powdered sugar

In a mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in cocoa, flour, salt and baking powder. When totally combined, blend in toffee bits. Spread in a greased 8 inch square pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Sprinkle powdered sugar over top. Cool and cut into squares.