Dining in--Minneapolis/St. Paul cookbook

In 1884 Charles Jackson built the landmark Jackson House hotel in Anoka, which then thrived with a booming lumber trade. Folks made a half-day horse and buggy pleasure trip from Minneapolis, or a Mississippi riverboat excursion, simply to relax at the Jackson House and dine on its fabled shipped-in blue point oysters or out-of-season strawberries. But the days of lumber glory faded. By the mid-seventies, the town’s oldest building had become an eyesore and was destined for destruction until Mary Helen rescued it and returned it to its former handsome state. The historical preservation project became a family . affair. Son Marc restored the patterned tin ceilings, recreated the oak portals and pillars of its earlier days, and replaced the Victorian chandeliers and stained-glass windows. Heavy lace curtains and watercolors of local scenes now grace its wainscoted walls above clusters of posy-decked, candlelit tables dressed in green. “We are able to reach people who want well-prepared food at reasonable prices,” Mary Helen states. “It wouldn’t be possible for me to have a place that was any different.” Although a novice restaurateur, her exemplary cooking has long been the talk of the town. For decades she has taught fine French cuisine around the city—indeed, around the world, as premier assistant to Simca—Simone Beck, France’s high priestess of haute cuisine. Mary Helen has molded her kitchen staff to Simca’s high standards and creative cooking philosophy. “The recipes are basically hers, but Iinject something of my own to suit our local produce. My cooking style is French because that’s where the basic idea of good cooking came from, and those basics are still so good—vegetables that are not overcooked, sauces that are not overpowering. “Basically what we’re doing is the fine home cooking of France—if you have a good home cook,” Mary Helen grins. “It’s not elaborate, and it doesn’t have to be. We try to keep everything simple: fresh fish, always a lamb dish, fresh spinach. No packages. We don’t use anything a second day. The menu depends on the market—local products plus imagination.” 214 Jackson Street Anoka De Ww PSS on CONSOMME ROYALE i pound beef bones with 1 teaspoon salt marrow, cracked 1 teaspoon peppercorns 3 pounds veal knuckles, 3 sprigs fresh thyme or cut in pieces Y. teaspoon hed Bones from 1 stewing thyme leaves chicken 1 sprig marjoram or 3 pounds lean bat cut Ya teaspoon dried in 1¥2-inch cubes marjoram leaves 1 carrot, coarsely chopped 4 parsley sprigs 1 stalkcelery, coarsely 1 Frenchor Turkish bay leaf chopped 4 eggwhites, lightly beaten 1 leek, cut in 2-inch pieces 4 eggshells, crushed 1 onion, peeled and studded ROYAL CUSTARD with 5 cloves (see next page) . Preheat oven to 400°. . A day in advance, place the beef bones, veal knuckles, and chicken bones in a roasting pan. Brown the bones in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Add the beef cubes and bake 30 minutes longer, turning to brown well on all sides. . Remove roasting pan from oven. Place the browned bones and beef cubes with 4 quarts water in a large stockpot. Deglaze the roasting pan over moderate heat with 2 cups water, stirring and scraping the solidified pan juices. Add to stockpot and let stand for % hour. . Place over moderate heat and slowly bring toa boil. Reduce heat and simmer 3 to 5 hours, removing scum as it gathers on the surface. . Add the carrot, celery, leek, and onion with cloves and return to a boil. Add the salt, peppercorns, thyme, marjoram, parsley, and bay leaf. Reduce heat and simmer 1/2 to 2 hours. Remove from heat, cool slightly, and strain into a clean pot through a sieve lined with dampened cheesecloth. Refrigerate overnight. (continued next page)