Wagon Wheel Restaurant

 I've always had a soft spot for the food and traditions of the American South. Hushpuppies, meat and three, grits, she-crab soup are dishes -- though they weren't served in my childhood home -- I grew up revering and wanting to make part of my future home's culinary lexicon.
As a rambling spirit on countless road trips through the south's backroads I tasted these and many other specialties and took to heart the rural tradition of quality cooking from scratch. The way my grandmother cooked and the way I've always been determined to cook myself.
These days I have cause to worry about that precious tradition. In countless grocery stores here in Charlotte I still see self rising flour, mercifully, but only instant grits, no hoop cheese, more ready-made mixes than ingredients.
Sadly the streets are rimmed with more Olive Gardens and Friday's than locally owned home cooking spots. The Wagon Wheel in South Carolina is one such survivor. Though they've "modernized" with a salad bar instead of vegetable sides in the evening they still offer a menu of home cooked traditional entrees -- country ham with redeye gravy, sugar cured ham, pork chops -- along with shrimp, steaks and sandwiches and their specialty, fried squash. Crispy and honestly somewhat bland the squash has an addictive crunch that pairs perfectly with the side of ranch (not homemade) dressing. The country ham was super salty but a great combo with coleslaw (off the salad bar) and the restaurant's homemade yeast rolls.
Was the Wagon Wheel's food itself worth the long drive from Charlotte. Maybe. Was preserving the style restaurant where the bread is homemade and the waitress calls you "dear." worth traveling for? Any day!

Bill Spoons Barbecue

Still on the search for quality barbecue here in Charlotte, I wandered into Bill Spoons, a South Avenue restaurant (not a BBQ shack by any means) with fairly good online reviews. Spoons proudly announces that they have been "cooking the whole hog since 1963." What they don't announce is that the hog is not cooked over wood. There is no smoke coming out of Spoons and not much smoke favor in the finely chopped meat, served plain with sauce on the side. But, I do really like their puckery, vinegary slight spicy sauce.

Barbeque In Charlotte

Among Barbeque aficionados North carolina is justly famous for two unique regional sauces. In the Eastern part of the state (I have to admit I'm not really sure where that dividing line is) the meat is sparsely sauced (maybe moistened is a better word) with a "sauce" of vinegar, sugar and chili peppers. To be considered real BBQ in this part of the state whole hogs are slow cooked and then chopped (almost minced) to be sprinkled with the assertive sauce. The meat is the star here with no thick sauce to cover sub-standard cooking. Ask for barbeque and this finely chopped pork is what you'll get. Cool creamy cole slaw with the astringent sauce is one of the culinary world's great combinations. A taste worth traveling for.

In the Western part of the state cooks use a proper sauce, still with a vinegar base but generally sweetened and thickened with ketchup and whatever creative ingredients your pit master deems worthy. At first glance Western NC style will seem more familiar to BBQ eaters from around the country -- heavy sauce on pit cooked meat (pork shoulder not whole hog) -- but the tangy sauce will be a pleasant surprise.

Though on a map -- to me at least -- Charlotte seems on the Western side of the state what I find in the city's restaurants is clearly Eastern.

Though the surrounding areas offer some great tastes, Charlotte itself is not what I'd consider a great barbeque town like Memphis or Kansas City. But I can't help but sample the local fare.

My first stop? Bar-B-Q King, a drive in joint with curbside service. A vanishing icon of Americana. I order from my car hoping for their renown fried oysters only to find there has been a scare and there is no local shellfish. I settle for a BBQ tray (BBQ, perfectly crisp hush puppies and cole slaw)  with a side of crisply fried deviled crab. The "sauce" is certainly tangy, forceful even. The BBQ is good, not great but this place is fun, homey and nostalgic. I'll be back for a chicken liver sandwich next time.

The Leftover Parts

Our neighbors raise grass fed cattle. When we pop over to help with a roundup or vaccinate (or sometimes for no reason at all) we often find a butcher paper wrapped package for our freezer. One of the great joys of whole steers nearby is the ready availability of cuts not generally seen in the grocer's case. The kind of tasty fare that peppers European menus, thrifty housewives once cooked with love and butchers keep for themselves.
Tonight's specialty, oxtail. was one I have never cooked before though I've enjoyed it in soups and stews across Spain and Italy. I opted, as I often do, for an Italian preparation -- coda alla vaccinara, a Roman dish where the meat is long stewed with peppery pancetta and fresh tasting celery.
First I simmered the crosscut pieces in water for 10 minutes to make 2 cups of broth for the stew. I stirred 2 TB of tomato paste into the reserved stock and set it aside. Next, in a dutch oven, I sautéed the pancetta in olive oil and then added in the pieces of oxtail to brown on all sides. When the meat was browned I removed it from the pan briefly to make room to sauté chopped onions (I didn't have any carrots so I used both sweet and brown onions), parsley, and 4 cloves of garlic. When the vegetables were browned I added the meat back in and poured about 3/4 of wine into the pan. When the wine was reduced by more than 1/2 I poured in about 1.2 cup or so, S&P and the reserved stock. The stew simmered, covered,  for 2 hours until the meat was moist and tender. As a last step I stirred 6 chopped stalks of celery and let the pot simmer, covered for 15 minutes more.
While the pot simmered I took a idea from boisterous Italian chef Mario Batali and mixed up a quick salad of celery leaves, chopped celery, lemon zest, chili flakes, cinnamon, and S&Pfor a bit fo fresh brightness to top our hearty stew.

Eggs Eggs Eggs

I always feel just a bit guilty when I make eggs for dinner. Somehow feels like I am cheating James just a bit. In other countries where eggs are so firmly associated with breakfast they have no such qualms. Eggs are just another delicious versatile protein. I have to move to that mindset, especially in the spring when our girls are working overtime. Tonight I made a step with an Italian dish called eggs in purgatory -- fresh eggs poached in a spicy tomato sauce. Perfect with a bowl of creamy polenta and crisp parmesan toasts.

A Springtime Cake

Cool spring days bring fresh strawberries to our local farmer's markets. And citrus is still hanging on. I was trying to use up the overflow of eggs in our fridge (the girls have been super busy) and decided not just on eggs for dinner but a rich, eggy pound cake for dessert.
In one bowl I mixed together 6 eggs, 1/3 cup milk, and about 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract. Into a second bowl I sifted 2 2/3 cups of flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt. In an electric mixer I creamed 3 sticks (I told you it was rich) or room temperature butter with 1 TB lemon zest, 2 TB blood orange zest, 1/2 cup white sugar and 3/4 cup brown sugar. When was butter is well mixed I alternated between the flour and egg mixture (ending with the flour) and then stirred in about 2 cups of sliced strawberries tossed with 1 TB of flour.
1/3 of the batter went into my well buttered and floured bundt pan, followed by another 1/2 cup (a heavy 1/2 cup) of strawberries tossed with a heavy 1/2 tsp flour. Another layer of batter (1/3 of the total) covered those berries and was topped with another heavy 1/2 cup of berries tossed with flour. I spread the last 1/3 of the batter on top and baked my springtime pound cake for 1 hour and 10 minutes at 325º.
While the cake was baking I combined 2TB lemon juice,  3TB (maybe it was 3 1/2) blood orange juice and 1/2 cup sugar in a small saucepan. I brought the liquid to a boil stirring to dissolve the sugar to make a tangy syrup to flavor the cake.
When the cake was baked and still warm in the pan I poked holes in it with a wooden skewer and brushed my cooled citrus syrup over the top -- the holes help it sink into the cake. After cooling for 10 minutes I flipped the cake over onto a cooling rack (next time I will turn it over onto parchment paper on a rack as that syrup was pretty sticky) skewered holes in the top of the cake and brushed on the remaining syrup.
Despite the 6 eggs the end result was a moist, tangy fruit filled cake. Just right to welcome and celebrate another spring.

House Favorite A New Way

James loves spaghetti and clam sauce. It's a house specialty. if guests are coming or we need a night feeling special it's our go to meal. It's the same recipe -- clams, butter, parsley, garlic, chili peppers -- but  it's always a little different. Sometimes I start with a bit of cubed pancetta. Tonight I used a hearty red wine instead of white. Always delicious, a house specialty that's ever changing.