Barbecued beef shepherd's pie in 14-inch Dutch oven

Crossing Mother Lode Drive at
Mile Post 136.8.

Last Friday, the El Dorado Western Railroad maintenance-of-way crew crossed Mother Lode Drive in Shingle Springs, California, to clear culverts and cut brush along a one-mile section of of the former Southern Pacific rail line. The crew also begin repair of a major washout. The goal is to prevent further washouts on the right-of-way and adjacent trail by ensuring proper drainage.

Since I haven't cooked for the railroad in nearly two years, the crew boss and thought this would be the perfect opportunity to treat the hard-working crew to a Dutch oven lunch. With plenty of room to safely fire charcoal briquettes, I set up my kitchen on the tracks. The first charcoal chimney was fired around 9:30 a.m. The crew enjoyed lunch three hours later.

I wanted to change the lunch entree for this cook date. Over the past 10 years, I have often prepared some form of chili con carne for the railroad crew. For over a week I had been working on a Dutch oven version of shepherd's pie. Instead of a traditional shepherd's pie with lamb, shredded beef chuck road, braised in beer and barbecue sauce formed the protein base. Since the biscuits, cobbler and coffee are crew favorites, I left them on the menu. The menu consisted of:

• Barbecued beef shepherd's pie in 14-inch camp oven
• Cream coleslaw
• Buttermilk biscuits in a 14-inch camp oven
• Mixed berry cobbler in a 12-inch camp oven
• Railroad coffee

We let the rail cars pass first as they were going to be working the area behind the camera. I set up my firepan and chuckbox between the rails to keep a safe distance from the brush.We don't cook with charcoal on the right-of-way in the summer months due to the fire danger.

The first thing I did was to bake buttermilk biscuits. To ease preparation on site, I weighed the dry ingredients and cut in the shortening at home on Thursday. The biscuit mix was stored in the refrigerator to keep the shortening cold. I added the buttermilk and cut large biscuits (3-1/2-inch diameter) once on the railroad.

With the biscuits on heat, I turned to the coleslaw, berry cobbler and shepherd's pie, in order. To prepare the meat for the shepherd's pie, I braised a 3-1/2-pound chuck roast in beer and barbecue sauce on Thursday. After cutting the roast into large pieces, I seared them in bacon fat in a cast iron skillet. The braising liquid consisted of 1-1/2 cups IPA beer, 1-1/2 cups barbecue sauce, 1/4 cup chopped parsley, 2 bay leaves and 1 teaspoon dried thyme. The braising liquid was poured over the meat in the skillet. After covering with aluminum foil, it was placed in a 300-degree oven for about 5 hours. Once the meat tender enough to pull, I placed it in a zipper lock bag and in the refrigerator. The braising liquid was strained and placed in the refrigerator as well.

As the biscuits were baking in a 14-inch camp oven, I cooked 5 pounds red potatoes in the stockpot. Once mashed, the potatoes would be used as the topping for the shepherd's pie.

To prepare the shepherd's pie, I shredded the chuck roast by hand and placed it in the 14-inch camp oven (see picture above with the peas). I then skimmed the fat off of the braising liquid and poured it over the pulled meat, along with 8 ounces frozen peas. Next a thick layer of mashed potatoes was spooned oven the meat and peas. I baked the pie with coals for around 375 degrees until crisp potato peaks had formed and the sauce was buddling, about 45 minutes. I used 1-1/2 rings of charcoal on the lid and 8 coals under the pot.

The finished meal. Lunch was served to 8 crew members around 12:30. I was able to send cobbler, biscuits and shepherd's pie home with several crew members. We could've easily fed 12 to 15 with the 3 pots.

A culinary car for the El Dorado Western Railroad?

The El Dorado Western Railway Foundation purchased this tool car from the Richmond Pacific Railroad in December 2011. It has intrigued me since then. I've often talked about converting it into a culinary car for the El Dorado Western Railroad, which operates on eight miles of the old Southern Pacific Placerville Branch rail line between Shingle Springs and Diamond Springs.

It's a natural desire in my informal role as the the railroad chef. Several times each year, I host a track-side meal for railroad volunteers. My last such meal occurred in November last year, when I prepared pork chili with guajillo chili adobo, cheesy butter milk biscuits and berry cobbler for the bridge crew. My hope is that my winter schedule will allow me to cook for the crew more frequently during my home season.

A dedicated culinary car would improve conditions for cooking on the railroad. I'm not saying that the complete car has to be remodeled into a galley on wheels. There's plenty of room for rail tools and equipment on the starboard side. It would give me a mobile platform to transport the two-burner stove, ice chest, Dutch ovens and utensils.

I could easily work with the port side of the tool car. That's the side with the shallow tool box. The side with the deeper tool cabinet can be used by the maintenance crew. The pictures describe how I intend put this plan into action.

This is the port side of the Richmond Pacific Railroad tool car. Of two tool cabinets, this one reaches about two-thirds of the way across the deck. The open space leaves sufficient room to mount a two-burner Camp Chef propane stove. The ice chest can be set in the center space for transport. The center section would then be used as a Dutch oven table. This would keep burning coals off the ground when at the work site. 

This is the starboard side of the tool car. There is enough space to mount a small generator, air compressor or water tank. The tool cabinet can be used to secure tools and equipment.

The A end of the tool car. This is the forward end. It will normally be the end that is coupled to the gang car, locomotive or trackmobile. 

The B end of the tool car. There is plenty of storage space on top of the tool cabinet, plus room to hang hoses, chains and other large tools.

Cookin' on the railroad

Friday last I cooked lunch for the maintenance of way crew on the El Dorado Western Railroad in Western El Dorado County, California. The menu consisted of:

• Pork chili with adobo sauce from dried guajillo chilies in 12-inch deep camp oven
• Cheesy buttermilk biscuits with pepper-jack in 14-inch camp oven
• Mixed berry cobbler in 12-inch camp oven
• Railroad coffee

To prepare for the meal, I roasted an eight-pound bone-in pork picnic shoulder at home Thursday evening. I normally use pork butt, but the supermarket didn't have any in stock. The shoulder yielded between five to six pounds of cooked meat once I discarded the bone. I also made the adobo sauce from dried chilies, formed the biscuits with pepper-jack and Parmesan cheeses, prepared the cobbler topping and packed.

After breakfast with the crew (at a Shingle Springs restaurant aptly named the Train Station), I drove to the grade crossing closest to the trestle that we were working on and waited for the train to pick me up.

Once we arrived at the work site, the crew unloaded the kitchen. I set up on a saddle perpendicular to the tracks and began the chili. (Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures of the chili.) To prepare, I sweated 2 diced onions with lots of minced garlic in olive oil, then dropped about 5 pounds diced pork into the pot. One (14.5-ounce) can of fire roasted tomatoes and 1 (12-ounce) can of tomatillos went into the pot next, along with 1.5 cups of the adobo sauce, a pint of beef stock and the pork drippings.

Two teaspoons smoked paprika, 2 teaspoons ground cumin and 1 teaspoon dried oregano seasoned the chili. I later added extra dried chili powder and garlic powder to boost the flavor. The chili simmered over a bed of coal for the next hour and one-half. A couple handsful of corn chips thickened the chili.

Nineteen biscuits fit snuggly inside a 14-inch camp oven. I had intended to brush the biscuits with cream, but forgot.

The berry cobbler is similar in construction to a dump cake. You pour frozen berries (12 ounces raspberries, 16 ounces blueberries and 16 ounces blackberries) into an oiled 12-inche camp oven. Half of the topping (scratch made with a fine consistence like cake mix) covered the berries. After the first topping dump had stated to brown, I covered it with the remaining topping and baked with coals for about 425 degrees until brown and crusty.

In the picture, I set the biscuit lid in the skillet and used it for bottom heat for maybe 5 or 10 minutes. Two rings of coals provided the top heat. The picture shows the cobble just before the second topping dump.

Potluck and presentation

Each December, the El Dorado Western Railway Foundation hosts its annual meeting and Christmas potluck at a local historic venue. This is year we used the recreated Southern Pacific depot in the historic town of El Dorado. Around 45 railroad volunteers and their families packed into the station. This was the largest crowd we've had in memory.

I've often used to potluck to feature new dishes. This year my wife and I brought a Mexican casserole with black beans in a 9 by 13-inch roasting pan. I adapted the recipe from the Deer Crossing Wilderness Camp kitchen manual, where it was served every other week at dinner.

I had two jobs this year, so to speak. As the cook in the family, the task of preparing the casserole fell to me this morning. My other job, assigned by the president of the foundation, was to present a talk on rail passenger service on the Placerville Branch rail line of the Southern Pacific Railroad.

After the annual meeting (and before the meal), I presented a mix of historic photographs and newspaper reports on passenger service, which ran from March 1888 to January 1939. One of the two daily trains was provided by a McKeen motor car.

The meeting and potluck were a success. The volunteers enjoyed my presentation. And the dish was nearly cleaned.

MEXICAN CASSEROLE WITH BLACK BEANS

Leave the beef-bean-corn mixture a little on the dry side. You do not want a moist or sloppy sauce. The recipe is a favorite of Deer Crossing Camp in Eldorado National Forest, California. A double recipe fits in a 12x20x4-inch hotel pan and serves 24.

2 pounds ground beef
1-1/ ounces taco seasoning
2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
frozen whole kernel corn
1-1/2 cups salsa
1 (10-ounce) package corn chips
8 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
8 ounces jack cheese, shredded

Saute ground beef in heavy skillet over medium heat until done. Drain excess off fat. Stir in taco seasoning, beans, corn and salsa. Simmer 10 minutes to develop flavor.

Line greased 9x13x3-inch pan with half of the corn chips. Spoon beef mixture over tortilla or corn chips. Top pan with half of each cheese. Top pan with remaining half of the corn chips.

Bake in 350-degree oven, until casserole is bubbling around edges, about 20 to 30 minutes. Sprinkle remaining cheeses over chips. Return to oven and continue baking until cheese has melted.

Cool 15 minutes, then cut 3 by 4. Serve an equal portion of the filling with cheesy chip layer. Serves 12.

Menu for a buseman's holiday

Busman's holiday:
A vacation during which one engages in activity that is similar to one's usual work (Answers.com).

It seems that I've been allotted a certain number of cooking hours each day. Meet the quota at work and my culinary soul is satisfied. Skip a day and I must cook I must cook elsewhere to fill the void.

When I decided to take the President's Day holiday off from work, I figured that I'd enjoy a quiet day at home. The time to complete several projects was on my mind. My plan fell apart when the crew at the El Dorado Western Railroad learned of my day off.

It seems the mechanics are working on our new Fairmont model A4 gang car tomorrow. "Come over in the morning," said Keith, president of the El Dorado Western Railway Foundation. "We can use an extra body."

Keith's recruitment call told me of dirt, paint chips and greasy hands in my future. I quickly proposed an alternate way to use my talent. Railroad workers work hard. And hard work builds appetites, I reasoned. What better was to showcase my special skills than to cook a meal for the gang?

"Do you want lunch tomorrow?" I countered. While several mechanics will provide support to the county museum railroad project tomorrow, I'll prepare lunch (more correctly, breakfast for lunch -- see menu below).

In the process, the mechanics will do what they do best -- rebuilding railroad cars. And this chef will do what he does best -- cooking a wonderful meal for a crowd.

Sounds like a busman's holiday to me!

MENU FOR A BUSEMAN'S HOLIDAY

I'm serving breakfast for lunch tomorrow at Bob McCormack's engine rebuild shop. At this hour, I plan to prepare huevos rancheros served over chipotle-cheddar biscuits. While elements of the menu may change when as I walk the isles of the supermarket, it'll look something like this:

Two or three scrambled or fried eggs
Salsa Espanola
Simmered pinto beans
Chipotle-cheddar butter milk biscuits
Toppings (chopped white onion, chopped cilantro, crumbled queso fresco, Mexican crema and diced tomatoes)
Caboose coffee (these are railroaders, after all!)

Phil Reader's Santa Fe surprise

Railroader Phil Reader prepared this breakfast on Monday morning last week. "I just had a yearning to cook breakfast with the Dutch oven," said Phil.

Phil makes version of this recipe that he calls the California sunrise. Tomatoes and mushrooms replace the chile peppers. Then it is served with guacamole and sour cream.

Phil filed this report from his new home in Colorado:

"I have Karell's (pictured) Cowboy Hibachi set up in our front yard. So I get to play with it on occasion.

"Being in Colorado has one real disadvantage. There is no oak wood or apple wood to cook with like we have in California. However, that has not stopped me from cooking some cool California style cuisine such as tri-tip."

SANTA FE SURPRISE

3 potatoes, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1/2 cup diced onion
1 can of jalapeno peppers
6 stripes of bacon, cut into 1-inch squares
6 breakfast sausages, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
6 eggs, whipped
1-1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese.

In a 10-inch Dutch oven, cook the bacon and sausage until done. Add the potatoes, onion and peppers. Once cooked, add eggs and cheese. Place lid on the Dutch oven and add coals to the top. Cook between 10 and 15 minutes or until done. Served with pacante sauce.

The Santa Fe surprise can be served as a breakfast burrito.

Menu for railroad crew tomorrow

It's time to prepare a relaxing meal for the track crew at the El Dorado Western Railroad. I cooked chili and cornbread on a cold, rainy day last June.

I'm changing direction for the meal tomorrow and will cook the complete meal at the depot site in the historic town of El Dorado, California. In June I cooked the meal at home and transported it to the shop at noon.

• Piping hot caboose coffee -- It doesn't matter if its 100 degrees or 70 on the right-of-way, railroaders will drink coffee all morning.
• Braised beef with summer vegetables -- Much like a pot roast, I'll braise a large chuck roast at a gentle simmer in a large Dutch oven all morning, then add new red tomatoes, roasted red peppers, corn-on-the-cob, green beans and cherry tomatoes.
• Tender herb biscuits -- What Dutch oven meal wouldn't be complete without a pot of baking powder biscuits?
• Peach crisp -- Peaches are in season right now; so it makes sense to top the meal with a peachy dessert!

I'm going to make a video log of the meal tomorrow as I cook. Barring any technical glitches (or operator error), I should be able to post my video log of the meal in a couple days. Look for bonus shots of the railroad's 1940 Southern Pacific caboose (No. 1094) and Plymouth locomotive!

Railroad chili at the shop

I prepared chili, cornbread and chipotle cole slaw for a crew of the El Dorado Western Railroad this morning. Due to rain, I cooked the meal at home and drove it to the shop at noon.

A mechanic cleared a work bench for the serving table. I didn't check to see what was in the purple bottle, not do I want to know.

I cooked the chili con carne with beans in a Lodge #12 Dutch oven on the stove top at home. It seems each time I prepare this recipe that I tweak it a bit. Today's pot included 4 pounds ground beef and 18 ounces pork chorizo. I also cut the tomato product in half. It was a good mild pot of chili.

Grilled pineapple meat madness

It's been almost three years since I last featured a photograph of railroader Phill Reader's "Cowboy Hibachi." Until 2009, he regularly provided photographs and recipes of his railroad cooking adventures. Phil was the chief mechanical officer at the Pacific Coast Railroad Co. at the time.

After he left Southern California, Phil landed back in his home state of Colorado, where he's now chief mechanical officer for the Georgetown Loop Railroad. Phil and I recently became friends on Facebook, where he often posts pictures of two of his favorite activities: hoggin' on the West Side Lumber Co. No. 12 and cooking on his Cowboy Hibachi.

"Last year I put the little Kahalui #12 back together for them," Phil responded to my question on the No. 12. "Yes the Shay #12 is a West Side Shay. I take care of it and the W.S.L.Co. #14 as well."

Phil shared this photograph of last night's dinner on Facebook. He grilled bacon-wrapped shrimp, chicken and pineapple with a pineapple-Honey glaze. The tri-tip on the spit was marinated in Mr. Yushida's Marinade and Cooking Sauce.

"Last night I just got into a weird grilling jag," said Phil on Facebook. "Then it started to snow."

Good railroad cooks wanted

I last reported on the proceedings of the American Railway Bridge and Building Association's annual convention in 2007. My article ("Don't Smell Me, I'm Here to Work") re-told a gem from the association's 1917 convention in Chicago.

Association president S.C. Tanner emphasized the need for bathing facilities for railway workers. While not directly related to railroad cooking, Tanner's story drove his point home and gave his listeners mild comic relief from convention business.

Fast forward to the 1918 convention. The association again convened its annual convention in Chicago.

The body, made up of superintendents of bridges and buildings from railroads across the United States, adjourned into several committees to discuss pressing issues of the day.

One such committee exploded "small versus large gangs for maintenance work." Chairman J.P. Wood of the Santa Fe Railroad summarized the findings of the committee:

"I believe that a crew composed of a foreman and five to seven men is preferable to a larger one for general maintenance work and that the work is done more efficiently and economically."

As expected, the chairman's report and ensuing discussion among committee members focused on the factors that influence crew size.

"A gang of from 6 to 7 men can work to good advantage without getting in each other's way and can accomplish practically as much as a larger crew on the average job of this kind, especially where the (railroad) traffic is all heavy," said Mr. Wood.

Routine, that is, until a bridge and building superintendent from small railroad in Owosso, Michigan interjected this thought:

Our railroad is a small railroad and has only a couple of bridge gangs, one or two building gangs and a dock gang; the largest of these gangs comprises seven men including the foreman. If anything heavier than that comes up we have to double them up. The building gang runs as small as four men. The only question, of course, is the overhead expense. Most of these gangs nowadays insist on having a cook. Then if you give a gang of seven men a cook, the gang of four wants a cook also. I was wondering what the rest of the railroads do in the matter of cooks and how large a gang they have before they install a cook.

One wonders why men who spent their careers building and maintaining bridges on the right-of-way concerned themselves with cooks. After all, allowing one man from a crew of seven or eight to devote his day to cooking significantly drove overhead costs.

The superintendent of bridges and buildings for the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad, W.E. Alexander, answered Mr. Turnbull's concerns. The BAR used good cooks to draw quality craftsmen to the employ of the railroad, especially under the low wage conditions of the era.

"Then we furnish a good outfit and a good cook," explained Mr. Alexander. "The foundation of a successful crew is a good cook and plenty to eat."

The BAR found an innovated way to take care of that need. Mr. Alexander continued:

The company furnishes the cook and the men furnish the outfit with dishes, clothing, bedding, fuel and a stove, each man paying his share for the food which he eats. They are charged their board and settle among themselves the amount due from each so the company does not bother about boarding them. Under such conditions we find we can get men better than we could before.

This arrangement the crew was responsible for purchasing their own food, as the company only provided the cook and kitchen. The crew could eat as good or as poorly as it wanted or could afford.

I suspect a crew with limited financial resources could still eat well. A good cook could buy food from the railroad commissary or local market and fix up flavorful meals that filled the belly.

As Mr. Alexander said, a good cook, one who provided lots of good food to a crew, was worth his weight to the railroad.

Source: American Railway Bridge and Building Association, Proceedings of the 28th annual convention of the American Railway Bridge and Building Association, (Brethren Publishing House: Elgin, Ill.), Volume 28, pages 141-3. The convention was held in Chicago, October 15 to 17, 1918.

Iron horse chef

Every so often I find pose on the blogoshere that's worth reprinting with little comment. One steam engineer for the Pacific Coast Railroad at the historic Santa Margarita Ranch in Southern California has devolpoed the unique talent of cookin' on the backhead.

Enjoy ...

Engineer Jeff "Grumps" Badger may be a vegetarian, but that doesn't stop him from enjoying some good eatin'. You see, when God gave us the steam engine, he intended for no hoghead to ever go hungry on a hard day's work. The steam locomotive backhead -- the great grandaddy of the dashboard -- might well be the most unexpected kitchen known to man. From injectors to hydrostatic lubricators, firedoor dampers to deck hoses and trycocks to warming trays, there's enough cooking capabilities on these rolling teapots to concoct every carbon-coated creation imaginable. And you thought we'd just let all that lost thermal efficiency escape into the atmosphere! (Click here read more.)

Chili and beans for museum railroaders

I cooked chili and beans for the crew at the El Dorado Western Railway engine house last Saturday.

This recipe was originally posted at Camp-cook.com by Joanne, host and moderator of the year-old gathering place for outdoor cooks.

Here's Joanne's introduction to the chili recipe from Camp-cook.com:

This is a pretty simple chili but we get a lot of great reviews every time we serve it. It may sound obvious, but the quality of chili powder you use will determine if it's good chili or great chili. I like to go to the Mexican market and buy various bags of ground chili powder, then mix them to my liking. Of course an oven full of corn bread goes great with it!

CHILI AND BEANS

The full-sized recipe makes enough for 25 hungry campers. Cook the chili in a 14-inch deep Lodge oven or 8- to 10-quart stockpot. You can cut the recipe in half for a 12-inch Dutch oven.

3 pounds ground beef
2 pounds country sausage
3 cups chopped onion
3 cups chopped green bell pepper
3 tablespoons minced garlic
5 bay leaves
1-1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
3 ounces chili powder
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
3 tablespoons paprika
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 to 3 quarts beef broth
2 (28-ounce) cans pinto beans
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

Brown ground beef and sausage meat in a 14-inch deep Dutch oven over medium heat. Drain excess fat. Add onions, green peppers and garlic to meat and cook until vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes.

Add bay leaves, oregano, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, paprika and flour to meat mixture. Cook for about 5 minutes while stirring to develop flavor.

Add 2 quarts beef broth and crushed tomatoes to meat mixture. Cover and simmer for about 2 hours. Add additional beef broth as needed to thin chili to desired consistency. Add beans and heat.

This recipe makes about 25 (8-ounce) portions with a little to spare.

Dinner on the backheard

The crew at the Pacific Coast Railroad in Santa Margarita, California, are at it again. This time they've produced a 21-minute video about cooking on the boiler backhead in one of their steam locomotives.

The YouTube.com link takes you to the 41-second introduction to the video. They posted the full-length video to Google Videos. View either one my clicking on the image below.

Railroad chef Jeff "Grumps" Badger cooks breakfast and much more to the sounds of steam as he grills on the backbead. Where else can you open a tri-cock and steam hot chocolate but in the cab of a locomotive?

"It's completely organic -- lots of, like, hydrocarbons burning as you cook," said Karell Reader from the commissary crew.

Enjoy the video. Who knows when you're going to need this information on the lost art of backhead cooking.

Menu for railroad event

The crew of the El Dorado Western Railway gathered at the engine house yesterday to pull the Diamond and Caldor No. 4 locomotive out onto the tail track. The occasion was the third annual Home and Garden Show at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds.

As with last year, I used the occasion as an opportunity to cook for the volunteers. Since the engine house and machine shop (located at the El Dorado County Historical Museum) doesn't have a kitchen, I hauled my outdoor cooking gear to the site and set up a kitchen on the tailgate of my truck.

I used the two-burner Outdoor Cooker stove (manufactured by Camp Chef's former owner) and three Dutch ovens to cook the following menu:

• Curried chicken noodle soup
• Grilled chicken breast
• Bread stuffing with sausage
• Savory chicken gravy
• Braised red cabbage

C&O recipe collection

Inspiration for this menu came from a dining car recipe collection that I picked up two years ago at the California State Railroad Museum. Chesapeake and Ohio Dining Car Recipes (compiled by E. Stirling "Tod" Hanger, Jr., Chesapeake and Ohio Historical Society, 1995) re-prints all 170 post-World War II recipes for the railroad. (The recipes are called formulas in the book.)

The East Coast line used these recipes for a brief period in the years following the war. Commissary department managers enlisted noted chef Michael L. DeZutter to help the railroad upgrade culinary service from wartime service. During the war, the cooks set the "finest 'hotel style' foods and service" aside to convert their dining cars into a "mess hall on wheels," according to Hanger.

Prior to development of DeZutter's recipe collection, the railroad didn't specify how to cook each item on the menu. It instead relied on the senior cooks to mentor trainees. On-the-job training took the place of organized classroom training.

These cooks, many with more than 25 years of service to the railroad, handed "down the traditions, recipes and methods to the 'youngsters' as they joined the team," said Hanger.

DeZutter's task was to "ensure consistent food preparation, style and service" to the post-war passenger. In addition to a training program, he developed the recipe collection, which was given to each chef in a three-ring binder. This is the only recipe book published by the railroad.

Last year's menu also came the C&O book, as well as two other railroad dining car books. The menu featured old fashion navy bean soup (Denver and Rio Grand Western Railroad and Chesapeake and Ohio Railway), cole slaw (Missouri Pacific Lines) and toasted hot Mexican sandwich (Santa Fe Lines).

Railroad wedding barbecue

It's nice to post a barbecue picture of the railroad wedding of Patti LaRose and Dennis Thurman, crew from the Pacific Coast Railroad Co. in Southern California. Chief mechanical officer Phil Reader provided the picture.

Commissary crew member Patti "Cookie" LaRose took the day off of cooking for the crew in honor of her wedding. Here, Rob Himoto (president of the Santa Maria Valley Railroad) and Harry Harlow grilled chicken for the wedding.

You know it's a railroad wedding when ...

It seems the commissary crew at the Pacific Coast Railroad has been getting a lot of practice lately. I've reported on the culinary delights prepared by Patti LaRose, Mary Harlow and Karell Reader at least three times this year. These ladies cook more than I do on the El Dorado Western.

The railroad, which is located on a private Santa Margarita Ranch, found another reason to barbecue chicken and give up train rides.

Commissary crew member Patti "Cookie" LaRose tied the knot with fellow railroader Dennis Thurman, a trail crewman on the PCRR. The ceremony occurred at the nearby Bittercreek Western Railroad, a 7-1/2-inch gauge steam railroad park in Arroyo Grande, California.

One aspect of the nuptials stand out when you read the blog article. It's not "sight of steam engines lined up in the steaming bays and circling the miles of track" or the "delicious chicken barbecue."

Like a railroading couple I know, Patti and Dennis experienced a true railroader's wedding, down to the bride's conductor "wedding gown" and her bouquet.

Since Patti's bridal bouquet was a signal lantern and could not be tossed easily, the lantern was passed to Stephanie, Karl's sweetheart. Everyone had a wonderful time and wished the newlyweds well on their honeymoon to northern California. Congratulations and lots of love to Patti and Dennis.

It looks like the ladies will soon have a couple reasons to put some good railroading vittles. I'm certain they'll fire up the coals once the fire danger passes.

And Stephanie and Karl may just tie the knot themselves. That's reason enough to cook in my book.

No weddings are on the horizon at our Northern California railroad. But I'm sure I'll find sufficient reason to cook for the El Dorado Western soon.

Cross-posted at the El Dorado Western Railway blog.

Home-style cooking a winner on railroad dining car

Here's a nice quote from the 1921 The Journal of Home Economics. Despite efforts by many eateries of the period to introduce "foreign" food into their menus, one railroad dining car department was adapting home-style cookery into its menu.

Enjoy ...

Most of us who have tasted both American and foreign cooking prefer our home dishes, when well prepared, to anything else for a steady diet. Those who travel much and those who depend upon restaurants and hotels miss these home dishes and wish they could get them. Some of the more progressive hotels realize the importance of this matter and have tried to remedy it by installing home kitchens as a part of their equipment. Some of the best restaurants, dining-cars, cafes, and cafeterias also specialize on "home" food. For instance, one evidence that the wishes of the traveling public are not being overlooked, is shown by the Northern Pacific Railway, which has adopted "home" foods and "home" cookery in its dining-car service. A book of instructions for dining-car stewards and chefs on this railway has recently been published by G. W. Nelson, who makes the following statement:

"The art of cookery in all its branches is in such process of evolution that a few years only are sufficient to completely change the methods of preparing dishes once enthusiastically received by the public. Our departure from French and French cookery, and the adoption of plain English designations, and the plain home-like cookery have won the approval of our patrons. The variety of food products adaptable to dining-car service is small compared to that which the large hotel may use with unlimited combinations. We have, therefore, given you a limited specification of dishes that may be run on your specials, together with their prices, and you will strictly confine your menu-making to those things designated, and do not at any time run anything on your specials that deviate from the instructions. All dishes must be prepared according to the recipes which we provide, and these, together with the portion list will be issued to you in circular form" (Hotel Monthly, 29 (1921), no. 334, pp. 58 and 59).

Source: "A Plea for American Cookery and Home Dishes," The Journal of Home Economics, vol. 13, no. 10 (Oct. 1921), p. 506 (published by the American Home Economics Association).

Cookin' on the railroad

When you read the Pacific Coast Railroad blog, you can easily get lost in the world of the steam railroad.

I'm sure sand dome conversions and boiler inspections have dominated many conversations between chief mechanical officer Phil Reader and crew at the private rail operation on the Santa Margarita Ranch in San Louis Obispo County.

But the railroad -- through the kind labor of couple of lovely ladies -- recently helped a worthy organization raise $90 thousand for Jack's Helping Hand, a San Louis Obispo County-based organization that meets the "unique unmet needs of physically and mentally disabled children and young adults" in the community.

"For lunch Karell made her famous 'Hobo Beans' in a dutch oven that were very good. Later, we were treated to a delicious tri-tip BBQ dinner," said the blog's July 21, 2008 report. Patty LaRose assisted Karell.

Patti and Karell, along with Mary Harlow, operate the railroad's commissary operation, according to the blog.

In case steam domes and boiler inspections interest you more that tri-tip barbecues, roll on over to the Pacific Coast Railroad blog. It contains news of many hours of a labor of love for these steam railroaders.

And, I might add, news of the Iron Horse Chef's quiche made on the backhead of the boiler.

More chili beans at the engine house

Yesterday's blog title was a little deceptive. I posted the recipe for corn salad instead of my pot of cowboy or chili beans.

So, here's the bean recipe. It's similar to the recipe for piquinto beans with spicy red sauce. The chili beans have a more smokey flavor from the ham hocks.

COWBOY BEANS

Menu with Dutch oven corn bread and corn, tomato and jalapeno salad.

3 pounds dried pink or pinto beans
3 pounds ham hocks
3 jalapeno chili peppers, seeded and chopped (3 to 4)
1-1/2 quarts canned tomatoes with green chiles
12 ounces onions, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons black pepper

Cover beans with water and bring to a boil. Cut the heat and let the beans set for 1 hour.

Add ham hocks to beans. Add additional water to cover if necessary. Cook slowly until tender, about 1 hour. Remove ham hocks from beans. Cut meat from bone and discard bones. Roughly chop meat and return to beans.

Add chili peppers, tomatoes, onions, garlic, cumin and black pepper to beans. Cook slowly in kettle an additional 1-2 hours, until beans are soft and juice is thick. Add water as needed to keep beans from drying.

This recipe makes about 6-1/4 quarts. As with all recipes, the size of the serving utensil will determine how many portions you get. Plan on 50 (1/2-cup), 25 (1-cup) or 16 (1-1/4-cup) portions. One recipe will fit in a 12x20x4-inch hotel pan.

Three ladies cooking

Where else are you going to find a picture of three lovely ladies cooking a feast fit for a railroader? At 'Round the Chuckbox, of course.

Chief mechanical officer Phil Reader and Ed "Oil Can" Kelly, PR man for the Pacific Coast Railroad Company, have been feeding me pictures of the railroad's commissary crew. Here's the menu for one of their runs last fall:

In P.C.R.R. tradition, the evening included a scrumptious BBQ feast prepared on the Phil Reader "Cowboy Hibachi." The entree was Phil's slow-marinated teriyaki marinated tri-tip, served with Karell's homemade pumpkin bisque soup. Other offerings included fried chicken supplied by Patti and Italian romaine and raddichio blend by Fresh Express (hey, we can't have everything gourmet!) Of course, no crew feast is complete without one of Mary's incredible dessert offerings, and this time we were treated to "black and white cupcakes;" a hollow chocolate cupcake with a chocolate chip cheesecake filling.

For the record, the lady on the tracks is the PCRR No. 2, aka Denver and Rio Grande "Roger Linn." The 2-4-0 Vulcan locomotive was featured on the TV show Dr. Quinn: Medicine Woman from the early 1990s. The locomotive never served on the D&RG. She's still dressed in her Hollywood colors.