Newspapers / Morrisville and Preston Progress … / Aug. 30, 1995, edition 1 / Page 12
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12 - The Morrlsville and Preston Progress, Wednesday, August 30,1995 Over dinner, she nibbled, quibbled, spooned and swooned For the first column on dining in the formal dining room at Preston- wood Country Club, my husband, James Powers, and I were jcrined by Cary pediatrician Dr. Virgil Steele and his wife, Anne. Befwe dinner, we enjoyed con- v^sation and the pleasantly aromatic scent of a McCallan Scotch. Dr. Steele pointed out that the aroma came from a single-malt, pure Scotch aged 10-12 years in an old cask previously used for aging sherry. So pleasant was the convCTsation that I began and ended the evening with social blunders, and threw some more in, between courses, for good measure! First I caught myself nibbling on Mrs. Steele’s bre^. How I managed this feat. I’ll never know, especially since I first buttled it, which required some awkward maneuvering of the strategically placed butter knife. Mrs. Steele pretended nw to notice, but some how it esc^ied no one’s attention when I ceremoniously switched our bread plates in an attempt to put things right again. Prestonwood Gourmet By Roxanne Powers. Fortunately, Mrs. Steele didn’t sl^ my band and formal dining room manager Edward Simpkins didn’t rush over K> escat me out of the establishment or offer to revoke our membership. Dr. Steele did wink, and acknowledged that the move seaned to make me feel bet ter, then graciously moved to an other topic. (I si^pose this pediatrician must have felt grateful to be able to call on bis skills in dealing with wayward, if well- intentioned children.) When the first a-jrse arrived, I didn’t once drool on our guests’ grilled blue crab cakes, though I ^d greatly admire the artistry with which the dish was presented on a plate painted with a lemon-dill and white wine sauce. James and I were a bit dis- ^pointed in our snails. Our palates appreciate the flavcff of rosemary only in tiny doses and, in addition, we couldn’t help but naughtily wonder what the snails would have to do to earn the title of escargot. (Mr. Simpkins later infonned me that it is cmly a matter of prefer ence.) I regret to inform you that wifli the arrival of the second course, my dining room etiquette again took a slide. Imagine, if you will, the beautiful chilled gazpacho before me. It is pCTfectly chilled; the tCHnatoes look so colorful and the celery so crisp, I can hardly wait to taste it. (I place the spoon in my mouth...and get the feeling that I’ve bcKTowed someone’s baby spoon. I look to the right of my plate and sure enough there’s my soup spoon minus its neighbor, the scrtet spoon! For a moment I con templated cleaning it off with my napkin and discretely easing it back into its rightful position, but instead I opted to boldly turn it upside down and leave it on the second course plate, thus removing any doubt from the waiter’s mind that I knew that I had committed this faux paux, and there, he could fore go the pleasure of hiding behind the drapes and snickering into his bands. Course three arrives. This seems simple enough. Mrs. Steele and my husband have the Caesar salad Officer completes training on collisions at crossings A MorrisviUe police officer has ccxnpleted a training class covering the investigation of collisions at grade crossings. E.J. Hanks was among 36 high way patrol, law enforcement of ficers, and fire and rescue person nel attending the three-day session, which was sponsored by the Gov ernor’s Highway Safety Program and North Carolina Operation LifesavCT, Inc. Classes at the State Highway P^l Training Center in Raleigh were conducted by Norfolk Southern and CSX Transportmion police officers, as well as other in structors from North Carolina, Vir ginia and the District of Columbia. Operation Lifesaver, Inc., is an information and education program to help prevent and reduce crashes, injuries and fatalities as well as im prove driver performance at public and private rail-highway grade crossings. The training classes are supported by a $27,000 grant from the Governor’s Highway Safety Program. C>n1^ “It has been an absolute pleasure working with Sharon Zonca. Sharon is very knowledgeable about the market in this area. Sharon went above and beyond the call of duty to make sure the sale of my home went smoothly. She is now helping me with the purchase of my new home. Her experience and support have been invaluable to me. I highly recom mend Sharon as an agent. She’s great!” Mary O’Brien Myrick Park West Realty, Inc. 1708 Hwy 54 E. 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We all enjoyed this course so much that the waiter had some dif ficulty wresting the dishes from our grasp. He did manage to ac complish this, however, and even replaced them with a palate cleans ing sorbet; and, I might add, a re placement sorbet spoon which was discretely provided withcHit so much as a smirk. rice known as the caviar of rices) and sauteed snow peas. James had the char-grilled Texas ribeye steak with a red-eye demi- glace. This sauce is prepared with half Jack Daniels, and half-reduced brown sauce, and in spite of the hint of aggression in its name, is so delightfully unimposing that even I could be tempted into becoming a beef convert. This generously sized steak is served with baked potato croquettes (which James described as more flavorful and sophisticated "tater tots”) and sauteed string beans. I’m proud to report that, in trying to restrain myself from going off a diet, I was able to keep temptation at bay and ordered the slow-roasted chicken with garlic-scented mashed potatoes, sauteed spinach and sweet peppers. For dessert, Mrs. Steele had the pear torte which is made with a crust of ground macadamia nuts, filled with Bartlett pears and topped with an qmcot glaze. Dr. Steele had the chocolate souf fle, which is prepared with Belgian chocolate and temped with a choco late sauce anglaise. James had the Preston pie, a deep' bottom chocolate graham crust filled with chocolate ganache, chocolate mousse, and whipped cream drizzled in chocolate. I had the brambleberry short bread, which is two wedges of 1me(mi shortbread topped with bramblebenies (defined as any ber ries grown on a bush, such as blackberries, raspberries and blueberries). The dish was sur rounded by a modest (and there fore, "diet friendly") amount of whipped cream. Dieting never tasted so good as it did cm this night at Prestonwood. So good, in fact, that I’ll be t^pted to take on even more cal«ie$ in future columns. I confess that throughout the eve ning, I was concerned that I might begin choking on something stupid like a flake of black pepper, caus ing Mrs. Steele to find it necessary to use her emergency room skills. Tbat of course wouldn’t exactly be conducive to a good evening for her. However, we made it through the first three courses drama-free, and were able to relax and enjoy some exceptional entrees. Both Dr. and Mrs. Steele had the sauteed shrimp served on a plate painted with a Thai-coconut cream sauce and mango coulis (an all-natural pureed fruit), jasmine rice (a slightly sweet 15% OFF Ploymobil^ Products during September We ore having o drawing for prices Ihroughoutihe inonlh! 948 High House Road, CARY PRESTON CORNERS 319-7509 Layaway « Free Gif=t Wrapping l\ r.y Forget Where You Bought Your Ford, Lincoln or Mercury vehicle Bring it to Don Jenkins Ford for The Best Scniicc in The Triangle LIMITED OFFER Ford - Lincoln & Mercury Vehicles ONLY 95 OIL & FILTER CHANGE Must call for appointment Must present this coupon Ends September 30,1995 ‘92 MUSTANG LX 5.0 AUTO. PW, PL SHARP 1,999 ‘92 TEMPO 4 DR. GL AUTO, AIR, PW PL ‘91 MERCURY GRAND MAR L5 FULLY LOADED QQc; ‘92 CHEVY LUMINA EUROSPORT 4 DR. AUTO LOADED *9,488 4 DR.. 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Morrisville and Preston Progress (Morrisville, N.C.)
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Aug. 30, 1995, edition 1
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