Volume 12, Issue 044 - March 1, 2007

Greetings Chef,

These recipes and more than 100 more are collected inside Recipes from Historic America. The beautiful hardcover binding and full-color photography will allow this cookbook to make a home for itself on both the kitchen counter and the coffee table.

About the Authors

Linda Bauer is a self-syndicated food and travel columnist for a variety of newspapers and has written columns for the past twenty years. She and her husband and co-author, Steve Bauer, have written several books and lecture around the world. Let's get on with the tour...

Jekyll Island Club Hotel
371 Riverview Drive
Jekyll Island, Georgia 31527
www.jekyllclub.com

Situated on a Georgia barrier island, Jekyll Island Club Hotel originally served as an exclusive hunting retreat for the nation's most powerful financiers and industrialists of the late 1800s and early 1900s. The hotel today is a unique modern resort with architectural character and a charming historic ambience.

The main structures, built between 1887 and 1902, were designed by Charles Alexander of Chicago and Charles Alling Gifford of New York. Alexander designed the original clubhouse in the American Queen Anne style, incorporating extensive verandas, bay windows, extended chimneys, the turret that dominates the roofline and the overall asymmetrical design.

Contemplating the ideal location for their hunting club, William K. Vanderbilt, J.P. Morgan, William Rockefeller, Joseph Pulitzer and 50 or so of their friends chose Jekyll Island. Its climate, abundant wildlife and natural beauty appealed to them. Once the decision was made, it took just two years to incorporate the club, purchase the island and have the clubhouse constructed.

In January of 1888, the men gathered their families and boarded their yachts for the first "season" on Jekyll. A collection of sepia photographs captures the spirit of these families as they enjoyed the island's outdoor pleasures...hunting trips, lawn parties, carriage rides and leisurely afternoons at the beach. For years, there was unofficial competition among yachting members to see who would arrive in the longest, fastest, most beautifully appointed vessel.

Dinner each evening, however, was the high point of the day. Women spent hours selecting the dresses they would wear, while the men had definite ideas about what they hoped to accomplish during dinner conversations. Decisions might be made that would literally determine the next President, the health of the nation's economy or the career of any of their peers.

For example, when President McKinley was facing re-election, club member Cornelius Bliss was determined that "his man" would be successful. He and Marcus Hanna invited McKinley to Jekyll Island, and two days before he was to arrive, they learned Thomas B. Reed, Speaker of the House and McKinley's archrival, would be there at the same time. Bliss and Hanna arranged for the two men to meet, pressures were brought to bear and Reed ultimately did not oppose McKinley's re-election, even though he was adamantly opposed to the President's imperialistic policies regarding Cuba and the Philippines.

Finance was also of paramount concern to many club members. J.P. Morgan could create or quell panics on Wall Street with the financial resources at his personal command. Club members George Baker, head of the First National Bank of New York, and James Stillman, head of the National City Bank of New York, were nearly as wealthy as Morgan. When an economic panic caused a run on the country's banks in 1907, one of these three men paved the way for a secret meeting on Jekyll. The purpose was to quickly and quietly develop a plan for a centralized banking structure, and the result was the creation of the plan for the Federal Reserve System.

Communications was the field of Theodore Vail, president of the company that later became AT&T. When his company laid the telephone lines in 1915 for the first transcontinental telephone call, he was convalescing on the island. He had the linemen lay the lines to Jekyll so he could participate in this momentous event in communications history.

World War I offered some club members the opportunity to give their yachts to the U.S. war effort and provide financial assistance. Although several of the men had had considerable influence in mitigating the force of economic panics throughout the last half of the 1800s and later, no one was powerful enough to prevent the Great Depression.

Just two years into the Depression, half the club's membership dropped away. The final blow was World War II and the threat of enemy submarines off the coast. Members left in 1942 expecting to return another year, but few ever did.

By 1947, the State of Georgia gained the ownership of the island and established it as a state park. Jekyll Development Associates leased the structures and grounds from the state, completely rejuvenated them and further prepared for the opening of Jekyll Island Club Hotel in 1986.

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Broiled Lamb Chops
with Creamy Mint Pesto, Capellini and Gorgonzola

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients:

1/4 cup pine nuts
3 large cloves garlic
1 1/2 cups packed fresh mint leaves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
16 ounces capellini pasta
6 lamb loin chops
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup crumbled Gorgonzola

Preparation:

For pesto, in a food processor, combine the pine nuts, garlic, mint, salt and pepper; blend until smooth. Gradually add oil and lemon juice. Set aside.

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, place lamb chops on a broiler pan. Broil 4 inches from the heat for 10 minutes, turning once, until light pink in center. In a saucepan, heat pesto and cream. Drain pasta; serve lamb chops over pasta with pesto sauce. Garnish with Gorgonzola, red flame grapes and fresh mint.

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The Driskill Hotel
604 Brazos Street
Austin, Texas 78701
www.driskillhotel.com

Cattle baron Jesse Lincoln Driskill built his hotel in 1886 to serve as the South's Frontier Palace. His attention to detail and desire to create an architectural masterpiece made Texans justifiably proud. He spent $400,000, an enormous sum of money for the time.

A special edition of the Austin Daily Statesman described the hotel as "one of the finest in the country" and went on to say that it was "a blessing to the city and state, which cannot be overestimated".

Less than two weeks after the grand opening, the hotel hosted the first inaugural ball for Texas Governor Sul Ross. With a tradition established, later governors William Hobby, Dan Moody and John Connally also used the Driskill for their inauguration celebrations.

In 1887, Colonel Driskill's livelihood was threatened by a nationwide drought. The following year, an exceptionally cold winter wiped out 3,000 head of his cattle, and he was forced to sell his beloved hotel. A series of owners followed, as well as renovations and improvements that included the first long-distance telephone service in the city.

With its stained-glass done, fine antiques, oil paintings, massive draperies and inlaid marble floors, the hotel seems more like a stately grand estate...while the leather sofas, plush carpets and Texas accoutrements give it the feel of a private club.

In 1934, Texas natives Lyndon and Lady Bird Johnson had their first date at the hotel - breakfast in the dining room. Thus began the couple's lifelong "love affair" with the hotel. The Governor's Suite on the fifth floor was permanently reserved for LBJ, who awaited his election results at the hotel when he ran for Vice President in 1960.

Over the years, the Driskill has hosted many other famous guests, including Amelia Earhart, Louis Armstrong, Michael Jordan, Paul Simon, Sandra Bullock, President and Mrs. Clinton, and President and Mrs. Bush. But you needn't be a celebrity to receive a Texas-sized welcome at the historic Driskill...y'all come visit!

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Prosciutto-Wrapped Sea Scallops
with Cucumber Tomato Salad

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

12 sea scallops, muscle removed
12 paper-thin slices prosciutto
salt to taste

Creamy Vinaigrette:

1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup white wine
1 teaspoon white truffle oil
1 teaspoon capers
salt and lemon juice to taste

Cucumber Tomato Salad:

1/2 English cucumber
2 large red heirloom tomatoes, julienned
2 large yellow heirloom tomatoes, julienned
1/2 small red onion, julienned
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh dill

Preparation:

Wrap each scallop with prosciutto. Season with salt. In an ovenproof skillet, sauté scallops over high heat for 1 to 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Finish in a 350 degree oven for 3 to 5 minutes.

For vinaigrette, combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, wine, oil and capers in a blender; purée until smooth. Season with salt and lemon juice.

Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise and remove the seeds; cut cucumber into half-moon shapes. In a bowl, combine the cucumber, tomatoes, onion and dill; toss with 3/4 cup vinaigrette.

To serve, divide the cucumber tomato salad among four plates. Place three scallops around the salad on each plate; drizzle remaining vinaigrette around the scallops.