TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

No More Maas Makes For Fond Food Memories

ADVERTISEMENT

By JEFF HOUCK

The Tampa Tribune

Published: April 29, 2008

Updated: 04/29/2008 07:11 pm

When I was a kid, it was a big treat to go to downtown St. Petersburg and eat at the Maas Bros. department store restaurant during shopping trips with my grandmother. I remember devouring the carrot cake and the sliced roast beef with gravy.

We would sit at a table along the balcony overlooking the main shopping room, and I'd wonder how much trouble I'd get into if some beef accidentally found its way over the railing.

Some local RLF readers still love the Maas Bros. food for its flavor, not its aerodynamic properties. It's a tribute to the department store chain, which disappeared in the early 1990s after a buyout. We get at least a dozen requests a year for the department store's recipes.

Kathleen Hudson of Tampa remembers the florentine salad that Maas Bros used to serve. "It's a gelatin salad with spinach and cottage cheese," she writes.

Here is a version we found in our files. In a column from 2002, we quoted Patress Bally of Tampa saying that when the downtown Tampa store was closing, she asked for a recipe and that it came from the chef.

Uno For Cinco

Cinco de Mayo is next Monday. The National Pork Board offers this velveted taco recipe that looks easy and delicious to make during a weeknight.

Questions About Gluten

Reader Irene Davis saw the recipe for Cuban bread from Tom Bailey of New Port Richey in last week's column but said she has "no idea where to find high-gluten flour," one of the ingredients in the recipe. Can anyone help Irene with this?

Davis also wondered about a gluten-free recipe she saw on April 12 in the Tribune's 4you health magazine. The recipe for Andrea's World Famous Gluten-Free Flan Cake included Pamela's Classic Vanilla Cake Mix as an ingredient. She can't find it.

That's something you might better find at a health food store, Irene. If that doesn't work, you can order it online at naturalgrocers.com.

SOUFFLE FLORENTINE SALAD

1 package lemon-lime gelatin

1 cup boiling water, plus 1/2 cup cold water

1 tablespoon vinegar

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 package frozen spinach, thawed and drained

3/4 cup small-curd cottage cheese

1/3 cup chopped celery

1 tablespoon minced onion

Lettuce

Dissolve gelatin in hot water; add cold water, vinegar and mayonnaise. Beat until blended. Chill until mixture starts to thicken. Whip gelatin mixture until fluffy.

Fold in spinach, cottage cheese, celery and onion. Pour into an 8- or 9-inch square pan; chill until firm. Serve on a bed of lettuce. Makes 12 servings.

FLORENTINE SALAD

1 package (3 ounces) lemon gelatin

1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained (uncooked)

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup large-curd cottage cheese

1 teaspoon wine vinegar

1 cup chopped parsley

1 tablespoon chopped onion

Dissolve gelatin in hot water according to package directions. Chill until it reaches the consistency of unbeaten egg whites. Mix in remaining ingredients. Pour into 2-inch-deep pan or mold.

Chill until set. Serves 6 to 8.

VELVETED PORK TACOS

2 pounds boneless pork chops

1/3 cup cornstarch

1/3 cup olive oil

11/2 tablespoons ground cumin

Pepper and salt

1 bunch fresh cilantro

1 red onion

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil

1 package of 12 flour tortillas (fajita or smaller-size tortillas)

1 8-ounce container sour cream (regular or nonfat)

1 12-ounce jar tomato salsa

1 8-ounce can corn niblets

1 8-ounce package shredded cheese

Cut pork chops into small, bite-sized pieces. In a bowl, mix together cornstarch, 1/3 cup olive oil, cumin and 1 teaspoon black pepper until smooth, like a runny paste. Add pork to mixture, then set aside to marinate for 30 minutes.

While pork marinates, wash cilantro, and pluck whole leaves from stems, about 3/4 cup worth. Place whole cilantro leaves into a bowl. Thinly slice 1 red onion and add to cilantro, creating a salad. (You can adjust cilantro-red onion ratio to taste.) Add a dash of black pepper, 1 tablespoon of vinegar and 1 tablespoon of olive oil; toss to coat and set aside.

After pork has marinated, cook it in batches. Add a teaspoon of olive oil to a nonstick saute pan, and place over medium-high heat. When oil comes to temperature, cook half the pork pieces (without removing the marinade). Cook until the outside of the pork pieces are brown, a crust has formed and the inside is cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. If needed, add more oil to the pan, and then cook the second half of the marinated pork. Once finished, sprinkle cooked pork with salt to taste.

To assemble tacos: Warm tortillas according to directions on the package. Take one tortilla and smear a teaspoon of sour cream down the middle. Top with 7 or 8 chunks of pork. Atop pork, place a spoonful of salsa, then top with cilantro-red onion salad, a teaspoon of corn kernels and pinch of cheese. Fold over to eat.

Makes 6 servings (12 tacos).

Note: For a tapas version of this recipe, make the tacos smaller and seal with bamboo toothpicks.

Looking for a recipe? Write to Jeff Houck, The Tampa Tribune, P.O. Box 191, Tampa FL 33601, or e-mail jhouck@tampatrib.com. Keyword: Recipes, for more recipes and to check out our online archive.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT