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Wyoming Community Cookbook: Happy 75th Anniversary, JWC!

May 25, 2023

In this edition of Wyoming Community Cookbook, we’re sharing not one but two recipes from the beloved Junior Women’s Club Cookbook archives, all in honor of the JWC’s 75th anniversary.

The Joint Women’s Collaborative (formerly known as the Junior Women’s Club) is one of Wyoming’s oldest and most impactful non-profit organizations. The JWC spearheads several fundraising initiatives that have become part of the fabric and history of Wyoming, including Light Up Wyoming, Shamrock Shakedown, and annual mum sales. In turn, the JWC leverages these funds to support many community and volunteer organizations, including (but not limited to) Bethany House, Dress for Success, Pets in Need, and the City of Wyoming. In 2023, they are celebrating 75 years of service to our community.

The history of the JWC Cookbook is fascinating. On average, a cookbook would only be released about once every seven years. Among each category—appetizers, mains, desserts, etc.—the book had a strict threshold for the number of recipes that could be published, meaning the competition was stiff. Each submission was prepared and taste-tested by a group of members, with only the most mouthwatering recipes making the cut.

The cookbooks were not only an important fundraising strategy. They were also a cultural connection between JWC and the community at large. Ask anyone to pull out their JWC cookbook today and you’re likely to flip through a set of well-loved, well-worn (and maybe a bit stained) pages. Whip up one of the time-tested hors d’oeuvres below and be a part of 75 years of history.

Pinky Winks

1 lb. hamburger
1 lb. Weber’s sausage (mild)
1 lb. cubed Velveeta cheese
½ tsp. oregano
½ tsp. cayenne pepper
½ tsp. garlic salt
2 loaves Pepperidge Farm party rye

Brown hamburger and sausage; drain off fat. Add cubed Velveeta and stir in until melted. Add oregano, cayenne, and garlic salt. Mound on rye bread, about 1 tbsp. per slice. Broil as many as needed until hot and bubbly. Can be made ahead and partially frozen on cookie sheets, so topping won’t stick, then stored in a big plastic bag in the freezer. You can then take out as many as are needed. Can be defrosted for faster broiling in the microwave, on low, for 3-3½ minutes. Serves 10 or more.

Judy Neugebauer
Marcy Lewis
Elizabeth Hilb

Dill Dip

1 cup sour cream
1 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp. dill weed
1 tsp. Beau Monde spice
1 tbsp. parsley flakes
1 tbsp. minced onions
Mix all ingredients and chill thoroughly. Serve with a tray of cauliflower florets, celery sticks, carrot sticks, and cucumber slices. Also good with chips. Makes 2 cups.

Darlene Adams

Wyoming Community Cookbook: The Arepa Place

April 19, 2023

You may know them as a Findlay Market staple, perfect for grabbing a hearty bite while browsing the market. In 2021, The Arepa Place branched out from OTR and brought its mouthwatering Colombian flavors to Wyoming. We spoke with owner Isis Arrieta-Dennis to learn more about her journey as a restaurateur and the history and heritage of The Arepa Place cuisine. Alongside her mother, Isis crafted each of The Arepa Place’s authentic recipes, all of which are made from scratch using traditional methods. One of these special family recipes—Arepa de Choclo—is shared below.

What inspired you to open your first location of The Arepa Place at Findlay Market?

I was hoping to get into the restaurant business, and I believed we could offer a product or dish that was relatively hard to find in the area and would have great success. However, I had virtually no restaurant or kitchen experience. Fortunately, about the same time I was getting started, Findlay Kitchen was just opening. I knew it would be a great place to learn the trade and receive some much-needed mentoring about the industry and about using a commercial kitchen.

How did you decide to make Wyoming your second location?

First of all, my husband is a Spanish teacher at Wyoming High School, and we live just outside Wyoming. Second, we met and became friends with the former owners of CWC, Kelly (Trush) and Caitlin (Young), before opening our first location at Findlay Market. In fact, they let us use their restaurant for multiple pop-ups, so we could have more experience in a restaurant setting. We fell in love with the restaurant and the community that supported us during these tryouts. When the restaurant was for sale, we did not think twice about making an offer and buying the location.

What has been the most rewarding part of bringing your traditional recipes to the Cincinnati community?

It is gratifying to see people’s acceptance of our food in Cincinnati—especially seeing Colombians eating a dish that reminds them of home. Bringing this traditional recipe to this city is helping me to preserve part of my identity and culture. Also, the most rewarding part is having my mom be a part of a mutual/generational dream of owning a restaurant.

What’s next for The Arepa Place?

Our idea right now is to focus on providing great service and food here in Wyoming and on building a stronger customer base. Learning to run two locations is still a challenge. The Wyoming location also provides us with more space, a bar, and a beautiful patio that requires more energy. Furthermore, this year we will once again participate in more festivals and local events.

Anything else you’d like the foodies of Wyoming to know?

We would like people to know that our arepas and empanadas are made from scratch, the traditional way. We cook the hominy corn and then grind it to make our arepas and empanadas. We are considered gluten-free, tree nut-free, peanut-free, and shellfish-free.

AREPA DE CHOCLO

This traditional dish is part of Venezuelan and Colombian cuisine. Like arepas, they are popular at roadside stands. The most common varieties are made with fresh ground corn mixed into a thick batter and cooked on a budare, like pancakes. Once cooked, they are traditionally eaten with queso de mano (handmade cheese), and occasionally with fried pork chicharrón on the side.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour

Equipment: Small skillet/frying pan, blender or food processor, spatula, and measuring cups + spoons.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup of sweet corn mix (P.A.N.)
3 cups of frozen/fresh kernel corn
1 cup of milk
1/4 tsp of salt
1 tbsp of sugar
3 tbsp of butter
Fresco cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

Add fresh corn, milk, butter, corn flour, and salt in a blender and blend until a thick paste forms. Let stand for about 10 minutes for the mixture to thicken.
Preheat the frying pan over medium low heat.
When the pan is hot, add some vegetable oil.
Pour 1/3 cup of mixture into the frying pan, making a circle around the pan.
Cook for 5-7 minutes and flip with a spatula. Cook for 5 more minutes until the cachapa is golden brown.
Place sliced mozzarella on one half of the cachapa and let it melt. Fold the other half over the cheese and spread some butter on top. Serve hot.
If necessary, keep prepared capachas warm in the oven until all are cooked.

Wyoming Community Cookbook: Tēla Bar + Kitchen

March 2, 2023

Welcome to our new feature, the Wyoming Community Cookbook. Each month, we’ll share a delicious dish or recipe that is, in one way or another, part of the fabric of our culinary community. You can look forward to tasty tips from our favorite restaurateurs, culinarians around town, and even our Historical Society records (though we may put a modern spin on those!).

Our inaugural feature kicks off with the secrets behind Pendery’s Poutine, a retired menu item from Tēla, one of Wyoming’s most beloved eateries. We spoke with L.R. Hunley, co-owner, who shared a bit more about Tēla’s culinary personality (hint: it’s flavorful, scratch-made food).

When and why did you decide to start Tēla?

Honestly, Tēla was over 30 years in the making. My business partner (Doug Nawrocki) and I first met at TGI Fridays in Tri-County in the early 90s. We quickly became friends over our mutual love for music, especially of the jam band variety. During our travels chasing bands, we shared our mutual desire to open our own place. This was the
beginning of what Tēla eventually became.

How has Tēla changed over the years?

COVID really changed everything for us. Our takeaway business increased exponentially and continued to be a major financial stream for us to the point that we have to staff a dedicated employee each and every shift to manage the sheer volume of business we push through our drive-thru window.

What is the philosophy behind your menu?

Scratch-made, delicious takes on pub grub.

What is the one food you couldn’t live without?

Pasta (all shapes and sizes!)

Anything else you’d like the foodies + aspiring foodies of Wyoming to know?

I am a pretty accomplished home chef and avid fan of fine wine. I love cooking for family and friends and find pulling off dinner parties to be a very zen and satisfying experience!

Pendery’s Poutine

This delicious combination of house-cut fries, pulled pork, cheddar cheese curd, house gravy, beer mustard, and cage-free fried egg can be replicated at home for a tasty, hearty meal.

“I feel this dish always spoke to our original vision of creating a comfortable, neighborhood gathering space serving up scratch-made deliciousness. At one point, one of our regular guests referred to this dish as “a hug in a bowl” and I’ve never forgotten it! While seeming humble and simple, our poutine was great because of the sum of its parts.” —L.R. Hunley

First, our (now famous) house-cut fries are hand-punched daily, soaked in water overnight to release some of the starches and then blanched at 325 degrees. After the blanching process, the fries are cooled. Then, they’re ready for service, where they are cooked at a higher temperature of 375 degrees until golden brown. They are then seasoned to order with our proprietary chef salt.
The pulled pork we used for this dish was a braised pork shoulder, simple but time consuming.
The cheddar cheese curds were sourced locally from the Walnut Hills-based cheese producer, Urban Stead.
Next came our house gravy, which was truly a labor of love. It required us to first make a scratch-made pork stock which required 12-15 hours of stovetop simmering before we could turn the delicious stock into gravy.
The last step (before being topped with a perfectly fried egg) was our house-made beer mustard. With the help of Fifty West Brewing, we began our beer vinegar program weeks before we opened our doors. This vinegar was the key to our delicious beer mustard!