February 2022 - OLD LINE PLATE

A different version of this entry appeared in Eaten magazine 2019 issue No. 5: “Surf & Turf“

In the early 1970s, a popular new drink began to make appearances in advertisements and nightlife coverage.

Charles McHarry of the New York Daily News reported in his “On The Town” column:

“La Seine now has a drink called the Harvey Wallbanger, an import from Malibu, and here is how it was born: Seems a surfer known as Harvey bounced into a Malibu pub one night after a heavy day of hanging ten. He asked for a screwdriver and then as an afterthought asked the bartender to float an once and a half of Galliano on it. He finished the portion and promptly walked into the nearest wall. Hence Harvey Wallbanger, and it is not recommended at a lunch of less than two hours.”

Similarly, Mickey Porter of the Ohio Akron Journal announced that the Brown Derby bar would be “the first in the area to feature the Harvey Wallbanger, a drink imported from Malibu, and here’s how it was born…” You can guess the rest.

It’s rare that I ever get around to posting follow-ups. I’ve been the lucky recipient of additional stories and recipes in response to past posts — I even have a plan to scrapbook them. But I’m always in the thick of a backlog of new posts and new stories.

Charlotte Truesdell’s Ricotta Cheesecake will be a first, then.

I wrote about the Truesdells in 2019. It was one of those times where I randomly chose a recipe from a community cookbook only to find a goldmine of information about the person who contributed it. In the years since the post, I’ve walked past the “Il Palazzetto” house many times, thinking of its history.

*The Truesdells in their home in Guilford, which they called “Il Palazzetto”*

In March of 2020, a woman named Matilde Morara reached out to me. A resident of Bologna, Matilde was a friend of the Truesdells, who she met while they were all living in New York in 1971. Matilde lived in Baltimore for a year in 1980, spending time with the Truesdells in their famously splendid home, enjoying music and good food. She told me that Charlotte was an excellent cook of Bolognese food, Matilde’s native cuisine.

Month: February 2022

Harvey Wallbanger Cake, Elaine Burns

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