Derby Daze

The Run for the Roses was cause enough for Melissa and Herb Haupt to invite neighbors over for a mouth-watering meal prepared by Chef Larry Forgione.

By Christy Marshall

Photography by Michael Schlueter

The Details:

The host and hostess: Herb and Melissa Haupt

The location: The Haupts' house

The flowers: Mary Stieven, MKS Designs

The guests: Reggie and Rod Jorboe | Scott and Nancy Spencer | Mark and Debbie Wilhelm

The chef: Larry Forgione, chef and proprietor, An American Place Restaurant

Assistant chef: Steve Caravelli

Servers: Isaiah DiLorenzo, Jennifer Aholt

To Melissa Haupt, the ingredients of a successful party are: "Great food, real people and a relaxed, comfortable atmosphere where you are not all tied up in bow and tie ... No hassle, no fuss, no muss."

So on this Saturday night, post Barbaro's Kentucky Derby romp and rout, she and her husband Herb invited their neighbors over for a dinner prepared by Larry Forgione, proprietor of An American Place and chef extraordinaire. (The Haupts purchased the dinner party—donated by Forgione—at a Haven of Grace auction held last November.) Guests were greeted with mint juleps served on a silver tray. Riders mount your horses; the party was off. Delicious to a borderline fault, one was hardly enough for anyone. The hors d'oeuvres featured country ham, with or without a touch of beets, on Kentucky beaten biscuits.

"Larry is fabulous," Melissa gushes. "His menus are great; his food is delicious."

No argument there. Each course topped the preceding. The ambushed asparagus was actually the perfectly cooked vegetable en croute. The lamb was like "buttah." The summer pudding was a bread cake with raspberry filling and bourbon cream topping. The oohs and aahs were never ending; the guests' enjoyment ever rising.

The Haupts have been married for a dozen years but have lived in their West County manse for just two. Melissa first saw Herb, an orthopedic surgeon, when he was on a local TV show discussing anabolic steroids. Her mother kept insisting she watch, but Melissa was hesitant: "Doctors are egotistical and self-centered." But Herb came on screen and caught her eye. Their first date was dinner at Charlie Gitto's on the Hill. As she was getting into Herb's car, Melissa asked him if it was a Toyota. Actually, it was a Porsche.

They dated for six years before taking the plunge. They have two children—a son and daughter: Blake, from Melissa's first marriage, and Taylor. Blake is currently in the U.S. Navy medical corps, serving in Iraq on the USS Enterprise; Taylor is going into sixth grade at Rossman School.

Today the Haupts limit their entertaining to family events (the holidays), fund-raisers and casual get-togethers with friends. Or neighbors. Which is exactly what they did so triumphantly on this Derby day in May.

The Menu:

The Reception

Traditional mint juleps

Champagne

Kentucky beaten biscuits with Triple Crown Derby spread and glazed country ham

The Dinner

White asparagus tips in ambush with fresh morel mushrooms and egg sauce

Derby Day scalloped oysters with wild leeks and crisp bacon crumbs

Chilled English cucumber “water” and a Belleville white asparagus tempura

Spit-roasted Prairie Grass Farms spring lamb

Mélange of native spring vegetables, herbs and grains

The Dessert

Traditional summer pudding served with Kentucky bourbon cream

Homemade bonbons and candies

The Recipes:

Beaten Biscuits

(Makes approximately 24)

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 tablespoons white sugar

1/4 cup lard, chilled and cut into small pieces

1/3 cup light cream

2 tablespoons cold water (optional)

Preheat the oven to 450.

Sift flour, salt, baking powder and sugar together. Use a fork to cut the lard into the flour until it looks like coarse meal. Using a standing mixer, mix the dough as you slowly add the cream. Mix well to form the dough into a ball, adding water if needed.

Place the dough onto a large cutting board and knead slightly. With a mallet or rolling pin, beat the dough a few times to form it into a rough rectangle. Fold the dough over and then beat it out again. Repeat this process until the dough becomes white and blisters form on the surface (about 15 minutes).

Roll out the dough to about  inch thick. Cut into 2-inch rounds and prick the top a few times with the tines of a fork. Place on greased baking sheets.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden.

Allow the biscuits to cool to room temperature and, with a serrated knife carefully split in half.

Cover the bottom half of the biscuits generously with the Benedictine spread (see next recipe), return the top of each biscuit and serve as hors d’oeuvres, a snack or the bread for your meal.

Benedictine Spread

1/2 seedless cucumber, peeled

1/2 pound cream cheese, room temperature

1 tablespoon brown or whole grain mustard

1 tablespoon finely sliced scallions

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Grated zest of  lemon

1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon

Salt and fresh ground pepper

Grate the cucumber on a cheese grater into a piece of cheesecloth or clean kitchen towel. Wring out all the juice/water from the grated cucumber and, when dry, combine in a bowl with all the other ingredients. With a spoon, mix to evenly incorporate the ingredients together. Season with a little salt and a few turns of the pepper mill.

Asparagus in Ambush with Parsley-Egg Sauce

2 slices country bread,  inch thick, cut in half

20 asparagus tips, blanched, at room temperature

4 thin slices country ham

4 slices Colby, Gouda or Muenster

Olive oil

Parsley Egg Sauce

1/4 cup dry white wine

1 teaspoon chopped shallots

2 tablespoons heavy cream

3 tablespoons sweet butter, room temperature

Dash of Tabasco

Juice from  lemon

1 hard-boiled egg, coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

Salt and fresh ground pepper

Combine the wine and shallots in a small saucepan and reduce by half. Add the cream. Stir, releasing the fond from the sides and bottom of the pan. Remove from the heat and whisk in the room-temperature butter, one tablespoon at a time. Add the lemon juice and Tabasco. Stir in the chopped egg and parsley. Season with a little salt and a few turns of pepper from a mill. Set aside to keep warm but not hot. Pre-heat your oven to 375.

Brush the four half slices of bread with a little olive oil and bake for 2–3 minutes. On a cookie sheet, lay a slice of ham over each piece of bread, top each with five asparagus tips and a slice of cheese. Bake for 3–4 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and melted. Place each asparagus in ambush in the center of your plates and spoon the parsley-egg sauce around it.

Pot-Roasted Lamb with Farmers’ Market Vegetables

The best way to prepare this dish is to head down to your local farmers’ market and pick out your favorite vegetables. If your market has a farmer who sells good grass-fed lamb, pick up a boned, rolled and tied shoulder. If you’re at the Clayton or Soulard Market, look for Mark at M&K Meats. Dave from Prairie Grass Farms sells at the GreenMarket in the Central West End.

1 boned, rolled and tied lamb shoulder (4 pounds)

1 onion, peeled and sliced thick

2 carrots, peeled and sliced thick

6 cloves of fresh garlic, whole

3 ripe tomatoes, halved, seeds scraped out and then rough-chopped

1/4 cup tomato purée

1 bay leaf, fresh if available

Sprigs of fresh thyme, tarragon, savory or your favorite herbs

1 quart homemade or low-sodium chicken broth

Olive oil

Salt and fresh ground pepper

Generously season the lamb with salt and a few turns of the pepper mill.

In a heavy Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil until “wavy hot.” Sear and brown the seasoned lamb in the hot oil until all sides of the lamb are evenly crusted. Remove and set aside on a platter. Add onion, carrots, garlic and tomatoes to the oil. While stirring occasionally, allow the vegetables to take on a little color. Add herbs, bay leaf and tomato purée. Stir. Continue to cook another 2–3 minutes.

Return the seared lamb along with any juices to the Dutch oven. Pour in the broth, wait for it to come to a simmer, cover and place into a 200-degree oven for 2–3 hours (or until tender). Carefully remove the Dutch oven from your oven, crack the cover slightly and allow the lamb to cool at least 30 minutes.

Place the lamb on a cutting board, then pour the braising liquid and vegetables into a saucepan. While bringing the liquid to a boil, skim any fat from the surface and continue to do so as the liquid reduces by a third or until slightly thickened. Strain the sauce.

Slice the lamb into one-inch thick slices and arrange in the center of your plates or platter. Spoon half of the sauce over the lamb, arranging your vegetables around it. Serve at once with the extra sauce in gravy boat.

While your lamb is cooking, bring 2 quarts of lightly salted water to a boil.

Farmers’ Market Vegetables

We chose the vegetables listed below, but feel free to serve whatever your family or guests enjoy. There are no wrong choices. 

1 bunch each baby carrots, golden beets, turnips, washed but not peeled

2 sweet onions

Leaving the onions washed but unpeeled, cut down from the top of the onion, making a cross about one inch deep. Place on a double-thick piece of tinfoil, drizzle with a little oil, balsamic vinegar and salt. Fold up the sides of the foil, making an enclosed package. Place in the oven next to the Dutch oven for the last 45 minutes of cooking.

Cook each of the vegetables (5–6 minutes for the carrots and 10 minutes for the beets and turnips), removing with a slotted spoon and placing in a bowl of iced water.

As the vegetables cool, gently rub them in a clean kitchen towel to scrape away the skins.

When ready to serve, peel away the skin from the roasted onions and cut into large pieces through the core. Place the carrots, beets and turnips in a few ounces of water, a tablespoon of butter, a little salt and fresh-ground pepper in a large sauté pan with a cover. Over medium-high heat, steam the vegetables 2–3 minutes, then remove the cover and let most of the water evaporate. Add the onions and chopped parsley. Toss and serve.