But not only hams come from the Conrad smokehouse, slab bacon, too. and country-style sausage and dried beef of a quality such as we never sampled before. This beef is cur in big. thin slices, tender, not too salty, with a true hickory-smoked flavor. The firm has a ready baked ham garnished with pineapple and maraschino cherries and scented with a clove-and-sugar dressing. These good things arc branded Wolf Creek. the name of the stream bordering the south edge of the town.
It has been half a century since the Franzenburg brothers came from Germany to Truer, Iowa, where an older brother had preceded them and opened a market. Paul Franzenburg. sixteen, and William, eighteen, knew just a little about the butcher trade. having learned from their father, a veterinarian working for the German government as an inspector of cattle brought over the border from Denmark. The boys worked in Tracr for a time, then set up in business together. Right from the beginning, lowans appreciated their products. Today. the firm has six full-time butchers, with additional help for the holiday rush.
Paul Franzenburg, Jr., told me that the success of the business rests largely on the old-fashioned goodness of the cured meats. Too many products, he said. are assembly-line processed, their individuality completely lost. The Franzenburg meats are hand-tailored, individual in appearance and flavor. The firm sticks tight as cocklebut to the old time formulas. German in origin. Franzenburg Wolf Creek hickory-smoked products postpaid anywhere in the United States: hams. 10.14 pounds, ＄1.05 per pound; boneless hams, baked and fruit-garnished, 7-10 pounds. ＄1.60 per pound; bacon, whole slabs, 6-9 pounds, ＄1.05 per pound; dried beef, sliced to order, 1-pound container, ＄2.
Salt Chips arc the idea of Pennsylvanian Howard Smith, a culinary expert on seasoning. The chips arc of two kinds, one for French dressing and one garlic-scented for the garlic touch in meat, egg, or vegetable dishes, in dressings or sauces. The chips are packed in 8-ounce cartons with metal tops and pouring spouts the same as those on salt boxes. The salt is coarsely ground, blended with spices, seeds, and herbs, then aged to marry the flavors.
The maker tells us that the chips draw the juices from meat and vegetables, blending them with the herbs and spices, to give a full-bodied, natural flavor. In the French dressing the salt is combined with paprika, garlic, spices, and seeds. The garlic chips are much the same, with the garlic predominating and herbs used in addition. A recipe for French dressing to be made with the salt chips is given on the label. Send ＄1 check or money order for the Salt Chip twins, two 8-ounce cartons, postage prepaid, to Howard Smith, 131 Baltimore Pike, Lansdowne, Pennsylvania.
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