Smoked Duck Sausage
This is a recipe that we have used on and off again here at the Club for the past 5 years.  Sometimes we sneak it into a cooked dish like the sweet potato hash or maybe a soup such as gumbo where it kind of takes a back seat and is used more to flavor a dish.  but also it is featured on our lunch  and dinner menu  as a component on our Charcuterie plate (click the title for the full recipe).

Praline Bacon
This is a fun and easy recipe that I use for a lot cheese plates on specialty dinners, but that is not to say it doesn’t have other uses, in fact pork bellies- cured and smoked commonly known as BACON is one ingredient I probably could not get by with out.  So versatile I use in crumbled on salads, added to mashed potatoes for an interesting and unique flavor or just as a snack.  It is sweet and smoky and has just a little bite from the cracked black pepper. Enjoy!  (click the title for the full recipe)

Sweet & Smoky BBQ Sauce
This is our house made version of sweet baby rays.  Being aKansas   citystyle it is really sweet and very smoky!  Try this on your ribs or brisket or just as a condiment for your burger and fries.  Once made, it can be stored in the refrigerator for 3 months (click the title for the full recipe).

Light's photos via Getty Images

As I look ahead to our traditional Father/Son Brunch this coming year I always tend to reflect on the meaning of this event.  I have cooked for this event for the past six years and have always felt that this one of the most quintessential meals that we prepare for the membership.  There are many reasons that I feel this way, for one it is the longest running consecutively at 130 years, it always father and Son and usually represents between 2-3 generations but I have seen up to  4!  It is a glimpse back into to time and the way things were before the Internet, cell phones and iPads.  I think back to the first one back in 1882, what was it like? What kind of equipment was there in the kitchen? Who was the Chef and what was the menu?  I feel that myself and the kitchen team are all a little part of this history.  This year’s menu promises to be rooted in some of the classic Milwaukee Club dishes but presented in a more modern style with a focus on local ingredients and smaller tasting size portions.

A raw bar that opens at 10:30 full of east coast oysters, American caviar, jumbo shrimp and Alaskan king crab and of course the not to be missed house made Kentucky style eggnog; a hot buffet set out at 11:45 and full array of pastries will round out this year’s long anticipated potefelia, is going to a great start to the year 2012!