by Teddi Wilson

Created on: January 08, 2010

  Fresh powder, crisp air, pine trees and a country lodge this is the ideal setting for a reflection on comfort food. There were actually many activities that we shared in that setting a car rally on the frozen lake (adults only) skiing on a small hill with a tow rope and frozen mittens (kids only)...but my most poignant memory is of the food and the gentleman who introduced me to "Mock Duck".

   Long before Bed and Breakfast was popular there was Whispering Pines a beautiful century home on Clear Lake in Northern Ontario. Nestled in the pine trees, front porch wrapped around the entire house, picket fence shutters leaded glass windows and the most delicious aroma of fresh bread I have ever smelled. The house was our winter getaway. Mom and Dad loved the annual car rally on Clear Lake and until we were teens my brother and I were packed up and taken north. John and Mary Smith (no kidding) were the owners of Whispering Pines and she was the ultimate chef, and he the original Grumpy old man. Keep in mind that this was about 4 decades ago the era of home cooking and children should be seen and not heard. Mary in the kitchen could not be matched her repertory consisted of home made bread, pies, scones, succulent roast chicken and the lightest buttery mashed potatoes on the planet.  All meals were served family style in the dining room, a large stone fireplace dominated one wall and four oak tables were set with linen, silver and crystal the room was warm the aroma delicious and the company boisterous after a day in the snow.

  I don't know why Mr. Smith was a grumpy old man but there was a bond between he and I that continued long after I grew up. Perhaps it was my love of antiques and old books both in ample supply in this house. I was not a timid kid and I roamed the place looking at everything I  was often discovered in rooms and attics and basements I was not supposed to be, but hey I was curious and Mr. Smith found a kindred spirit in my love of  old things so he "allowed" me to wander. He often met me with a basket of warm scones or a plate of cookies and would show me a rare book or the contents of a china cabinet all objects came with a story and I was a keen listener. We spent many an hour eating fresh warm baked goods and chatting it was bliss.  The house always smelled of the most wonderful food and people were always asking what smells so good? What are we having for dinner?  Mr. Smiths pat answer was always the same "Mock Duck". Now to a ten year old Mock Duck sounds very far fetched and bizarre so of course all the kids scoffed said yech,  and the adults just laughed but the truth is Mary did make "mock duck"  it was one of the most asked for meals at Whispering Pines.

Mock Duck aka Stuffed Flank Steak, I'm no Mary but to this day I have to make it at least once a winter usually on a cold, snowy February weekend.

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