vHIS EATS continued from page 15 “This is flat chocolate. I roll it onto the pan, then put it in the smoker just like an oven. When it’s done, I cut it into squares,” she said. “I’m making naked brownies. When it’s done, you can build your own brownies with ice cream, homemade caramel sauce and other toppings. I may put out sprinkles.” When it comes to brownie toppings, anything goes, Steve joked. “ There are no rules. We don’t judge you in the Huff house,” he said with a chuckle. Party Time! The Huffs are no strangers to putting out a full meal with porterhouse steaks. However, the raffle winner’s meal proved a far smaller task than a previous request from another party. On that occasion, Steve said he received an unexpected early morning call on his cell phone from Yankton resident and former mayor Jake Hoffner. “I was sitting in the McDonald’s drive-through at Mitchell getting oatmeal. I was on the way to a deposition or client meeting,” said Huff, an attorney. “The phone rings, and it’s Jake on the other end. He said, ‘Can you do me a favor? We’re having a 60th birthday party, and we want it to be at your house. Can you do it for us?’” Huff recalled. “I said, ‘Sure, what did you have in mind?’ Jake told me they would have 40 people and wanted porterhouses. This was a Tuesday, and they wanted the meal for the following Saturday.” After being a bit stunned by the logistics, Huff said he felt up to the challenge and agreed to the request. “For that meal, we had to wing it. We went with five T-bones rather than all porterhouses. You can get T-bones pretty good on short notice, but the porterhouses are a lot tougher. (The guests) were all right with the T-bones,” he said. “I did 20 with salt and pepper, and 20 with a steak rub that consisted of lime juice, Worcestershire sauce, powdered mustard and white peppercorn. The crowd was pretty torn. They went 50-50, maybe even a 60-40 split for the salt and pepper.” Hoffner tried to pay for the meal, but Huff turned it down. “I did it as a favor, as a way to thank Jake (as a pilot) for what he has done for the kids,” Huff said. “Every year, Jake gives free flights to Big Friend, Little Friend. He’s been doing this for 20 years, since I came to Yankton. Jake is losing his shirt on the fuel cost, but he doesn’t care.” The timing for the Hoffner party was unusual, Tracy said. “This wasn’t a nighttime party,” she said. “They came in at 1:30 and were gone by 4 o’clock.” Steve said the group had spent the morning on the Missouri River or Lewis and Clark Lake. “It was a fun birthday party, and a great time was had by all,” he said. Steve said he had no qualms about rolling out the free meal for such a large gathering. “That’s one of the meals I would do for an honored guest or a really close friend. In fact, I’m planning such a meal for a buddy and his son,” he said. “It’ll be a Beef and Bourbon meal with the porterhouse steaks and drinks. My buddy doesn’t get to treat himself (with special evenings) like he should. This is a way of saying ‘thank you’ with a great meal and bonding. It’s not like I’m expecting anything (in return). It’s just a good karma thing.” Practice Makes Perfect The Huffs believe that practice makes perfect. They experiment with their own meals for pleasure and for whatever requests they may get for their special dinners. “We really like crab legs. Two weeks ago, Tracy and I were shopping for (ingredients for) jambalaya pizza, and here were the biggest crab legs I have ever seen in the Midwest, whether it be at the meat market or fish counter. We took four legs, 3 ½ pounds of crab, and paid $100. That’s $30 a pound,” Steve said. “They were already pre-cooked, but they were so big we broke the knife tip off on the sucker. Now we have an even bigger knife. I may never see crab legs that big again.” The Huffs prefer their crab with melted butter and chopped garlic. They used the crab as part of a mash with corn, potatoes cilantro, brown mustard, salt and pepper — like a seafood boil. “In order to put out good fundraiser meals, and get good donations, you need to widen your menu,” Steve said. “I considered (the crab meal) as our research and development project.” vHIS EATS continued on page 22 Bob’s bike was his passion... We made sure his final ride was memorable. Planning in advance creates a funeral service that reflects your loved ones wishes. Celebrations of life as unique as the individual being remembered. Guiding and serving families with compassion and trust. Kevin Opsahl Funeral Home & Crematory, Yankton Memorial Resource Center, Tyndall Memorial Chapels, Tabor, Menno & Tyndall 665-9679 • 1-800-495-9679 www.opsahl-kostelfuneralhome.com HISVOICEvSEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018v21