Historical December 1986 report or notice. Original dates, prices and contacts describe the source period; current availability has not been established.
Macho Menus, after a brief hiatus, is back!! JoAnn Vatcha has volunteered to organize the column on a regular basis.
If there are any neighborhood chefs who would like to contribute, please call her at 726-6974.
By JoAnn Vatcha “Lifestyles of St. Louis’ Rich and Famous” would have to include the remarkable product of Skinker-DeBaliviere, the Schoemehl family. Patriarch Vince Sr. and wife Lucille have lived in the neighborhood for twenty years, raising eleven outstanding children ready to reform St. Louis and take on the world!!
One of The Paper’s earliest and longest running advertisers, “VC. Schoemehl — Painting and Wallpaper” stood by the neighborhood through the lean and mean days and stuck around to see the fruits of his labors.
Now enjoying what is charmingly called “semi-retirement,” the Schoemehls enjoy family, friends, politics, travelling (frequently to Savannah to see old friends and neighbors Bill and Nan Thomas).
A political event occasionally brings them back to St. Louis — but it is mostly a family event, especially the holidays: Surpassing at least one son in the kitchen (Lean Cuisine doesn’t count as a Macho Menu), Vince Sr. enjoys perfecting traditional dishes.
One of his favorites is guaranteed to put you into a holiday mood — and set your mouth watering for turkey… dressing… gravy … real potatoes … pumpkin (or chocolate?) pie, and to end it on just the right note, the perfect fruit salad. “The Original Schoemehl’s Fruit Salad” Look for good fruit and stock up on those that will be at just the right ripeness on the big day. Sweet oranges, not the sour Florida types, an apple, chopped up fine, for some crunch, and bananas. You’ll also need: a can of pears, a can of apricots, a larger can of peaches, a can of pineapple chunks, a jar of maraschino cherries. Cut up all the fruit — canned and fresh– into irregular, chunky pieces. Cut the pineapple chunks cross grain. Combine all the fruit with some of the juices. Save some of the peach juices until you see what you’ll need at the end. Refrigerate overnight for the best flavor.
The last fruit to add are the bananas. It’s important that you get good, firm, but ripe bananas. Slice them and add to the fruit about two hours before serving.
A big punch bowl of this will make it through most holiday dinners. (Editor’s note: There is other Schoemehl food news this month as well: son Greg has taken on the challenge of a new restaurant, La Casa Frijole, located in the Greystone Shopping Center, on W. Florissant north of I-270. Good Mexican eating!! Just have this great fruit salad ready to put out the fire!
Original photograph caption
Vince Schoemehl Sr., featured in the fruit-salad column. The Times of Skinker-DeBaliviere, December 1986, printed page 7. Descriptive archival caption; photographer not credited.
Originally published in The Times of Skinker-DeBaliviere, December 1986.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Original source: SD_Times1986_12.pdf, printed page(s) 7; PDF page(s) 8.
