Saddle Blankets and Midnight Soup (Patreon)

While Applebloom tried to reboot Link her brain; down in Ft. Trotterdale my household had decided to step out for lunch in my Equestria Dreamscape. Rehearsals for Scratch's upcoming tour were still occurring, but the lack of a fully functional steam engine meant that full rehearsals were not possible right now.

     Steel Strut mood had improved for a little while with the termination of Silver Solder and Wood Grain's contracts for lack of performance. Only for her to discover there was machine shop in Ft. Trotterdale itself that could've easily fabricated the desired gearbox she'd been asking for months from the now fired stallions. This put her back into a black mood again. One thing I quickly learned was this. If Steel Strut is in a bad mood it was prudent to give her a wide berth.

     As a result over the next few days myself, Petina, and Carousel had some extra time to just play tourist. The Silver Mirror estate was an amazing place, but since we'd arrived none of us had been able to spend much time actually visiting the city of Ft. Trotterdale. Scratch was planning a big beach party in the near future, but one afternoon the 3 of us decided to catch the newly opened electric tram line and head into to town for lunch.

     Originally Ft. Trotterdale had been nothing more than a final jumping off point for ships heading off to destinations beyond Equestria borders. However with its large, relatively deep, natural harbor and connection to navigable Silver Stallion river it was inevitable that Ft Trotterdale would grow into an important port of entry.

     However over time the city grew to be more than just a collection of docks, dry docks, piers, workshops and warehouses. With a balmy climate during autumn and winter Ft. Trotterdale became a popular destination for vacationing ponies seeking a break from the winter cold. As a result numerous resorts, spas, casinos, nightclubs, theaters and restaurants have sprung up to cater to the crowds that descend upon the city every winter. But from the late spring through early autumn the heat and humidity made the city less attractive to many ponies.

     Still the city and its boardwalk were still bustling. The wooden planks of the boardwalk clattered and clonked with steady staccato of ponies hooves. Barkers called out invitations for ponies to partake of numerous arcade games of skill and chance, or tempt them various tasty treats and drinks.

     It was here that our party found a cafe that tempted us. At a place called the Brazen Gull we paused and reviewed the menu they had posted outside the establishment. In particular their daily special intrigued us:

     The Saddle Blanket and Midnight Soup combination

     In a few minutes we were seated around a rattan table under the bright red and white umbrella on a deck that looked out on the boardwalk. Soon our waiter had taken our orders. All of us decided to try the daily special.

     Saddle Blankets are a quesadilla-like dish. However instead of a round tortilla a flat, unleavened bread that was rectangular with rounded corners is used. It was the shape of the bread that looks like a saddle blanket that gave the dish its name. Between 2 of them lots shredded cheese along with various grilled vegetables and seafood, and a selection of sauces were placed. Then the whole thing was placed onto a well oiled grill. Quickly they were grilled on both sides until exterior was nice and crispy and fillings were melted and hot.

     I ordered one with a cheese, olive tapenade and sauteed mushrooms. Petina, having a taste for spicy food had her's filled with cheese, little precooked shrimp, and a chipolte type salsa. Carousel opted to have hers filled with cheese, a pesto style herb sauce, and grilled onions. A neat thing about saddle blankets was that they were cut into quarters so it was easy to share pieces with each other.

     Midnight soup was made from black beans, minced garlic, chopped onions, minced celery, diced carrots which were all sauteed in Shindleback. Then mushroom duxelle, along with a mixture of cumin, coriander, oregano, vegetable broth, and red pepper flakes were added. As a garnish big dollops of sour cream were added to the bowls and wedges of lime were provided to squeeze into the soup or over the saddle blankets.

    To quench our thirsts and wash down our meals we enjoyed tall, well chilled glasses of Sunset Tea. This was a mixture of brewed black tea that was steeped with allspice, ginger, and cinnamon then mixed with orange and grapefruit juice, then sweetened with sugar. For desert enjoyed mixed fruit bowls. In chilled silver bowls were mixed diced watermelon, honey dew, and cantaloupe chunks mingled with fresh pineapple chunks, sliced strawberries and blueberries. This fruit mixture rested on beds of sweetened whipped cream.

     Thus fortified we spent the rest of the afternoon wandering the boardwalk and watching several steamers and clipper ships arrive and depart. As the sun started to set we caught the evening tram which took us back up the hill toward the Silver Mirror. From there it was a short jog back to the estate. We arrived just in time see several of the estate's carriages and a furniture van rumble through the ornate wrought iron gates of the estate. Apparently some more ponies had arrived on one of the ships today. Eager to find out who they were we trotted toward the estate.

To be continued.