Pre-Fall Cooking

My feet a curled up, trying to keep warm in the crisp air of the living room - it's 66 and I do not want to think about wimping out and turning on the heat. It's fall, and I love it. The Pecan tree out the windows are starting to yellow, the Farmer's Market yesterday was a hubbub of people wearing sweaters and light coats, and even though hit the lower 70s during the late afternoon, the chill of low 50s is there. I'm celebrating Fall as much as possible, before the yo-yo of reality (hot, freezing, too warm, freaking cold) returns.

With Fall comes cooking. We've been busy with all kinds, so here's a random sampling of late Summer goodies...Ryan baked for our last dinner club, and made two incredible pieces of bread. We always joke about the word "artisanal" and how cheesy it makes cheese, chocolate, or TV dinners sound...but this was truly artisanal bread.


Farl - a very English loaf


Pain de Campagne - a big, bold, hearty French bread

A few other goodies...


Basil and Lemon Parmesan Crisps


Artisanal Egg Salad - Farmers Market Eggs and Spinach, Homemade bread

Tschüß!!

Chicken Primavera

In anticipation of our trip, I've thrown a few italian dishes into the repertoire. Ellie Krieger has also turned into a huge favorite of mine from the Food Network. She does really sensible, fresh recipes that are very healthy. A few weeks ago, I had tried this Pasta Primavera sauce with fresh tomatoes, mushrooms, asparagus, and a beautiful creamy sauce. I'll be making this tonight for Ryan and his parents plus Melissa and Bobby.



This version has baked chicken with it; I've been recently cooking with the "in bone" chicken, mostly because I like the taste quite a bit more...it seems like you have to work it a bit more to get it considered "done" but it keeps better flavor, better texture, and looks really neat on a plate. Another part of me appreciates the work of having to cut it off the bone on your plate and does make me think about the creature that is providing me nourishment. Without getting super meta on you, it's part of that internal struggle between wanting to not eat meat, wanting to respect the food chain, and enjoying cooking and eating.

Ryan's parents arrived last night and we had a great meal at Hyde Park Grill and a good night of sleep. We just finished breakfast (I started cooking pancakes but was just not pulling through on the delivery of beautiful fluffy and nice-looking specimens...so Ryan had to pinch hit and finish the job) and are going to head out into the fog and rain. Costco, Toys R Us to find this game we've wanted to buy, etc. I need to remember to pull the camera out and take pictures; I regret I didn't take more when my parents were here! I selfishly have a great photo of them in front of some fabulous homemade german food. Sigh!

And if you're counting...8 days until Europe! WOOHOO! Yes, we will be blogging all the way.

Tschüß!

Summer Adventure Challenge #1: Lockhart

So, I joined Corinne's Summer Adventure Challenge because Austin TX is in the middle of Texas and has a million things to do in and outside the city. When our friends Melissa and Spencer asked if wanted to go grab some authentic BBQ in Lockhart, a "man's town" about 30 minutes southeast of Austin...we were all for it!

Now, 30 minutes southeast of most cities is still the suburbs. Maybe if you went Northwest (Leander) or Northeast (Plugerville). But head southeast on Highway 183 and you are quickly past the airport and in the middle of nowhere. A beautiful Sunday drive (it was about 99 degrees at 12:30 p.m.) and we happily chatted on our way to Lockhart.

There are a lot of random churches in Texas. Not big, beefy, granite churches like Utah or massive worship malls like Dallas...but falling down, white buildings with a cross. I noticed a number on the way down.

I really like small Texas towns...Fredericksburg is one of my favorites...Lockhart is pretty cool. It has this rockin' Courthouse that just does not fit but kind of does...almost an empirical French look in a town that didn't have a lot of french people (mostly anglos) and not even germans (they went on to New Braunfels).

The BBQ joint was a trip...you walk into Smitty's through an entrance and you are in a long, wide hallway that is painted a grey color. It was probably brown at one point, but the air is so thick with smoke (not cigarette...wood smoke) that it coats everything. Benches line the entire wall and I can imagine they are fully packed during lunch hours...on a Sunday it was rather dead and I found that ominous. Ryan and I were nervous. Spencer (the professional cool guy he is) navigates us toward the back.

Halfway down the hall we found a door and through it a bright room full of people eating -- packed to the gills! Old, young, white, brown, black, conservative, liberal (not talking politics here), they were all here chomping on meat without forks. Knifes? Yes. Required for the charred natural skin sausages. Spoons? Yes, but only to slop up the charro beans. Forks? Get out of here.

We keep walking -- at the end of the hallway is a huge guy in a grubby Chef's outfit and he's sitting chatting with some other workers. To the left seems to be storage. To the right is a pile of wood on fire, smoking next to large rectangular boxes...smoker boxes. A couple guys reach in periodically to pull out a hunk of brisket or shoulder...cut pieces off...slam them on scales from the late 1960s...and then throw the meat back in the smoker.

Better get in line. I won't lie, we acted pretty awkwardly as we stared through the smoke and tried to figure out how we ordered and what we wanted. There was no smoked turkey in these parts...beef, sausage, and ribs. I listened to someone else order to get my clue and then did it: "1/2 pound fat, 1/2 pound lean, 2 hots." I had just ordered 1/2 pound of brisket, 1/2 pound of shoulder, and two hot (not spicy, just heated) sausage. Success...with a slab of meat in some wrapped light purple paper, we moved into the main room through two doors and found a seat. I went for sides: potato salad, beans, cole slaw, some sweet pickle chips, and two Shiners.

The place had been there for almost 100 years -- but back then it was a Spoetzle Brewery (german, yes), one of the many that brewed Shiner Beer throughout Texas. In the 60s it closed and the Smittys family moved in to do BBQ...not a thing has changed on the interior since.

The food was great -- don't you dare ask for BBQ sauce though. It's not allowed, it's not around, and you best not think about it. The sauce is the juice from the meat. Seriously!

After grubbing, we took some pictures and then walked around the Courthouse -- a beautiful building that had elements of a French/Russian palace. After looking at some property listings at a local realtor office window ('come on, let's just get a trailer out here and forget about the big city!') we got back in the car and drove into the Central Texas distance...

Check out our pictures!



Tschüß!!

Tuscan Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

Taking a brief sojourn south into Italy, this was a super healthy and super yummy dish from Ellie Krieger. She is fast becoming my favorite food personality (haha) on FoodTV. Her food is healthy, smart, simple to prepare, but fabulous to eat.



What I liked about this one was the bone-in Chicken Breast. At my favorite grocer, Central Market, they easily had these with skin on; I ended up taking it off since the recipe didn't call for skin and I hadn't ever skinned a chicken breast. It's actually quite simple; I wonder if overall it's cheaper to buy chicken this way?



Certainly more flavorful, you get more bits and pieces that hide in between the bone, and I think the heat of the bone helps cook it and keep it moist.

Anyhow, try this recipe out.

We also made Quinoa for the first time (we say it "Keen-wah" but I'm not sure the proper pronunciation) which was fantastic; our dear friend Julie made Quinoa Pilaf at our last Mira Monte monthly supper and was kind to give us the recipe. I don't know if it's a family secret recipe, so comment if you want me to send it to you.



If you haven't had Quinoa before, it's a South American grain that has been cultivated for thousands of years. You soak it for about 8 hours before cooking, but it's tasty - especially with a dash of Tamari (high-end soy sauce).

Speaking of Italian, we had a great dinner last night at Siena. Our friend Steph is the GM there and Kris' hubby was in town. Great meal, fantastic wine, fun friends. We frankly hadn't eaten out all week for dinner. I strangely went to lunch twice this week -- but more for keeping myself sane in my new job and on target. But for dinner, everything was home-cooked! Ahhh fresh is fun!!

BTW, the Euro 2008 starts in a few minutes. Deutschland doesn't play until tomorrow, but I'm going to DVR it. Switzerland and the Czech Republic plays in a few minutes.

We're also going to Lockhart tomorrow with Melissa and Spencer - a little roadtrip southwest of here to the BBQ Capital of Texas! I'm looking forward to some good grub and cold beer. Mmm...

Tschüß!!

Pantry Fixes

May is almost bye-bye; good thing we knocked a small, but big project off the list -- the pantry. When we bought this place the pantry only had a handful of shelves. We would joke about an episode of Some Random House-Buying Show on HGTV (there are a million of them) and the couple was showing off their kitchen post-move.

The woman opens the pantry and they have lots of room but only 3 shelves -- which are stacked high with food -- as she reaches to put chips on top of the burgeoning pile, she comments, "We love our pantry" and just pushes it in, like it has tape on the bottom and will hopefully stick.

We've felt that way for months and actually laughing make that comment quite often. So, we had enough and went to Home Depot with a shelf to figure it out. Of course, it was wider than most boards and not wide enough for others. We'd basically have to cut-to-fit. We found some already-laminated boards, but couldn't find someone to help us cut it - and then heard they really don't cut that. What?!

That did lead to some excitement for Ryan because it meant he was getting a new tool! He's been gathering a nice collection lately: lawnmower, weed wacker, wallboard saw, and now a jigsaw. After traversing back-and-forth (I think we made 4 rounds in Home Depot) we finally bought our stuff and went home to make the shelves.



One thing led to another, and all the shelves in the kitchen received a nice makeover. It works so much better now! Putting dishes away is a breeze -- I think most people stock their kitchen shelves when the first move in, shoving things wherever there is space. Having Ryan re-think it from scratch was invaluable. Oh...yes...I do have to admit...Ryan did pretty much everything. Aw, my hero.

After all of that, I pulled out some ground turkey and made some awesome Turkey Burgers -- made them up and put them on the grill. Fantastic! They also made a nice topping for Ryan's salads during the week. I'm proud of how we've been eating super well and he's been working out so much! He's a beefcake now!!


Yummy Turkey Burgers

I haven't run for over a month -- partly because I've been sick the past few weeks with a nasty cough. Don't know where this is coming from but also suspect the new job has something to do with it. I won't go into it, because I working hard to not think about work today. I am having separation issues with work-life right now. It's not that I have so much work projects going on...it's all internally-driven and I need to stop! Ack, there I go again, damn it!!!



Grete is super cute -- I love her. She follows me around all day, especially if I work from home. Isaac is wonderful too -- happy as can be.

OK, menu planning time!

Tschüß!!

Radler and Frühlings

Both of us are definitely jumping into Spring with both arms wide open -- lots of changes around here. Before we get into the tour, let's make sure you have a Radler beverage in your hand. Shiner (a local and independent brewery in central Texas that has been running since 1909 -- the brewery's actual name is Spoetzl or Spötzl which is a common last name) is brewing an Anniversary Beer that is in the München Helles style that is a bright gold lager with high white foam...perfect for a large Maß or stein.


How do you take a beautiful beer like that and make it a nice spring/summer drink? Add sparkling lemonade of course! Our preference is the San Pellegrino Limonada with the awesome foil safety top. You can mix them half-and-half, or to taste. I prefer to put this in a traditional stein since it keeps it nice and cool.


Above: Ryan enjoying a Radler in Stuttgart, 2006.

Beyond that, other changes around the house mean Spring is here. We're both on a "healthy eating" binge with dinners of a protein and loads of fresh vegetables...no starches. That also means not much German food is being cooked at the moment, but I just need to get creative.


Above: We painted the green wall white since all the outside greenery should cast their own color on the wall.


Above: Ryan's beautiful assortment of plants on our front porch.


Above: Can't you smell the Jasmine on our back porch?


Above: The skyline view is gone until winter, but the greenery is spectacular.

We had two strong storms roll in Friday and this morning -- the moisture is great and it didn't hail at our house! Going to be unseasonably cold today (in the low 60s) so it's definitely a "Mall" and "Target" sort of a day. Which is fine -- I just hate doing all that when it's super beautiful outside!

Tschüß!!!

Dinner with Mary

A few posts back, I mentioned a fabulous dinner with Mary at our house, followed by wine-induced iTunes searching (we rocked out to Shoop) and then a stumble to the Horseshoe for more...last night was her going away party at The Belmont and besides having a good time, I'm sad that she is leaving. I am super excited for her, but selfish because I miss her already. I'm glad she has reasons to come back, though, so I know we'll see her.

Conversatin'


Yummy Dr. Oetker Lava cakes

iTunes DWI (Downloading While Intoxicated)

We'll miss you Mary but good luck in Seattle!!

Tschüß!!

Lasagna Rolls

One of my favorite Giada DeLaurentiis recipes is "Lasagna Rolls" -- basically you mix up frozen spinach, ricotta and parmesan cheese with chopped prosciutto and smear that on cooked lasagna. Then, roll it up, put it on a beschamel base (which is always fun to cook) in a pan, put marinara sauce and mozarella on it...BAM!


This is the third time I've made it and it's quickly becoming a canon dish for us. The first time I made it, I thought it was a bit difficult...but now I can have it made and served in a little over an hour. Perfect weeknight dish!


My first week back to work was challenging -- very busy, lots of shifting parts, and I'm trying some new strategies to keep in control of everything. Also, we're focusing on the home -- we have 18 different things we want to do to our house. From floor and window coverings to furniture to a garage door...it's a bit overwhelming!

On a geeky note, I am super-excited because I bought Star Trek: Voyager books #2 and #3 at Half Price Books...about $3 each! I don't *think* I have them...but all of my books are sadly still packed in boxes and sitting on our closet floor. Doing the closet with enough shelfs to hold them is on the 18-item list, but is one of the more expensive items...ugh!!!!!!

Tschüß!