Holiday eats and other fun...

The parents visited last weekend and we packed in the fun!


On the list...

Caroling at the Capitol & strolling down Congress Ave.

Ira Glass at the Paramount

Lessons & Carols advent concert at church (twice)

Yummy lunch at an Austin classic, Kerby Lane

Exploring the wonderful Walter Cronkite exhibit at the LBJ Library

Shopping local at the Blue Genie Art Bazaar and not-so-local at Nordstrom Rack (new guilty pleasure!)

Texas-style Dinner at Rudy's BBQ! (Above.)

Awesome.

Fall is here!

And I was ready for it to arrive. Summer was hot. Humid. And six months long. By mid-October, I was practically begging for a cold front to whoosh through Texas.

Wish granted.

The air is finally cool, and I get to trade in my summer dresses for leggings, scarves, and jackets. But even with the changing weather, one of the best things about Austin is that -- no matter the season -- there is always plenty to see and do. A quick digest from October and early November...


Mountain biking. Austin and the hill country are great places to ride some amazing trails.



ELECTION DAY. (Which, in retrospect, could have been renamed "Demogeddon" or "Democralypse" this year. I'll refrain from further commentary and point you here instead for all the details on the Texas midterm results.)

For the first time in my voting life, I was compelled to phone bank for the Democrats. This isn't California, folks, and winning back those blue seats was not something we could even come close to counting on.


A few photos from the Travis County Democratic Party HQ in Austin. I called 75 voters to remind them to vote, and to encourage them to vote for all the Dems on the ballot. People were super nice! Even a few conservatives pledged to vote for Bill White for Governor (sadly, he lost... and Texas is even redder than before).



And finally, the Gypsy Picnic! Austin is famous for serving food out of a trailer (there are over 1,000 such businesses in the city limits alone). So what better way to celebrate this food culture than by bringing together over 30 food trailers and serving up $3 sample sizes of all these dishes!

The lines were crazy long (and usually I can find many of these trailers are in my neighborhood), so I passed on this delicious fare and just browsed the event and enjoyed the live music... but rest assured you can find me at Gordoughs, Odd Duck Farm to Trailer, or Torchy's on a nice evening.



Happy Fall!

Last Night's Dinner

Crispy Tortilla Eggs with Avocado and Lime

So delicious!

This is the perfect quick dish -- I made it in less than 15 minutes. When it's 25 degrees outside (in Central Texas, no less), there is nothing like some homey, easy-to-make breakfast food to tame your hunger and help you forget about the chilly weather.

A few tips:

The recipe is easily adapted to serve more or less people -- just change the number of eggs. For my single serving, I still fried two tortillas. (Who could resist?)

Stale tortillas are key -- they will crisp better than fresh ones.

I used salsa from a jar, light sour cream, avocado, and jack cheese. Forgot the lime, but it was still delish!

A New Year's Adventures in Cooking

Sorry to neglect the blog. I need to update more often, and hope to do so whenever I have the chance this year -- even if it's just a quick one.

My brother and I pledged to go "meat free" in January. He initially encouraged me to try it for December, but then he planned a trip to Austin and I warned him that vegetarians can't eat at the Salt Lick, Maria's Taco Express, or many other fine establishments in this Texas city. So we postponed til the New Year.

Here's an update on how it's going so far.

January 1, 2010: Day 1
I completely forget about my pledge and eat bacon at New Year's Day brunch (so delicious!). Damn. I pledge to go meat free an extra day, because of my slip-up.

January 4, 2010: Day 3
I forget about my pledge, yet again, and have soup for lunch. Chicken gumbo. Damn.

January 5, 2010: Day 3
Hit the web for recipes and then do a big trip to the grocery store to stock up on meat-free items.

Tool numero uno:The Ultimatest Grocery List.
The vegetarian version is excellent, even if you aren't a vegetarian! Lots of produce and yummy grains.

Tool numero dos: Recipes.
I get a weekly email from American Public Media's Splendid Kitchen and Tori Ritchie's Tuesday Recipe.

Tool numero tres: Patience.
I hate shopping in a grocery store I don't know, but I think I've finally figured out the H-E-B near work.

I attempted to "whip up" a few things last night. Problem is, while I can follow a recipe, it takes me forever. Prep time: 16 minutes. OR SO THEY CLAIM! I need to remember to DOUBLE the amount of time stated on the recipe, because that's how long it will take me.

Let's start with Emeril's Black Bean Cakes!

Sounds delicious right?

First off, the prep is NOT 16 minutes. It's more like 30. When they put "two cans of rinsed black beans," I don't think they are factoring the can-opening and bean-rinsing into the recipe. Silly chefs.

First you saute some onions, then chop some parsley, rinse those dang beans, make an elaborate creole spice mixture, and on and on. The first problem: the bean mixture looks like poop.


Second problem: you have to shape this stuff into patties. Mm. Kinda gross. Then you fry 'em up. I don't know what I did wrong, but the patties looked like they were made of something besides beans, and the patties kind of fell apart in the pan. Whoops. I'm sparing you the pictures, and instead showing you my jar of cumin: mmmm, cumin.

They looked gross, but tasted delicious, especially with salsa and sour cream! Give it a try. Hope you have better luck than me.


Then, I couldn't help myself, and followed up with Chocolate Chip Meringues.

Delicious! Easy! Fast! (Even without a handmixer!) Highly recommended.



That's all for now. Happy 2010!

Carbo-loading...

Before a big workout, carbs are an athlete's best friend. With a little inspiration from my family back in California (and Alice Waters' Simple Food cookbook), I whipped up some homemade pizza dough and went to town.

Before:



After:

That's right: lou pistou olives, marinated roasted tomatoes, argula, onions, and fresh mozarella. Mmm, mmm, mmm.

Day 4: Fort Stockton, TX to Austin!

Breakfast time:

350 miles to Austin!