Bar Party Bonanza

Well, we had the bar party last month, and it was awesome!!  The theme was purple, since that is the official academic color for law.  We even had purple crudite, with purple cauliflower, purple peppers and eggplant, purple cocktails, pulled pork from a whole roasted pig and a bunch of other yummy things!  I'm sorry to say that I have no photos of any of the food, as I was so awash in all the excitement that I completely forgot to take any!  But I did not forget about you dear readers!  Below are some of the most requested recipes from my guests.


CHIMICHURRI SAUCE

As with most things I make, I did some research online and pulled elements from several recipes and then added my own twist.  This is what I came up with.  I made this to throw on tortillas with pork, but it's so universal that folks were dipping veggies and anything else they could get their hands on into this stuff!  We had a fair amount left over, and that's when I discovered it goes well in omelets, on burgers - you name it!  No wonder this is considered Peru's version of ketchup!

2 bunches fresh flat-leaf parsley (that curly crap is a garnish, NOT food!)
2 bunches fresh cilantro
1-2 C fresh oregano
1/2 C fresh thyme leaves (no stems, they are too woody!)
1 C fresh mint
1-2 C fresh basil leaves
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled or the equivalent chopped amount
4 medium size shallots, peeled
1/3 C red wine vinegar
1/2 C lime juice
1/2 to 1 tsp red pepper flakes
2-3 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 C olive oil

Essentially you want to throw everything into the food processor and blend, but it will not all fit at once, so you need to blend, then add more, then blend again, etc.  Add the garlic and shallots whole and let the machine do the work.  I added the vinegar straight away to allow for some liquid to help emulsify.  The olive oil and lime juice should go in last, after everything is good and chopped up. 

You want to let this sauce sit overnight to blend all the flavors.  It would also make an awesome marinade for a brisket or pork roast!

HONEY-VINEGAR SAUCE

I adapted this recipe from one I found in the official Game of Thrones cookbook.  They put it on roasted chicken, but it also goes extremely well with any poultry or pork.

1 C apple cider vinegar
2/3 C honey
1/2 C dried fruit (I used raisins, but feel free to use currants, chopped apricots, dried cranberries, etc.)
1 tbsp unsalted butter

Put everything in a saucepan and simmer until the sauce reduces to about half (warning, serious vinegar smells will attempt to choke you, but soldier on, the sauce is worth it) and the dried fruit plumps up.  Then pour over roasted meats or serve on the side as a gravy.  Leftovers can be stored in the fridge, but it needs to be reheated to use again as it becomes thick like plain honey.  This sauce keeps indefinitely as it is made mainly from vinegar and honey, two things that literally never go bad.

Big drink dispensers - that's a lot of vodka!

PURPLE DRAGON MARTINI

3 oz vodka
1 1/2 oz. cranberry juice
1/2 oz blue curacao
1/2 oz sweet and sour mix
1/2 oz Sprite
ice cubes
purple sugar - for garnish

Blitz everything in a blender and serve in a martini glass with purple sugared rim for individual cocktails.  I mixed it in BIG batches and had large drink dispensers set out with cups and sugar for folks to serve themselves.

Spiced CarrotSpread 

This was a big hot with guests as well. It's meant as a dip for corn chips or pita wedges, but again, dipping raw veggies into it, or using it as a spread on a sandwich seemed to work for everyone.  It's reminiscent of Indian cuisine with the cumin and cardamom.  Next time I might even be tempted to add a dash of garam masala to it.

• 6 medium carrots, thinly sliced
• 1 small garlic clove, chopped
• ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
• ¼ teaspoon finely grated peeled fresh ginger (or powdered)
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon cardamom
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1-2 tablespoons tahini
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• Kosher salt and fresh pepper

Seta steamer basket in a saucepan with 2 inches simmering water. Add carrots.Cover and steam until tender, about 12 minutes. (I boil until they are mushy with a pinch of salt.) Transfer to a food processor, along with garlic, cumin,ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, cayenne pepper, tahini, and lemon juice. Seasonwith salt and pepper. Process until smooth, about 1 minute, adding up to 2 tablespoons water if necessary.


This party was a long time coming, and I am so glad that so many friends and family came to help me celebrate passing the Texas bar exam!  That exam is just one more step to converting me from a Yankee to a Southern gal!

Thanksgiving and a Little Exam We Call THE BAR

Yes, I have been on a hiatus, you might say.  I didn't intend for it to go on this long.  Actually I was pretty strongly working my way towards the minimum posting guidelines to get a place in the Austin Food Blogger Alliance.  Alas, their posting guidelines are there exactly for people like me who start a blog, and then fall by the wayside.  My lack of posts, while temporary, will likely continue for awhile.

Quite simply, Hubby and I had some money concerns.  No money means no going out to eat, and no exciting cooking experiments at home either.  So then what was I to blog about?  I could have continued posting, but how many diatribes on chicken noodle casserole can one read?!  Posts on hot dogs are hardly scintillating either.

In all fairness, it was also a little procrastination on my part.  We did go out occasionally, but I didn't take notes, and I would have to reconstruct those visits in my head.  Right now, all my addled brain can tell you is that The Hula Hut was VERY disappointing (and if you click on the link, be prepared for hellishly loud Hawaiian music, don't say I didn't warn you); and The Noble Pig was absolutely freakin' awesome, and I had literally one of THE BEST sandwiches I have ever eaten (and that's coming from someone who grew up with real New York type deli)!

Money is slightly better now than it was over the summer, but now I am about to dive, head first into preparing for the Texas Bar Exam.  For those unfamiliar, this is the hellish exam you have to take to become a licensed attorney in any given jurisdiction.  While I am licensed in New Jersey, Texas feels that I need to take their test too.  This will be three fun-filled horrific days of testing, followed by a nervous breakdown inducing waiting period of MONTHS before I get my results.  Therefore I will studying my tail off from now until late February.  After a 48 hour nap brief respite where I try to regain my sanity in early March, I hope to be back and posting on a regular basis again.  [And when I find out I passed I am going to throw one HELL of a party, so be prepared for that.]

For right now I will try to satiate your desire for posts with an array of photos from the Thanksgiving dinner I made (along with my trusted sous chef, Hubby).  I may try to post some quick pics of Christmas goodies, but I make no promises, and after Saint Nick departs, I will definitely be in deep hibernation until after the exam.

Sweet potatoes after roasting, with all of their natural sugars leaking out

Cornbread, which is destined to be reborn as stuffing! (Y'all can call it "dressing" if you like. I don't "stuff" it in the bird, but I still call it stuffing.)

Squash post roast, now it has to cool so it can get pulverized!

Squash about to be roasted for soup

Finished squash soup

turkey brine

icy green beans destined for casserole

cranberry/port tart filling

creamed corn a la Alton Brown - heaven!

Stuffed celery, a holiday must

Ginger bread crust awaiting pumpkin cheesecake

mashed sweet potatoes w/ bourbon, OJ & brown sugar

apple pie, I forgot to foil the edges!

THE bird!

the beginning of stuffing

Cranberry/port wine tarts

turnips and potatoes simmering

Epicurious mac n cheese

the buffet

tinfoil buffet, must keep hot!

the buffet , view 2

 Also, I have to give credit where credit is due.  This Thanksgiving meal was brought to you by Wolfgang Puck, Epicurious, Emeril Lagasse, Alton Brown, Betty Crocker and my Mom. Honorable mention goes to Paula Deen just for the shear amount of butter used.

Bon Appetite! 

寿司こんにちは！[Hello Sushi!]

Yes, yes, I have not been keeping up with posting.  We have been doing a fair amount of entertaining over here and I didn't want to saturate you with just recipes and no reviews.  I have several places I have not published reviews for yet.  I am hoping to get to Monument Cafe and Shady Grove soon.  But first, let's talk about raw fish

Last Sunday I went to Imperia in downtown Austin.  It wasn't my choice, I went there for a meeting, but boy am I glad I did!  First off, it's on Colorado Street, which is, along with all the surrounding area, under construction.  This made both getting there AND finding parking a little more challenging than I would prefer.  That being said, they have valet if you want to drop the cash for it.  I was lucky enough to find a spot right around the corner.  (Also, it bears mentioning that I parallel parked like a champ!)

The inside is cool and dark, which was welcome on a sweltering Texas evening.  The entryway vestibule is one of those waterfalls where the water softly cascades flat over the surface of the wall.  (Yes, I touched it to see if it was real water.  Yes my mother raised me better than that.  No, I am not ashamed of my behavior because it was KEWL!)  The dining area is rather large, with several seating areas, three tatami tables, the obligatory sushi counter and an impressive bar.  We sat at one of those raised tables with stools (which I find uncomfortable, and thus usually decline); but we were a rather large party and they were very accommodating about giving us our own space and joining two tables together to ensure we had enough room.

 We arrived just as their 2 for 1 sushi special was over for the evening, but they were continuing with "reverse happy hour".  Our waiter, Bastion, was helpful in explaining drink specials and he returned my banter volley immediately.  He was, in a word - awesomesauce.

The restaurant fancies itself a bit "swank" as evidenced by the hostess's laisse faire attitude and the chill surroundings.  The wait staff is also uber-attentive.  In restaurant parlance this means EXPENSIVE; but when it comes to food, you usually get what you pay for, so you really can't complain.  Bastion continued to amuse me throughout the evening with his quips, while simultaneously taking good care of us.  He kept everyone's water filled and even poured sake for those that ordered it, lest we be taxed by having to lift the tokkuri and pour into the choko ourselves.

I ordered a crab rangoon appetizer.  It was tasty, but at $10 I would skip it next time as I can get the exact same thing at any Chinese take out place for a third of the price.  I didn't mind much, because what I was really looking forward to was the sushi!  (Oh sorry what?  meeting?  agenda?  Did we have stuff to discuss?  Whatevs.)  Bastion was very hands on when we ordered and flat out told us which items were his favorites and which items to avoid.  One particular specialty roll he described as "not so much" and followed it up with, "I warned you, if you order it anyway and hate it, I am not taking it off the bill."  All this with the appropriate attitude and neck swerve.  I swear this guy was straight out of Manhattan, but no, he's a Texas boy with a New York 'tude.

I ordered the "4138" and a spicy tuna roll.  The 4138 is tempura shrimp and avocado topped with salmon sashimi, and the best part, a spicy peanut sauce with crushed peanuts.  It was HEAVENLY.  I thought the peanut sauce would make the whole thing taste like a satay, but noooo, it was the perfect complement.  The tuna roll was also delish, and artfully presented with chive fronds.  Their pickeled ginger was white instead of dyed pink, and I was also immensely impressed that when i asked for "fresh" wasabi (as opposed to that green putty), Bastion not only knew what I was talking about, but they had it!

4138 Roll

I also had the good fortune to sample my friend's Red Devil roll.  That is spicy marinated tuna with black sushi rice and roasted red bell peppers topped with spicy mayo and white angel sauce.  The description didn't initially grab me, but the taste was phenomenal!  I will definitely be ordering this roll the next time my wallet allows me to make a return visit.

I decided to take a gander at the dessert menu.  I was expecting some azuki bean paste wrapped ice cream or maybe some lychee nuts.  The tempura fried ice cream tempted me, but again Bastion was there to advise.  He first asked if we wanted just a little something sweet to end the meal or a "dessert experience".  DUH.  And so, we ordered a half baked chocolate chip cookie with ice cream on top.  When it arrived, it was not just a cookie, it was a COOKIE!!  And yes, it was an experience.  Let's just say I was glad he brought multiple spoons.

When the bill came, I was leaning over to grab my purse.  Damn high tables, I could not reach it and I hate climbing in and out of those stools.  One of the sushi chefs was walking by, and he grabbed my purse and handed it to me - top notch service all the way.  The bottom line is the food is amazing, the ambiance fantastic and the service beyond reproach.  The prices are a little steep, but not out of this world. They have specials and, personally, I used a Groupon, so it can be done reasonably.  If you like sushi, then you really should check it out!

Trifle

The trifle turned out really tasty so I am posting the recipe below.  Feel free to tweak it.  Let me know what you think!!

 

Blackberry Tiramisu Trifle

• 1 cup seedless raspberry jam
• 10 tablespoons orange liqueur (recommended: Grand Marnier)
• 3 Cups mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
• 1 ½ cups whipping cream
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 28 soft ladyfingers or 2 (12-ounce) pound cakes, cut into 3 by 1 by 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 4 (½ dry pint) baskets fresh raspberries or blackberries
• 2 cups boiling water
• 2 heaping tbsps. espresso power
• Dark chocolate shavings, for serving

Directions

Stir the jam and 5 tablespoons of the orange liqueur in a small bowl to blend, set aside.  Combine espresso powder and hot water, set aside.

Combine the mascarpone and remaining 5 tablespoons of orange liqueur in a large bowl to blend.

Using an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the cream, sugar, and vanilla in another large bowl until soft peaks form. Using a large rubber spatula, stir ¼ of the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture to lighten. Fold the remaining whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture.

Line the bottom of trifle bowl with ladyfingers. Spoon espresso onto the ladyfingers to moisten.  Spread thin layer jam mixture over the ladyfingers. Sprinkle ¼ of berries over the jam mixture.  Spread ¼ of the mascarpone mixture over the berries. Repeat layering with the remaining ladyfingers, espresso, jam mixture, berries, and mascarpone mixture for a total of four layers. (If you chose to use a rectangle glass pan, make two layers instead of four, using half of each ingredient per layer.)  Shave dark chocolate over final layer of whipped cream mixture.  Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours or overnight.

Tea for Two (or Ten)

A friend of mine in Houston hosts an awesome tea party every year for her friends.  We gather together, and eat too many sweets while our husbands go off and do manly things.  Last year they went to see THOR and then oogled women had lunch at Hooters - whatev.)

This year, finally being a Texas resident, I hit the kitchen to whip something up to take with me.  I made Old Fashioned Ginger Bread and lemon curd from scratch.  [I love Ina Garten's recipes!)

No photo of the lemon curd, as Hubby said "It just looks like yellow goo."

Then I did my usual "consult multiple recipes, then make up my own" and came up with Blackberry Tiramisu Trifle.

We'll see how the trifle tastes.  My kitchen experiments usually come out pretty tasty, but there have been blunders too.  I am also super excited that I finally got to use my Pampered Chef trifle bowl!  It is a little pricey, but it is made of thick, tempered glass, it doesn't "sink" in the middle, so the layers stay even and it has a removable stand and fitted plastic cover for easy storage and transport!  (Sheesh, you would think I was getting a commission.)

Completely aside:  Notice the Kitchenaid mixer in the background. These two items alone were worth getting married for! (Also, I'm madly in love with Hubby, so that works out.)  I am a super sucker for kitchen gadgets.  I may be the only one I know who swoons over immersion mixers and milk frothers.  After Hubby proposed my first thought was, "I get to spend the rest of my life with this wonderful man!!"  My second thought was, "I get to REGISTER!"

So that's your dose of sweet for now.  Enjoy the holiday weekend folks!!

Going to the Country .. Gonna Eat a lot of Peaches

I am happy to report that Hubby harvested four wee little peaches from our tree today.  The birds were starting to go at them, so it was time.  But let me tell you, what they lacked in size they more than made up for in taste!  They were juicy and sweet like I could not believe!  I have rarely, if ever, had a store bought peach like that.

I suspect that they were small because the tree is small.  We bought it this spring and re-potted it into a larger pot, but we are not putting it in the ground until we move, some time within the next year.

This is our wee little tree a couple weeks ago.

In other garden news, aggressive weeding has killed my squash plants.  (I should have picked those blossoms and filled them with goat cheese when I had the chance!)  The tomatoes are coming along, and finally have buds!  The herbs are growing well.  The dill is going like gangbusters, but the cilantro is only just thriving and not in a way where I can really use much.  The lavender never even sprouted! *pout*  The basil is doing well, and Hubby has been adding cigar ashes to them to see if that brightens them up a bit.  They are doing well, but I generally don't count them as they were not grown from seed.

My dreams of buckets of green squash are dashed, but I am hoping for boatloads of tomatoes to make delicious recipes!!  If that happens, of course I will be posting them here!  This weekend I am going to a formal high tea.  I will post pictures of my homemade clotted cream and lemon curd (if I remember).

Everyone enjoy your holiday weekend!

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner

While I was visiting my parents last month in New Jersey, my father tipped me off to a restaurant that he read about in The Week Magazine that just happens to be in my city.  The mouth watering Lucy's Fried Chicken sounded like someplace I needed to check out.  The review, for those who don't subscribe says:

Austin’s hottest new picnic-style joint “announces itself boldly” with a unique, flashing neon sign, said Matthew Odam in The Austin American-Statesman. “A leggy dame holding a chicken leg” beckons passing drivers to pull in beneath her glow for a piping-hot meal that, taste-wise, “has few rivals.” The fried chicken originated at chef James Holmes’s more upscale Olivia, but was too popular to remain just a weekly special there. Holmes couldn’t resist broadening Lucy’s menu to Gulf oysters, Texas chili, and daily-special sausages, but the chicken and sides are the reasons to visit. The birds served at Lucy’s are raised on vegetarian diets, and the parts are soaked for 24 hours in a buttermilk brine before cooking. Once the chicken has been fried to “rust-colored perfection,” the “knobby skin enshrines tangy, buttery meat made salty by a dash of soy sauce and piqued by cayenne and paprika.” Enjoy your bucket with some sides of smashed grilled potatoes and a few cold beers, but be sure to leave room for a slice of the oat-streusel shoofly pie.

So, a few weeks ago Hubby and I grabbed our friend Mouse and set out to find "Lucy".  First off, I love a place where I get the back story, so right off the bat from reading the above blurb I was IN.  It turns out that College Ave is a little side street, almost a back alley running in between Oltorf and S. Congress.  We almost missed it, but then you see the "leggy dame" and you know you are in the right place.  Parking is minimal at best and there are signs EVERYWHERE telling you NOT to park at the gas station across the street or you will be towed.  We parked down the street about a block.  It was not a big deal.

When you walk up there is a big picnic area outside and a small indoor seating area.  In being an uncharacteristically cool day in Texas, we opted for outside.  The staff is wonderfully attentive without being intrusive.  They are also friendly and a little chatty, which I enjoy.

We crack the menus, and first off I notice that this is more than fried chicken, much more.  They have deep fried deviled eggs, fried chicken livers (I'm a big fan of chicken liver) and a bunch of other interesting things.  They also have some serious down-home southern sides.  Right away we HAVE to order the calf fries because, to be blunt, testicles have been on my foodie bucket list for years.

They come fried with a panko-esque coating and a creamy ranch dressing. They were tasty, as almost anything deep fried would be.  I thought they would be chewy, but they were almost mealy inside.  The taste was excellent, but the texture put me off a bit.  I was SHOCKED that Hubby tried a couple.  I thought for sure there would be some machismo comment about not putting balls in his mouth, or some such juvenile man-boy shenanigans.  But no, he popped one in his mouth with aplomb and pronounced them decent noms.  Mouse declined to sample them.

We ordered a basket of chicken to split, and several sides.  The chicken is amazing!  The skin is crisp and golden, but not greasy.  The meat is incredibly moist.  They serve all their chicken with pickles and jalapeños on top. [Side note: They add jalapeños to EVERYTHING in Texas, so if you don't like spicy be on guard!]  In the future I will ask them to leave the peppers off.  For sides we ordered collards (another food I have always wanted to try), Mexi-coke mashed sweet potatoes and smashed, grilled potatoes.  I would order all three again in a heart beat.  To be honest, MY sweet potatoes are better (because what isn't better with whiskey?) but I only make them once a year, so there is that caveat.  The grilled potatoes were delicious, as only something swimming in butter can be.  The collards were tasty.  Having never had them before, I don't know if they were good, as compared to others; but they were delicious.  They were much more vinegary than I anticipated, but that bite went well with the succulent chicken.

The piece de resistance of the meal HAD to be the dessert.  Mouse, Hubby and I each ordered a different type of pie, and then we all shared.  We got the Sweet Tea pie, S'Mores pie and Shoofly pie.  The S'Mores pie was delicious, but very rich.  The chocolate layer was akin to a solid hunk of ganache and too sweet for more than just a couple of bites.  The Shoofly pie was lovely, with a strong molasses flavor.  It was not like the syrupy, sweet shoofly pie you get in Pennsylvania, but more like a moist oatmeal cake with molasses mixed in.  The shoofly was Hubby's favorite, and Mouse tucked into the S'mores pie with delight.  This worked out for me, because in my estimation the best thing on the entire Lucy's menu is the Sweet Tea pie!

The menu describes it as a chess pie with lemon and tea added.  I just call it heaven!  I was kind of glad that neither Hubby nor Mouse chose it as their favorite - more for me!  You can buy whole pies to take home, but they were a bit pricey.  I was very tempted though.  In fact, the overall pricing was decent and the food was certainly worth it, but if you decide to order a bunch of things in order to taste a variety (as I am prone to do) it will get expensive fast, but you will end up with yummy leftovers!  Again, our friendly waiter was happy to chat with us and provide a myriad of little cups and containers to stow our chicken bounty for the trip home.

Our experience was so enjoyable, that a little over a week later when my friends from And That is What He/She Said called and said they were passing through Austin, we suggested meeting up at Lucy's for some chow. (Any excuse for more of that pie!)  You can read their review of Lucy's HERE.

This time we sat inside.  This is good, because I learned upon leaving after our first visit that the blackboard specials are only listed inside.  Make sure to stick your head in even if you are "picnicking" or you might miss out on some gourmet salads or frog legs!  However, while the outside is laid back and pleasant, the inside is ... LOUD.  We had trouble even carrying on a conversation.  Again, the waiter (a different one) was awesome.  He got brownie points for not needing an explanation of what goes into an Arnold Palmer. [Another side note: They brew their own tea and make their own lemonade.  The lemonade is TART, so even though I drink my iced tea with nothing in it, I mix lemonade with "sweet tea" at Lucy's to get more sugar in the cup.]

Hubby and I skipped the chicken and decided to nosh on fried chicken livers and fried chicken gizzards.  The waiter offered us a basket of half each, which we immediately dubbed as "fried lizzards".  They were both so awesome that we ordered a second basket!  They come with a spicy sauce, so I exhibited my north-east plumage and asked for the ranch sauce I enjoyed on the calf fries on our first visit.  I was adamant about ordering more sweet tea pie, and I sampled the apple pie that our friends ordered.  It was nice, but (again) not to be vain, but mine is better.  I do have to give them props on their pie crust.  The sweet tea pie and the apple pie have the same type of crust, and it is out of this world.  When you run out of filling you still want to eat every last bite of that yummy crust!  I wonder if I can wheedle the recipe out of them ...

So Lucy's seductive leg wave drew me in.  The pie alone will keep me going back.  Check it out at 2218 College Ave., (512) 297-2423.