Yes those are Pork Rinds on top of that Sope.

A view of two of the Sope choices Deshebrada, shredded beef, on the left and Chicharron, cheese and pork rinds on the right.

I want some Mexican food now. mmmmm.

Sausage of the Gods!

#1. Luling City Market. This has always been my favorite BBQ ever and it continued to live up to my expectations. The Sausage here is top notch. It is mixed so nicely and fresh. The brisket here was also the best this trip. Moist with a great crust and good smoke color. Also a great sauce here. I want take a gallon of it home. This is a must stop for anyone remotely near Austin, San Antonio, or Houston.

I just love this shot. I think it sums up Black’s.

#2. Black’s in Lockhart. I was still full from Luling and I have not ever been a fan of Black’s and it too lived up to my previous opinion. The meat here is just ok. They do have a large selection of sides including the deviled eggs and pie. I got the pecan Pie and it was great and a nice break from meat. I loved the people here; they were so friendly and the interior was so cool and nostalgic.

What happens at lunch with a bunch of photographers?  Food photography of course!

Our one sausage on the left.

#3. Kreuz’s in Lockhart. Still full, two other photographers and I decided to be big spenders and split one link of Jalapeno Cheese Sausage. We still didn’t finish it. It was great and spicy but I still liked Luling’s sausage better.

Dave Einsel makes a meat tower. And yes he had a cooler and didn’t eat all this BBQ. Also notice the size of the pork chops.

#4. Smitty’s in Lockhart. This place had to be the second best in my opinion and if you’re longing for pig, the Pork Chops were amazing. I would drive there just for the pork chop.

And last but not least the motley crew from ASMP Austin and Houston. And thanks Todd for the bunny ears. I owe you one. And yes we all smelled of yummy smokey BBQ all the way home.

I recently made my visit visit to Minneapolis and if you’ve talked to me since my return I’m sure I’ve told you about Al’s Breakfast. I can’t sop talking about it. It’s one of those places that you can’t help but talk about. It was probably one of the best dining experiences I had, all in a 14 seat diner. It is the quintessential greasy spoon. If you ever make a trip to Minneapolis you need to go there, actually you have to go there.

I stumbled upon this place when my mom and I were looking for a late breakfast one morning during a visit to see my brother. I did a Google search and Al’s Breakfast was one of the top hits and everyone was raving about this greasy spoon. So we went. I had my camera with a 24mm in my purse and was just planning on a quick breakfast before a day of exploring. Al’s was quick in some respect. We got our food quickly and the service was fast, but the wait, well that took at least 45min. The place seats 14 people and the rest of the customers line up behind the stools with only breathing room between the two. There were a couple times we were asked to pick up our stuff and move down the bar. It was great. There was even a great cook whose been there for decades and had great conversations with everyone.

I ended up finding out that this place actually got a James Beard Award. A well deserved award I have to say.

The yellow papers are vouchers or tabs that customers keep. You can buy them for other people and when they come in they just pay with the paper. Fun!

And here is the crowning glory of this place, the food. Probably the best blueberry pancake I’ve ever had – thin, crispy on the outside and blueberry goodness on the inside.

My only disappointments were that I couldn’t eat more and that I didn’t bring better gear to shoot inside. I guess this means I need to make another trip. We almost went the next morning but since it was Saturday I thought the line would be too much. Enjoy and wish me luck in the neighborhood pie contest this weekend.

A beautiful beet salad.   I loved that the tables were covered with a hand stamped white paper.  It added a really cool touch to the place.

I wish smell-a-vision worked. These smelled so heavenly. A skillet of smoking mushrooms and tomatoes with toast. YUM!

If you know me at all you know I,  like any good southerner,  love Fried Chicken.  And this dish is oh so tasty.

So these next three photos are all of the Lemon Ice Box Pie.  I just loved this series of images and couldn’t decide on my favorite. So, sit down and enjoy some pie.

Let’s start with the best Oatmeal Cookie I’ve ever eaten.  To make it yummier it had Foie Gras ice cream sandwiched between the cookies.

Next, his take on Devil on Horseback, Traditional Sticky Toffee Pudding with Bacon Ice Cream. I loved this — the sweet paired with the salt and greatness of bacon, wow.

Ok, this one threw me for a loop.  It came out smelling exactly like a corn dog from the fair.  And that is what it was, his take on a corn dog. Corn fritters rolled in sugar with ketchup sauce and yellow mustard ice cream.  Yes it tasted just like a corn dog, but at the same time dessert. I can’t explain it other than saying it was mind boggling and delicious at the same time.  How does he do this?

Now we started moving sweeter and more traditional, if can call it that. A Panna Cota with pineapple and toasted brioche.  I’ve never been a fan of panna cota, but I would order this one anytime. It was light and slightly sweet and makes a great summer dessert.

I think this had to be the most fun dessert. A ginger cake with Grapefruit Campari sorbet, rhubarb and pop rocks.  Light, slightly sour and luscious it was a joy to eat.  The fun part was the pop rocks and the fact that my husband, Rick, didn’t hear Sandalio say the part about the pop rocks.  He took a mouth full and I could hear them crackling in his mouth. We laughed through the whole dish.

Next up, his take on Peach Melba with a sponge cake and balsamic vinegar sauce.  Even though I was getting full I could have eaten more of this vanilla ice cream layered with what I assume was a peach sorbet and raspberry sorbet. Again he blew my mind with something simple and classic but done in a wonderfully new way.

Now we really started slowing down.  I was so full at this point even though we purposefully didn’t eat dinner before.  Brownie a la Mode with a Fernet Branca ice cream.  I could have sworn that it had burnt honey in the ice cream.  We had trouble eating much of the rich brownie. Very tasty but we were stuffed.  I did, however, finish all the ice cream. It was so good and had a warming effect on my insides, all the alcohol and spices I guess.  I also have to say thanks for the taste of Fernet Branca he gave me.  I am now a convert. Loved it.

Next was a Trinidad sour granita. After this dessert I need to order the drink.

We ended the meal with a chocolate truffle and an amazing Scottish shortbread.  I think I could eat the shortbread everyday and be happy.

I loved this meal and it was quite an experience.  Couldn’t have picked a better way to celebrate my birthday, well unless all my dessert loving friends had joined me.  Maybe next year?

I’ll leave you with a photo Rick took of me at course two of the meal.  Note the lazy eye.  I get that anytime I have a drink and I was working on a very nice cocktail called The Bee’s Knees.

Thanks Plinio and Textile for such a great experience.

This recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks that I’ve mentioned before, “Baking From My Home to Yours,” by Dorie Greenspan. I will again repeat how much you need to buy this book if you are remotely interested in baking or making things that taste oh so yummy. Here’s the recipe.

2/3 cup all purpose four
3/4 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup of sugar
grated zest of one lemon
2 large eggs at room temperature
2 tsps vanilla
6 tbsp of butter,  melted and cooled.

Mix together the first three ingredients.

Mix together the zest and the sugar in a bowl using your fingers until you get a wonderful aroma of lemon. Greenspan says to do this anytime using zest in a recipe and I heartily agree. It really adds a nice dimension to the sugar.

Put the sugar and the eggs in a stand mixer bowl with the whisk attachment and beat on medium high until pale and light — 3 minutes or so. Beat in the vanilla

Lightly fold in the flour until incorporated and then fold in the butter. Put plastic wrap on top of the mixture surface and refrigerate for 3 hours. This helps give it air and crumb structure.

Heat the oven to 400F. Butter and flour the molds or if using a nonstick pan,  spray with Pam.  Spoon the batter into the molds filling them up.  Bake for 11 to 13 minutes until golden and they spring back when you touch them. Rap the edge of the pan on the counter to release the madeleines and use a butter knife to release the stubborn ones.

Let them cool on a rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar right before serving.  They don’t keep well after the day they are made but they never make it longer than a few minutes in my house.

Yum Yum.

Happy April!

These cookies remind me of those danish butter cookies you used to get in the tin at Christmas but 20 times better. I originally made a lemon version but I think the plain butter are the best.

Ingredients:
2 sticks of Unsalted Butter at room temp. (I use European style butter for a richer flavor)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup sifted powdered sugar
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
2 large egg yolks, room temp.
2 cups all-purpose flour
coarse decorating sugar

Using a stand mixer beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add the sugars and salt and beat for around a minute. On low speed add the egg yolks and beat until it is combined.

Turn off the mixer add flour and cover mixer with dishtowel to prevent the flower from covering the counter. Pulse the mixer 5 or 6 times. Remove the towel and turn the mixer on low for 30 seconds or so until the dough looks moist and without flour on the surface.

Turn the dough out on the counter and divide it into two balls. Shape both balls into logs about 9″ long.  Cover in plastic wrap and put in the fridge.  Refrigerate overnight.  They can be kept in the fridge for three days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

When ready to bake heat the over to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Take out a log of dough. Whisk an egg yolk and paint the yolk on all sides of the dough.  Coat all sides of the dough with the decorating sugar.  Slice the dough 1/3 to 1/2 inch thick.  Put them on the baking sheet about an inch apart and bake for about 17-20 minutes. You want the cookies slightly brown on the bottom and golden brown around the bottom edges. Let them cool on the sheet for a couple minutes then transfer to a cooling rack.

These cookies will be a big hit. I have certain friends who will remain nameless that request these cookies be at our every meeting.
One of my favorite things about these cookies is that they are slice and bake and I can keep them in the freezer for any occassion.

Enjoy.

I grew up in NW FLorida, which is as Deep South as it gets in my opinion. My great grandma used to make the most awesome chicken and dumplings ever. When she died we could never quite recreate her recipe until I found a recipe for Chicken Pot Pie in the Jule/July 2005 issue of Saveur Magazine.  The recipe is featured in an article about the Kutztown Festival in the Pennsylvania Dutch country. Although the recipe is for Chicken Pot Pie the article says the dish is more like chicken and dumplings and they are right. This is the chicken and dumplings of my childhood!

Chicken And Dumplings

1 whole chicken cut up and rinsed
salt
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
6 Tbsp cold butter, cut up
4 eggs
1/3 cup milk
fresh ground black pepper
1 yellow onion, diced
Hand full of parsley chopped

Put the chicken in a large stock pot of cold water — around 4 quarts or enough to cover the chicken with a few inches of water. Add a couple tsp of salt. Bring to a boil over high heat then reduce to a simmer, skimming off the foam that rises to the top. Cook for 30 minutes. Then let the chicken cool in the stock for a couple hours.

Sift baking powder, flour and tsp of salt in a large bowl. Work butter into the mixture using two butter knives or your fingers like you do when making biscuits until it resembles coarse meal. Beat eggs and milk together and add to the dry ingredients. Mix with a spoon or your hands until the dough just holds together. Transfer to a floured surface and knead for about a minute. The dough should be smooth and only slightly tacky. Split into two balls and cover one with wrap to prevent drying. Roll out the dough ball one at a time until it is really thin, 12″ x 24″ is about the right size. Sprinkle with flour and slice the dough into squares, stack them on a tray and cover with a tea towel. Do the same with the second dough ball.

Take chicken out of the stock and put aside. Bring the stock to a rolling boil and add salt and pepper to taste. I am a little heavy with the pepper and think it’s much better that way. Pull the meat off the chicken bones, white and dark meat. Add onions and parsley to the stock. Then very quickly, making sure the stock stays at a boil, add the dough to the stock stirring after every few pieces.

Reduce heat to medium and cook for 25 to 30 minutes and until the stock thickens. Make sure it stays at a fast simmer. Also stir often so the dough doesn’t stick to the bottom. Add the shredded chicken to the stock and heat for five minutes. Then enjoy.

This is a great cold weather dish. Comfort at its best! The recipe makes at least six servings. It also reheats and freezes well. If you don’t subscribe to Saveur then you should. Best food magazine around and a great photo magazine. I like to call it the National Geographic for food.