agoodbite's Profile
Recipes from Smitten Kitchen blog.....what are your favorites??
I'm quite fond of the brine she came up with for pickled carrots. I use it as is for pickling green beans and as a starting point for pickling all sorts of vegetables. H is using a variation right now to pickle the first cucumbers of the summer. He cut way back on the sugar and added some coriander seed and a chile de arbol.
http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/01/pickled-carrot-sticks/
Why do you continue shopping at CostCo? I am underwhelmed. What do you appreciate about the warehouse store?
Same holds true in TX. There's a liquor store attached to Costcos in TX that have a separate entrance and are managed separately. They're also open to the public. You can still buy beer and wine in the actual Costco store.
Bachelor party in Austin
The only BBQ you'll find downtown besides Lambert's is Iron Works or Stubbs. If you're looking for "fancy BBQ", Lambert's is your best bet as Optimista suggested. The BBQ ain't great but it's passable and the sides (esp the green chile and cheese grits) and other menu items are pretty good. I've never heard anything good about the BBQ at Stubbs, but both it and Lambert's have full bars. Stubbs is less fancy than Franklin's. I haven't been to Iron Works since the 80's so I don't know how it is these days, but I'd bet that it's still better than Lambert's or Stubbs. Downside is that IW is counter service and only sells beer and wine.
I still urge you to consider leaving the downtown area if you want a better BBQ experience. Stiles Switch is not difficult to get to from downtown via Capital Metrorail (late afternoon and night only on Saturdays) if you want to get there cheaply. Taxis are your other option. The brisket at SS might not be as transcendent as it is at Snow's in Lexington is (haven't been to Franklin's so I can't compare there), but it's still a far piece better than what you'll find downtown. SS is counter service, but if you call ahead, they might be able to set some other arrangements for you. They also only serve beer and wine though that shouldn't be a problem if you wander across the street to The Yellow Rose, which is the best of the local second tier titty bars. Stiles Switch and The Yellow Rose make for a pretty fine bachelor party lineup if you ask me.
Best Thing YOU Ever Ate, Austin
Well, they're gigantic. They go for $6.50 per half pound so 1 one rib is a lot of food. See attached picture.
Best Thing YOU Ever Ate, Austin
Fortunately, they do sell them by the each. H and I got a link, a 1/2 lb. brisket and one beef rib. Together we couldn't finish all of the rib or the brisket. IIRC, that one rib cost $12 so come hungry!
Best Thing YOU Ever Ate, Austin
I declare the beef rib that I had (part of) for lunch today at Stiles Switch one of the best things I've eaten in awhile. I split one with my husband a few weeks back and it was so good, I couldn't get it off my mind so we went back today for another. This one was just as memorably delicious as the last.
I should add that I haven't been to JMueller's for their beef rib, but the one at Stiles Switch is so good, I see no need to cross the river to get to it.
Costco food finds - 1st quarter 2012 [old]
Found 4-packs of globe artichokes for $4.99 at the location in Austin, TX. I plan to steam then charcoal grill them tomorrow.
Barbecue Trip Report (Long)
The only thing I can think of that you're missing is there's another couple bbq joints in Taylor that aren't as famous as Louis Mueller's: Taylor Cafe and Davis Grocery. I haven't been to either, but sure would love to hear your report if you decide to hit up one or both of them.
I've been to both Southside Market and Meyers in Elgin. There's not much of note at either place beyond the sausage, which is a different style than you'll find down in Lockhart. If you're a sausage fiend, it's worth a stop, but not necessary. Louis Mueller's sausage is of a similar style (don't know if theirs is housemade or perhaps comes from Elgin) and I enjoyed it quite a bit last time I was there.
I've got no suggestions on what to do to kill time between feasts but I bet wandering around Taylor might be fun. It's a nice looking little town. If you get to Lexington late enough, you can walk up the street to cattle auction site just up the road from Snow's to check out the action. There's not much to Lexington beyond that as far as I can tell. Enjoy your trip and please do give a full report.
Barbecue Trip Report (Long)
If you'll be here for that long on your next trip, you'll surely have time for a trip to Snow's in Lexington. They've got the best brisket I've ever eaten and I've eaten plenty. The pork steak is really special also.
They're only open on Saturday mornings from 8am until they sell out so get there early.
My favorite things from Central Market
"Wonder why they remove the proteins from the butter?"
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My guess is so people with casein sensitivities can eat it since the proteins in butter's milk solids contain casein.
I wasn't aware there was such a product available. I'm glad to know about it since I have a sister with casein/dairy sensitivity.
Help, need gluten free dessert ideas
Careful on the oats. Many (most, really) are processed on equipment that also processes wheat. If the OP goes the crisp route, be sure to read labels or just look for a package that states on it clearly that the oats are gluten free. Bob's Red Mill is a widely available option.
what is your "default" ethnic food?
I would say Mexican, but I wonder if having a Mexican-American husband disqualifies my household. We also do a lot of southern/ranch cooking at home, but I wonder if being a Texan with a family history of ranching disqualifies that genre for us.
I want to love my slow cooker, can you help?
Thanks so much. I can't wait to play around with the concept. The Christmas eve tamales worked so well in the crockpot that I can imagine similar results with tortillas.
Leftover honey ham
Ham's a great breakfast meat. Fry up as many slices as you need in an iron skillet. Remove ham, deglaze with coffee and reduce a little. WALA! You have ham steaks and redeye gravy. Serve up with some biscuits and eggs cooked your favorite way.
Such ham steaks are also great for dinner. Serve with stewed greens and baked sweet potatoes or whatever you fancy.
Your all time favorite 'TV' cooking show chefs?
Keith Floyd is highly entertaining and quite a good cook.
I still miss The Two Fat Ladies.
Pierre Franey was one of my PBS favorites back in the 80's.
There was a Diana Kennedy series on TLC back in the 80's that I'd pay big money to own on dvd.
Do you eat the...gulp...fat?
Indeed it is. What an eloquent way of putting it. Fortunately, my husband does not agree which means more fat for me.
I want to love my slow cooker, can you help?
I'm intrigued by the prospect of keeping tortillas warm. Are they flour or corn? And do you add any water to the crock?
I want to love my slow cooker, can you help?
My sister has done this with mashed potatoes for holiday meals in the past. Works like a charm. I'll have to remember this for the next time I'm in charge. I usually do a bain marie, but using a crockpot for the job would free up a burner.
Sprouts closing most stores
Although I agree with you for the most part, Sprouts is good for a few things. If you're stuck with a gluten-free diet or have to feed someone on a gluten-free diet, they have a big variety of products to choose from at prices that beat Whole Foods, Central Market and even HEB. Also, if you shop carefully, you can get staple produce for dirt cheap.
I'm sad that most of the stores have closed. The old Sun Harvest location on Anderson was very close to where I live and was convenient for running in to pick up forgotten items.
New Soup Thread for 2012...
Thanks so much for the link. I've never tried doing the onions in the oven, but am definitely intrigued. Next time I see onions on sale, I'll give it a whirl. Thanks again.
Items that last for weeks Or months in the fridge?
The carrots from my CSA have an incredibly long shelf life in my fridge. A couple winters ago, we got an abundance of them (think 10 lbs when all was said and done) and didn't use the last of them until the following fall.
I can get a month out of well wrapped celery. I find that beets, turnips, kohlrabi, cabbage all have a very long life in the fridge too.
I also keep buttermilk for much longer than the expiry date suggests.
New Soup Thread for 2012...
Onion soup! I keep forgetting to put this back into rotation. My husband loves nothing better than a big bowl of it. I think I'll try the Ruhlman method since I don't have any good beef stock in the freezer. Thanks for the reminder.
New Soup Thread for 2012...
So far, the only soup that's come out of my kitchen is split pea made with the hambone left from a family get over the holidays. There was nothing earth shattering about it, but the hambone did add some good dimension. It's great with a cheddar cheese toast.
Next will probably be another batch of potato leek since I have some leeks I need to use up. I wouldn't mind getting a nice cauliflower on the roster while it's still cold out.
Potato cakes
My husband ate a Mexican version as a lenten dish while growing up called papas lampreadas. His mother added chopped tomato, green bell pepper, onion and sometimes dried shrimp powder to the mashed potatoes and then dipped them in well beaten eggs. She shallow-fried them in oil and didn't have problems with them falling apart. I suspect the dip in the egg helped hold the cakes together and I'm sure the mashed potato mixture was pretty stiff to start.
For 2012 I Hereby Resolved to...
Make better use of my CSA boxes, eat less meat, become better versed in gluten-free baking, cook much more Mexican food.
Beans for breakfast
Beans make a regular appearance in breakfast tacos here in central TX. They're mostly refried. Bean/egg, bean/cheese, bean/potato are very common breakfast choices. You can go nuts and do three fillings if you like. Flour tortillas are typical, but corn are a nice choice also. Top with some spicy salsa and you've got a great, filling breakfast.
NYE 2012 Menu Planning
H and I are keeping it simple this year. We're having king crab legs and artichokes with melted butter and buttered new potatoes w/ fresh thyme and parsley.
Tomorrow, we're having black eyed peas for luck and creamed cabbage for wealth.
After all the rich food we've had over the holidays, a large dose of simple food with many vegetables sounds really good.
Who else has Hop John for New Years?
Black eyed peas and creamed cabbage is what my family eats down in TX.
I cook the black eyed peas with some onion and either salt pork (preferable) or bacon. Cabbage gets boiled in salted water, drained and quickly braised with heavy cream and butter. If I have the ingredients on hand, I'll make up a batch of skillet cornbread to accompany.
Happy New Year from warm-as-spring Austin, TX!
Make ahead potato galette
Sure thing. I found a blog post detailing the method here. She uses oil and I use either clarified butter or a mix of oil and butter. It's so simple it's nearly foolproof.
http://www.peaceandloveinthekitchen.com/2009/08/grated-potato-galettes#comment-1762
TWENTY SIX 2 quart bags of frozen pumpkin puree in my freezer. Am I nuts...
The pumpkin whoopie pies from the Baked cookbook were a great use for my leftover halloween pumpkin a couple years ago. They didn't turn out looking like the picture in the attached link - probably because big halloween pumpkins tend to be watery (baked up in large, round but flatter disks), but they were delicious nonetheless.
http://www.marthastewart.com/344826/pumpkin-whoopie-pies-with-cream-cheese-f
