Reason #1 to wake up in Texas: kolaches, an Eastern European/Central Texan specialty consisting of sweet-and-savory pillows of warm baked dough stuffed with assorted meats and cheeses. Or, in Austin of course, filled with bacon, apples and brie.
Spotted at: The Zubik House food trailer.
With the Super Bowl just around the corner, this drink, which comes from the W Austin, is a good pleaser. It’s manly enough for a football party (Bourbon-based) but sweet enough to please those of us who are manly enough to admit we’re in it for the taste. It also pays homage to this year’s brother vs. brother Super Bowl coaches plotl ine by mixing St. Germaine and Canton, two liquors made by two different brothers. According the legend:
The maker of Chambord liquor had two sons. He gave each of his sons a sum of money and said “I want you to take this money and go out and make a liquer better than mine. The catch is that I want you to make a liquer better than each other’s.” With the money in hand and passion in their hearts, each son created a great spirit, one making St. Germaine and the other Canton. Much like the whiskeys also found in this cocktail, an American Bourbon and an English scotch, the brother’s quarreled over which is better.
Who’s right? We have no idea, but this drink sure is a strong one!
1.5 oz Buffalo Trace Bourbon
.5 oz st. germain
.5 oz canton ginger
.25 oz pineapple
Shake all, pour over rocks in rocks glass. Then Spritz with Laphroaig and garnish with burnt lemon.
(Photo courtesy W Austin)
Earlier this week, Mexico met Japan in an artsy cocktail, and in round two, Mexico meets Japan in this artsy ramen:
This Chicken Tortilla Soup Ramen hybrid is made with bacon dashi, chicken-tortilla-Tom-Yum paste, shrimp paste, chicken thigh, soft soy egg, avocado, corn, fried tortilla, pickled yellow onion, jalapeño, cilantro, garlic, and lime. Talk about fusion.
It”s from East Side King at Hole in the Wall, Top Chef winner Paul Qui’s newest Austin venture (for now–He”s working on some other new exciting projects too, so expect a stream of PQ food pics from me in 2013-2014, you’re welcome).
Oh, by the way, it’s amazing.
What did you have for breakfast today? Cereal? Banana? Granola bar? Sorry, I’m about to ruin any satisfaction you might have obtained from your measly meal, because for some lucky people, breakfast could be THIS:
A perfect Croque Madame sandwich smothered in creamy mornay sauce and topped with a rich, runny egg. With frites and black coffee on the side, of course. Go big or go home. Or as the French would say, I guess, rentrer à la maison ou grand feu?
(This exquisite sandwich can be found at Épicerie Café in Austin, Texas.)
The beginning of fall is always bittersweet for me, because I love summer with all my heart. The silver lining to this new season, though, is that fall equals the return of football, which equals daydrinking, snacking, and of course, tailgating!
I love tailgating. Lounging outside in the sun, downing beer, and chowing down on indulgent snacks? Hell yeah. Now that I’m a Texas transplant, I have fully committed to the southern tailgate lifestyle, and I am here to tell you it is way more intense than anything I experienced in Washington. Here in Austin, a city with no pro sports teams, college football reigns supreme. It doesn’t matter if you attended UT or not, on game days you proudly sport all the burnt orange you can muster and hook ’em horns with the best of ’em. My boyfriend, Rob, is a born-and-raised Austinite and a huuuuge Longhorns supporter with a reserved tailgate spot and season tickets to all the games, so I knew it was important to make a strong “I’m committed to this, y’all!” statement among the other fans at my first UT tailgate.
Mulling over all the traditional choices got a bit tedious. Chips, queso, pulled pork, chili, salsa… I couldn’t make up my mind and didn’t want to just settle for one of those cliché (albeit delicious, don’t get me wrong!) choices. Suddenly it dawned one me: why not combine all my favorite fatty football foods in one epic dish?! If people can do that with Mexican food, why couldn’t I do that with Southern food?! And thus, the Southern Seven-Layer Dip was born.
Pot of chicken liver mousse from the delightful “head-to-tail” restaurant Salty Sow in East Austin.
Topped with apple geleé and served with crostini and pickled onions, this is one heavy-duty appetizer (despite the fact that it melts like butter on your tongue). I think part of the reason I loved it is that it strongly reminded me of our legendary ES Philly food fantasy, duck in a pot.
