Austin Foodist (aka the nomBlog)

Rotisserie Pork - Char Siu Edition

2012-01-09T14:30:00.000-06:00

First, man created fire. Then, man created a device to spin animal carcass over said fire. I procured a rotisserie accessory for my grill last week and as soon as it arrived, put it to work on a recipe ripped off from my favorite blog Dad Cooks Dinner.
http://www.dadcooksdinner.com/2010/02/rotisserie-pork-shoulder-char-siu-style.html

The nomBlog is a big fan of the pork shoulder. While the pulled pork sandwich recipe proved to be a quick and easy project, this one took a little longer. The roto (I'm not spelling out rotisserie more than I have to) took some tinkering to get the "universal" brackets to work just right. Despite being a CharBroil product, like my grill, the parts were anything but. Nothing a little creativity couldn't fix. The meat itself marinated for a day (original plans to cook Saturday night ran into a sick wife who needed chicken soup, not a chunk of pork) and then I had to learn the basics of trussing. I tied a bunch of knots that seemed to work. Whether or not that can be called trussing, I'll let someone else decide.

The Marinade (or Brinerade as DCD calls it):

1 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp hoisin sauce
4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed through a garlic press (or 1 tbsp garlic powder)
2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated (or 2 tsp dried ginger)
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar (or dry sherry)
1 tbsp sesame oil

The Glaze:

2 tbsp reserved brinerade (or 2 tbsp soy sauce)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup hoisin sauce

Split the pork, stab the pork, marinate the pork (anywhere from 2 hours to overnight), truss the pork, throw it on the spit.

For my 4 burner grill, I turned on both outers to full blast, placed a drip pan in the middle and let it spin for 30 minutes. Lowered heat to medium for the remaining 45 minutes. After 45, I took the glaze and basted it as it turned, letting it cook for another 10 minutes.

Off the grill, rested for 15 minutes, sliced. Paired it with some stir fry bok choy. Outstanding results. I may try and tweak the grill a little bit next time and do the long cook at a slightly higher heat as it was slightly undercooked. The meat thermometer registered at a nice 175 internally though, so I'll call it a success.

Chicken with Cannellini Beans and Tomatoes

2011-07-14T11:13:00.000-05:00

What's that? Two blog posts in one week? Thank Adrienne, who after hoarding piles of Realsimple magazines, dug through her collection and found two recipes that were both....well, real simple and real good.

This week of cooking has made me realize 2 things:

1. Adding fresh herbs is a must for just about any dish made at home. The flavors we got out of basic pork and chicken with nothing but salt, pepper and a few herbs was incredible
2. I need to grow my own herbs. HEB has everything you need, but at 3 bucks a pop for a bundle of herbs, I'm paying more for that than the meal itself. My hope was to wait for a new house, but this may be a porch project in the near future.

Ingredients

2 15.5-ounce cans cannellini beans, rinsed
1 pint grape tomatoes
4 sprigs fresh thyme
4 sprigs fresh oregano, plus leaves for garnish
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
kosher salt and black pepper
8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 3 pounds total)

Directions

Heat oven to 425° F. In a 9-by-13-inch (or some other large) baking dish, toss the beans and tomatoes with the thyme and oregano sprigs, garlic, red pepper, 1 tablespoon of the oil, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper.
Pat the chicken dry and place on top of the bean mixture, skin-side up. Rub with the remaining tablespoon of oil; season with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper.
Roast until the chicken is golden and cooked through, 35 to 45 minutes. Sprinkle with the oregano leaves.

Recipe can also be found here

Final product (again, no prep shots):

Roasted Pork Chops, Sweet Potatoes and Kale

2011-07-12T10:00:00.001-05:00

We finally sold the condo and moved into an apartment out close to Oak Hill while we wait on our dream house to hit the market. I was a little concerned that moving away from a downtown setting where everything you need is a walk or quick drive away would have spoiled us for suburban living. Turns out, there's just as much, if not more, readily available in our new hood and we've taken full advantage. Plus, less homeless people dying in our bushes or Rockabilly musicians dying around the corner. So we have that going for us, which is nice. New posts coming on Jack Allen's Kitchen and Cyprus Grill and maybe a few others we discover here soon. However, now that we're settling in, its time to return to the kitchen and try and get those eating expenses down a scosh (Adrienne, sp?)

I made a much needed grocery run yesterday after work. We tolerated the Oltorf HEB at our old place b/c, frankly, it was right across the street. We knew it wasn't great, but it was convenient and made for good people watching at any hour of the night. I tried out our new HEB...the mecca of HEB's on Escarpment. Holy hell. This is what a grocery store should be. Wide aisles, carts with working wheels, extensive selection, great produce,wine tastings...are you f'n kidding me??? Ghetto HEB's, we're done. I'm home now.

On the menu last night was a meal with actual sides...something I tend to forget to do when I find a main course I really want to try out. This was ridiculously simple, and relatively quick on turnaround time. I substituted sweet potatoes for the butternut squash. Nothing elaborate or worth taking pictures of until the final product, but here's the recipe:

Ingredients

1 small butternut squash (about 2 pounds)—peeled, seeded, and cut into 1 1⁄2-inch pieces
1/4 cup fresh sage leaves
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
kosher salt and black pepper
4 bone-in pork chops (each 1 inch thick; about 2 pounds total)
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 large bunch kale, thick ribs removed and leaves roughly chopped (about 14 cups)

Directions

Heat oven to 400° F. On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss the squash with the sage, 1 tablespoon of the oil, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Roast, tossing once, until tender, 30 to 35 minutes.
When the squash has cooked for 20 minutes, heat 1 teaspoon of the remaining oil in a large skillet over high heat. Season the pork with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cook until browned, 3 to 5 minutes per side.
Transfer the pork to the baking sheet with the squash and roast until the pork is cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes more.
Meanwhile, return the skillet to medium heat and add the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the kale, ¼ cup water, and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook, tossing the kale and scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the skillet, until the kale is tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Serve with the pork and squash.

A microcosm of my evening. Dinner, cocktail, bumbo, play mat

Pork chop was cooked perfectly, sweet potatoes jived well with the sage, kale was delicious.

Stared while I devoured my meal. Jealous a little bit perhaps?

Asian Orzo Salad - A return to blogging

2011-05-24T11:27:00.000-05:00

So, it's been 9 months since my last post and coincidentally, the reason for my hiatus was largely a result of another life event taking place over 9 months. Charlotte was born in February and the months leading up to her birth and especially after her birth have been a blur. There was minimal cooking going on. Nothing that stands out too much. However, I knew if I didn't get something up soon, I'd likely lose all 6 followers so I'm diving back in.

A new baby is a miraculous thing. She'll make you smile, she'll make you love, she'll make you eat just about anything you can get your hands on in the brief 5 minutes you have to eat a meal. Burgers, pizza, endless lists of takeout food were consumed over the last 5 months. While Adrienne has a nice breast feeding diet going on (and looks AMAZING), yours truly has ballooned in size. The task at hand is to cut back on the junk, produce something healthy and produce it quickly....en masse. The other trick is making something dairy free that'll keep mom and baby happy.

Enter, asian orzo salad. If you time it right, you're looking at about 30 minutes including prep and cook time. Simple ingredients, enough to last 3-4 days and nutritious.

1 (9-ounce) package frozen sugar snap peas

1 (16-ounce) package orzo, cooked and drained

1 cup water chestnuts, drained and chopped

3 cups diced cooked chicken

3 green onions, chopped

1 medium red bell pepper, diced

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons hoisin sauce

1 (2-ounce) package slivered almonds, toasted (1/2 cup)

Cook up your rice while you bake your chicken, mix in the veggies, add the almonds and top it off with the sauce. I cut back on the vegetable oil to about 1/3 cup and upped the hoison to 3 teaspoons. Serve it right away or put it in the fridge to chill. Low-fat, easy prep, easy meal. Just in time to take over baby bouncing duty.

No shots during production, but here's the final product.

Risotto al Funghi - Adventures in Stirring

2010-08-20T14:20:00.000-05:00

I've likely mentioned it before, but my favorite show on the tube is Anthony Bourdain - No Reservations. Great writer (just finished his latest book, Medium Raw) and great TV personality. His latest episode documented his first trip to Rome, shot in black and white. The final scene was he and a friend on a beach in the Mediterranean cooking up a feast for family and friends. Among many amazing looking dishes, was a simple risotto, cooked in a big pot over a grill.

I've always wanted to try making my own, but have heard countless horror stories of how long it takes, how patient you must be, etc. These are things I'm not necessarily good at. I like to cook, but if you look at most of my posts, its simple and its usually pretty quick. Time be damned, I found a recipe that looked great and decided to give it a go. End result: 5 noms out of 5.

Recipe can be found here

The major players:

Get yourself a saute going:

In a new pan, sear the Arborio rice:

Begin adding the warm broth, 1 cup at a time:

Stir till the rice soaks it up:

Repeat 7 more times and trust me when I say, with time and stirring, that rice will soak it all up no matter how disheartened and skeptical you may be. Finished product looks a little something like:

Closeup:

Now mix in your mushroom/truffle magic:

Add some Parmesan and a splash of additional truffle oil (mmmmm, fungus):

Plate and destroy. You too can cook risotto.

Few notes:
1. This yielded a ton and we'll be consuming leftovers tonight with enough left for at least 2 more servings.
2. The recipe called for dried Porcini mushrooms. At 49.99 a freaking pound, I didn't bother to do the math to figure out an ounce...I skipped and compensated with more portabella.
3. Truffle oil, also not cheap but I plan to make good use of it going forward. Great flavors.

Your Mom's Burger Bar

2010-06-18T14:56:00.001-05:00

Not much to write as I'm climbing my way slowly out of a burger coma. Met a few friends for lunch today at a new burger joint called Your Mom's over on East Cesar Chavez. If you haven't been following the 104.9 burger bracket, they selected 64 of Austin's best burgers and put them into a NCAA tourney type faceoff. Your Mom's had been getting a lot of love, so we gave it a go.

Food A+
I went with my favorite genre of burger and got the Buffalo Bill:
1/2 Lb. burger tossed in Buffalo's Don't Fly Sauce, stuffed with blue cheese, jalapenos, wrapped in bacon with a touch of ranch and a sauteed green chili on a toasted wheat bun.

To quote Ken Griffey Jr's one show stint on The Simpsons "Its like there's a party in my mouth and everyone's invited". Unreal. Cooked to perfection, perfect amount of add-ons, so so good. The fries weren't bad and had a unique seasoning to them, but they could have been crispier.

Service C-
Its a small place and its not really clear when you walk in if there's a line or just people standing around, let alone where you're supposed to order. Once you do, you wait for your burger to be brought out. You wait....and you wait, and you wait. Casino El Camino looks like Junior at the Union Wendy's in comparison. By the time mine came out, I'd blown through my lunch break and had to take it to go.

If you have some time to waste, definitely go check it out but if you're looking for something quick on your lunch break, don't bother.

jittery hands + iphone = craptastic photos

Max's Wine Dive

2010-06-18T12:06:00.002-05:00

Since the Greece trip, its been slow goings in the Huebner food world. Some homemade pizzas will be appearing soon on the blog. In the meantime, Adrienne and I decided to head out and treat ourselves. I suggested a long overdue return to Max's Wine Dive downtown (mostly b/c I drive by it everyday on the way home and I was dying to get back).

We'd been once for a birthday celebration and ended up buying (and drinking) a case of wine with a group of friends last time and figured we'd give it a romantic go just the two of us this time. No cases were ordered, but the wine and the food were outstanding. One of the local news crews was there doing closeups with plated dishes under some nice lighting with their cameras. Sadly, iPhone was my only option. Here's to the idea that iPhone 4 is necessary for pixel improvement for unplanned blog photos! Ok, maybe not. Onto the amateur food porn:

Adrienne had Max's wrap: Grilled spinach wrap stuffed with roasted seasonal vegetables and provolone cheese with a house salad with a '06 Domaine Carneros Brut (Napa).

As for me, I couldn't pass up the special of the day: Wagyu beef with grilled mushrooms, black truffles and spring salad with a Martin Fierro Cabernet. The meat, my God, the meat.

This is one of my favorite places to go as the food is always amazing and the wine selection is hard to beat. Houstonians and San Antonians, don't be jealous....they've got locations there too.

Sammich shop - Food Heads

2010-06-03T16:10:00.002-05:00

Met Adrienne for lunch today at a sandwich place on 34th just off the drag called Food Heads. She got the rec from a coworker who has a finger on the pulse of the Austin food scene. Despite being 10 blocks down the road from me, I'd never heard of it but the menu looked solid.

Parking was a little suspect as any pseudo West Campus location suffers from, but the sandwiches....oh the sandwiches.

Adrienne got the Grilled Portabellas & Bleu Cheese ($6.75)
Served on toasted sourdough with fresh spinach, tomato and blackberry balsamic vinaigrette. My inner carnivore prevented me from ordering this, so I was glad she did. The combination of portabella, bleu cheese and vinaigrette was outstanding. Crisp sourdough worked well.

I had the Spicy Apple Pork Tenderloin Sandwich ($8.25)
Marinated and grilled pork tenderloin on toasted baguette with smoked gouda, spinach, spicy apple relish & honey dijon. With all those ingredients, surprisingly it was the honey dijon that really made the sandwich. The spicy apple relish wasn't all that flavorful and the flavor of the pork was just kind of meh. But the dijon along with the bread really saved it.

I overheard a customer talking to one of the waitresses about where they got their bread. Everything they have is local (nice touch) and we may have to pay a visit to Panaderia Chuy soon. This is about the 3rd recommendation I've gotten for this place and I love me some bread.

Final verdict, great sandwiches and great location but a little on the pricey side. There are a few other items on their menu I'd like to try so I'll be back but it probably won't make the regular sammich rotation. Jimmy John's has nothing to fear.

Spaghetti with fresh tomato and basil

2010-05-25T22:26:00.001-05:00

This is my second attempt at a recipe I caught on my favorite food related tv show, No Reservations. The show usually takes Tony Bourdain to far off lands and showcases the foods and culture of the area. This episode took a break and focused on basic cooking techniques; things every cook should know how to do. The one that really caught my eye was chef Scott Conant of Scarpetta and his take on spaghetti.

Recipe

Growing up, spaghetti was a staple at home, mostly for its simplicity. You boiled some noodles, heated some pre-canned sauce and added a meat if you were so inclined. It was never something I craved...until I caught Conant's version. Fresh tomatoes, fresh basil, olive oil, garlic and spaghetti.

Adrienne and I have been hitting up the local farmer's market the past few weekends and this Saturday I loaded up on locally grown tomatoes, a bunch of basil and decided to give this another go. Prep time is the toughest part. The tomatoes I got were heavy on the seeds and needed the skin removed. The easiest way to pull this off is to score an X on the bottom of the tomato and toss it in boiling water for 20-30 seconds.

Take them out, let them cool and the skin should peel right off.

Cut the tomatoes, get out as many seeds as you can and place them in a saucepan with some heated olive oil. Allow them to heat up for 10 minutes or so then use a potato masher to break them up.

Let the sauce simmer for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally. While that's going, get a small saucepan and put ~1/3 cup of olive oil on some heat. Once it begins to heat up, add a couple cloves of garlic and some freshly cut basil. This is where the magic happens.

Get your pasta going and once its close to al dente, move it into the tomato sauce and add your garlic/basil infused olive oil (everything is better with something that's infused). Make sure to strain out the garlic and basil. Toss the noodles (this is where you can work on that nifty wrist flip thing the pros do) and make sure the sauce really coats everything. Add tablespoon of butter, some more chopped basil, plate and serve.

BBQ (and Words) With Friends

2010-03-29T17:14:00.019-05:00

BBQ is not just a food, it's an institution. In the states, you've got Memphis, North Carolina and a few other areas that serve up something resembling BBQ. But if you want to do it right, you come to Texas. And when you get to Texas, you head to my neck of the woods. We are surrounded by some of the best bbq restaurants in the world and as much as it pains me to admit, I'd only been to a handful. It's like living in Athens and never having visited the Parthenon. This is no way for a supposed food blogger to live.

So, I did something about it. Many would plan several weekend trips to capture all the area has to offer. Not I. I wanted to do something grandiose. I wanted to be able to compare each and every one, come back here and post my findings. I gathered a small group of warriors and we departed Austin at 730am Saturday morning. These are their stories /Law and Order Voice.

Snow's - Lexington, Tx
2008 Texas Monthly Best BBQ
Open once a week on Saturday, this had to be our first stop, despite being the furthest out of the way. They open at 8am and close when they sell out (often before 11). We arrived just after they opened and dove in. Brisket breakfast? Absolutely.

Louie Mueller BBQ - Taylor, TX
30 minutes later we arrived at Louie Mueller in Taylor. We got there about 15 minutes before they opened but upon walking in, you knew this place had been there for awhile (51 years at this location). 5 decades of smoke residue and haze never smelled so good.

City Market - Luling, TX
For full disclosure, this was the only one of the 6 that I'd ever been to before so I already knew what to expect going in, greatness. Probably my favorite BBQ joint not served out of a trailer. The plan was to do Lockhart first, but upon arrival the collective vote was to postpone eating another 20 minutes by driving to Luling first. The realization that portion size matters when visiting 6 different joints finally caught up to us.

Black's Barbecue - Lockhart, TX
There was a painful sigh when Brendan pointed out we were now halfway through. The strategy evolved at this point into a group buy. Sampling from here on saved the trip from certain doom. We had officially hit the meat wall. We followed the giant yellow arrows and found Black's.

This picture really doesn't do justice to the mammoth beef rib they dared us to take on.

This was not for the faint of heart. Meat nap after Black's

Smitty's Market - Lockhart, TX
Recently, the Travel Channel aired an episode of Food Wars pitting Smitty's against Kreuz Market. Kreuz was originally located in Smitty's current building but some family splintering resulted in two outstanding BBQ joints instead of just 1. The show declared Kreutz the winner. Though I'm waiting until the end to post my rankings, I'll say right now, they got it wrong.

Slowest moving line....ever. This is where the meat sweats really started to kick in.

Jordan explains the intricacies of roller derby using rocks as jammers.

They've been smoking meat for awhile. The truth is in the film.

Kreuz Market - Lockhart, TX

This was it. The final stop. Another long line but this one went a little quicker. There was one section you waited in line for meat. Then another section for sides, drinks, ice cream, etc that surprisingly was almost as long as the meat line. No matter, sides have no role in determining good bbq and outside of some bread and several brave orders of cobbler, it was all meat, all the time.

Pretty sure she was giving me the stink eye.

Various victory poses (note Brendan still playing Words W/Friends)

Final Standings
Food blogging, whether through this type of medium, Yelp, bulletin board, whatever is to say the least a bit subjective. The idea of doing all 6 in one grand tour was to be able to compare each and come up with some arbitrary nomBlog rankings. After attending all 6 places, it was clear many factors would play into the results so it's difficult to definitively state A is better than B without doing this again on a different day. However, to avoid giving myself (and my lovely wife) a coronary, I'll simply throw up my rankings as of right now with the understanding that some time down the road, this will be attempted again for an accurate judgment.

Brisket (the true measuring stick of any good BBQ)
1. Smitty's - just look at the pics. great cut and the fat just blends into the meat for a tender, buttery bite.
2. City Market
3. Louie Mueller
4. Snow's (I've convinced myself we just caught them on an off day with a leaner, drier cut)
5. Kreuz
6. Black's

Sausage
1. Louie Mueller - Tough to pick a clear winner as I thought all 6 had solid offerings
2. City Market
3. Smitty's
4. Black's
5. Kreuz
6. Snow's

Pork Ribs (not my thing so this may be better judged by others on the tour, I didn't try one at Snow's)
1. Smitty's
2. City Market
3. Kreuz
4. Black's
5. Louie Mueller

Overall Winner
1a. Smitty's - Extremely impressed and now realize why people wait in that line. Will be back soon.
1b. City Market - Just as I remembered it, solid all around. I would really like to compare them to Smitty's heads up for a final call.
3. Louie Mueller - Traditional and an A+ for "this is what a bbq joint should look like"
4. Snows - Again, I feel like either the cut I got just wasn't great or maybe it was just an off day. Based solely on reputation, it's the one I most look forward to trying again.
5. Kreuz - For the record, it rhymes with "lights". I fear this got lower rankings simply b/c it was the last stop. Would certainly go again for a getaway lunch.
6. Black's - Not to say that it was "bad", just didn't really compare well with the others. That said, if it was across the street or near work, I'd happily dine there frequently.

Big thanks to everyone that came along and best of luck to your digestive tracts these next few days.

SXSW Recap

2010-03-25T12:38:00.003-05:00

So yes, technically this is a food blog and the following post will have nothing to do with food (minus the free hotdogs and beer acquired throughout my journey). There's your warning.

My other passion (and a huge reason I love living in this great town) is music. During one of our first conversations (I think via myspace...oh yeah, take a walk down memory lane with me), A asked me if I liked ACL. Trying my best to sound like the man of her dreams I said it was alright (if you can get past the dust, the heat and the sea of people), but SXSW was really more of my thing. Hundreds of bands playing small venues pretty much nonstop for 4 days straight...what's not to love? Did I mention free food and booze?

In my younger years (namely, when I worked the noon-8 shift at St. Ed's), I'd grab a wristband and hit all the night shows I could. Old age being what it is, I stand before you a broken and miserable man (bonus points for naming that slightly modified quote...hint at the end of the blog). The last couple of years I've ditched the wristband for the free day shows. My sleep cycle and liver have both thanked me for the change.

Without further ado, here's what I saw:

1. Broken Bells - Parking Garage on Red River
A collaboration between Danger Mouse and James Mercer (of The Shins)? Yes please. Got in line early for this one only to be rewarded by free hot dogs, free beer and one of the more unique venues I've ever seen a concert. The sound was great, the crowd was into it and the band...simply amazing.

2. Japandroids - Emos
Unfortunately, the awesomenous of the BB show ran long and I missed the Morning Benders. But we arrived in time to catch most of Japandroids' set. Vancouver based duo who throw down a garage-rock kind of sound which seems to be more and more rare in this era of MGMT, Yeasayer, Arcade Fire types (not to say I'm not down with those bands, but its tough to beat a good rock show with nothing but a guitar and drumset).

3. Titus Andronicus - Emos
New Jersey based rock band currently pimping a concept album based on the Civil War. What can possibly go wrong? It may have just been an off show (I think they had 10 or 11 at SXSW), but S and I left halfway through their set. They just didn't seem to be into it, the sound was awful (part of that was on Emos) and at SXSW, there's a plethora of options (not pinatas).

4. The Soft Pack - Max's Wine Dive Underground
A, S and I were a little worried we wouldn't get in based on the line outside of Max's but after 10 minutes or so, they let a bunch head in. Another interesting space. Some sort of basement that on better days serves as an art exhibit. Free cheese and free beer hit the spot while we live tweeted (and took pictures of our own comments...yeah, next come the skinny jeans... I know). The Soft Pack came on and put on an ok show. Surfer rockish sound that started well, but tended to start sounding the same song to song.

5. Maps and Atlases - YardDog back alley
Caught them while waiting for the next band to setup. Very poppy, but a unique sound. Not sure I could listen to more than a couple songs of theirs before getting a little annoyed but damn did their lead singer have a solid beard.

6. We Were Promised Jetpacks - YardDog back alley
After dubbing them "best band name of SXSW 09" last year, I finally took the time to actually listen to their stuff this year and knew immediately that this was a band I wanted to catch. Scottish indie-pop-rockish...I'm not good with labels, I just know what sounds good to these 2 ears and they fit the bill. One of the few bands I saw at SXSW that actually sound just as good live as they do on their album. Oh, and free beer.

7. Peelander-Z - Trophy's
Last but certainly not least, a band I was dragged halfway across the city last year by MW & S to see at least year's SXSW. Japanese Comedic Punk is the only way to halfway do it justice. Walking from YardDog to Trophy's I called A, begging for her to meet me there. Being a stone's throw from our front door helped urge her on. They played on the back of a flatbed truck and while not the best musicians in the world, their show is unique and one of the best times I've had. Songs such as "So Many Mikes", "Mad Tiger", "Ninja High-School", human bowling, giant squid suits....just wow. To finish it off, they all climbed up a tree and scaled to the top of Trophy's, equipment and all to play their last song. Like I thanked MW&S last year, A thanked me and we ended our day with Magnolia Cafe to process what we'd just witnessed.

As always, an amazing week in Austin. And for those expecting a food blog, you won't be disappointed with the next entry. Next up, the Great Central Texas BBQ Tour complete with documentation using an actual camera (our latest purchase for my food documentation endeavors). Engage salivation...NOW.

bonus points if you answered the quote correctly: Celebrity Jeopardy

SNL Celebrity Jeopardy 4-15-00 - watch more funny videos

Muck & Daves - New BBQ Trailer on South Congress

2010-03-09T21:22:00.001-06:00

Vegas has stolen my wife for a few days and to make things a little more interesting, we've put our condo on the market so we're having random strangers walk through our place during the week. To avoid our potential buyers being scared off by our intimidating dog, I've been coming home just before a showing to grab Mads and get her out of the house. Having to do this the past 3 days I've decided to take advantage and hit up a few of the local trailers I've yet to enjoy.

Last week driving into work, I noticed a new smell as I passed the South Congress trailer park. The sweet sweet smell of bbq...at 8am. Could it be a new Franklins expansion trailer within coronary distance? Alas, it was not....instead, its a place called Muck & Daves.

The menu is pretty standard bbq fare: brisket, sausage, ribs and chopped beef sammiches. I went with the two meat plate of brisket and sausage (my standard measuring stick for bbq) with a side of slaw and potato chips. The woman working was on her 2nd day but was extremely nice and warned that they were still working out the kinks.

To be fair, they've only been open less than a week so there were kinks to work out. This is especially difficult with meat you have to smoke overnight and then maintain the quality throughout the day. The brisket was really dried out but there was a pretty good rub used so there was potential for something flavorful. The sausage was extremely good, but it was Elgin sausage and not a homemade product. Hard to knock too many points there, but they have the unfortunate position of being compared to Franklins.

BBQ purists will say that sauce is an afterthought and the meat should stand on its own merit. While I typically agree, a good sauce can make average cue slightly above average. Their sauce is a second cousin of The Salt Lick. Very different than most with a definite sweetness to it. If you took their sauce and put it on the table at Franklins......sorry.....my stomach is doing a happy dance.

I do award them +10 internet points for the sign on their fridge:

Snack Bar

2010-03-07T18:40:00.002-06:00

A, J, E and I went out Friday night trying to find a new locale on South Congress to try for dinner. We'd seen Snack Bar but heard few things about it positive or negative. We decided to give it a shot. The location is the old Sol y La Luna restaurant adjacent to Austin Motel. They'd done a good job renovating and the projector showing Tom and Jerry cartoons was a nice/odd touch.

They have a brunch/lunch menu with entrees, but the dinner menu is more of a "shared appetizer" type fare. The beverage selection was pretty solid:

Between the four of us, we knocked out a good portion of the menu:

Chile Rellenos - sweet peppers instead of the typical spicy poblano. The sweet peppers were an interesting twist but quite frankly, the thick batter and lack of flavor really didn't do much for me.

Tres Sopas - We got one of each type, Picadillo, Mango Shrimp and Black Bean. All three were pretty good. The beef had a nice peppery spice, the mango worked well with the shrimp and the beans...well, A ate that one but I didn't hear complaints.

Spring Rolls - I'm not the best judge b/c spring rolls just aren't my thing. But the general consensus was too much rice filling and not enough veggies.

Mac and Cheese - Find me one person who isn't a fan of Mac and Cheese and I'll show you a communist. Problem here was that the m&c didn't seem like much more than the boxed stuff you get at the store. A little parsley sprinkled on top does not gourmet make.

I've yet to throw out a negative review in my blog infancy, but this place was just subpar, especially given how much the dinner cost. Save your time and walk over to South Congress Cafe.

Crabmeat Stuffed Portabellos - Proving once again, any food stuffed in another food is bliss

2010-02-25T11:29:00.001-06:00

The nomBlog and I have had a talk and I have agreed to pay her more attention. The truth is, I've got several meals piling up in my "yet-to-be-blogged" list its just a matter of throwing them up there in the ether.

I love cooking shows. Good Eats, Emeril, Rachael Ray, even a little Paula Dean when I want to increase my cholesterol just by watching. They provide some great recipe ideas but also show technique and the prep that can go into meals. Emeril in-particular tends to have fairly involved recipes with many ingredients and steps. I tend to go for simpler recipes so most of his stuff I stray away from. However, I came across this recipe of his and was thrilled at the simple ingredients and potential awesomeness that could result.

    * 6 portobella mushrooms, stemmed caps (fresh from Greenling)
    * 3 tablespoons olive oil
    * 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
    * 3/4 teaspoon fresh ground white pepper
    * 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
    * 1/4 cup small-diced onion
    * 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
    * 1 cup whole milk
    * 1 pinch freshly grated nutmeg
    * 1/2 lb lump crab-meat, picked over
    * 1/3 cup grated Gruyère
    * 4 teaspoons breadcrumbs

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F

Toss the mushroom caps with the 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper.

Place the caps on an aluminum foil lined baking sheet, stem-end up, and roast in the oven until well roasted and browned, about 35 to 40 minutes.

Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes.
Result:

Set a 1-quart saucepan over medium heat and add the butter to the pan.

Once the butter is melted, about 1 minute, add the onions and sauté until translucent, about 3 minutes. I went ahead and diced up some of the mushroom stems to add to the mix.

Sprinkle the flour into the pan and stir to form a roux.
Continue to cook the roux for 2 to 3 minutes before adding the milk.
Result:

Bring the milk to a boil and reduce to a simmer, season with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon of salt, 1/4 teaspoon of pepper and the nutmeg.

Cook the bechamel sauce for 5 minutes before removing from the heat. Allow the mixture to cool slightly before folding in the crab-meat and cheese.
Result:

Combine the bread crumbs with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil.

Spoon 1/3 cup of the bechamel over each mushroom cap and sprinkle 1 teaspoon of the bread crumb mixture over each stuffed mushroom.

Place in the oven and roast until the bechamel is bubbling and lightly browned on the edges, about 8 to 10 minutes.
Result:

At this point I had 20 minutes to scarf down the stuffed goodness before my softball game so no plated photos. A and I were both happy with the results. Portabellos are about as close to meat as you can get w/o involving something with 4 legs. The seasoning may need to be tweaked a bit as the flavor was a little bland, but the Gruyère cheese made sure I didn't care that much.

Franklins BBQ - Everything's better in a trailer (Oklahomans excluded)

2010-01-24T22:08:00.002-06:00

For Austinite bbq lovers, the few options in town meant treks to Luling, Lockhart, Taylor or Driftwood. There are a few in town I like (Rudy's, Ruby's), but none that just flat out impress across the board. Until now. It may not look like much, but Franklin's is quickly gaining a reputation among BBQ aficionados. I gathered up the Royal We (Fall 09 Bowling Champs) Thursday to try it out and walked away extremely impressed (and overweight).

My litmus test for good bbq is the standard 2 meat test: brisket and sausage. Between the 4 of us we ordered 1.5 lbs brisket, 1 lb sausage and 1lb pork ribs. The owner, Aaron, provided us with some charred caps to munch on while he cut everything up. Amazing. The guy should somehow market just the ends (muffintop ala Seinfeld). It was all amazing. The brisket was one of the best I've tried, 10 out of 10. The sausage and ribs were both 8 out of 10. My only knock was there just wasn't a sauce there that I really liked. The expresso sauce is good and a very different idea. The sweet sauce was ok and I'll have to try the pork sauce next round with some pulled pork.

We all walked away very happy with this nearby lunch option soon to make it into the rotation. On one hand, I liked the fact that we walked right up with just a few folks in line and had our run of the place. On the other hand, its criminal to keep a place like this secret and Aaron seems like genuine good people. So, next chance you get, give it a go. Its just north of Dreamers (on 35 frontage road). If you pass Chicas Bonitas, you've gone too far. (35 and Concordia).

And now, food porn:

The establishment

The Order

El Brisket

Los Ribs

BBQ Lunch, Serious Business

Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Soup

2010-01-14T22:49:00.007-06:00

So, apologies for the blog hiatus. Between the holidays, the National Championship game and Vegas, there wasn't much cooking going on up in our kitchen. However, this will be a multiblog week so really, try and contain yourselves. Onto the grub.

For those that don't know me, I'm a carnivore of the highest order. The few entries I've made were chalk full of meaty goodness. Every now and then I feel the need to get away from that and bring some veggies into the mix (its rare, but it does happen). So when I filled out our Greenling order this week I grabbed way too many butternut squashi, some sweet potatoes (a regular in our box) and a few yukon gold potatoes and went to town.

1 lb butternut squash
1 lb sweet potatoes
2 small yukon potatoes
1 small onion
6 cups chicken broth
1 tbsp minced ginger

This was a pretty easy recipe, but most of the work was turning this:

into this:

One workout at Gregory Gym this afternoon, the second in the Huebner Kitchen dicing up all that fun. The rest went by quickly. Throw the onions in with some olive oil in a large soup dish for about five minutes until tender. Then add the ginger, sit back and enjoy the smell (but only for 1 minute):

Then in goes the rest of the veggie goodness (and chicken broth). Turn the heat up to get it simmering then cover and turn it down to medium for 45 minutes or until the ingredients are soft enough to blend. Use a blender and smooth everything out into an even consistency (left ours with some small chunks) and then put it back on the heat for another 15 minutes or so while you put together this super easy salad:

lettuce
sliced pears
blue cheese
chopped walnuts

dressing:
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp apple vinegar
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 tsp lemon juice

throw it all together and here's what makes the wife smile:

Pulled Pork Sammiches - Hot Crock-Pot Action

2009-12-14T16:04:00.001-06:00

Quick. Easy. Cheap. Plentiful. That's the way to properly rock the crock-pot my friends. We'd used ours once since the wedding so it was time to break it back out. Last week was a busy one but with softball being rained out I swung by HEB on the way home for the essential ingredients:

1 pork shoulder (~3.5 pounds)
1 liter-O-Cola (this Super Troopers quote/reference shamelessly brought to you courtesy of my recent celeb sighting Saturday night http://twitpic.com/tiar0 director and star of Super Troopers, Beerfest and newly released Slammin Salmon, Jay Chandrasekhar )
1 12 oz bottle of Stubbs BBQ sauce
1 pack of slider buns

This was ridiculously easy to put together and fed an army (or A and I for 3 or 4 meals):

1. Trim any excess fat off the shoulder
2. Place it in crock-pot on low heat
3. Cover in Cola (we used Coke but I've heard Root Beer works well)
4. Get on with your business for the next 8-9 hours
5. Remove from crock-pot and use forks to shred (save a cup of the liquid)
6. Return shredded pork to pot, add bbq sauce and cup of the liquid
7. Mix and put on high heat for 30 minutes.
8. Plate on toasted slider buns
9. Win!

We had ours with sweet potato fries which were even easier to prepare:
1. Cut up sweet potato into 1 inch wide, half inch thick, whatever length.
2. Toss in bowl with olive oil
3. Place on oven sheet and dust with salt, pepper and some chili powder.
4. Cook on low rack @400 for 20 minutes. Move to high rack for 10 minutes to crisp them up.

Behold

From Green Bean Casserole to Greenling: One Man's Culinary Evolution

2009-12-01T17:33:00.003-06:00

When I decided to start this blog I didn't really put much thought into why. Was it readership, credibility or just another cog in the social media machine that keeps us all connected?

Readership I've got. Google Analytics tells me I've had 100 visits since the nomBlog's inception which may not be much compared to other bloggers out there, but I'm thrilled after just 2 posts.

Credibility....I'm still waiting on those invitations to new restaurant openings so perhaps that's where I need to focus some attention. I'm not a chef. My restaurant experience is limited to the following:

1.Concession stands at my high school stadium. I held such illustrious titles as “Hot-dog Defrosting Technician” and “Lead Queso Associate”. Despite what I know about how those things operate, I still find myself ordering a hot dog and nachos at DKR. Pavlovian tendencies are tough to overcome.

2.Pizza delivery – the smell of pizza does not come out of vehicle upholstery. I'm pretty sure that's a good thing.

3.Head food leecher- My parents purchased K&G Restaurant in Brenham shortly after I graduated high school. Unfortunately, it was within driving distance of Austin so any trip home meant heavy grazing by yours truly. If the buffet wasn't up, I was in the kitchen pestering the cook or tasting the latest pie or cake my mom cooked up for the day. The freshman 15 evolved into the senior 40.

So, I'm not gaining any credibility based on work experience. Everything I've learned over the past (gulp) 31 years has been passed down from some amazing cooks/people in my life.

It started with “Janet's (Mom's) Green Bean Casserole” which made appearances at just about every Thanksgiving/Christmas/family gathering mainly due to my siblings and I demanding it. I don't remember how old I was when I was first trusted with preparing the dish, but I remember being floored when it got the seal of approval from my mom (the family seal of approval was an empty dish). At that moment I realized that one of the best parts of cooking was seeing your work being enjoyed by others. That's one of the biggest reasons for this blog. Food is meant to be enjoyed, be it a simple casserole dish or a complex brisket on the pit.

When I turned 24, my mom gave me a recipe book that she'd put together that included many of the foods I'd grown up on. Over the past 7 years I've made it a point to add to that book with recipes from friends, family and a bunch I've run across online. The instructions are there...unfortunately, the will power to put them together has been lacking for quite some time. Simply put, I can be a lazy guy; especially when it comes to grocery shopping. A isn't much of a go-getter in that arena either so we've been living off a steady diet of quasi-fast food and various restaurants for far too long.

Enter Greenling. In an effort to start eating better we've found our savior (or perhaps half-way house is a better term). Online grocery shopping. Locally owned. Farmed locally. Organic. Did I mention they bring it to your front door? We're talking eggs from right here in Austin. Cheese made in the Brazos Valley. Beef raised in Bastrop. Its going to be a gateway to help us start cooking more at home while simultaneously boosting the local economy. Win friggin win.

Our first round was successful (breakfast for dinner one night, pork loin with acorn squash another) so I hope this leads to more home recipes on the blog. If I can find a good price on steak my next entry will be overcoming the lack of a grill: how to pan sear steaky goodness. Nomdiddilynom.

Buenos Aires Cafe

2009-11-20T22:20:00.001-06:00

After hearing several rave reviews I figured my first restaurant review might as well be somewhere with a reputation. A and I took the 2 minute drive over to South 1st and parked next to a non-descript building flanked by a pawn shop and the infamous G&S Lounge. Not exactly where you'd expect fine dining.

Upon entering you find a small dining room with no more than 10 or 11 tables. (I promise the next round will have ACTUAL photos and not iphone renderings)

We were seated in the corner and after listening to the daily specials decided we'd be dining off menu. Adrienne had the Mahi-Mahi with a white wine reduction sauce, capers, shrimp, asparagus and mashed potatoes.

The sauce really made the dish for me (of the couple bites I had). I'm not a huge fish person, but it was cooked to perfection.

The gentleman sitting next to us sung the praises of the beef tenderloin going so far as to say "it is the greatest cut of meat I've ever had". This intrigued my inner carnivore so I ordered the tenderloin, medium rare with green beans, yukon mashed potatoes and a couple of gulf shrimp.

After you're done admiring those chiseled man-boobs you'll notice that the presentation was outstanding. The green and orange coloring in conjunction with the tomatoes on the green beans made this dish really stand out. And that was before taking a bite. The beef cutlet was on the small side, but the flavor was solid. Juicy inside with an herb paste on top and cooked a perfect medium rare. The mashed potatoes and green beans were well cooked as were the shrimp.

The special prices were a little high, but overall we left very impressed and eager to head back. They've recently opened a second location on East 6th.

@Home: Seared Ahi Tuna

2009-11-16T10:30:00.001-06:00

A and I have been catching up on Madmen the past few weeks (we missed the boat when it first came out). Through most of season 2 I've learned that to properly hook your client, come out firing with your best idea first. Ok, perhaps I'm making that up and I'm really just wanting a fully stocked liquor cabinet in my office for Mondays like this. At any rate, here's one of my favorite dishes I've put together. (Fair warning, pictures are a result of iphone camera and my jimmy hands...proper photo documentation in future postings will be done by the professional in the family)

.5 lb yellow-fin tuna
white/black sesame seeds
salad greens
red bell pepper
wonton sheets
asian ginger vinaigrette
edamame as a side
6 pack Breckenridge SummerBright to get me through the evening

Prepared the wontons first. Not necessary, but adds a nice texture to the rest of the salad. Cut up into strips

Threw them into some hot olive oil for roughly 30-40 seconds (till they puff up and turn brown)

result = crunchy goodness

Tuna + Sesame seed mix

Cooked on high heat using some olive oil. 90 seconds on one side, 60 on the other.

Sliced to perfection

And the final product with some tossed salad greens and julienned red bell peppers

Came out fan-friggin-tastic. Honestly, I'm not sure that I'd change a thing. After I took it off the pan, I placed the tuna in the freezer for 10 minutes or so while I prepared everything else. This firmed it up a bit to make slicing easier. A and I were both extremely pleased with the result and this will definitely be in the dinner rotation in the near future.

A humble beginning

2009-11-15T19:05:00.000-06:00

Talk is cheap. After telling A for the 20th time last night "No, no, seriously...I'm going to start a food blog" I've finally broken down and put the wheels in motion.

My blogging experience is limited and as a husband to an amazing blogger, I know that coming up with material isn't always the easiest thing to do. You've got to find something you love. And since I'm pretty sure weekly updates about how much I adore my wife probably wouldn't yield the traffic I'm looking for, I'm focusing on my other love. Food.

There are quite a few Austin food bloggers out there and they've been the inspiration for many of our finest meals both at home and out on the town. My hope is to do just that for anyone who happens to read. It will be a combination of restaurant reviews, recipes I try at home and any other topics that might seem blog worthy.

So, uh...here goes.