The first thing I did on Saturday morning after having moved into the new place (unloaded the last box Friday night at 10pm) was to visit Monica Pope's restaurant T'afia. I went there twice on Saturday, in fact: once for the farmer's market in the morning, and once to eat from the most mouth-watering menu I've encountered since moving to Houston. Really, this was the best meal I've had since I ate at Le Bec Fin in Philly--five years ago!
I was blessed enough to meet Ms. Pope as I finished off some of the last bites of my pistachio-crusted Char (served with a warm spinach salad and orange sauce). It was the most star-struck I've ever been. Few people merit the kind of admiration Pope deserves. I'm serious.
I'm still holding out to become a seasonal-chef expert myself... but the only things that seem to be coming out of the ground these days are garlic and strawberries. It's hard to make a meal with that combo.
In the meantime, I just bought some books to stay inspired: "Animal Vegetable Miracle: A Year of Food Life" by Barbera Kingsolver and "In Defense of Food" by Michael Pollen.
Obvious choices, I know, but I'm embarrassed to admit that I haven't read them yet.
Oh yes, and I also ordered this highly lauded cookbook "The Farmer's Market Cookbook: Seasonal Dishes Made from Nature's Freshest Ingredients" by Richard Ruben.
Should be enough to get me started. Next Saturday, in addition to visiting the farmer's market, I'm going to try to volunteer at Meredith Gardens, a local community garden.
They have volunteer sessions on Wednesdays also, but the Election News Roundup this morning kept me too busy to participate... Although I did love reading about McCain and Letterman's comic encounter.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
spring!
Today is very sunny and very warm, and definitely feels like Spring.
I got Lupe back from the dog trainer the day before yesterday, and I certainly feel better for having her with me again. Life was solemn without her... even though her breath has started to smell like a combination of fish and old cheese.
This afternoon I was looking at some possible ways to get all of her hairs out of every thread of carpet they've gotten themselves embedded into. Tonight, I'm going to try removing the hair that doesn't come up with the vacuum (now a daily routine) using a damp rubber glove.
There are lots of other suggestions to be found on message boards. Real Simple Magazine is replete with this kind of advice as well.
Although I hear Martha Stewart is a cutthroat business woman, she really has a slew of good sites... And probably no black dog hairs on her oriental rugs.
I will be moving (with Lupe and the beau) tomorrow into a little house.
It is a cottage by the Menil Collection--which is one of the most amazing private art collections I've ever seen. Have a look at this NPR story on our neighborhood.
The movers are coming at 5 o'clock.
!
I plan to become a veritable domestic maven via Martha Stewart Living. I will learn how to make cute wall-papered boxes and rhubarb pie. If it takes me all of my days...
The first step will be learning to cook with local ingredients.
I've spent extensive time today perusing LocalHarvest to find CSAs and farmers markets in Houston. The Center for Urban Education about Agriculture showed me what to expect--lots of greens, since fruits and tomatoes are still a few months away. Which is great, because I love lettuce. Though I've recently abandoned vegetarianism in favor of a fuller gut (perhaps in more ways than one...)
There are lots of wonderful blogs about local eating, with plenty of food for thought.
The eat local challenge sounds especially holy and intrepid.
Maybe next week.
I got Lupe back from the dog trainer the day before yesterday, and I certainly feel better for having her with me again. Life was solemn without her... even though her breath has started to smell like a combination of fish and old cheese.
This afternoon I was looking at some possible ways to get all of her hairs out of every thread of carpet they've gotten themselves embedded into. Tonight, I'm going to try removing the hair that doesn't come up with the vacuum (now a daily routine) using a damp rubber glove.
There are lots of other suggestions to be found on message boards. Real Simple Magazine is replete with this kind of advice as well.
Although I hear Martha Stewart is a cutthroat business woman, she really has a slew of good sites... And probably no black dog hairs on her oriental rugs.
I will be moving (with Lupe and the beau) tomorrow into a little house.
It is a cottage by the Menil Collection--which is one of the most amazing private art collections I've ever seen. Have a look at this NPR story on our neighborhood.
The movers are coming at 5 o'clock.
!
I plan to become a veritable domestic maven via Martha Stewart Living. I will learn how to make cute wall-papered boxes and rhubarb pie. If it takes me all of my days...
The first step will be learning to cook with local ingredients.
I've spent extensive time today perusing LocalHarvest to find CSAs and farmers markets in Houston. The Center for Urban Education about Agriculture showed me what to expect--lots of greens, since fruits and tomatoes are still a few months away. Which is great, because I love lettuce. Though I've recently abandoned vegetarianism in favor of a fuller gut (perhaps in more ways than one...)
There are lots of wonderful blogs about local eating, with plenty of food for thought.
The eat local challenge sounds especially holy and intrepid.
Maybe next week.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Rainy Day Guac
The weather is very gray today, and very wet.
As usual, my mind has meandered over to dinner possibilities.
I'm thinking of what spicy, soothing dish I could put in my little shrunken stomach to make me hale again--or at least to make me smile despite the rain.
Here is one thing I've learned in Texas (best served to lots of people):
GUACAMOLE:
Ps-any recipe I ever make is totally improvised.
a bunch of avocados (1 lg. per person)
a head of cilantro
a very hot pepper (or two, if you like to sweat while you eat)
a shallot **THIS IS KEY**
a red onion
many tomatoes. as many as you like.
olive oil
salt
pepper
wash your hands
Make the perfect margarita to sip while you work (until you start mashing the avocado, that is).
1/3 nice tequila
1/3 lime juice
1/3 triple sec
Dice the shallots (sautee in olive oil) (let cool upon a plate)
Dice the tomatoes and discard the very slimy, seedy parts
Dice the onion
Chop the cilantro
Dice your hot pepper of choice (remove seeds to lessen the heat)
Mix these ingredients together (minus the shallots; wait until they cool)
Cut the avocados, remove the seeds, and mash them between your fingers in a separate bowl. This is fun.
Once avocados are mashed and shallots are cooled, combine all ingredients.
Mix them up with your hands, or with a spatula or spoon if you're a nancy.
Add as much salt and pepper as your tongue desires.
Serve with corn chips--also goes nice with raw veggies.
I am really not a food blogger, though.
Here are a couple of legitimate blogs from real foodies.
Figs Bay and Wine is a personal favorite. You'll love it if you enjoy Mediterranean food.
Chocolate and Zuccini is also delightful: and full of charming grammatical errors.
If you're looking for a collection of great recipe sites, check out findingDulcinea's Recipes Web Guide. It will have things far more official than my avocado invention.
As usual, my mind has meandered over to dinner possibilities.
I'm thinking of what spicy, soothing dish I could put in my little shrunken stomach to make me hale again--or at least to make me smile despite the rain.
Here is one thing I've learned in Texas (best served to lots of people):
GUACAMOLE:
Ps-any recipe I ever make is totally improvised.
a bunch of avocados (1 lg. per person)
a head of cilantro
a very hot pepper (or two, if you like to sweat while you eat)
a shallot **THIS IS KEY**
a red onion
many tomatoes. as many as you like.
olive oil
salt
pepper
wash your hands
Make the perfect margarita to sip while you work (until you start mashing the avocado, that is).
1/3 nice tequila
1/3 lime juice
1/3 triple sec
Dice the shallots (sautee in olive oil) (let cool upon a plate)
Dice the tomatoes and discard the very slimy, seedy parts
Dice the onion
Chop the cilantro
Dice your hot pepper of choice (remove seeds to lessen the heat)
Mix these ingredients together (minus the shallots; wait until they cool)
Cut the avocados, remove the seeds, and mash them between your fingers in a separate bowl. This is fun.
Once avocados are mashed and shallots are cooled, combine all ingredients.
Mix them up with your hands, or with a spatula or spoon if you're a nancy.
Add as much salt and pepper as your tongue desires.
Serve with corn chips--also goes nice with raw veggies.
I am really not a food blogger, though.
Here are a couple of legitimate blogs from real foodies.
Figs Bay and Wine is a personal favorite. You'll love it if you enjoy Mediterranean food.
Chocolate and Zuccini is also delightful: and full of charming grammatical errors.
If you're looking for a collection of great recipe sites, check out findingDulcinea's Recipes Web Guide. It will have things far more official than my avocado invention.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
She Lives!
Well, I may have been silent for a while, but it's only because I've been meditating like the Maharishi.
I should have waited to start this blog until
1. Lupe was house trained
2. my 30 minutes of twice daily meditation plus 1.5 hour daily yoga sessions ended
3. until the next President of this great nation had been elected.
But that would have meant waiting until November, and I just couldn't
.
So, now that my Yoga program is drawing to a close, and the dog no longer pees and poops at my feet, I'm ready to throw myself into this completely again--even if I am scrambling to cover the election each morning. Have a look at the best politics and news resource you ever did see!
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news.html
There are a couple of other great go-to sites for news and background information about the election: if you're looking for headlines from all over the Web, check out Real Clear Politics, which pulls together snappy and informative articles from across the Internet.
NPR also has a great political section, which features background info on the election and slightly liberal coverage. Just slightly.
In other news, or, news about food, here are a couple of my favorite go-to food Web sites:
If you're a Houstonian, I just have to tell you about this amazing Houston Food blog, which has changed my relationship with Houston cuisine.
Fellow Texans might be interested in reading about hunting and recipes: have a look at this hunting Web site that features lots of creative ideas for grilling your game. I am not a hunter, in fact, I am generally pretty much a vegetarian, but lots of things change in Texas. I recently ate venison, for example, and my dog REALLY likes to chase squirrels. Perhaps she and I will learn to track and sup upon deer with regularity.
(PS I discovered this Web site while writing the Hunting Web Guide for findingDulcinea. It was an assignment I took on before I came to Texas. I thought there would be a lot of hunters here. Turns out, not too many people drive around wearing camo with dead deer in their pickups after all.)
And finally, for those of you not from Texas, and for those of you lacking a refrigerator full of game birds and other trophies, a very favorite food resource for cooking is the Food Network online. It's full of videos and recipes.
Don't miss Lookin' At Cookin' for more videos. You can learn how to make anything watching these pros. And you can pause your computer anytime.
More tomorrow, (and the next day, and the next day) I promise!
I've also decided,
I should have waited to start this blog until
1. Lupe was house trained
2. my 30 minutes of twice daily meditation plus 1.5 hour daily yoga sessions ended
3. until the next President of this great nation had been elected.
But that would have meant waiting until November, and I just couldn't
.
So, now that my Yoga program is drawing to a close, and the dog no longer pees and poops at my feet, I'm ready to throw myself into this completely again--even if I am scrambling to cover the election each morning. Have a look at the best politics and news resource you ever did see!
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news.html
There are a couple of other great go-to sites for news and background information about the election: if you're looking for headlines from all over the Web, check out Real Clear Politics, which pulls together snappy and informative articles from across the Internet.
NPR also has a great political section, which features background info on the election and slightly liberal coverage. Just slightly.
In other news, or, news about food, here are a couple of my favorite go-to food Web sites:
If you're a Houstonian, I just have to tell you about this amazing Houston Food blog, which has changed my relationship with Houston cuisine.
Fellow Texans might be interested in reading about hunting and recipes: have a look at this hunting Web site that features lots of creative ideas for grilling your game. I am not a hunter, in fact, I am generally pretty much a vegetarian, but lots of things change in Texas. I recently ate venison, for example, and my dog REALLY likes to chase squirrels. Perhaps she and I will learn to track and sup upon deer with regularity.
(PS I discovered this Web site while writing the Hunting Web Guide for findingDulcinea. It was an assignment I took on before I came to Texas. I thought there would be a lot of hunters here. Turns out, not too many people drive around wearing camo with dead deer in their pickups after all.)
And finally, for those of you not from Texas, and for those of you lacking a refrigerator full of game birds and other trophies, a very favorite food resource for cooking is the Food Network online. It's full of videos and recipes.
Don't miss Lookin' At Cookin' for more videos. You can learn how to make anything watching these pros. And you can pause your computer anytime.
More tomorrow, (and the next day, and the next day) I promise!
I've also decided,
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
At the start of forty days
Let me make one thing clear: I am not a new-age pseudo spiritualist; nor do I fancy myself any bit a Lonestar.
But, I have just embarked upon a program called "40 Days to Personal Revolution," a Baron Baptiste-based yoga experience.
And, I recently moved to Houston, Texas.
Although I have done yoga for many years, doing yoga in Texas is a new thing for me.
So why not embrace the challenge of practicing six days a week, meditating twice a day, and journaling constantly about my humanity?
Interestingly, the farther along I go along this path of "personal revolution," the more I recognize how peevish I can be.
This blog will chronicle these next 40 days, and perhaps, a bit of Houston thereafter.
In the meantime, it will illustrate how a life long North Easterner embraces (though not always gracefully) life in a Texas oil town.
***
I must also warn you that on this blog you will read about food. Lots of food.
Because as much as I love yoga; as much as I love Texas; as much as I love to write--I love food more.
The only thing I don't love more than food is my dog.
And my family, of course.
Fortunately, I make a living writing about food.
If only I could make a living doing it in downward dog, while petting my dog, with one foot in Texas and one foot at home (with my family) in New York.
Check out a recent guide about food featured on the Web site I work for: www.findingDulcinea.com
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/guides.html?topic=/categories/food
Enjoy!
But, I have just embarked upon a program called "40 Days to Personal Revolution," a Baron Baptiste-based yoga experience.
And, I recently moved to Houston, Texas.
Although I have done yoga for many years, doing yoga in Texas is a new thing for me.
So why not embrace the challenge of practicing six days a week, meditating twice a day, and journaling constantly about my humanity?
Interestingly, the farther along I go along this path of "personal revolution," the more I recognize how peevish I can be.
This blog will chronicle these next 40 days, and perhaps, a bit of Houston thereafter.
In the meantime, it will illustrate how a life long North Easterner embraces (though not always gracefully) life in a Texas oil town.
***
I must also warn you that on this blog you will read about food. Lots of food.
Because as much as I love yoga; as much as I love Texas; as much as I love to write--I love food more.
The only thing I don't love more than food is my dog.
And my family, of course.
Fortunately, I make a living writing about food.
If only I could make a living doing it in downward dog, while petting my dog, with one foot in Texas and one foot at home (with my family) in New York.
Check out a recent guide about food featured on the Web site I work for: www.findingDulcinea.com
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/guides.html?topic=/categories/food
Enjoy!
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