Not Your Average S'mores

I love when restaurants take a popular dish and add a unique flair. The best example of this lately was at House Wine off South Lamar (behind P. Terrys). Set in a renovated home, House Wine offers a casual setting that feels like your living room. They feature an extensive wine list and several appetizers like hummus and cheese plates. I was there for open mic night, so I had the pleasure of listening to talented Austin musicians play out front in their great outdoor "yard" as well.

When I saw the roasted mozzarella appetizer I was instantly sold. Marinated mozzarella balls are brought to the table with a small table top fire and skewers so you roast the mozzarella yourself. Think smores, but with cheese and crackers. As if it couldn't get better they serve it with olive tapenade and sun dried tomato puree to make the perfect gooey cheese and cracker bite.

Amazing!

Our favorite wine of the night

The Time Between

The weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas are often crazy, stressful and usually a lot of fun. I find myself attending holiday parties, shopping for great gifts and soaking up time with good friends before we travel for the holidays.

With all the hustle and bustle around the holidays, I have a hard time focusing on recipes and being creative in my own kitchen. When its finally cold in Austin the last thing I want to do is chop tons of veggies and do dishes. I want to be outside enjoying being bundled up in a city that rarely dips below 60 degrees. However, its still important to me to save money and stay healthy by eating at home during this busy time. I compromise with what Sandra Lee calls "Semi-homemade".

With a mix of great deli prepared items, fresh fruits & veggies, lean cuts of meat and fish I've been successfully making 15-20 minute meals that usually take one dish to make. Here is a sample menu from this week:

-sauteed quartered brussel sprouts, mushrooms and diced chicken in a raspberry chiptole sauce
-breakfast tacos with eggs, cheese and mushrooms in corn tortillas
-seared salmon (season with lemon pepper, salt, olive oil) and deli prepared roasted root veggies
-deli prepared egg salad sandwich with cucumber and tomato salad (toss diced cucumber and tomatoes in olive oil, salt, pepper, herbs)
-package of whole wheat ravioli tossed with brown butter, sage, ground turkey
-thin crust pizza (used Pillsbury dough) with pesto, ground turkey and veggies
-scrambled eggs and apple slices dipped in almond butter

There's an Octopus in my Breakfast

I'm pleased to have my first guest blogger today! One of my cooking inspirations- someone who can make any leftover taste amazing. The man that had a toasted bagel with cream cheese and pesto waiting for me every morning growing up. Cooking with Care welcomes- Tom Vander Ark!

"Put today's breakfast in the win column: egg white omelet with pesto veggies topped with Pico party--diced avocado, onion, tomato, cilantro, with feta and Chalula. 

But that's bush league compared to Tom's Big Breakfast at Lola (2000 4th, Seattle).  It starts with a little garlic Greek yogurt in a bowl topped with sauteed octopus, pumpkin, spinach, bacon, and finished with a fried egg."

Photo from Seattle.net

Tom and crew also ordered the Lola specialty- doughnuts with seasonal jam and vanilla mascarpone. These little nuggets of goodness have been featured on Food Network and have chef Giada de Laurentiis raving from a recent visit to Seattle. Tom called me after breakfast raving- and I cant wait to try this out myself!

Photo from TripAdvisor

All of the Tom Douglas restaurants in Seattle have been family favorites. Mom's frequent request is always Etta's, which is a block from the Pike Place market and has amazing crab cakes and bloody mary's. On my last trip to Seattle I visited Serious Pie for happy hour with some girl friends. Their happy hour features popular pizza's in a smaller size for $5. I brought home the chanterelle mushrooms & truffle cheese pizza and had my family addicted immediately.

I'm looking forward to Christmas in Seattle - cant beat family and good food!