Terribly Interesting

So, I don't usually blog about chain restaurants, but I love the Mediterranean pizza and the Greek Salad at Newk's Cafe. I didn't want you to miss out on it. There isn't anything special about the atmosphere, but they have delicious fresh veggies. Here are the ingredients to our favorite items. Mediterranean grilled chicken breast, mozzarella, roma tomatoes, kalamata olives, artichoke hearts, diced red onions, pepperoncini peppers, olive oil and feta cheese Greek romaine, feta cheese, kalamata olives, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, cucumbers, pepperoncini peppers and sliced red onion tossed with Newk’s Greek dressing We cut the onion. It's fantastic. http://www.newkscafe.com/

This is one of my pregnancy cravings. The recipe you will normally find has sherry and shallots in it. I adapted it to the likes of our family. I added a clove of garlic and some delicious mushrooms. It is really quick and easy. Brown your meat in the butter and garlic. You can also add a hint of pepper here. While this is going on, have the buns toasting in the oven at 350 with the cheese melting on the top portion of the open bun.   You can see it starting to change colors. Prepare your consume (or beef broth) with mushrooms and pepper.  Dip roast in sauce and place on bun. Scoop some mushrooms from the sauce and place on meat. You can add a little extra cheese if you would like. Close the sandwich and fill your dipping bowls to dip them into. This whole process is an average of 15 to 20 minutes and it is yummy. Buon Appetito.

Denbigh and our family seem to live in the car. We are always going from one worship gig to another. One road we travel frequently takes us through a little town called Shiro. This town has the best roadside plant nursery I have ever been to. I love it. A little under a year ago, I noticed a little hole in the wall restaurant pop up. I loved the name, Let's Break Bread. We probably drove by it a handful of times. On our way home this last time, I asked Denbigh if we could stop. I looked them up online and low and behold they had a website and it was plastered with scripture.  We went in and were greeted with lovely country charm. Our food was good, down home cafe style fare. The part I loved was how the owner took time to pray with us before we ate. It was beautiful. These two sisters quick their jobs in the oil industry to pursue something that honored God and family. What a testimony. Next time you drive through there, stop on by. Let's Break Bread.

I was going to tell you all about my homemade pot roast, but that'll wait until next week. Today, I am going to share with you about my recent excursion to Mochas and Javas in San Marcos. It was a fun little jaunt. First, let me tell you what you need to have a good time. You must have a lovely friend. Insert my pal Anne. Now, if you do not have a lovely friend, you should never review any establishment because your lame friend will ruin everything and cloud your review. Your friend must also be witty and funny. This will make coffee and food have a livelier taste. Picture it, a crazy trail of turn after turn to get to this little coffee joint close to the campus of Texas State. It's in a little strip center. I park in front of a kolache place next to it and the people who work there stare at me in a "you better be buying a kolache" kind of way. I smile and ignore their grumps because I see my friend Anne. We enter into the establishment. The atmosphere is ...

Here is something easy to add a little zest to any meal. All you do is pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees. Put in a cookie sheet of tortillas stacked individually. Each one will puff in about 10 minutes. Once they have puffed, flip them and let them crisp for five minutes on the other side. Pop a hole in the top and fill with whatever you are in the mood for. Taco meat, slim zucchinni sticks saute é d in olive oil, spinach, sharp cheddar. Whatever suits your fancy. It is a fun and easy way to make a taco salad. Here is the recipe for the world famous Cherry taco meat: http://www.stephaniecherry.com/2011/03/world-famous-cherry-family-tacos.html Buon appetito.

So, I don't usually write about things I don't like. I "file thirteen" them. That means I throw them in the trash. I have never been one to complain. Recently, however, I had a different experience. I looked up the 10 best places to eat in San Marcos, Texas. I opted to take my adopted daughter to The Root Cellar Cafe. I thought it looked really quant. It was under ground somewhat and had an ecclectic vibe. The food was decent. The problem for me had to do with their darkside brewery. On one half of this cute little eatery were pentagrams, big pentagrams. I don't know about you, but I've never been one to casually enjoy dining with the devil. It bothered me so badly that I don't remember if the food was good and I had a hard time chatting with my company. Before you go, I say be warned. If the glorification of the devil doesn't bother you, go on in. If it does, head around to Palmer's or Cafe on the Square. Both are great. Go over to The Coffee...

 Today, I hit South Congress with my gal pal Suzi. We ate at the South Congress Cafe. I will blog about that in a future foodie Friday. Right now, I'll show you one of the trailers at the food park at the 1600 block of South Congress, Hey Cupcake! We were really full from lunch, so we shared a cupcake.  As soon as I saw this chocolate goodness and read it's name, I thought it was perfect. Our cupcake was the Michael Jackson. I'll leave it to you to figure out why. It was delicious. That cream cheese frosting. Oh my. There was also an eclectic Austin musician playing old hits from the 60s and 70s. I recorded him with my new Super 8 app. Enjoy..and go get a cupcake. Buon apetito!

  Beautiful blog readers, I recently got to go check out Shady Grove on Barton Springs in Austin. I realized that I had never actually eaten there. I drive by it quite often, but I had not stopped to dine. I am so glad I did. My friend Janet suggested that we meet there for dinner to celebrate some friends' birthdays. I loved the outdoor atmosphere under the huge Pecan tree. It was laid back and eclectic. I love my girlfriends dearly.  I had the Tortilla Fried Queso Catfish. It's catfish crusted in tortilla. I enjoyed it. I bought the big portion so I could bring one home to my man. He does love the delectable remnants of girls' night out. My friend Autumn had the Green Chile Chicken Fried Steak. She said it was, "Spicy!". So watch out and get extra water if you get that one. Janet had the Hippie Sandwich. She has had this three times, so I am guessing she likes it.  Shady Grove is a great girls' night out or casual date place. Buon Appetito! Here is their w...

I took the basic popper recipe and took away the bbq sauce and added some things I like. Turkey bacon is a must. I also thought to myself that these would be sublime in the sauce you dip your lettuce wraps in at P.F. Changs. Sublime indeed. Buon Appetito.

The more I read about the chemicals in store bought bread items, the less I want to buy them. Growing up, I loved making bread with my grandmother and I wanted to revive the tradition for my family. I am no fan of the bread maker because I think it steals some of the romance. I wanted to see it done the old fashioned way. I loved how my grandmother set her bread out in the sun to rise.  I thought this was such a great tutorial on old fashioned bread making. It wasn't an overproduced show. I felt like I was in the kitchen with some sweet friends making bread. It was wholesome and family friendly. It was so family friendly that my four year old and I watched it together. She then spent the rest of the day making pretend breads.   There were several yummy things included in the dvd that I am excited to make. Hamburger buns, cinnamon rolls, and skillet cornbread to name a few. You will see my creations emerge over the next few weeks. Great dvd. The only thing I would do differen...

I thought I would let you fabulous people know that I joined Pinterest, a virtual memo board. You can pin recipes, ideas you see online, really anything. I found this amazing recipe and I pinned it. I thought I would share it with you. fried goat cheese, citrus and avocado salad. Source: becauseimaddicted.net via Stephanie on Pinterest How to: Goat Cheese, Citrus and Avocado Salad You will need: 1 8 ounce goat cheese log   1/2 cup all purpose flour   1 large egg     1/2 cup panko bread crumbs            2 Naval oranges 1 pink grapefruit (Oro Blanco if available)   1 small shallot, finely chopped   2 tablespoons grapeseed or canola oil 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil   Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper   2 cups arugula   2 Haas avocados, pitted thinly sliced. 1. Slice the goat cheese into 4 rounds and shape into mini hockey pucks. Make a little work station by placing the flour in a medium ...

I have been longing for years to be a guest blogger on my wife’s website…….and the day is finally here!  Usually, whenever I am pondering something highly controversial, I pester my wife to let me write about it.  She wisely refuses.  Since Friday is her “food blog” day, there’s little chance of me ruffling any feathers.  (Unless, of course, you are a vegetarian.) For our 8 th  anniversary a few weeks ago, we happened to be in Waco, TX, home to numerous fine eating establishments.  Most importantly, however, Waco is home to Nonni (Stephanie’s mom).  We provided her with 2 beautiful grandchildren, she provided us with a much desired evening out. Having been on the road for the better part of 3 months and dining mostly on camp food, we were both desperately craving a sumptuous steak.  There are a few choices in that department in Waco, but we already had a place picked out:  Diamondbacks.  Doesn’t that just  soun...

I may have a little bit of a love affair with the avocado. It exists for my delectation. I am convinced of this. On the advice of our drummer, Aaron, I headed down to Los Cucos to experience the stuffed avocado. We started with warm salsa, green sauce, chips, and  jalapeño  stuffed shrimp. Then cam our giant entree with the stuffed avocado as the centerpiece. I enjoyed myself. Much of a good dining experience is good company. That, I had. My dear friend, Kristi Berry accompanied me. Yes, I have a friend named Berry. (It was meant to be.) The witty banter did abound. I think that laughter makes food taste better.  You want to know what I thought about Los Cucos.  I enjoyed the warm salsa and green sauce. SHRIMP STUFFED JALAPEÑOS (4 stars) Whole jalapeño peppers stuffed with shrimp and Monterey Jack  cheese, lightly breaded and fried, served with lemon cilantro  sauce and sliced avocado. This may have been my favorite thing. You get two of them  for...

If the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, you are in business with this amazing recipe. It can also be handy for friends or family members who talk too much. Give them a plate full. They will be so caught up in the savory flavor that they won't have time to talk. Buon Appetito!

 This Austin food blogger was joyfully eating out in Galveston again. My mom had us going all over The Strand and she had fond memories of the area where the cruise ships dock. No wonder. We headed into Willie G's. It was absolutely not what I expected. The name makes me think of fish and chips, but this eatery was top of the line. We decided to eat out on the patio since we had our blessed children with us. It was exquisite. You can tell because I hardly have any pictures. I ate all of my lobster bisque and then went oops as I stared at the clean bowl. I photographed it anyway. It was quiet at our table. That's the sign of amazing food. This is a wonderful place for a nice dinner. Buon Appetito!