The Houston Supper Club

One of the best things about getting together with friends are the dinner parties. Good music, good food and, of course, good company. One of my favorite dinner parties was New Years Eve 2010, with my Dallas best friend Brenda, her husband and our college friend Ben. We drank wine, chatted about anything, everything and sat down for the best cooked steak, topped with a delicious mushroom sauce and a warm spinach salad on the side. It was quite simply the best way to end the year. And then in true Texas fashion, we got all gussied up and went out for a night on the town to ring in the New Year.

The table, all set for dinner

Ashley, my Houston best friend, has been a faithful follower of this very blog right from the beginning. So when I finally took her up on her generous offer to come visit, she made me promise that I'd at least make my short ribs. I decided to throw in my brussel sprouts as well. And then, for some 2010 nostalgia, I made Brenda's warm bacon spinach salad.

My Tex-Mex Standards...

I'd say they are pretty high. There's actually a Tex-Mex trifecta in my head that judges whether a Tex-Mex place is worth coming back to or just a cheap imitation of the real deal. New York, for all it's diversity, just cannot master Tex-Mex. It's true. Just like that old Pace picante commercial... "It's says here it's made in New York City." "New York City?!?" In short, not known for Tex-Mex.

The Trifecta of Tex-Mex:

• Chip- must be crunchy and light. Not even remotely stale. Salty, but not overly so
• Salsa- just enough spice plus depth. This can be attained through smokey chipotles, tomatillos, etc
• Tortillas- puffy, light, flour-y. They don't weigh you down with lard, but you can taste that you're being bad by eating one

Houston however, is right smack in the Tex-Mex middle of everything. And my first real night here, I dragged very dear friend + hubby + child to the nearest place with the best reviews. Teotihuacan Mexican Cafe... just right down the way from where they lived, satisfied all cravings and met the trifecta standards.

The margarita, while not a part of the trifecta, still important. This was fabulous

Did you say there's a flamingo in that cake?

Officially checked off my list of life and things to make is the King Cake. Yes, that pastry that epitomizes Mardi Gras, New Orleans, debauchery, etc. That giant cinnamon bun monstrosity, the cake that really does take a day to make. There's scalding, rising, kneading, rolling, and icing involved over what ended up being an 8 hour time frame. Granted, while the rising was taking place there were not a lot of other things to do- besides make ceviche- so it's not like a slaving over the stove cake. But was it worth it? Well, let's just say even my vegan friends gave in and tried it at the anti-S.A.D. party, and said it was worth cheating.

King Cakes are another pastry of European descent. Associated with the festival of Epiphany in Europe and with Carnival in Brazil, in the U.S. they're most typically linked to Mardi Gras. Named for the biblical 3 Kings, New Orleans King Cake Parties started by French and Spanish immigrants in the Louisiana area are documented back to the eighteenth century. The most traditional New Orleans style King Cake is made with a bread similar to Brioche, stuffed with a mixture similar to a cinnamon roll and twisted into a ring. Iced and then topped with the Mardi Gras colors of gold, green and purple. Gold to represent power, green for faith and purple for justice.

The Texas Breakfast

This morning we were all being just typical Texas lazy, watching the sun make the day warmer from the safety of the central air inside, sipping our coffee and generally just contemplating life. My very dear friend mentioned that she was hungry and I seconded which is when the best idea occurred. "Kolaches?" asked very dear friend's husband. "Yes please" we both chimed together.

If you aren't familiar, kolaches are a semi-sweet dough, traditionally filled with dried fruit, poppy seeds, or cream cheese. Less traditional versions (i.e. the delicious bastardization we get from Shipley's) are filled with cheese, ham, sausage, etc. They came over to the states from Czech immigrants, a number of whom settled in Texas and Oklahoma and started up bakeries with kolaches fast becoming a breakfast treat, but back in Europe these pastries were reserved as a wedding dessert.

Bay Scallop Ceviche

It's not often that I give you just the straight recipe. I know, this is half food blog and half just random thoughts and life tales from some girl. But I just got to Houston less than 24 hours ago- and I'm sure you're thinking that I was in Virginia just a few days ago. You are correct, I travel A LOT- and it's muggy and humid and just the way that Houston should be. It's also February and there are flowers blooming at my very dear friends house. And before I even stepped outside the airport I had already forsaken my heavy New York clothes for the Houston uniform of tees, shorts and sandals.

So this recipe is perfect, because it's exactly what I am craving right now. A light seafood salad of sorts, laid back and fitting to the atmosphere. And while I made it in Virginia a week ago for the anti-S.A.D. party, it would be perfect on a day like today, over half an avocado perhaps, the puckery limes mixing perfectly with the buttery scallops and the crunch of the jalapeno and red onion. It's definitely a summer meal, or at least a Houston meal.

Whiskey Cake

As promised, here it is in all it's delicious, alcoholic glory. The Whiskey Cake. It's been sitting in my fridge for the past 2 weeks, just marinating away in whiskey- well Bourbon to be correct, and Corner Creek to be exact. I brought it down to Virginia for the party, and decided to use my brand new frosting tip and tricks learned from my cake decorating class I took a few weeks ago to make it all pretty and such (I'm a beginner so don't judge the frosted "flowers" too harshly).

It's a great cake to make. Involves little to no folding, rising, whipping, etc, that some more involved cakes require. You basically just mix together, pour into a pan and bake. And while the recipe called for an ice pick and an eye dropper, I had neither of these readily at hand so when it came time to administer the whiskey that makes the cake last "practically forever" I just stabbed it all over with a knife and poured over about 2 Tbl. or so of bourbon over. I did this 3 times over the course of 2 weeks... and while you could definitely taste the alcohol, it wasn't so overpoweringly whiskey flavored. It was actually pretty darn good. 

Out with Dumb Holidays

I really don't want to do the seemingly obligatory single girl hate-on-V-day post but another part of me is finding this day so hard to ignore to the point that it's just really pissing me off (thanks Mark Zuckerberg with your targeted facebook ads, et al). But truth be told while there is definitely a heightened sensitivity to this most pointless of holidays this year in particular, I've always generally found it, well... a pretty pointless holiday. Even when I've been in relationships. And in no way am I belittling love, but rather the obligation to show someone you love that you love them. It defeats the purpose somewhat. Because there's nothing romantic about feeling obligated to do something.

My sentiments on this faux holiday may change if I got this bear. This bear is AWESOME!

Think about it for a sec. Some guy gets you some stuff not because he wants to but because he feels obligated by Hallmark  or some retarded jeweler to, you are constantly one-upped by co-workers and frienemies whose flowers are bigger, they're presents shinier (I would know, I've been that girl), you pay too much for an overrated "romantic" pre-fixe at some sucky restaurant because you couldn't get a reservation at a nicer one. This. Is. Not. Fun. So why do it?