Smoked Salt & Pepper

Made a super quick dinner of Bò Lúc Lác (Vietnamese Shaken Beef) over greens, tomatoes and cucumbers with Ranger Cattle sirloin. Served with jasmine rice for my little man (and the big man, too). Old recipe that I use time and time again. Everyone is happy and it's super quick. > Bò Lúc Lác Ingredients: 1.5 lbs beef sirloin cut into 1″ cubes 1 Tbs minced garlic 1.5 Tbs sugar 2 tbs oyster sauce 1 Tbs fish sauce  1 Tbs sesame oil 1 tsp soy sauce Directions: In a shallow bowl or container, mix together garlic, sugar, oyster sauce, fish sauce, sesame oil, and soy sauce.  Marinate beef for at least 2 hours, or overnight for maximum flavor. Heat a large wok or pan over medium-high heat. Add about 2 tbs cooking oil and when it begins to smoke, add an even layer of beef and allow to sear for about 1 minute, before “shaking” to sear the opposite sides for about another 1-2 minute more to brown all the sides. Do not overcook!  The goal is medium-rare beef....

I started this post about 5 years ago, when I was living in College Station and really into making sushi at home. At the time, there were not many good sushi restaurants in the area, and I was homesick for any and all kinds of ethnic food. There is just so much Lane's fried chicken tenders and delicious crinkle-cut fries or Sodalack's chicken-fried steak or McAllister's one girl can eat. So a few of my friends and I started rolling sushi at home. I'd done it once or twice before starting veterinary school, but hadn't busted out my bamboo mat very often. Because fresh fish was a bit hard to procure in College Station without being an angler or restauranteur myself, I stuck with smoked salmon. Also, as a beginner sushi-maker, cooked stuff is much less intimidating. And probably safer for everyone partaking. Hah. Sushi is pretty easy to make. As long as you can roll things (burrito, spring rolls, cigarettes, jelly rolls, etc.), you can probably ro...

Reid and I know some of the coolest people. Maybe I'm biased, but we think our friends are cool. One of our friends is named Josh Eilers and he has a Wagyu beef ranch in Austin. For those who aren't huge meat eaters, Wagyu beef is a very special, very expensive type of beef with insanely high intramuscular fat marbling. That's what makes beef really tender and flavorful. So Wagyu beef, which is a Japanese breed of cows, make really good and amazing steaks. Among other things. My son, John, is about 2 years-old. He is going through that, "the cow says..." phase of his development. We know dogs bark, and cats meow, and chickens...make chicken noises. And tigers ROAR!!!! As do dinosaurs. As do bears...etc. John's been to a few zoos. So we've seen some of these animals in real life, but besides our long car rides through the Texas state, we've never introduced John to a cow up close. And I want my son to know about food. And where food com...

A Mediterranean mezze platter is what I call any random plate full of all the yummy dips and falafel and pita that you can get at a mediterranean restaurant. I love making my own hummus , recipe linked, but there is also a delicious hummus made locally in Austin that I like called "Grandma's Hummus" by The Mediterranean Chef . Granddaughter runs the cafe/shop a lot of the times Reid and I eat there and they are a super nice family. I love supporting them and so I buy plenty of the hummus, babaganus eggplant dip (Whole30 compliant!) and sometimes the falafel. I grab a bag of Stacey's Pita Chips from the grocery store and have an easy lunch or dinner. Some whole grain pita pockets are also a great way to eat any of the mezze platter things. If I'm feeling real fancy, I'll make my own falafel, but otherwise I buy and re-heat The Mediterranean Chefs' falafel. One of the great things about this quick meal is the low-carb benefit. I struggle wit...

Mac n cheese is a tricky one. Everybody has their personal favorite style. Every person has their emotional ties to either a comforting bowl of ooey, gooey mac 'n cheese or homemade baked mac 'n cheese. I already have one post dedicated to one mac 'n cheese recipe . I'm a personal fan of the blue box kind. That's what I grew up eating. Powder cheese for me. Plus milk, butter, and good 'ole elbow macaroni noodles. Reid's family makes it this way. The Bolding's Mac 'n Cheese recipe Ingredients: 1 lb. macaroni noodles ~2 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese ~1/2 c. reserved pasta water lots of pepper optional: butter Directions: Boil noodles per package directions.  Reserve about 1/2 c. pasta water.  Drain pasta and return to pot. Add cheddar cheese and stir to melt.  Shake in lots of pepper (or to taste). Optional Christine spin: melt about 1 tbs butter with the cheese and pepper serve immediately

I now work in South Austin and have been trying to explore the eats around I-35 and William Cannon.  That's how I've come to start eating an occasional lunch at the DK Sushi South location.  I have been a fan of DK Sushi since around 4 years ago, but have always frequented the North Lamar location since it's closer to my house.  I even dragged a few of my friends to a karaoke night there years ago, before we all had kids.  It was....quite the spectacle.  DK himself hosts their karaoke nights and there may be naked pictures of women on the lyric screens...Let's just say, it's not something you can do with a 2-year-old.  I think we also witnessed DK get one of his employees, who's birthday it was, really really really drunk.  Sake bombs were involved prior to each song. Anywho, now that I've been getting into a better groove at work and have some time on Friday if we don't have meetings, I've been using the time to explore nearby eateries.  Since ...

Custom cookies or baked goods are a sure fire way to my heart. Hayley Cakes and Cookies were randomly introduced to me via Instagram and my Insta-savvy cousin, Yvi. Yvi lives in the Los Angeles area of California. How she stumbled upon Hayley Cakes beats me, but once she shared their instagram page I was sold. So since I was the designated 'local,' I had to peep into their store and buy some cookies. Ok, I bought a ton of cookies. Like a bucket-full. Or pants-load full (Dragons Love Tacos reference here for those who aren't in the know ;) ) I was like that's cute. and that one. and that one. ooo that one, too! They weren't for me, so they were guilt-free cookies. The first box I purchased were for Reid's grandmother, Mimi. Mimi, or Margaret Bolding, is amazing. She's like, this super-hero woman who has appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live ( no joke, check those commercial breaks) and can strike up a conversation with just about anyone. Mimi is one o...

I've been exploring South Austin a little more on some of my lunch breaks from Century Animal Hospital (a little self-promo never hurt anything, right?). This Pakistani food trailer was on my list of places to check out. My roomie back at UT, Fauz, is Pakastani and I had to check this out to report back to her. She lives in Houston now, with abundance of good Pakastani food around her, but I had to see if Austin has anything that can hold a candle to all the delicious foods she had introduced to me. Also, I like chatting up Aunties. Spoiler alert, there was no auntie at the trailer. But there was a very nice, helpful young lady who walked me through every menu item and gave me a recommendation. I ordered the aloo something and some samosas. The time took a little while, because there was just one person working in the trailer on the cold day I visited, but that gave me some time to check out the Thicket trailer park. Very cute and cool area with tons of trailers and option...

Back in October of the last year, I lost my grandmother. She lived in Paris and I was thankfully able to attend her funeral. It's been a hard loss, and I'm not sure I've really allowed myself to fully process it all. I loved my grandmother, my ba ngoai , so much. More than I can even grasp. She is how I was able to appreciate food. She is the reason I can fully understand how love can be shown through food and cooking. Her cooking, the smells wafting through her tiny apartment in Paris, are tied to some of my best childhood memories. My ba ngoai taught me how to love everyone. She taught me how to smile in the face of adversity; how the glint in smiling eyes can disarm anyone. Ba ngoai lived through a lot. She lived through a war that tore her home and wealth from her, she lived through re-establishing herself and life in another country, she lived through her brother never coming home, she lived through raising 3 children, she lived through her husbands death...

Every year for Christmas, and sometimes for Thanksgiving (our family aren't huge turkey eaters), my mom makes her famous roast beef for my entire dad's side of the family.  It's something everyone has come to look forward to.  I think once she said she was going to make Osso Bucco or something else and I was like, No!!!!! you can't not make the roast beef!!!!  Many people have asked for the recipe and a few have tried to replicate, but no one in our family will be the roast beef queen like my mom is.  So, we definitely need to have this recipe here for prosperity. It's a relatively simple recipe but the key is to buy a really good quality piece of roast.  My mom says the key is to get certified black angus ribeye bone-in roast.  The best cut is between rib 6 and 12 so it's good to befriend your local butcher :)  Mom says it's pricey, maybe a little over $100 for a 6-8 lb roast, but that's what makes it so good. Mom's Famous Roast Beef For one 6-...