Christmas weekend came and went...

Happy Holidays!

Sarah

Yes, please.

Austin has an abundance of food trucks. I mean, there are at least 15 food trucks in my neighborhood alone!

Most would think that Austin is full of steaks and tex-mex... don't get me wrong, there's plenty of that. But the asian-fusion, thai, crepe, empanada, and cupcake themed food trucks really out shine your stereotypical Texas eats.

Today I'd like to put the spot light on Little Thai Food. Located approximately 1/2 mile from my crib, Little Thai Food gets lots of love from our house.

If you ever make it to South First Street in Austin, be sure to order one of these:

Chicken Pad Thai

And one of these..

Red Curry

Like all food trucks in Austin, bringing beer or wine is a must. I particularly love sitting outside in the chilly winter (the 60's are chilly, right?) eating super flavorful food created by a very talented mother-daughter team.

Sarah

The Taco

Growing up, I thought your average taco came out of an "Old El Paso" box.

I also thought they were gross.

Then I moved to Austin and realized that tacos are the most amazing thing ever. You can wrap anything in a tortilla! Eggs, veggies, tofu, spinach, turkey, etc., it's all better when wrapped in a lovely little tortilla.

Here's what you need to know about tacos in the non-Old El Paso world:

You're either a flour tortilla person:

My personal favorite. They're soft and fluffy and complement so many things.

Or a corn tortilla person:

Corn tortillas are wheat and gluten free, low in calories and fat, and all around just healthier. Unfortunately, they're not my favorite of the two-- go figure.

What tortilla are you?

Sarah

Black Beans > Bacon

I mean it.

Bacon has long been my favorite food. But in recent months, black beans have moved to the top of my "favorite foods" list. I love them most when covered in queso fresco... I must have some latina in my blood that I'm not aware of or something.

I've made black bean tacos at least once a week for the past month. They're completely impossible to mess up. In fact the only way to mess them up is if you put too much cheese on them. But honestly, there's no such thing as too much cheese.

You will need:

2 cans of black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 onion, chopped

2 bell peppers, red & green look nice together

tortillas, flour or corn

queso fresco

**Queso fresco can be found in every grocery store in Austin. However if you don't live in a city with a large hispanic population, it can be found in the "ethnic foods" area of the refrigerated section.

In 3 easy steps:

In a medium sized sauce pan, heat 2 tbsp of oil over medium heat. Toss in onions for a couple of minutes, then add in black beans. Reduce to low heat and heat through.

Slice bell peppers into thin strips. Sauté bell peppers for a couple of minutes. You still want them to be crunchy. In fact, you could skip this step and add them to the taco, raw and crunchy.

If you have a gas top stove, heat tortilla for 1 minute on each side. If not, wrap in a damp paper towel and heat in the microwave. Immediately top with bell peppers, black beans and queso fresco!

These are slightly addictive...

Sarah

'Tis the season

I am an extremely visual person. I can read books all day long, but it doesn’t quite stick until I have either tried my hand at it or the book provides a corresponding diagram. Eating with the seasons has always been an appealing notion to me, but I couldn’t quite wrap my mind around it. Farmer’s markets are great indicators of what food is in season, but honestly I just can’t hit the farmer’s market every week. I sometimes need groceries on Tuesday – go figure.

Supermarkets have really clouded the “in season” idea. Produce is shipped from God-knows-where so it all looks pretty and fresh whether it is in season or not. This infographic (click to enlarge) really helped me understand when to eat what. For me, it really clears up some of the confusion when I’m grocery shopping. And it opens up doors for further exploration because of course, not every food could fit on this page.

‘Tis the season for kale and cauliflower!

Katie