Brunch

Moved: The Omelettry

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This has been a long time coming, but it’s still sad to see a business that is so iconic closing down shop. The good news is, it will still be in Austin, but the cute little muraled building (above) at 4811 Burnet Road will no longer be its home.

The Omelettry is moving a little further north (and closer to me!) to 4631 Airport Blvd. (right). Yes, it will be in a shopping center and yes, it seems it is keeping with its cash only policy. I am hoping that in its new location I’ll think of it more often.

I’ve always loved the bright oilcloth tables, the laid-back atmosphere and the old-timey feel and I can’t wait to try the new restaurant, which opens this month. The menu includes lots of omelettes of course, but also, pancakes, oatmeal, granola, French toast, huevos rancheros and more.

I wish I had gotten to say goodbye to the old location, but alas, it was not meant to be. See you on the flip side, The Omelettry!

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Homemade Wheat Pancakes with Chokecherry Jelly

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imageWhen you’re a food blogger you tend to get food gifts from people. Not just for Christmas or your birthday, but for other reasons, too. Here—this made me think of you. Here—I think you should try this. Or in this case—Here, I have no idea what to use this for.

That’s how I came across chokecherry jelly from New Mexico. My co-worker, Frank likes to vacay in New Mexico while we’re on break. Recently, he bought a jar of chokecherry jelly and brought it home only to realize he wasn’t sure what to do with it. A few months went by and he decided to give it away—to me. Not a problem. I can find something to do with it, I told him. Then I told him if I were him, I would have made a stuffed grilled pork and drizzled the sauce over the meat (you know, if I ate meat). I could see the internal struggle on his face: Should I ask for the jelly back and make the pork? That sounds really good. But, alas, he had already given it away and he allowed me to keep this interesting gift.

Finally, this morning I prepared some wheat pancakes. A craving I rarely have, but, hey, everyone’s entitled to pancakes on occasion, I suppose. So, I whipped up these babies from Freckleberry Fit.

Then I realized I was completely out of maple syrup. How did that happen? I considered using molasses, but then I did a quick taste and decided that would be a bit much. I wasn’t about to run to the store before 7 a.m., so I kept digging through my pantry. Lo and behold, I finally rested my eyes on the chokecherry jelly. Well, I’ll give it a try, I thought. The consistency was already smooth and runny, so it was soaked up by the cakes immediately. I drenched the pancakes in it, as that’s the only way I eat them, and then I took a bite. Yum. That was just right.

So, in the rare chance someone went to New Mexico and gifted you with chokecherry jelly, no need to fret. Just make some pancakes, get your Urban Kitchen rose gold flatware and you are set!

No Bake Pastries

No Bake Pastries

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I got this idea from a Rachel Ray magazine that focused on breakfast and it was so simple, I’m going to share it with you.

Directions:

Toast English muffins.

Use a cookie cutter to form a shape in one side of each muffin.

Coat the muffin without the cutout with cream cheese and a jam or jelly.

Top it with the cutout piece.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Drizzle with a syrup made of powdered sugar and water or lemon/lime juice.

Enjoy

Warning: Only make as many as you need as these do NOT refrigerate DSC_3946  well.

Lump Crab Migas and Bloody Marias

Lump Crab Migas and Bloody Marias

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On a quest for the perfect brunch, we have found quite the forerunner: Lump crab migas paired with a bloody maria.

What’s a Bloody Maria, you ask?

A Bloody Maria is a Bloody Mary subbing tequila for the vodka. Seeing that we had recently acquired a free bottle of Real Gusto Blanco Tequila for testing, it just made sense that we’d try this new twist. We did two trials to find the perfect recipe and we’re happy with the final recipe below.

Try this combo for your next brunch with friends.

Bloody Maria

Here’s the basic Bloody Maria recipe. Pour all ingredients into a blender (or Nutribullet) and blend.

  • 2 oz of Real Gusto Tequila Blanco (USDA Organic!)
  • 3 Dashes of Worcesterchire Sauce
  • 3 Dashes of Pepper
  • 3 Dashes of Celery Seeds
  • 3 Dashes of Makrut Lime Sea Salt [Savory Spice]
  • (How to pronounce Worcestershire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylP_iQvOuaM)
  • 1 Teaspoon Horseradish
  • 6 ounces tomato juice or tomato-vegetable juice cocktail
  • [5 oz of organic strained tamato / tamato sauce plain + 1 oz of water]
  • 1 oz of lime juice or Half a Lime
  • 3 Dashes of Hot Sauce

Rim a pint glass with Makrut Lime Sea Salt. Garnish with Habanero Smoked 16/20 Shrimp, a slice of avocado and a sprig of cilantro.

Migas are one of my favorite things in the world. Other favorites: crab and avocado. So, this recipe has pretty much everything beloved in my life. The seafood migas compliments the Bloody Maria perfectly so that I can’t imagine one without the other.

If you’re not from Austin, let me explain to you the wonderful world of migas. Originally stolen from Mexico and Spain, this Tex Mex favorite has become an Austin staple.

Migas by definition, means crumb—basically made from leftovers, such as tortillas or tortas. In the Tex Mex version, onions, tomatoes and jalapenos are diced and thrown in along with fried tortilla strips and generally served with guacomole, avocados or salsa and smothered with queso or cheese.

Lump Crab with Migas

  • Deshelled Lump Crab ($20/lb.)
  • Pico De Gallo*
  • Scrabbled Eggs
  • Fried tortilla strips
  • Salt + Pepper to Liking

To cook, pour a thin layer of olive oil in a medium-sized pan. Heat on medium high. When hot, add a layer of pico de gallo (about 1/3 cup) to the pan until heated throughout. Meanwhile, whisk five eggs seasoned to liking with pepper and salt, in a bowl. Pour eggs into pan and pour crab and fried tortilla strips over eggs as it begins to settle. Scramble eggs. Under cook eggs by about 2 minutes, add pepper jack cheese slices across the eggs and cover and let melt for 2 minutes.

Garnish with fresh cilantro, avocado and lime.

*We should note that pico de gallo is not the same thing as salsa. Salsa is generally chunky and blended, where as pico de gallo consists of tomato, onion and jalapeños only—very finely chopped. No seasonings, no fanciness, but it’s good stuff.

 

 

This is the perfect end to a long weekend!

Brunch at Grace’s

Brunch at Grace’s

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In case I haven’t already said it (too many times), I love brunch. Recently, my friends and I have begun enjoying the much cheaper version of brunch at home. Not only is it a more cost effective way to eat brunch, but no one is going to kick you out because there’s a two hour wait outside. Brunch at home allows you to catch up on your own time. I also enjoy watching other people’s cooking process.

Last week, I was invited to yoga with my friend, Grace, and her sister. Since it’s kind of a tradition that we go for brunch after, Grace invited me to her house to have brunch with her siblings (2 of them anyway).

I had never seen an omelet maker, but I really liked the simplicity of it. It doesn’t seem like you have to worry quite so much about flipping it just so to keep all the stuff inside.Of course, I never can decide if a kitchen tool that is specific to making a certain thing is worth it, since you have to find a place to store it and really a pan works just fine, but it did look awfully easy.

I also got a house and garden tour, getting to pull a baby carrot out of Grace’s just-now blossoming garden. Her backyard is just as cozy as can be. Since I’m looking for a house or condo, I’m paying close attention to what makes a home cozy, and Grace has that down completely. From her art studio to her garden, you feel completely at ease just hanging out. I can’t wait to have my only little space so I can reciprocate!

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Book Club Brunch

Book Club Brunch

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In May, the monthly (ish) book club I’m a part of decided to add brunch to its menu. Personally, I thought it was a fabulous idea.

What is unique about our book club is that no one dictates what anyone reads. It’s a free for all. We all read whatever we feel like and then we get together and tell the others what we loved, hated, and everything in between, about the books we read since we saw everyone last. I think this format works well when you have a group of friends who like to read, but aren’t all obsessed with a genre (Twilight, romance, Sci-Fi, etc.). I’ve been a part of many book clubs with different measures of success and this one stresses me out the least, since I don’t have to go along with the pace of the other readers at all. Prior I would read the book really fast and then forget what it was about by the time we met again or I couldn’t finish it, so I felt guilty about going and just listening in on the conversation.

Books aside, the brunch aspect was great. We had quite a collection of foods, from bagels to quiche and fruit to crock pot French toast. Eric made us lattes, which was nice touch, and, of course, there were mimosas.

Baby Bea listened intently, as she realized just how intriguing book talk can be. I’m looking forward to meeting again soon as I’ve been pretty busy reading this month—everything from Fifty Shades of Grey (decidedly overrated) to My Life (so far) Without a Date (pretty amusing).

Cheers to readin’ and brunchin’!

 

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AFBA Potluck: Quiche Me Again, Please

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DSC_2635By Tiffany Young

OK, from the title, you may have already guessed I have a bit of a love affair with quiche. I mean, how could I not? It has eggs. I love eggs. It has cheese. I love cheese. And best of all—it has crust! I mean frittatas are good, but quiche, with it’s lovely crust, is better. (That’s the difference between quiche and frittatas if you never knew.)

I have been invited to a lot of potlucks lately, and, while I enjoy cooking I don’t like to spend all of my free time in the kitchen cooking and cleaning, unless it’s by choice. So, I’ve been sticking to quick and dirty recipes. Some of my favorite, easy recipes include cornbread, quick pies and—back to the subject—quiche.

My favorite base recipe comes from here. This “recipe” is perfect for me, because it’s not too structured. I want the basics: about this many eggs, this much dairy product, but I never really follow recipes to the T. This recipe allows you to decide what to add. Case in point, sometimes I have milk on hand, other times it’s half and half or cream. They all work just fine, so start with this recipe and then venture from there.

This quiche was made to share with the Austin Food Blogger Alliance for our anniversary potluck. You can just imagine all the deliciousness that was shared. And in good company, too!

Luckily, my coworker, Frank, had brought me a dozen fresh eggs and I had a frozen pie crust already awaiting for me in the freezer.

At the store, sundried tomatoes were calling to me, so I decided to pair it with feta cheese and Italian herbs. A quick tip: Always line the pie crust with cheese, so it doesn’t get too soggy on the bottom. I had a little cheddar cheese to start with, about 1/4 cup to spread on the bottom. Then I added a thick layer of feta cheese, then sundried tomatoes (both of these items already had Italian herbs added), then the egg mixture (see the formula on the link above) and then I added a sprinkle of Herbs de Provence.

I wasn’t sure what I would get since I’d never used feta or sundried tomatoes in quiche before, but it was better than I had even imagined.

So, the next time you’re pressed for something to bring to a potluck (or a brunch, or Easter breakfast), do us all a favor and make a quiche (just remember it takes about a full hour to bake, so it’s not necessarily quick, but it is easy!).

Eggscellent!

 

Review: Magnolia Café

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magnolias eggs benedictBy Tiffany Young

In Austin, we love our brunch. Breakfast? Closer to the lunch hour? Brilliant. Saturdays and Sundays you should expect to wait a couple hours to eat if you wake up past 10. But that’s OK, because mimosas and bloody Mary’s are likely to be involved.

One of my favorite brunch places, especially to take people from out of town is the tried-and-true Magnolia Café. Open 24 hours, this classic diner has its breakfast menu down. From the love migas to the eggs benedict and eggs zapatino to the Magnolia omelet, there’s an option for everyone’s taste. Not to mention the delicious pancakes and daily specials.

I love the Lake Austin Boulevard location, where you can see runners trekking  around Town Lake. Parking is slim, but you can always park in the neighborhood and have a lovely, hilly walk to your destination to especially appreciate the good food.

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They do expect you to have your entire party before being seated, so respect the rules–the staff is trying to make everyone’s visit nice, not just yours. It’s the least you can do. After all, they keep fresh flowers on the table for you each and every day.

I especially love the eggs zapatino–basically the eggs benedict for vegetarians, it comes on an English muffin, topped with an egg and smothered with queso. Yum Yum!

If you’re at a loss for where to go, Magnolia Café comes through for you, no matter the time of day–breakfast is always served.

Foodie Foto Featurette /// Garridos

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Garrido’s
360 Nueces Suite #10
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 320-8226