Foods I miss in Austin....

....would be far, far too long. I did a similar list when I left Wichita, but for Austin, it will have to be a top ten.

1. Breakfast tacos--yes, I am addicted and just this morning suggested to my little diner on the corner that they add them to the menu. Particularly, from Elsi's.
2. Protein 2000 from Veggie Heaven.
3. Hot dogs from Dog Almighty.
4. Central Market. Sigh. Do I need to say more?
5. Vietnamese food, particularly Sunflower by my house.
6. The pastry case at Mandola's, particulary the angenetti (cakey, lemon cookies.)
7. The Steeping Room--if you haven't been, then get yourself there.
8. Boxes of vegetables from my CSA.
9. Having friends over for dinner.
10. The giant Asian market up the street.

Mangez!

Protein 2000

When Molly was visiting, we took her to eat at Veggie Heaven, a hole-in-the-wall restaurant on the Guadalupe strip. Is hole-in-the-wall right? At VH, it's definitely not about the decor, which is a strange mishmash of posters, wall art and calendars. It's about yummy Asian food that is completely veggie friendly.

As we perused the menu, which is replete with photographs of every entree, food for the table next to ours was delivered. They had two orders of a half broccoli and half something that looked like breaded meat in some sort of sauce. It looked good. It smelled yummy. A quick perusal of the photo-friendly menu revealed they were eating Protein 2000. I ordered it. It was good. It was very good. And I noticed everyone around me was eating it. It seemed the whole restaurant had ordered Protein 2000.

What is Protein 2000, you ask? The VH menu describes the dish as, "vegetable proteins made of soybeans in a slightly sweet brown sauce with broccoli, garlic, and onions." But what's with the silly name? No idea. Of course, thoughts do turn to Soylent Green, the Charlton Heston 'classic' where the food source turns out to be people. (It's people! Soylent green is people!) But since VH is run by a 'cult' of vegetarian practitioners, we can assume that Protein 2000 is not people.

That's right, VH is run by Falun Gong practitioners, which you probably know because of their persecution by the Chinese government. They are seen by many, including experts in the West, as a cult with questionable practices for followers. But, they run a great restaurant! And you know how I love a cult-run restaurant.

I think they are putting something in that Protein 2000 though. If not, why the strange, futuristic name? And why is everyone ordering it? And why do I think about it all the time and wonder when I am going to get some more Protein 2000? Why have Thursdays become Protein 2000 day?

Today, Katie and I met for lunch at Veggie Heaven and I ordered the Protein 2000 without even looking at the menu. I don't have answers to any of the questions lingering over my plate, but I am going to stop asking them, set back and enjoy my meal. That is what the Protein 2000 is telling me to do.

Mangez!

Not starving...

...but a little busy. Plus some technical difficulties. Here's a whirlwind update of some fun food things that happened in the past few months:

My friend Gabrielle left Austin for a new job at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego. Everyone in the office got together for a farewell bash at the house. My "contributation" was dessert: a three layered confection of chocolate cake and two different mousses.


Kristina and Gabrielle the night of the fond farewell.


I call it, "Chocolate au Gabrielle." It was inspired by a recipe I saw in a magazine and involved baking a double recipe of the Everyday Chocolate Cake in a 9x13 pan. From that, I cut circles with a biscuit cutter and wrapped them in strips of parchment paper. Then, I piped layers of dark and light chocolate mousse and topped with whipped cream. Sounds mighty rich? It was.

Over Labor Day weekend (yes, I'm that far behind!), I was in Holland, MI at the Monahan Compound. I had to work on Friday night and didn't get in until late on Saturday, but John, David and I still made dinner on Sunday night. John made a red sauce and I used to build a lasagna. We collaborated on a white chocolate raspberry tiramisu that was a perfect ending.


John adds the secret ingredient to his special sauce: a silly glance. I have the recipe somewhere and will post as soon as I find it. Of course, I'll probably be dead after John sees this picture, but oh well! It's not like its a photo of a giant bruise on someone's butt. You'll have to scroll down to see that!


The white chocolate raspberry tiramisu. Actually, I usually refer to it as Terrible Sue. The recipe started with one from Giada De Laurentiis, to which we added melted white chocolate to the whipped cream. It was out of site. John has prepared it again and I am going to in the very near future. Promise.

I also spent some time in Chicago with my friends Michael, Ryan and Emily. Ryan and I had breakfast at Victory's Banner, which is vegetarian restaurant run by sari-wearing cult members. I LOVE a restaurant run by a cult, because you always get great service! Anyway, their leader lifts people. That's just what he does.


Breakfast at Victory's Banner with some of the best eggs you will every taste and, of course, fake bacon.

Leslie's mom Lorna who I met over the summer sent me a wonderful stack of cookbooks from her collection. How did she part with them? I certainly don't know, but I really appreciated the package. (Did I send a note? If not, THANK YOU Lorna! Hope to see you in Austin soon.)


I found the charm book and etiquette book at the thrift store, the rest were gifts from Lorna and Mitchell.

For our first holiday party in Austin, we planned a giant bash with lots of appetizer and a punch bowl full of pomegranate champagne punch. Dessert was an array of dippers and chocolate fondue. Everyone made ornaments for the tree and I had a great time. I thought the food turned out perfect, but the thing I was most proud of was the giant serving piece I concocted from the table: a metal pot holder that Mitchell retrofitted to hold plates!


The tree, in all of its glory.


The table, laden with all kinds of savory treats and a very festive punch.


These pictures just don't do my giant server justice. You had to be there. You SHOULD have been there.


Dessert. An array of dippers for a delicious chocolate fondue.


Plates at the ready.


Everyone making ornaments and enjoying the food.


More ornament making.


David and Danette converse in the kitchen.


Some more peeps partying.

For my birthday, we had a potluck. Everyone brought something delicious and we put two tables together to form a giant one and ran every candlestick in the house down the middle: not enough to equal my age, but still quite a statement.


The candles down the center of the table. I think there were twenty-three.


Birthday fun.

Remember the diva chickens? They are a laying! Joel and Kay brought us some of their bounty: beautiful blue eggs with a rich, yellow yolk. I poached them for breakfast. Superb!


These eggs are a beautiful blue that doesn't quite photograph.


But the yolks. You get the picture? Super fresh eggs from friends. What could be better?


Poached on an English muffin with a little cheese and sausage on the side? A great breakfast. The cinnamon rolls are the orange bliss rolls from Whole Foods and they will certainly make your morning.

Are your eyes full? Is your mind brimming with ideas? I'm glad to be caught up...a little.

Mangez!