Springdale Farm + Fusebox = Digestible Beats

We had an amazing evening last Tuesday collaborating with musicians and composers Butcher Bear and Buzz Moran. While the composers looped ambient sounds and recorded the sounds of the cooking process, chef Sonya Cote prepared an immaculate 11 course meal sourcing all of her fresh ingredients from Springdale Farm. The center piece for the event were 4 slow cooked piglets direct from our friends at Countryside Farm, stuffed with fresh herbs and smoked in pecan wood.
The evening started with cool breezes and complimentary cocktails provided by Paula's Texas Orange. With the help from our friends at Fusebox and Edible Austin we were able to create an evening of magic and decadence. We wanted to amaze the dinners without overwhelming. With courses that ranged from fresh vegetable terrines to grilled endive and honey as a dessert, we were able to tickle the taste buds and fill their bellies to resounding sighs of pleasure.
Please look for more events like this as we collaborate with more local artisans to bring you dinners that are more than just delicious, memorable. We are so proud to have been a part of this and glad to have a moment to show that your engagement with your food is more than just the consumption; it is the moment, it is the company, it is the environment, and it is the thought and time that makes it more than just a meal. It is the love.
Thank you everyone!

Photos by Leah Moss

Turkey Day Delight!

We love to cook for people, we love to cook for people we love, and Thanksgiving gives us ample opportunity to stuff our loved ones faces with delights.

Here is Sonya's recipe for a turkey made with love.

Have a great Turkey Day everyone.

Sonya’s Maple Brined Turkey

1 large Natural Turkey

For Brine:

2c Kosher salt

1c Maple syrup

2 Bunches o thyme

Whole black peppercorns

1 T Juniper berries, crushed

4 bay leaves, crushed

12 Peeled garlic cloves

2 Whole Lemons, cut in half & squeezed

For Roasting:

2 lemons

ghee (clarified butter)

Chicken Stock (or Turkey Stock if you can find it)

Rinse turkey in cool water, place in stockpot & let rest in refrigerator.

In a separate sauce pan on medium heat, simmer about 8 quarts water, 2 cups kosher salt & 1c maple syrup in pot until salt and syrup dissolves.

Remove turkey from stock pot & fill about ¼ of the way with ice, fresh thyme, peeled garlic cloves, juniper, bay, lemon and whole black pepper. Pour brine over ice & add the bird.  The turkey should be covered with brine. Refrigerate pot with turkey in brine at least 12 hours (24 is best!).

Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 350°F. Drain turkey well; discard brine. Pat turkey dry inside and out. Squeeze juice from lemon halves into main cavity. Add lemon rinds and remaining 1 bunch fresh thyme to main cavity. (I love to use preserved meyer lemons here if you have any)  Tuck wings under turkey; tie legs together. Place turkey on rack set in large roasting pan. Rub turkey all over with clarified butter.
Roast until turkey is deep brown and thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh registers 180°F, about 2 ½- 3 hours. Transfer turkey to platter and cover with foil and let stand for at least 30 minutes.

Pour pan juices into large glass bowl. Put bowl into fridge (or freezer) to harden fat, then scrape it off with spoon.  Simmer pan juice with chicken stock until reduced to ½ the amount. Salt & Pepper to taste  & spoon over turkey (or just make a gravy, whichever you decide, make sure to use the pan drippings! Enjoy!!)

The final result! Sweet and spicy!

National Pickle Day! Or recipe for Pickled Jalapenos!

jalapeno garlic pickles

splash of good quality white wine

white wine vinegar

water

whole sprig dill

bay

salt

turbanado sugar

peppercorns

red chili  flakes

garlic, finely chopped 

slice jalapenos thinly & cover with half water & half white wine vinegar. add remaining ingredients

*Springdale Farms has some great jalapenos, organic, sustainable, and local!

Make sweet love to the Goose Pastrami

Dry Cured Goose Pastrami

2 goose boobs with fat on, tenderloins removed (snack on those while you make this)
1c salt
cinnamon stick
crushed garlic
paprika
coriander
tons of crushed black pepper
white pepper
ground yellow mustard seed
bay leaves
whole cloves
2 1/2 T sugar

Pack goose boobs in box of course kosher salt.
Refrigerate for 24 hours.
Remove from salt.
Combine all the rest of the ingredients.
Pat spice blend on fat side of breast
Wrap with cheese cloth
Tie up with fancy butcher knots and hang in you fridge for 10-12 days!
Slice on extremely sharp mandoline or deli slicer.

*if you live in a really cold climate (like Rhode Island) you can hang it in our basement

Sometimes it Hurts

Im not going to try & catch you up on all events that have happened in the past six months other than the fact that myself & a group of friends physically built & opened a "localvore" restaurant without any financial backing on the east side of austin texas.

Mickie Spencer is the designer, owner & builder/ floor manager. Trudy Spencer is the mother/ owner/ dishwasher/ HR. Mindy Spencer is server. Chauncy James is bartender. And myself the Cook. Mickie rented the place & entirely gutted it. Funded by Trudy's retirement fund. Then rebuilt it with the labor mainly from Mindy, Trudy & Chauncy. Well, and many other friends.

I don't think that the general public understands what it takes to cook good food. My kitchen staff (5 total) have literally been working 12 hour days since before we were open (with zero pay!!) in my tiny (SO tiny) kitchen to source & cook simple REAL local food for your bellies. For example, we will have 6 different farms come in to deliver their weekly meats & produce in a single afternoon (my favorite times!!) & we are the only restaurant that Rain Lily Farms will sell to because of the demand, RL is located literally 5 minutes from us. The veggies we get from them are picked & delivered to me the same day & it becomes the special for service that night. You just can't get any fresher than that unless you eat it from the dirt while it's still alive! This high demand will hopefully encourage other farmers to start raising more organic foods to sell.

It is so important that we change the way we eat & purchase food. If only to improve our quality of life. I truly believe that the food revolution will help our communities & therefor the economy. Mass production of animals & single crops are directly destroying the environment & our families. We are so still at the beginning of making changes & it also feels trendy. Folks come in & explain to me that they are so excited that we feature texas grown product. Then their next sentence is about how they are so disappointed that we are sold out of certain entrees for the day. There is not an endless supply of product from these small farms. If we are truly going to support the "localvore" movement then we will commit to understanding that the demand that to have "everything-we-want, all-the-time" is harmful to the integrity of our food. This is hard for most to grasp. On the other side, we will have TONS of one item, because of our weather mostly. Then you hear folks say that they would gladly receive the "local food basket" from our farmers but it always has the same items in it everyday. Like greens right now or cabbage or cauliflower. The thing to do is to invent new ways of using these ingredients... or just roast em, puree em , stack em, steampunk em, blend em or eat them raw!

It has been rough on us at the East Side Showroom after the Chronicle Review proclaiming that we are a victim of our own success, oh and my noodles were limp. It's frustrating that one single person's opinion can do so much to the place a layer of fog over the kitchen staff that has given up any resemblance of a "life" to cook for you. We are such masochists, us cooks.

Thanks for letting me rant! oh blog in the sky! Now come & eat some local food!!