Austin, Texas – Music, Food, and Fun

On March 26, 2018 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Texas6 Comments

We had the opportunity to visit Austin, Texas, and enjoyed the opportunity to have some good barbeque, country-western music, and wonderful hospitality. Congress Street in downtown Austin has a variety of restaurants, shops, and music venues, which makes it the perfect place to stroll. Austin is the capital of Texas and the tourist section of Congress Street starts or ends there depending upon how you look at it. At the opposite end of Congress Street from the capital is the Congress Bridge, which will take you across Lady Bird Lake, which is a river-like reservoir on the Colorado River in Austin. There is a nice park and walking paths to enjoy.

Line for Barbeque in the Red River District

We only had one day downtown as we were there for a work trip, so we made the most of our time walking the streets of downtown. We started our day in the Red River District and made sure to get some beef brisket before heading towards the capital, which seems to be the most photographed image of Austin. The grounds of the capital are quite beautiful with several statues and you can even take a tour of the governor’s mansion depending upon when you visit. After walking in the Texas heat for a while, we decided to stop in The Driskill Bar and Grill, which is located in the historic hotel. The inside of the hotel is quite beautiful and it was an elegant place to sit and relax before continuing to enjoy downtown Austin.

We couldn’t leave Austin without listening to some country-western music and oddly enough we found an Irish pub with a live band that met our needs perfectly. It was almost a family affair as different members of the band joined at different times, so the music was constantly changing. It was quite a lively atmosphere and we enjoyed it very much. Afterwards we continued to walk around downtown Austin looking at the varying architecture, which is a mixture of historic and modern buildings sitting side by side.

After having some seafood for dinner, we made our way back to our hotel. We definitely enjoyed our time in Austin and are looking forward to visiting again in the near future. There is more to see than what we were able to do in such a short period of time, but what we did see left us wanting to see more.

Texas Peace Officer Memorial at the Capital

Fettuccine with Pork and Spinach

On March 21, 2018 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn New York, Recipes4 Comments

Needless to say, there are hundreds of restaurants in New York, many of them Italian. Many, if not most, of them serve wonderful food from family recipes that they brought with them from the Old World. During our stay in Manhattan, we came across one of these small, family owned and run, restaurants and stopped there for lunch as we walked the streets of the city. We ended up trying a couple of their daily specials, one ravioli and the other fettuccine. Both of them were wonderful, but we especially liked the fettuccine as it was different than most pasta dishes that we have had. In our attempt to replicate it, we had little to go on other than the picture that we took during our meal, but it turned out to be delicious as well as very simple to prepare. As is often the case, simple dishes with only a few ingredients can often be some of the best.

INGREDIENTS

1 lb Fresh Fettuccine
1 lb Baby Spinach
1 lb Ground Pork – unseasoned
2 tbsp Italian Seasoning
1 tbsp Garlic Powder
1 tbsp Red Pepper Flakes – more or less depending on how spicy you would like it
1/2 cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
4 tbsp Unsalted Butter
6 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Be sure to use plain ground pork and not a seasoned pork sausage. In a large bowl, combine the pork, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, red peppers, salt and pepper and be sure to incorporate the spices throughout the meat. It is best to work the meat and spices with your hands as you would if you were going to make meatballs. Set the pork aside for about 30 minutes to let the seasonings infuse the meat and allow the meat to come to room temperature. Heat a large skillet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil to medium-high heat. Add the pork, breaking it up into rough bite size chunks as it browns. Sauté the pork until it is fully cooked and slightly browned, about 10 minutes while stirring frequently. Remove the pork, leaving as much of the oil and fat, and set aside on a plate with a paper towel to drain. Add the baby spinach in batches and heat until it is wilted and soft. The spinach will reduce to about 1/4th as it wilts. Once all of the spinach has been cooked, reduce the heat to low and combine the pork and spinach. Cook the fettuccine according to the package directions, being sure to reserve about a cup of the pasta water. In a large bowl, combine the butter and the fettuccine and mix thoroughly until the pasta is coated. Combine the pork, spinach, and pasta water and toss gently together. Divide onto plates and shred the parmesan cheese over top and serve.

Our Version of the Fettuccine with Pork and Spinach

Spicy Southwest Mac and Cheese

On March 14, 2018March 14, 2018 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Arizona, Recipes11 Comments

One of the meals that we ate when we were in Scottsdale, Arizona, was a spicy mac and cheese with sausage and red peppers. It was a nice change of pace from traditional mac and cheese, so we decided to try and replicate the recipe ourselves. Making homemade macaroni and cheese isn’t very difficult and tastes better than anything that you can get out of a box, but we rarely take the time to do it. Fortunately, it is easy to find seasoned varieties of sausage in the grocery store these days, so we didn’t have to go to the trouble of making our own sausage. We found a nice Cajun spiced andouille sausage that paired nicely with the chipotle chili. One nice thing about a recipe like this is that you can easily modify it to feed a larger crowd or reduce it for a meal for one or two. We decided to cook ours in individual crock bowls, but cooking it in a casserole dish would certainly be ideal as well. You can also use different types of pasta for the dish, but we used a Cellentani noodle as it has ridges to help hold the cheese. This is definitely a recipe that we would do again in the future.

Picante Macaroni and Cheese with Sausage in Scottsdale

INGREDIENTS

4 cups of Cellentani Noodles (or elbow macaroni)
2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
4 cups Milk
1 Red Pepper – sliced into strips
2 Links of Andouille Sausage – cut into bite size pieces
1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tbsp Garlic Powder
2 tbsp Chipotle Chili Powder (or to taste)
1 tsp Dry Mustard
2 tbsp All-Purpose Flour
3 1/2 cups Four Cheese Blend
1/2 cup Panko Bread Crumbs
Salt and Pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Cook the pasta according to the directions, drain and set aside. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil, red pepper, and sausage. Even though the sausage is already cooked, frying it will caramelize it and add more flavor. Cook the sausage and pepper for about 5 to 7 minutes until the sausage is browned and the pepper is soft. In a large sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat and then whisk in the flour to make a roux. Be sure not to let the roux start to brown. Heat 2 cups of the milk in a microwave for 90 seconds and then slowly whisk it into the roux, making sure to whisk out any lumps. Turn the heat up to medium-high. Microwave the rest of the milk for 90 seconds and then whisk that into the rest of the milk mixture. Add the chipotle powder, mustard, garlic powder, salt and pepper, ensuring to mix thoroughly. Add 3 cups of the cheese, whisking until it is smooth and creamy. Stir in the pasta, sausage, and peppers until the pasta is completely coated with the cheese sauce. Spoon 1/4 of the pasta into 4 oven proof bowls that have been sprayed with a non-stick spray (or transfer to a medium casserole dish). Top with the remaining cheese and bread crumbs and bake in an oven at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes. Serves 4.