tomo

sushi. very fine sushi. slightly pricey, but filling, which is saying something for sushi. they have this japanese lasagna that will knock you silly. it does contain some cream cheese, so if you're not into that in your rolls, then maybe you should stick to the mt. fuji, the ex-girlfriend, or the eel.

here is the chowhound topic discussing the restaurant, corroborating and elaborating on my story. just about every review i've seen of this restaurant has put it in the top tier of sushi spots in austin, which i have to agree after two visits is spot on. on top of the great food, this place lacks the pretension of other places in town, places like uchi and (tho i like this place) kenobi.

but then again, it is in north austin, the least pretentious (and least expensive!) part of town...

beni di batasiolo bosc dla rei

this 2006 moscato will knock your dessert wine socks off. what, you say? you don't have dessert wine socks? ya gotta get a pair. slip 'em on then knock 'em off with this sweet wine.

there is nothing subtle about this wine, but with moscato, that's the idea, right? i won't use any winehead terms to talk about bosc; i'll let you find the words once you can get yourself to stop drinking this once you open the bottle. i bet it's empty before you get much of a word out.

next time, i'm gonna try this with some smooth, mellow vanilla ice cream. i'll let you know how it goes.

i think it ran us somewhere around $12. 4/5 stars, if stars are what you're after.

corn pancakes

finally made these the other day. my ad hoc recipe went something like:

1. cut the corn off its cob on 3 ears of corn.
2. heat some vegetable oil. yeah, we'll be frying these varmits!
3. start a mix of 3/4 cup of corn meal,
4. 1/4 cup of whole wheat flour,
5. 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour
6. 2 teaspoons baking powder,
7. salt and pepper,
8. 1 teaspoon of brown sugar.
9. start a mix of 3/4 cup milk,
10. an egg,
11. the corn from 1 above.
12. stir dry into wet, stir well.
13. drop dollups into the frying pan from 2 above.
14. let dry on a paper towel to soak up excess oil.
15. eat before they cool!

sorry, no picture. i ate 'em too fast (see 15 above)!

Rooibos Tea

I first heard of this naturally decaffeinated tea from South Africa a few years ago, but surprisingly haven't written about the delightfully and mellowing slightly nutty flavorful drink. With a tiny amount of honey, this tea becomes a great treat alongside some dark chocolate, cocoa beans, or just on its own. If there's one thing that could break me of my chai addiction, it was this.

Nowadays there are many different brands on the market; even the local HEB has its own homespun brand. It seems people are starting to get the picture that there are many different types of teas out there beyond the celestial seasonings brand...

One day i'd like to open up a tea shop to rival the moral majority of coffee drinkers; maybe it's something that would flourish in Europe, or in the right part of an American town.

Definitely my cup of tea.

an americanized obatzda

so i tried making a version of obatzda to use as a spread on bread and i think it came out pretty good. certainly not a weight-loss meal, but here ya go:

some amount of camembert cheese (for butteriness)
the same amount of cream or neufatchel cheese (for mellow sweetness)
half that amount of either lindberger or remblochon cheese (for pungence)
a healthy number of shakes of paprika
freshly dry-roasted caraway seeds
a clove of roasted garlic

mince the garlic and mix it all up, lump it into a few ice cream scoops and plate it -- then spread on bread, sausage, whatever.

semmeln

kristin brought home some kaiser rolls lately that made me think of semmeln. they're close, but not quite there.

semmeln. my favorite bread. a bavarian classic. here's a recipe i found recently that i want to try out one weekend when i gots some spare time. damn i miss the freshly-baked bread on every street corner.

Ingredients for Semmeln

* 2 cups of boiled water
* 1 cake of compressed yeast
* 1 teaspoon of salt
* ¼ cup of lukewarm water
* Between 6 and 7 cups of flour
* About 3/4 cup of flour
* White of 1 egg or less

Instructions

1. Soften the yeast in the lukewarm water, mix thoroughly, then stir in the flour; knead into a ball of dough until it is smooth and elastic.
2. Make a deep cut across the dough in both directions.
3. Have the boiled water cooled to a lukewarm temperature. Into this, put the ball of dough.
4. It will sink to the bottom of the dish, but will gradually rise as it becomes light. In about fifteen minutes, it will float upon the water as it becomes a light, puffy sponge. Into this water and sponge, stir the salt and between six and seven cups of flour.
5. Knead or pound the dough about twenty minutes.
6. Let rise in a temperature of about 70 deg F., until the mass is doubled in bulk.
7. Divide into pieces weighing about three ounces each (there should be about fourteen pieces). Shape these into balls.
8. When all are shaped, use a sharp knife to make five separate pieces.
9. Set the balls into buttered tins, some distance apart and brush over the tops generously with melted butter.
10. Set to bake at once in around 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
11. When nearly baked, brush over with the beaten white of an egg and return to the oven to finish baking.

chocorasp

this fun little drink is great served at room temperature or even slightly warm for those long winter nights.

1 oz. godiva chocolate liquer
1 oz. chambord

it's that simple, but oh so good. also great over vanilla ice cream, especially when warmed up before drizzled.

it could use a better, more spiffy-sounding name, tho.