Charro beans, South Texas style
My friend Rick was telling me about his mother’s charro beans, which were a dinnertime staple at his home when he was young. The pot began with cooked pinto beans…
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White Texas sheet cake
A couple of years ago, I was interviewed in the New York Times about Texas sheet cake. There’s a quote attributed to me, where the writer says I’m baffled by…
Frito squash casserole
Whenever I post a summer squash recipe, inevitably someone will ask if I have a recipe for squash casserole with Fritos. In the past, I would shake my head and…
Curried broccoli salad
A few years ago, a friend’s husband cooked dinner for a group of us. Along with salmon and potatoes, he included a broccoli salad on the plate. In the past,…
Margarita bars
A little over a year ago, I decided to stop drinking. The extra pounds and lack of sleep were not worth the few minutes of giddiness that a beer or…
Chicken and chorizo tinga
Over the years, many readers have asked me if I have a recipe for chicken tinga. While I don’t have one label labelled as such, it occurred to me that…
Banana smoothie
This has been a tough year for my mouth. A few days before New Year’s Eve, I bit down on a cashew and cracked a top molar in half. Then…
Lemon lavender lamb chops
“You really are a Texan,” said a fellow guest at a group dinner in College Station one spring evening. He was referring to my choice of the beef entrée over…
Carrot and green onion salad, Hill Country style
In 1976, Claudia “Lady Bird” Johnson held a barbecue at her family’s ranch in the Texas Hill Country. It was for old friends and former DC colleagues, and she billed…
Tamarind-chipotle glazed salmon
A few months ago, I went down to Houston to spend a day with my nephews, ages ten and twelve. They live in Oregon and come visit my mom, who’s…
