Pork and pinto bean guisada
In James Michener’s epic novel Texas, he has a scene where two discuss why beans are not included in Texas chili. The characters conclude that it’s because beans and beef…
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Indian-spiced potato gratin
One of the ways I learned to cook was by preparing the recipes presented to me in my daily media consumption. Thirty years ago, this included reading a paper version…
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Bran muffins
My grandma’s last meal was a bran muffin. This was apt, since eating a warm one was her favorite way to begin the day. She liked to share, and she’d…
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Crawfish queso
On a coastal road trip, I spotted a place outside Corpus Christi with a sign out front that read, “Crawfish queso.” I decided to stop and have a bite. It…
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Sour cream enchiladas, East Dallas style
If your family is like mine, you have a favorite Tex-Mex restaurant. This is the place where you know you can get a large table that will hold everyone, and…
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Salted butterscotch oatmeal cookies
There is one cookie that reminds me of Dallas in the 1970s—a chewy oatmeal cookie laced with caramelized butterscotch chips. When I was young, a plate of these was seen…
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New Year’s Day grits and greens
A few years ago, I woke up on New Year’s Day with a craving for collard greens. While I ordinarily prefer coffee and banana smoothies for breakfast, I went with my urge and prepared a pot….
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Rosemary bacon spiced pecans
In a novel I was recently reading, a character had friends over for dinner. While she cooked she offered her guests bacon rosemary spiced pecans. Her guests loved the smoky,…
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Champurrado brownies
The other day, I saw on a Dallas food forum a request for places that serve champurrado. This is a Mexican beverage that combines hot Mexican chocolate with masa harina…
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Carne adovada
Many years ago when I wrote about asado, a West Texas stewed pork and red chile dish, I heard from a linguist based in El Paso. He said that grammatically…
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Tortellini loco
The first time I heard of a Tex-Italian tortellini dish, it was referenced on a restaurant menu that has a reputation for this type of fusion. It’s in Lubbock, and…
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Spiced pumpkin muffins
“How can you eat that so early in the morning?” asked my friend. She gestured with a fork at the plate in front of me, which contained a softball-sized muffin…
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Chicken calabacitas stew
For the past few years, I’ve been drawn to creating a dish using chicken and yellow squash. In several of my South Texas community cookbooks, this dish appears in several…
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Blue corn sugar cookies
A few years ago when I was at a bookstore in West Texas, I met a longtime reader. She asked me what my plans were, and I admitted that for…
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Table salsa, Dallas style
If you were to come to my house, you’d find in my refrigerator a pot of pinto beans, a stack of flour tortillas, a jar of pickled jalapeños with carrots,…
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Hot dog tacos, Dallas style
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Dill pickled jalapeños
When I lived in New York, the fresh dill at the grocery store usually came from Texas. More famous Texan offerings, such as peaches, pecans, or cantaloupes, were absent at…
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Bacon blue cheese deviled eggs
When you get together with my father’s side of the family, you can be assured that hard-boiled eggs will be on offer. They stir them into gravies, slice them into…
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Lavender peach cobbler ice cream
For the past few summers, I’ve been tinkering with a recipe for peach ice cream pie. The combination of sweet fruit, cinnamon crust, and cool ice cream works in theory,…
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Chorizo cheese grits casserole
A few years ago, a Brooklyn friend announced she was going to smoke a pork shoulder for pulled pork. She’d provide the meat and the rest of us could bring…
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West Texas corn dip
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Lemon yogurt poppy seed muffins
In 1975, my grandma baked a loaf of poppy seed bread. While this may not seem worthy of mention, it was an unusual act in that she never repeated this…
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Cracker macaroni and cheese, North Texas style
The last dinner my grandma made for me was in November 2017. I was in town for a book signing, and while she hadn’t felt energetic enough to attend the…
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Chipotle lime boursin
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Chicken-fried catfish
For years, I’ve had the notion of chicken-fried catfish on my mind. While typically, I eat my fried catfish dredged in a cornmeal coating, I wondered if treating the fish…
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