Home is where the fat is

We are finally back 'home' in Texas, with the family and other animals. 

Those of you who know me well, know that I never tend to be happier than when I am on the go, enjoying fresh experiences and forcing people to like me in exciting new places. I would normally have added something about food to that list, but things stand somewhat in reverse these days as its my return home which brings with it the potential for new gourmet experiences.

Running to the freezer in Beth's home as I did the moment I got to McAllen, I dug out the remnants of the last batch of vanilla pecan ice cream which Samantha had made me before we left on our road trip. There was only about a quarter portion left but I hungrily lapped it down like a famished goat. No surprise there really, since the only sweet foods I had eaten in the 2 months I had been away from Texas, has been the small portions of the 'big three' berries (straw, black, rasp - in that order) that I had been having daily with heavy whipping cream for dessert.

I promptly chained Samantha to the ice cream maker and got her working on a batch of mint chocolate chip ice cream. Not only delicious, but like all dishes created in 'our kitchen', very fatty. In fact it contains more than three times as much fat as my usual dessert on the trip of 25g of strawberries (that's one medium sized strawberry to you and me) and 20g of cream, not to mention, to get technical, a far better fat to protein/carb ratio of 5.5:1. I also get to lick the spoon and scrape the bowl on the day she makes it, which I assure you, cannot be a pretty sight to behold.

an unlikely kitchen helper

Having done most of our cooking either in campsites, or the unfamiliar kitchens of our new friends, or hostels (or motorway rest stops, motel bathrooms, parking lots), the return to Beth's kitchen was a welcome treat and also meant time to get started on those delicious fruity flax loops which I adore so much, providing, as they do, a welcome relief to the egg-and-bacon-rich breakfasts I have almost every other day of the week. Each batch (providing one bowl!) takes almost an hour to make, so I am yet to break the news to Samantha that she should not make any plans for Sunday this week.

Whilst we did exemplarily well in keeping the precision going over for three meals a day over almost two months, it was however the potential to experiment which we have most been missing. Not to mention the fact that there is also a limit how many strawberry and goats cheese salads or sausage suppers the human body can take before it screams 'no more'. Since our return, Samantha has already been flexing her creative muscle and, aware of how much I was missing Chinese food, created an 'Asian Chicken Salad' which quickly shot up my list to become, quite possibly, the best meal of all time. There is also a salmon salad with fresh raspberry vinaigrette in the pipeline and I am literally licking my lips in anticipation of this dish as I type. You will have to 'watch this space' with regard to both of these ...

Last night, we had 'sushi' of the rice-less variety at Kumori, a local restaurant which claims that the food it serves is contemporary Japanese, and a trip to Taco Palenque, the family's favourite taco joint, is also on the cards in the days to come. I suspect another blog post by me about 'Dining in the Rio Grande Valley' might be coming along soon also. So there's another space for you to watch,

people.