Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

I have my own personal food blog called she eats.

And I also man (or woman?) the food blog over at the Houston Press, called Eating Our Words.

Come play!

I had one this weekend that I nearly died over... They'd taken a butternut squash, roasted it and then pureed it and used the puree as the base (instead of tomato sauce). On top was blue goat cheese, caramelized onions and walnuts. GAH. I might have added pears (perhaps also caramelized) just for a touch of something sweet, because I felt it needed a bit more balance. But it was still darn good.

LOVE IT. Would eat it for every meal if my wallet allowed.

What is it in particular that you find unappealing, just out of curiousity?

I work in Human Resources. But I'm in the nice side of HR -- benefits administration. :) I do food writing on the side, but it's not my main gig by any stretch of the imagination.

I don't think you're insulting any Mexican food buffs, since quesadillas (as we know them) aren't a Mexican dish. They're Tex-Mex; completely different. ;-)

Now, if you used masa instead of tortillas, then we'd be talking Mexican quesadillas! Yum! :-)

FYI: just in case anyone is interested in seeing pictures of the nefarious meal itself, here you go. >:-)

@ czken: Most frogs you eat these days are raised in captivity and are actually a subspecies called "edible frogs." I have friends who -- back in the day -- used to go out and gig frogs (spear them out of the bayou) and cook those up to eat, but I've never personally eaten a gigged frog. I prefer getting my frogs from the butcher, where I know they won't taste "swampy."

I imagine the younger to middle-aged frogs would taste best. To my knowledge, I've never eaten a senior citizen frog and don't think they'd taste very good. I've also never eaten any part of the frog other than the legs... And they are frogs, not toads -- an important distinction. Just FYI, since I've been asked that question before. :)

@ beth1: Even if the poop tastes really good?

HoustonJoe is absolutely right. Houston is the place where real people come to live and work, not to wander around the Riverwalk or Alamo. Hence, we have real Mexican food, not the touristy stuff that panders to Yankees or whitebread Texans.

We've got it all here, from Tex-Mex to coastal Mexican (lots of yummy fresh fish!), to interior Mexican. We've got the carnecerias, the panaderias, the taco stands, the high-end restaurants, the Mi Tiendas and Fiestas and the little local Hispanic grocery stores and Hispanic farmers markets. There's no better city for restaurants (and, boy, do we have plenty) that serve real, authentic Mexican food in all its many forms than Houston. :-)

Meeeeracle Whip! Always! Mmm. It's truly not a sandwhich without Miracle Whip. Anything else just taste like creamy oil. :(

Best worst-for-you comfort food? A cheese sandwich (just plan cheddar or monterrey jack on white bread with Miracle Whip) and a bowl of tomato soup. :)

Unless I'm doing something really messy or possibly-unsanitary (such as meatballs, as embolini9 pointed out), they don't leave my fingers. However, I only wear a wedding band an a simple engagment ring -- not the entire David Yurman catalogue, *cough, cough* PAULA.

Sweetie...mushrooms? You crack me up. :D

I'm a good influence on my friends. Nearly everything they've eaten that isn't Tex-Mex, Italian or burgers is because I've forced them to. In turn, however, my family is a good influence on me. I come from a huge family of devoted foodies, who are always looking for the next great thing.

My husband, however, bless his heart... You can take the man out of England, but you can't take the dull English tastebuds out of his tongue. ;)

Yay for kefir! It's so good for you! If you like Russian food, you're in for a treat.

Do you like beets? If so, then do you like borscht? I adore a bowl of cold, refreshing borscht, especially during the summer months. Make a huge batch and just eat a bowl every day as part of lunch or dinner. You'll use the kefir just like you'd use yogurt after the beets have been cooked down -- the kefir with the beets is what gives the borscht that lovely pink color.

Another good, refreshing cold soup which uses kefir is okroshka. It's made with radishes, cucumbers, onions and boiled potatoes. You can add ham and eggs (which would be more traditional), but I don't like mine that way. If you add the ham and eggs, though, it's even more of a solid, filling meal than with just the veggies and kefir.

I also found a website which has a few "mainstream" kefir recipes:
http://www.kefir.biz/recipe.htm

And then there's the Lifeway website, which has a TON of good recipes (makes sense, as they want you to buy THEIR kefir...):
http://www.lifeway.net/bottom/recipes.php

Have fun!