Mexican Food Worth Driving Six Hours For

Last weekend we traveled to Oklahoma to celebrate Olivia's second birthday with family.

 

She loved being the center of attention, even if she didn't really understand why.

This little purse from her Aunt Janet was her favorite. She carried it around all weekend.

Of course, there was also birthday cake. Look at her eyeing it. "Do I have to share this?"

Jackson was all too eager to help her blow out the candle.

Several of her cousins came over to celebrate with us. It was a loud, rowdy house full of kids. Just the way I like it. Feel free to call me crazy.

I couldn't help think back to her first birthday, which we spent in New York, just the four of us. We still had a good time, but I'm really grateful that this year was different because we live so much closer to our family.

This two-year-old loves her grandma. They crack each other up.

One thing that me, Tony, and his mom all have in common is that we could eat Mexican food pretty much every day. In fact, we did eat it three days in a row on this visit.

I didn't have my camera the first day, when we went to Abuelita's. It was decent, but the least awesome of the three.

Next day, we went to Pepe Delgado's, which in my opinion is the best Mexican restaurant on the planet. It's not an exaggeration to say I've eaten there hundreds of times in my life and yet I still want to catch a meal there every time I am in Oklahoma.

We started with chips and salsa. You get three kinds of salsa -- a fresh salsa, a spicier cooked salsa, and an avocado salsa.

I ordered the Plato Vegetariano, which is a pile of potatoes, green peppers, and onions, covered in tomatillo salsa, guacamole, sour cream and cilantro. I can never finish it, but I always try. This is my favorite meal of all meals, ever, seriously. I've tried to duplicate it at home but I don't know the magical spell to make it as good as Pepe's.

The next day we hit Ted's Cafe Escondido. The story with Ted's is that there used to be just one location, in Oklahoma City, and you would have to wait for at least an hour to get a table because it was so popular. But now there are a couple of other locations, so the crowds have dispersed somewhat. We went for lunch at the Norman location, and didn't have to wait at all.

So, here is something that Tex-Mex restaurants here in Austin don't do, but almost all the ones in Oklahoma do. When you sit down, they immediately bring to your table a setup of chips, salsas, queso, hot pickled vegetables, and fresh tortillas. And it is all free (as long as you order an entree and don't try to just fill up on the free stuff!)

It's pretty awesome. In Austin, you might get chips and salsa, but some places even charge for those.

I ordered the spinach enchiladas, which were covered in a sour cream-lime sauce. On the side, corn studded with jalapenos, and papas (Mexican mashed potatoes). The enchilada sauce looks heavy, but it was actually very light. These were some fantastic enchiladas.

The other thing that differentiates Oklahoma Mexican (Okla-Mex?) restaurants from the ones in Austin, is that you get free sopapillas at the end of your meal. Yes, if you still have any room in your stomach, they will bring you a little puffy cloud of fried dough, liberally sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and drizzled with honey.

The perfect end to a perfect meal for our birthday girl.

Pretty in Pigtails

Olivia's hair is finally long enough to style. She loves her pigtails.

I love them too. I think they make her look like a real little girl. She's definitely not a baby anymore. She will tell anyone who asks, "I TWO years old!" and proudly hold up two fingers.

Today we went to a fun park with a playscape that looks like a giant wooden castle.

Jackson was a good big brother, pushing Olivia on the tire swing.

Then he had a stint as conductor of the wooden train.  All aboard!

On our way home, we stopped at the store and picked up a few goodies. This Curry-Chipotle Salsa, made by Kala's Kuisine, is amazing. It tastes more like an Indian tomato chutney than what I think of as "salsa." I've been tearing up pieces of naan bread to dip in it.

Larabars were on sale. Yum. I don't buy them very often because they are expensive. I've heard that you can make your own. Have you tried this?

Have a lovely day!

Experimental

On a recent trip to the supermarket, I saw a toy that I thought would interest Jackson and Olivia. You may have memories of it from your own childhood. I do.

The idea is that you take these little sponge creatures and soak them in water for several hours. When you come back to check on them, they will have magically grown!

No growth yet...

Still not growing, Olivia reports...

OK, they were a bust. We left them in water for 48 hours and when we dried them off, they were still about the same size as when we started.

Oh well. The kids still thought they were fun to chase each other around with. "My lobster gonna eat your turtle, chomp chomp chomp!"

For dinner I made Cashew Carrot Ginger Soup, from Peas and Thank You. During the last few minutes of cooking, I stirred in some chopped spinach from our garden. Since this soup is full of Indian spices like curry and garam masala, I served it with some fresh naan from a nearby Indian fast food place.

We all loved it.  At least this experiment was a great success!

Kiddie Acres

Today we went to check out Kiddie Acres, a tiny amusement park just for little kids.

There was a little train that we rode around the park a couple of times.

Jackson and Olivia loved the carousel.

Jackson rode a ferris wheel for the first time.

He thought it was pretty cool.

There was also a boat ride.

Olivia is a very intense boat captain. Look at that concentration.

We finished up with a little car ride.

We were done with the whole park in about 45 minutes. It's not amazing, but it will be good to keep in mind if I ever want to surprise them with a quick, fun outing.

For dinner we had the Smoky Split Pea Soup from Appetite for Reduction. A family favorite -- we all love it.

I also made pumpkin donuts, breaking in my donut pan for the first time. I used this recipe. The donuts are tasty, although I can't really taste the pumpkin. They taste more like banana bread to me, actually. I added vanilla and a pinch of salt to the glaze recipe. Oh and I also used whole wheat pastry flour in the recipe, to make them a little healthier.

When I think back, I can't remember Jackson and Olivia ever eating donuts before. I don't do Krispy Kreme! So needless to say, they were big fans. A dozen donuts disappear quickly when you have two little ones.

Do you have a donut pan? If so, what is you favorite donut recipe? I'm trying to decide what to make next.

Bluebonnet Babies

I know Jackson and Olivia aren't really babies anymore, but for the sake of alliteration -- and to ease my apprehension at how fast they are growing -- here are some photos I took of my "babies" among the bluebonnets, which are popping up in fields all over Texas this week, reminding us that spring has arrived.

For lunch I served Mama Pea's Margarita Smoothie, from Peas and Thank You.  Jackson and Olivia thought the salt rim was hilarious. They would take lick of salt, look at each other, and crack up. And repeat. I was just happy they were consuming spinach, albeit in a concealed form.

For dinner, another PATY recipe -- Pad Thai. I've had many delicious and different versions of vegan pad thai (Vegan with a Vengeance has a great one). This one stands out for its nontraditional, yet tasty, inclusion of asparagus. Every spring I'm like "Asparagus is in season! I should eat some." But then I don't buy it, because I'm not sure what to use it in. Problem solved! This was so good.

Thai is one of those cuisines that I don't eat very often, but when I do, I'm like, "Why don't I eat this more often?!" Do you like Thai food?

Spring Break Fun

The other day we attended a kids' fair at the nearest IKEA store. We heard that there would be face painting, balloon animals and, most importantly, a fire truck. Jackson has been wanting to check out a fire truck. He is slightly obsessed.

When we got to IKEA, it was a madhouse. Did I mention it was spring break week in Austin? So all the kids were out of school and looking for activities just like this one.

We made our way through the endurance challenge that is IKEA. I don't think it was an accident that we had to walk through the entire store to get to the kids' activities! At last we came upon the face painting and balloon animals. But where was the fire truck? "It's out by the side of the building -- just showed up!" an employee told me. So we headed outside. As we rounded the corner, there it was!

And then it left, sirens flashing. It seems they received an emergency call. Soon, a voice came over the PA system informing us that the fire truck would not be returning to IKEA that day. Were the kids heartbroken?

Not really. They had balloon animals.

And we are going to tour our local fire station next week. Hopefully there won't be any emergency calls!

For dinner, we had a Papa John's veggie pizza. Tony brought it home from work, which made it a free Papa John's veggie pizza. We like free.

If you have kids, how do you occupy them over spring break?

A Tex-Mex St. Paddy's

Hope y'all had a fun St. Patrick's Day! We spent the afternoon at the playground. Jackson and Olivia loved this huge, round swing that fits several kids at a time.

Jackson couldn't get enough of this crazy merry-go-round that goes up and down, as well as round and round.

At one point, he decided that lying down made it even more fun.

Tony had to jump in and give it a few spins. Quite a workout -- look at all those kids!

Before we left, we took a walk along the water.

We ate at El Arroyo. Not Irish at all -- but I did have a green margarita. Does that count? The poblano enchiladas were delicious and bursting with veggies. I cleaned my plate (Olivia helped with the beans and rice.)