Having fresh herbs on hand really can make a simple dish magical, and when you master the art of keeping them moist, they are easy to have on a windowsill in the kitchen, within arms reach of your latest meal.

In episode #3, I show you fun ways to “upcycle” your used tins and have a mobile herb garden that will survive inside. As always, feel free to leave your questions and comments below!

PLEASE NOTE: To watch a crisp, clean HD version of this video, press play, then click on the wheel icon on the lower right and select 720HD.

They were tangy and full of crunchy colorful bits.

And even better?

Renee, my friend and host, made homemade corn tortillas.

She scooped up little balls of corn meal, rolled them into a ball and flattened them between parchment with a press.

Then she cooked them up in a skillet, 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown.

The last one was the most perfect. Thin and pliable and tasting of roasted corn. I’ll share that recipe in another post.

A girl in pearls sat on the stage waiting for her tortilla. I think that might be the beginning of a poem… or a short story?

I highly recommend making a big batch of this and having a taco party. If you don’t have venison try bison, beef, wild boar, elk, pork or whatever you fancy. The idea is to use a muscular cut of meat that you can braise.

The second idea is to use color in your ingredients, lots of color and texture. It should be crunchy, tangy and full of bright things. Here is the printable recipe which you can add to your recipe box:

Georgia cooks python, lion and kangaroo!

As always I’d love your feedback and questions in the comments section below. It is a work in progress, and like a freshly harvested pheasant, it will get better with time.

Stay hungry my friends.

PLEASE NOTE: To watch a crisp, clean HD version of this video, press play, then click on the wheel icon on the lower right and select 720HD.

It turned out to be one of the best decisions of my life. I made friends immediately and have as big a network here in 2 years as I do in New York where I’m born and raised. That says something about a town and the people that it fosters.

I recently discovered an artist in this town whose work I really admire, and since I’m always on a quest to promote small scale producers of amazing things, I am so happy to share her work with you here. I’m also happy to say that I can call her a friend.

Augustina Rodriguez founded Agi Miagi in 2009. She describes her work as: “A design and fabrication studio of lighting. With a commitment to quality and a mission to integrate current manufacturing practices with craft, the brand is inspired by the impact lighting has on our everyday experience.”

Before I show you her lighting, here are some of her other pieces which I’m in love with:

This is one of my favorites, an ingenious way to store your cutlery without all of those perfect little compartments. It’s more organic yet the design is structured and beautiful.

A side view.

This wooden laser cut bowl is stunning. I love the idea of it sitting at the center of a table and holding whatever is in season.

Here is a slightly different shape.

These laser cut wooden coasters would be a stunning gift.

Little pieces of art on your table.   

A different texture and material.

Almost like wooden wheels.

Here is a plastic-type material.

Snowflakes almost. Lovely for the winter time.

And these are fabulous for their color.

Augustina recently gave me one of these journals and that’s when I really investigated to learn more about her work. I have it sitting at my desk as I write this and am trying to decide what creative endeavor I am going to devote to those thirty crisp pages.

The designs are all slightly different.

Which means you could devote one journal to each creative endeavor in your life.

There are laser cut greeting cards too which I love.

There are ones that pop up too.

But if I had to pick one thing of hers to buy it would be her lighting.

There are three of these natural cut cardboard lanterns hanging from the ceiling of my office and they give the place a special feeling.

They come in various modern colors.

And there is the option for floor, table, or pendant lamps as well as cardboard or coroplast material.

And within each style and material there are several shapes to choose from.

They add a bit of fun to a clean modern space.

As well as a bit of romance to more rustic spaces.

I really can’t get enough of them. I think I might get one of each.

And in a way that is the best part about them, you can mix and match and layer and they all go well together.

Here are some close ups to ponder.

I like this pale blue especially.

And this bright orange especially.

I couldn’t decide.

I think they would make a great gift as well. They have a universal appeal.

To browse her lamp collection visit her Agi Miyagi website.

To browse her other collections visit here.

All inquiries please email info@agimiagi.com

(Photography by Crawford Morgan)

I’m so excited to share the first of many cooking episodes here on this site. For a long time you’ve seen many posts here with step-by-step photos which take you through the recipes, but we’ve decided to spice things up around here and give some of the how-to’s in a video format for those of you who learn better this way. As always I’d love your feedback and questions in the comments section below. It is a work in progress, and like a fine venison back strap, it will get better with time.

Stay hungry my friends.

PLEASE NOTE: To watch a crisp, clean HD version of this video, press play, then click on the wheel icon on the lower right and select 720HD.

I was at Austin Food & Wine last weekend and went to a delicious dinner hosted by Buick in celebration of all of their new vehicles. And let me tell you they know how to mix a drink.

I’m really into rosemary and cucumber and olives in my drink. This one had all of them. Yes.

Try it this weekend! You’ll be a happy camper.

TGIF, baby.

I have a friend named Beth Beverly who is pretty much the coolest cat there ever was. First of all, look at that green jump suit. The fact that she can rock that says it all. We have been friends for quite a while, since she sent me this amazing brooch. She now has a TV show on AMC called “Immortalized” which you should watch to see the full effect of her amazing creativity.

She also has a website where you can peruse her incredible work and order some magic for yourself.

She just sent me a new necklace which I am in love, love, love with.

Can you tell what it is? Can you?

It’s a raccoon penis.

You heard me.

According to Beth, there is lore behind the raccoon baculum which may come in handy for those of you trying to have children (Note: NOT me). She writes:

“Penis bones. Baculum. Texas Toothpicks. Mojo Moneymakers. Amazing little things, except when you factor in the size of a raccoon they may not seem so little, measuring in at about 5″. Plenty of animals have bones in their penises, although this was news to me two years ago when I stumbled upon the lore of the Raccoon Baculum in Melissa Milgrom’s book Still Life in which she mentions passing one onto a friend who was trying to conceive (It worked). Apparently this bone, when worn as an amulet, is believed to bring baby mojo. It also just helps folks get laid in general apparently. I think this may be true of all penis bones but the raccoons have a good deal of lore about them which is actually quite fun to, er, bone up on. AHHHHHH I couldn’t resist sorry.

This is another very similar charm I just sent off to my pal Georgia Pellegrini this afternoon. The bone itself dried out to be a little darker than the other; I did use an oil to give it a sort of ethereal sheen but it was applied after the deep color had already set in so maybe this is just a more potent bone. Wear with care, Ms. Georgia!

Happy Texas Toothpickin’!”

Beth Beverly and I will be planning some work shops together. STAY TUNED.

And now it is time to tell you some other things that happened to me in April.

Some of the most important news is that Shiner’s summer brew is back in season and I tell you that you must try it if you want to feel like you have truly lived life before you cross over to the other side.

I spoke at the Texas Foodways Symposium and ate a lot of BBQ. I ate a lot in general. *Burp.* Sorry.

Then I swore off barbecue forever.

Then a week later I ate this BBQ.

Texas forever, baby!

At this same party, which took place at the amazing Freedmen’s in Austin, I discovered a collection of bitters on the market.

I have always wanted to be a lumberjack. These bitters gave me even more resolve. Of course it turns out they were invented by a guy in Austin, land of lumberjack hipsters.

Also in April, after I ate too much barbecue, a tall, dark, and handsome man offered to make me pizza from scratch. I accepted. Because no one ever offers to cook for me and well… the pizza was epic.

Also in April, I took my girlfriend Katy out for a Sunday Funday in honor of her impending nuptials.

We toured a winery in Fredricksburg where a rogue cowboy unexpectedly lifted me into the air, and then, once we got him to put me down, Katy and I had a private shopping party at my favorite store in ALL of Texas: Root.

Oh! And we tried to break into a ranch to take pictures in front of goats but this is as far as we got.

Speaking of awesome girlfriends, I went to visit one who was in San Antonio for a work trip and while trying to find each other in the lobby of a hotel, we were offered box tickets to a Spurs game by an oil company.

Only in Texas. Thanks Nitro oil company! The wings and queso were so good.

Then I went with my manager/friend to tour the grounds of a future Girl Hunter Weekend which I can’t wait to share with you.

By request, I’ve started working with bachelorette groups for mini Girl Hunter Weekends and this is the most magical spot. Our first one is in June.

Also, how about that golf cart? I heart Texas.

Also in April, we had a brain storm at my office with my office friends to hash out the title of my book. There was a white board. It was full of words. And we have a title!!! I can’t wait to do the big reveal.

Except that in the midst of all of that, my computer did this.

3 books later, my hard drive finally gave up on me.

I’m almost back up and running at full speed again, but wow, it really makes you realize how your whole life can be on a computer. It made me want to step off the grid and disappear… but then I wouldn’t have you any more, so I decided to stick around. Cause I love ya. Duh.

Here is a sneak peek at the kind of cool things that are going to be in my upcoming book.

It’s crafty, full of recipes, skills, projects and fun.

Speaking of fun, and necklaces, and girlfriends, do y’all know the Junk Gypsy gals? I’m friends with Jolie from the duo and when I saw her post this necklace from their website I screamed, “How do I get it?! I want to be Pocahontas! Please!”

And because she’s so sweet and lovely, she just went ahead and sent it to me in the mail. They have a fab show on HGTV that you really need to check out. They’re so talented.

Then Austin Food & Wine happened! Buick invited me to a fancy dinner at Paggi House which was delicious and romantic looking.

There were shiny new vehicles too. But I decided to try their signature cocktail instead. Make this at home! I’m a sucker for cucumber in my drink.

Then, on a magical weather night in Austin, top down, we drove to the opening event for the festival.

There were lots of bites of food being passed about.

And I got to see some ol’ friends, Andrew Zimmern with his beautiful wife and Molly, you works with Andrew and does the fun podcast, “Go Fork Yourself.”

I love those guys.

There was some great music. And the trees were dangling with light bulbs.

Then there was an after party at Mellow Johnny’s, Lance Armstrong’s bike shop… it was a sweet treats party. That is a macaroon chandelier! I’m having it installed in my home as we speak.

I ate chocolate lollipops and lots of sugar with Molly and Dusti. You can tell we are hopped up on sugar. It was the right thing to do.

And then… the next day, after my sugar coma…

Katy got married!

And I found myself in another photo booth with my Oklahoma City/New York friend Joey. We took a moment to tell the newlyweds how we felt about them.

They are a magical couple.

Also, I love sparklers.

Then we went to the after party and on the way Joey demonstrated that he has a burgeoning career in car selfies.

Also sun roof photography.

It rained while the sun roof was open.

You should try it sometime.

And then, finally, the last day of Austin Food & Wine happened. And I realized that Marcus Samuelson needs to take me shopping.

And the fabulous Andrew made wild dove, duck and pheasant on his demo stage. And then he asked me to come up and try it, and I agreed that his dove tasted like meat marshmallow.

And then I got to the office today to write to you and catch up.

And as I did I also noticed, someone vandalized my office with graffiti.

I forgive them. Because I love them too. Even though I don’t know who they are.

I’m going to be working on a series of cooking videos for you this week based on all of your content requests, get ready! And happy Monday.

Pierre Desjardins: “There is a moment in early May, about two days where, for the first time the air is warm, sunlight bathes the delicate young green leaves…the first sidewalk cafés are open, walking leasurly and all the people look young and happy. Greatest time of all the spring season…love it!”

Congrats Pierre, you will love this book, and might I add, you are a poet.

*****************

I am so happy to share this recipe with you today because it is coming into season and it happens to be from the most gorgeous new book by my friend Heather Christo, “Generous Table.”

“Generous Table” is a kind of “how-to kit” for people who want to be able to throw any type of party in their own home. Containing lists, instructions, menu options, and tons of bright, beautiful photographs. The recipes will knock your socks off!

So today, because it’s Monday, and because I love ya, I’m giving away a copy of her book, along with a delicious recipe to try at home.

To Enter:

Leave a comment below answering the question: “What is your favorite thing about Spring?”

Is it the smell of the newly warm air?

Is it the smell of the first blossoms?

Is it that you get to paint your toes with white nail polish because it’s in style? (That question is for you, boys)

Simply leave your answer in the comments and you are entered!

The Rules:

One entry per person, please. Winners announced Wednesday!

In the meantime, please enjoy this luscious recipe:

I go down twice a year to meet up with my friends from The Paul Michael Company who do a lot of business there. So I thought I’d share some snap shots of the colorful time I had.

They set up their own booth this year to sell some of the things they make in their workshop back in Arkansas. Like these chairs made out of skis! I love ‘em.

While I was there I bought you a bike. One for each of us. Which would you like?

Paul Michael made this gun cabinet. If you look closely the base is lined with cowhide. Tres cool.

Paul also made this table out of sunken cypress that was pulled from the bottom of the Mississippi. It is over 1,000 years old. I don’t know about you, but I personally would like to eat from a 1,000 year old piece of wood every day. That’s history, man!

I met some Cajuns while I was there. That is one of them driving around on his Segway with his camo beer coolers on each side of him. I had never spent time with people who had true Cajun accents before and I was so intrigued. I can’t even explain the accent. It is almost like ten other accents I can think of, as if they are all mushed together.

I drove around with Paul for a bit and watched him do his thing. He bought these very neat lanterns that were from coal mines. I think they would make a great light fixture for a kitchen, a little modern and a little antique.

I was tempted to buy this stove. Except for the small detail about how I have nowhere to put it. I love old stoves.

You’ll see all kinds of strange sites at this antique market. Like a man driving around his truck with a horse head in the back.

Or a man driving around his truck with a devil head in the back.

I’m very curious about what he plans to do with this devil head.

I loved this double sided bench that Paul has. I like the idea of putting it in the middle of a deck for parties.

I stayed with my friends in an old farmhouse they had rented. It is owned by a German man who had portraits of his family members dating waaay back. I think this was a great great grandmother of sorts.

And this was one of her offspring. Or maybe it was vice versa. I lost track.

Staying in the farmhouse felt a bit like living the way the people did in this picture. No TV, no cell service, no nothin’. It was kind of lovely.

My room was in the attic which you accessed from the porch.

There were beds on either side of the attic. It felt like a hideout.

The next day there was more picking to do. One of Paul’s customers bought a table that was made from wood salvaged from a bank in Chicago. She told me about this green home she was building and gave me the scoop about home building in general, since… I’m going to build a home! Sshh, don’t tell anyone.

Debbie Michael discovered an old camera in mint condition with the most amazing leather case I’d ever seen.

And I discovered a cage for a new cage fighting business that I am starting.

I also discovered a whole array of axes for my lumberjack business.

And this hot tamale cart. I may start pedaling hot tamales in my spare time.

There are tons of signs at this antique market. I am on a “letter” kick these days, ever since I did that post here which included an artisan who will make them custom for you. I want a big TX in my life with blinking lights.

My friend Frank Fortress came down to visit Round Top with me as well. He was trying on some potential outdoor chairs for size. He gets to look for his restaurant projects as well which is fun.

Other things at Round Top included this hat scale…

These colorful letters…

Some wooden carts… (I’d love to plant in these! Moveable gardens anyone?)

This rolling set of drawers…

A sign, one of many wonderful signs.

A metal set of drawers…

A table made from bowling alley flooring!

Some canoe paddles. And yes, that’s Johnny Depp in that picture.

This mid-century modern bar set.

These shelves made by Paul Michael, using old window frames. Plus some framed local coral. 

These… what do you call them? I call them an art installation.

I loved this too… the clear glass and metal frame was fabulous.

How about this rolling table with a wine rack?

And this coat hanger… man, I was in love.

These outdoor chairs were intriguing because of their proportions.

And these wings… well, they just belonged on a wall over a bed of some sort.

Jake Michael told the crazy Cajuns driving on the Segway that if they went and found a grill he would make us dinner. And they literally went and bought one from another booth and brought it back. So we had burgers.

Also… doesn’t he look like Elvis’s long lost son?

Another night, my friend Dan played his guitar. The guy is a master, you should hear him.

We spent a lot of time trying to figure out what these were for. We decided they were beer holders.

And now… I want to show you my purchase. I saw it and I gasped and I decided it had to be mine. It is a basket purse. So that I am ready for a picnic at all times. Word on the street is that Audrey Hepburn always carried a basket purse. So I’m going to work the streets Audrey Hepburn style for the summer. I just hope it doesn’t rain.

We went back to the farm house again and Dan played some more and Paul sang and we had one of those times that you always remember… that is how most of my times are when I visit my friends the Michaels. My friend Frank Fortress had met them for the first time and on our drive back to Austin he just shook his head in amazement. I love it when I bring my friends together and they love each other as much as I love them.

If you have never been to this antique market, it is worth a special journey! To see my posts from year’s past, visit this post, this post, and this post.

Happy Friday my friends!