Ay Jalisco: La Comida Era Mala

For my readers that don't speak Spanish (I don't either), la comida era mala means the food was bad. Over the Thanksgiving holiday, my family visited one of the Ay Jalisco Mexican restaurants in our town. I had actually been asking to go here for years but my mother refused claiming it was run by a Chinese family that knew nothing about Mexican food. I have no earthly idea where she got that from but suffice to say, she changed her mind when she heard a neighbor rave about the food. The restaurant was designed to look like a mariachi band gone wild. Lots of flare and color all over. I liked it. We were seated in a cozy booth toward the back of the restaurant near the kitchen. Our server immediately came over and greeted us and gave us menus and the obligatory chips and salsa. The chips were great. Crispy and just enough salt. The salsa was spicy but could have been chunkier and less soupy. We all ordered something different. Mom tried the chicken fajitas. Karin had the veggie burrito and I ordered the skirt steak tacos. My tacos were served on a plate with refried beans, guacamole, and rice. The steak was really fatty and not at all what I expected. The corn tortillas broke apart so I couldn't really eat them as tacos. The rice was really cold and the guacamole was so so. Karin said her burrito was OK. Passable but nothing she would jump up and down for at all. Mom's chicken fajitas looked great but they were drenched in oil and were lukewarm.

I really had high hopes since there are several locations and they always seem crowded. Perhaps the one at Miracle Mile just isn't a good one? I guess I will just have to cook Mexican food in Vero for now :) Luckily, I have Penzey spices to help me!

Bottom line: Skip Ay Jalisco at Miracle Mile. If anyone tries another location and likes it, please let me know. For now, I will stick to cooking Mexican food myself when I visit!

A Gourmet BBQ to Remember...

While most Americans are grilling their burgers and dogs on this well deserved day, my family celebrated the extra time we had by creating a gourmet summer menu. This menu was made possible by a brand new grocery store that just opened in Vero. Fresh Market is a chain of stores all over the South and they pride themselves on selection, quality, and price. When we visited the store on Saturday, my mom was almost brought to tears when she spotted the baby bok choy. I too became tearful when I looked over the cheese selection and spyed my all time favorite - Grafton Cheddar. For my foodie friends that aren't familiar with Vero Beach, we have been living with Publix, Winn-Dixie, and Albertson's for way too long. The latter 2 are awful and we don't visit. The Publix near my house, called Wabasso Publix, is in my opinion the best one in town. The selection is better than most and the bakery is better than average. The wine section is very impressive with bottles from all over the world. But, what they fall short on, Fresh Market makes up for ten times over.

Our Labor Day menu:

Starters:

Ina's Guacamole

Little Karin's Salsa

Manchego, Jarlsberg, Danish Blue, & Grafton Cheddar with a quince paste and fig jam

Olives

Entrees:

Beef Tenderloin with a horseradish cream topping

Red and Yellow Beets with Goat Cheese and a Balsamic Vinagrette

Heirloom Tomato Salad with fresh Basil

Karin's Tzatziki with Pita chips

Little Karin's Pasta Salad (sundried tomatoes, wild shrimp, rotini pasta, EVOO, basil, and parmesan cheese)

Grilled Vegetables

Dessert:

Mom's homemade ice-cream (vanilla with chocolate chunks and Nutter Butter cookies) topped with hot fudge

We sent our guests home with doggie bags. As usual, we always make too much!

Bottom line: a big shout out to little Karin's Tzatziki. Perhaps the best I have ever tasted and loaded with garlic! Labor Day BBQ was a success!

Perfecting the S'more

For as long as I can remember, my mom has been **obsessed** with perfecting the s'more. Over the years, she has tried making these tasty little treats on the grill, over a fire pit, on the gas stove, and in the toaster oven. She almost set the porch on fire once when she attempted the fire pit:) Each time she would test her latest attempt on me and I would give her my honest feedback.

Two thumbs up! I must confess, she FINALLY got it right. Mr. S'more is a little gadget mom picked up at Wal-Mart for $10 bucks. You might think it looks ridiculous (I laughed out loud when I saw it) but the damn thing actually makes the perfect s'more. Put in the microwave for 30 secs and voila! For the perfect s'more, I recco Honey Maid grahams, Jet-Puff marshmallows, and Hershey's chocolate.

Before (check out the little s'more man hands):

After (2 perfect little s'mores):

Mr. S'more is my go to gadget!