« Sedona | HomePage | Red Rock, Wildflower Bread and Lost Bets »
04/17/2008
Sizzlin' Southwest
So Matt and I are back at the suite. Housekeeping has been in, so the bed is all nice and laundered and he's next to me taking a nap. There's a good reason for it too, and no, you dirty minded people, it's not because of that! Allow me to elaborate a little for you.
Last night Matt and I went to dinner at someplace called The Cowboy Club. We had made reservations there, only in the Silver Saddleroom, which is part and parcel of the same place, but anti-children. And I'm all for anti-children in a restaurant.
Our reservation was for 7pm. We weren't seated until half past, which left us both peeved and me just generally very cranky due to low levels of blood sugar. To make up for having us wait so long, the manager person comp-ed us an appetizer platter, which had some pretty out there foods.
In fact, I think I one-upped my brother last night in the bizarre foods category. You see, for a while there he was top dog because he had gone to Louisiana and eaten alligator. Before then I had been the winner with ostrich and jellyfish. But now, after a period in the shadows, I have once again emerged victorious. And I think I'll keep the title for quite some time.
On this platter were the following items. I've included how I liked them as well.
1) Buffalo skewers - I love buffalo. It's delicious.
2) Cilantro fry bread - Now, I know most of my readers aren't familiar with fry bread and that's okay because it's a regional delicacy that's specific to the southwestern United States. It's basically tortilla dough that's flattened out just a little and thrown into some hot oil until it puffs up, gets all crispy on the outside and stays all soft and chewy on the inside.
This too, is delicious, but add to it the divine leafy cilantro leaf and man, is there a feast going on!
3) And this is where I start to one-up my brother: Chicken and rattlesnake tamale - It's a tamale. What's not to love?
4) Rattlesnake skewers - Supreme one-upsmanship with Jeff. I can't say I really care for rattlesnake, but the point is I ate it, thus the victoriousness.
5) Cactus fries - That's right. Real cactus cut up into strips and flash fried. I actually liked them. Matt wasn't so sure what to think of them. They're definitely a different taste and texture to anything else I've ever eaten, but overall, I think they work as an edible item.
So there you have it. The last three things gave me the boost I needed to pass my brother and his alligator from the south. I have dined on the exotic meats that Sedona has to offer and I have won.
It should also be noted that along with that stuff there were three dipping sauces on the plate too. There was a tomato sauce that I didn't care for at all. It tasted like tomato soup that had been watered down with vinegar and water. Yeah. Not so nice.
Second was a southwest peanut sauce that was served up with the buffalo and man was it tasty! So much so that I asked our waitress for the recipe, which she gladly obliged to give to me.
Lastly was a prickly pear and tequila dipping sauce that I also got the recipe for. Oh man, we're having some tasty eats when I get back to California.
I've also been buying things whilst here:
- Blue corn meal
- Prickly Pear syrup
- Southwest cornbread mix
- A cookbook dedicated to nothing but salsas
- Presents for my mother and grandmother
In other news, there's a place called The Wildflower Bread Co. and it's better than Panera Bread. That's right. I said it. It's BETTER than Panera Bread. http://www.wildflowerbread.com
Go there. Be amazed. It's my new favorite thing.
So now would be a good time to elaborate as to why Matt is napping and why I'll shortly be joining him. It's called the Grand Canyon. Oh yes, cyberspace. I have seen it. I have touched it. I did it all this morning. And I hated it.
Don't get me wrong. It's breathtakingly beautiful there, but when we decided to come to the Grand Canyon State for honeymoon, I wasn't prepared for a visit to the tundra. It was effing freezing at the Grand Canyon and this was manifested and made worse by the fact that we were there for sunrise.
That's right. I said that too. Sunrise.
This involved getting up at 3:30am and driving for two hours north to see this spectacular wonder and then coming back to Sedona. All before 10am.
There was still snow along the south rim of the canyon. Snow. That's how cold it was. In fact it was so cold I had to call my tios to complain about it. And you want to know what they did? They laughed. They laughed at me. How I hate them both.
So yeah, Grand Canyon, rattlesnake, recipes, shopping...not a bad way to spend a honeymoon so far. But you know what would make this honeymoon even better right now?
That's right.
A nap.
Later Days,
Arty
12:56 Posted in Blog | Permalink | Comments (2) | Email this
Comments
Arty, I'll trust your judgement on the Wildflower Bread thing. Panera is good, but I'm sure there's someone who DID improve on the format.
Now, as for your getting up at 3:30AM to go to the Grand Canyon. I thought I was the only nutjob who did crap like that. At least you can say you've done something that not many others are willing to do. I'm sure it was beautiful even though it was way cold. Didn't anyone mention to you that the desert gets cold at night?
Enjoy the rest of the trip.
Tio
Posted by: autopia500 | 04/18/2008
Thanks for the tuplip. I saw your wedding pictures, btw. They are lovely. :) Your flowers are great. And I am having cello music too (with violin.)
Sorry about the Grand C. Hope everything else is great!!
Posted by: MargoWriter | 04/19/2008