Thai One On

Y'all know that I really like Publico. I've told you that. But, it's been a while since we've been there. Yesterday was my birthday.  So, the three of us decided to continue the celebration of me by having lunch at our favorite neighborhood joint today.  

I got there thinking that I'd order the Classic Carnitas and the Sambol Fish taco.  Like I usually do. But once there, I thought, "no, I'm going to try something new this time."  I chose the Thai Shrimp Burger. 

Shrimp burger with fresh cut fries

 So, this is a burger made of giant chunks of shrimp.  This is significant because too often restaurant dishes really skimp on the shrimp.  The burger is served on a fresh bun with red onion relish that is delicious. There's also a Thai peanut sauce and orange sesame aioli.  It's a very flavorful and successful fusion of tastes.  I could only eat half of it though; it's a big sandwich. I definitely recommend this one!

Neil decided on the burrito du jour, the "Wingerito."  It was stuffed with pulled chicken with a chipotle wing sauce, brown rice, lettuce and black beans.  It was really yummy.  Of course, Neil had them also jam as many jalapenos as they could fit into it. Many of you know that Neil's heat addiction knows no bounds.  He's constantly on a quest for what he considers hot and it's rarely what others can even tolerate. Today he sampled a coconut Ghost pepper sauce and admitted "it's hot."  That says a lot.

Now, the Vivver decided on her "usual," the Crunchy Avocado taco.  Can I tell you how much I love that my kid has an avocado taco as her "usual?"  

The Crunchy Avocado

 It also never hurts to start off with guac and queso.  The chips are always warm and salty.  The guac is creamy and the queso, well, what's not to love about melty cheese? 

Publico has completed their back porch/deck area. Today they had some astro-turf out with hula hoops, cornhole and a baby pool in the parking lot.  I'm not sure if this was special for the holiday weekend, or if this is a new fixture.  And, since the last time I was there, they've added brunch. Check out the menu here. Enjoy!

Unbelievable!

Are you familiar with AllRecipes.com? I have loved this website for quite some time.  If you don't know, here's what they are all about.  Recipes are submitted by REAL people, then other REAL people rate/review them.  The cool thing is that I've never made a recipe from this site that hasn't worked and worked well.  The coolest thing though is that you can plug in how many servings you want and the site will adjust all of the quantities for you.  Awesome.

I have a client who is preparing to move as soon as we get a buyer for her house.  One day, I stopped by and saw stacks of books in her dining room.  Curious, I inquired.  They were all cookbooks that she was going to donate.  I guess she saw my expression change, prompting her to say something like, "Should I donate them to you?"  Touchdown, goal, SCORE!  Even though I knew I don't even have enough bookcase space, and that Neil and my entire family would give me hell about adding more cookbooks to my bursting-at-the-seams collection, I happily loaded them all into the backseat.  

One of them has become my new favorite:  all recipes dinner tonight.  Basically, it's a "greatest hits" of the website.  The editors compiled a "Hall of Fame" of 20 recipes who all received 150+ ratings and reviews.  So far, I've made 5 of these 20 and haven't been disappointed at all.  The latest one is a recipe that I've read, re-read, re-read, contemplated, re-read.  I finally decided to jump off the cliff and try it and man, am I glad I took the leap.  So glad, that I wanted to share with you all.  Now, be prepared...when you see this title, you're going to be intrigued yet a bit quizzical.  Maybe even a bit cynical.  You might experience disbelief.  But, trust me.  Take the leap like I did and you will make yourself and your family/friends very happy.

Photo from www.AllRecipes.com

Addictive Sweet Potato Burritos

• 1 Tbs vegetable oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 6 cups canned kidney beans, drained
• 2 cups water
• 3 Tbs chili powder
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 4 tsp prepared mustard
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• 3 Tbs soy sauce
• 12 (10") flour tortillas, warmed
• 4 cups cooked & mashed sweet potatoes
• 8 oz shredded cheddar

Preheat oven to 350.

Heat oil in a medium skillet and saute onion & garlic until soft.  Stir in the beans and mash.  Gradually stir in the water and heat until warm.  Remove from heat and stir in chili powder, cumin, mustard, cayenne and soy sauce. Spread sweet potatoes evenly over the bean layer and top with cheese.  Roll up burrito style and place in a single layer on a lightly greased baking sheet.

Bake for about 12 minutes. Serve with sour cream, salsa, green onion, whatever on the side, if you wish.  

To me, this was like the best bean burrito ever, but with that little touch of "je ne sais quoi." Amazingly, the sweet potato married so well with the spiced bean mixture.  I NEVER would have come up with this on my own.  It works and it works so well!  I also was just plain feeling good watching the Vivver eat this meal packed to the gills with protein and beta-carotene!  Please trust me and put your hesitation aside and make this recipe.  And, I'd really love to hear your feedback about it.  Sorry I didn't take any pictures.  We were all starving and dug right in.  Photography be damned!  But, the good people at AllRecipes made this great video: