Domain: A TEXAS MONTHLY Editorial Supplement
Specialty of the House
For eight busy Texans, labor-intensive dishes are out of the question. To save themselves from overtime, they trust what they do best––simple and successful dishes.
Last fall, when we published our first “Specialty of the House,” we knew home cooking was back in favor. But far from a fad, the no-frills traditions of the American kitchen have turned out to be a standard for the future. For those of us who have moved miles from home, honest and unassuming cuisine is a flashback to the wonder years. In our search for simplicity in life, a straightforward recipe that calls for neither exotic ingredients nor excruciating technique makes cooking a pleasure again. And in this health- conscious age––when nutritionists hurl the same wrath on triglycerides that Cotton Mather hurled on the seven deadlies––a little Brown Betty or strawberry shortcake provides that small percentage of sinfulness so necessary to a happy life.
In the latest search for our gallery of home cooks and their favorite dishes, we found that the virtues of Mom-style are being upheld across the state. But Texas, with its wealth of cultures and cuisines, is home to more than meatloaf and chicken à la king. We found a United Nations of cooking on our turf––from Tex-Mex chicken with a Cajun twist to a recipe for Creole oysters that arrived by way of Mobile, Alabama. There is authentic (really authentic) Italian pizza, and baked shrimp with a Mediterranean pedigree. These are recipes––some of them written down for the first time––that get passed from generation to generation, that are family traditions and keepsakes.
Christina Patoski and Johnny Reno’s Saganaki Tourkolimano
This may be Fort Worth’s most multimedia household. Christina Patoski is a journalist who also works in film and video production and who is currently preparing a book of her color photography. Her husband, John Reno, the saxophonist and guiding light of the nationally popular group Johnny Reno, is also breaking into an acting career. As might be expected, Patoski and Reno don’t always get dinner at home. And in the worlds of music and video, the fare is not always cordon bleu. “When I’m touring with the band, we have a rule,” says Reno. “Never eat on an empty stomach, because then you’ll eat anything.”
A first-generation American, Patoski credits her Greek mother with this thoroughly Mediterranean—and novel—combination of shrimp and feta cheese; it’s an on-the-money main course that begs to be served over pasta. “I had this dish on Tourkolimano Bay,” Patoski says. “After hearing me describe it, several years later my mom, who is really a great cook, came up with the recipe.” Even in the high-tech world of mass communications, Mom-style rules the kitchen.
Saganaki Tourkolimano Recipe
Chip Oswalt’s Ceviche
Chip Oswalt, a cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon at Seton Medical Center in Austin, has made a name for himself as the head of the heart-transplant team at Seton’s Central Texas Heart Institute, the first such program in the state’s capital. At home, when the doctor is in, he’s usually in the kitchen. “Chip and I both enjoy getting in the kitchen,” says Karen Oswalt. “We cook together at least a couple of nights a week.” When their daughters—Sara, 12, and Claire, 10—join in, the scullery can really start to bustle. But no one forgets who wields the scalpel or the Ginsu knife. “It’s real important to stress how easy this ceviche is,” Chip says, “especially if you don’t mind chopping.”
Easy it may be, but the Oswalts’ interpretation of the classic marinated fish took time to develop. “We had ceviche back in Mexico after we were first married,” Chip recalls, “and we liked it so much that over the years we tried to figure out our own way of doing it. We went from a simple pico de gallo to making this recipe.” The crucial element, he says, is the freshness of the ingredients, whether in the jalapeños and tomatoes Chip grows in his garden or in the just-caught fish the Oswalts bring in on their own hooks. “I like the idea of eating fish that you’ve caught,” says Chip. “I’ve used just about anything—bass, speckled trout.” And this ceviche gets the low-fat, low-cholesterol seal of approval. “I didn’t make this recipe just because it’s heart-healthy,” the good doctor says, “but it’s sure worth mentioning.”
Ceviche Recipe
Judith Zaffirini’s Praline Pecans
Judging from the crunchy sweetness of her praline pecans, one could guess state senator Judith Zaffirini conducts the affairs of the kitchen with the same drive she applies to affairs of state. A Laredo Democrat and the first Mexican American woman to be elected a senator in Texas, Zaffirini is known in the political arena for her dedication to family issues. She has been married 25 years to her childhood sweetheart, attorney Carlos Zaffirini, and the arrival of Carlos Junior, now seven, sparked his mother’s interest in cooking. With baking as her favorite pastime, Zaffirini has made a name for herself among the next generation of voters—her son’s classmates, who have honored her as Best Cooker in the World. Among her peers Zaffirini is known for her praline pecans—the candy-coated nut halves are both more appealing and less cloying than the glopped-together variety. Zaffirini often stocks the senators’ lounge with them. “Always arrange them with the round side up,” she says, with the rectitude becoming of a senator. Should our elected representatives ever decide to name an official state candy, Judith Zaffirini’s praline pecans could well win on a voice vote.
Praline Pecans Recipe
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