It’s tomato season and a great time to experiment with making your own mozzarella. Making your own cheese? I don’t think Adam and I thought we could do it until we attended a seminar on cheese making at home presented by Austin Homebrew and Slow Food Austin earlier this year. Our friend Carla of Austin Urban Gardens made mozzarella from a cheese kit purchased at Austin Homebrew recently and she told us that it was pretty doable.
Once we found Austin Homebrew (it’s moved from Burnet just north of 183 to …

This Saturday, I was one of about 50 lucky people who attended a beer and cheese class taught by Amy Cartwright, co-owner of Independence Brewing Co., and John and Kendall Antonelli, owners of the soon-to-be-open Antonelli’s Cheese shop in Hyde Park.
Full disclosure, I helped plan the event along with Amy and John but since I paid for my own ticket and all, I’m allowed to blog about it, right?!
Below is a photo that Adam took of the setup — five large picnic tables seated ten people at each. It was …

I hope you can join us this Saturday, Dec. 19 from 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. for a special cheese and beer class, tasting, and brewery tour at Independence Brewing Company in Austin.

We’ll enjoy samples and learn about four different local brews and four cheeses carefully selected to pair with these beers. Cheese will be served with slices of Bona Dea bread. There will be time for additional beer sampling and brewery tours after the class.
Cost: $17
For planning purposes, all tickets must be ordered by Wed., Dec. 16: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/92159.
NOTE: No …

Today I experienced a little piece of the old country out in the Hill Country. I milked a goat by hand, walked among olive trees, and dined in a structure built over one hundred years ago.
If you are part of the Tasty Touring Facebook group, you received an invitation to join the Hill Country Food and Farms tour sent out to all group members. If you are a member of the Facebook fan page, you might have seen the invite through your news feed.
The event came together after connecting with …

I’ve been thinking about all of the great Austin food secrets for a while now — things I have learned over the years from friends, articles, and personal experiences. To be honest, I was worried about some of these secrets getting out. What if too many people take advantage and they aren’t sustainable or less special?
But then I realized that in sharing our knowledge and secrets with each other, we become inspired to give back even more and the entire community benefits. Many of the businesses below have earned a …