D Home editor Joslyn Taylor had this brilliant idea of doing a cross post. Since the weather has been kind of wunderbar, we thought it’d be fun if I picked out my ideal picnic basket foods while Joslyn paired them with pretty basket accessories.

Jump if you can’t wait for this weekend.

I tried to pick foods that would be good for families with kids and no kids. (Or even picnic baskets for those of us who like to go on dates by ourselves with a nice book.) Either way, the grub has to be good, right?

1. JJ&B jelly - I’m just terribly smitten with the toasted pecan-pepper jam. Kathy Neumuller makes her jams locally, and you can find her sitting at a booth every second and fourth Saturday at the White Rock Local Market. If that’s too long of a wait, then head over to the Garden Cafe where they offer a little shelf of these jam beauties.

2. Crackers and jam go hand-in-hand. Ak-mak 100% whole wheat crackers are the most versatile crackers I have ever eaten. They go well with hummus, cheese, and any other kind of spread. Whole Foods, Central Market, and Bolsa Mercado all carry them.

3. Enough about side items. You need something light, but filling, to occupy your stomach. Bridge Bistro’s chicken salad sandwich is not too mayonnaise-y, and it has onions, tomatoes, lettuce, grape halves, and nuts infused in the chicken salad mixture. I could eat one every single day of my life, and that’s saying a lot. Order this item to-go and save yourself some time.

4. Holy moly, have you tried Holy Kombucha yet? I walked into Bolsa Mercado the other day and saw that they offered green apple ginger and pomegranate for $4 a cup. A little pricey, if you ask me, but totally worth this brew of fermented tea and sugar cane. It’s also a local product that you can support.

5. Your picky little ones might not like weird kombucha flavors. I suggest you mix your own lemonade for the kiddos instead. (Recipe here.) It’s easy and takes two seconds.

6. Edamame is such an easy snack. You can buy these anywhere, and the steam bags are a time saver. A friend of mine told me that edamame is a great way to keep his kids occupied. They’re so busy getting the pods out that they’re quiet and enjoying something healthy at the same time. If you don’t want your kids running wild around your picnic blanket, hand them some edamame.

7. What’s a picnic without strawberries? Now that they’re in season, you can buy them everywhere as well. I really do suggest you pop into Urban Acres, though, and buy your strawberries the local way.

New Orleans : Mardi Gras ::
Germany : Fasching Fest ::

If you didn’t understand that, retake the SATs and jump below.

Since Germany’s Fasching Fest is supposed to be as wild and crazy as Mardi Gras in New Orleans, let’s hope there aren’t going to be naked ladies at the GermanDeli European Food Store’s Fasching Fest on Sunday because they’re planning to have face-painting and prizes for kids.

Entrance is free for anyone who enjoys grilled bratwurst, Fleischkäse, and authentic Nürnberger Bratwurst for low prices. Adults can attend a beer and wine sampling event from 1-3 pm, while the offspring can listen to music and run around a big tent.

The deets:
GermanDeli European Food Store
5100 State Hwy 121, Colleyville, TX 76034 817-354-8101
We will host Fasching Fest in the store and under the “big Tent”
Sunday, February 19th
12:30pm – 4:30pm

Bolsa Mercado. Photography by Elliott Munoz

Just dropped into the new Bolsa Mercado this morning for its public debut and — wow — this place is a game changer for anyone shopping for quality groceries south of the Trinity. It fulfills the market part of the original Bolsa vision offering Tom Spicer greens, local cheeses, organic meats, house made sausage and pastries, a boutique wine/beer selection, gourmet dry goods, and more. Bolsa Mercado also offers sandwiches, panninis, gourmet to go items, and a first-rate coffee bar. Eventually, chefs Jeff Harris, Matt Balke, and team want to make as much in-house as possible and will offer catering from the market’s enormous kitchen, more than double the size of the tiny one at its sibling restaurant located two doors down. Happily, there’s enough diversity and everyday goods to encourage repeated visits. In fact, I’m already plotting my lunchtime return to try the wild boar tart.

Del Frisco's David Holben wins XX Caesar Salad Competition. (photo courtesy of Del Frisco's General Manager Gina Cook)

ery year the American Institute of Wine and Food (AIWF) holds their Caesar Salad competition to raises funds for their “Days of Taste”program. Days of Taste teaches schoolchildren about healthy eating, nutrition, and raise the awareness of obesity in children. This year was the 20^th competition and it was rather special. AIWF volunteers assembled 12 of the past winners to compete in a taste-off voted on by the 500 attendees. The AIWF volunteers did a fantastic job organizing this event despite some key personnel being hit by illness (and even a bereavement) immediately prior to the date. They should be proud of what they accomplished that made it such an instructive, enjoyable and contributing event. And congratulations to this year’s winner:  Del Frisco’s Chef David Holben.

One of the most interesting things about the Annual Caesar Salad Competition is that it has never been won by a Caesar salad! At least not one assembled by Caesar Cardini back in his speakeasy days. Chefs have gilded the lily by adding a protein-related side dish as, shall we say, a lagniappe. This year was no exception so, without delay, the chefs who made this the biggest AIWF fundraiser of the year, their year of victory and what they prepared in addition to their salad for attendees at the Westin Galleria this year.

A few general points:

• Almost all of the winning Caesar Salad recipes are currently on the menus of the winning restaurants.
• Several chefs anticipated the change of seasons when they submitted the names of their lagniappe items to the organizers several months ago. As a result there were several autumnal soups in the mix.
• There wasn’t a bad dish in the mix. These chefs really aimed high.

Doug Brown's cascade of salads in Parmesan cones resembled a shop display in a high-end clothing store

Doug Brown, 2002 (Beyond The Box, Dish): Parmesan Cone, Serrano Ham, Black Pepper Pop Rocks, Tomato Bisque on the side.

George Brown, 1996 (George Brown Catering): Pig pop (ancho chile dusted Nueske bacon on a stick).

Samir Dhurandhar, 2000 (Nick and Sam’s Steakhouse): Lobster burger with char sui beef, caviar, sprouts and tomato confit.

Gilbert Garza, 2001 (Suze): Tweaked the Caesar Cardini recipe with caramelized garlic as well as fresh garlic. Stuffed turkey meatball.

David Holben, 2004 (Del Friscos): Steve Haug (Del Friscos, Houston) execuchefed at their booth on the day. Lobster Saffron Broth finished with Smoked Bacon and Fresh Tarragon.

George Brown's Wild Pig Pops (ancho chile dusted Nueske bacon on a stick) ready to be plated

Brian Luscher, 2003 (The Grape); 2-Bite Caesar. A crouton topped with Caesar Salad including roasted kobe beef, creamy garlic parmesan Caesar salad topped with oven-dried grape tomato and parmesan reggiano.

James Neel, 1998 (Le Cordon Bleu Cooking School): Wild mushroom soup with truffles.

Janice Provost, 2007 (Parigi): Lobster BLT.

Kent Rathbun, 1994 (Abacus, Jasper’s, Rathbun’s Blue Plate Kitchen, Zea’s Woodfire Gril): Grilled olive oil marinated shrimp with a white truffle and white bean purée on top of a toasted bruschetta.

Janice Provost's Lobster Knuckle Sandwich. The bread was fried, making it crisp and sweet.

Jim Severson, 1997 (Sevy’s): Tomato dill soup with a goat cheese crisp. Plus…a chocolate kiss on every plate.

David C. Smith, 2010 (Westin Galleria): Onion Brulée with Shiner Bock Braised Short Ribs.

John Tesar, 2008 (The Commissary): Tempura fried avocados, Heinekin on tap.

And the winner was: David Holben. Second place: David C. Smith. The two Browns (Doug and James) were joint fourth (they are not related).

Samir Dhurandhar's Lobster burger with char sui beef, caviar, sprouts and tomato confit.

David Smith's dish. Check out the crème brulée on the right. It is made with Boursin cheese.

Brian Luscher's 2-Bite Caesar