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Saturday, May 9, 2015

Trekkin' through the Texas Hill Country - Part 3 - the food....

Thank you for joining me for the last part of my Hill Country trek.  Thursday, I shared about the places here.  Yesterday, I shared about my love for wildflowers here.  Today, well, let's talk about some great food.

Before I show what we sampled at the bed and breakfast, I'll talk about lavender a bit.  Our first day and night was in Blanco, where they have a lavender festival in June.  I tried lavender lemonade with my lunch.  It was very interesting.  Had a definite floral flavor.  Paired with a great chicken salad sandwich.  And the next morning as we got coffee at a local shop, I noticed lavender lemon shortbread cookies.  I did not buy any, but I was tempted.

As I said in Thursday's post, we stayed at the Rose Hill Manor for two nights.  This bed and breakfast is several miles out in the country and, while there are several great restaurants in Fredericksburg, Rose Hill has it's own restaurant on the property.  When you reserve a room on a weekend night, you receive both breakfast and dinner.  And both of these are 3 course meals - yes, even the breakfast.  Here is what I had on Saturday for breakfast and for dinner.



Breakfast started with the chef's choice pastry - which was apple quick bread.  Some delicious coffee.  A bowl of seasonal fruit with a little yogurt and a little granola sprinkled on top.  The fruit was fresh and tasty and the bread was amazing.  I ate one of the slices and then asked if I could have a baggie or something to take the rest of it with me for later.



The waffle was a sweet potato waffle with walnuts and a vanilla bean syrup.  You had a choice of ham or sausage.  I did not finish the waffle, but what I had was yummy.  Also did not eat much of the ham - it was a little salty for me.  I've been trying to cut back on salt and it doesn't take long for your taste to alter in that regard.

My husband was playing golf that morning and he had to leave before the breakfast serving hour.  The staff gave him a picnic basket with the apple bread, another pastry of some kind, and the fruit - just so he didn't miss out.  His apple bread was warm, right out of the oven.  He was delighted.



Dinner is a 3 course prix fixe dinner each night.  The menu is set, although you can order a steak as a substitute if you wish.  We did not wish.  The first course was greens with an orange blossom vinaigrette, Maytag blue cheese, apples and toasted walnuts.  There was also a little square of cornbread with a nutmeg honey sauce.  I love this type of salad.  It was light and fresh.  The cornbread was a little sweet for me.  I've been trying to cut back on my sugar too and have also noticed a difference in taste in that regard as well.



The entree course was a crab cake and scallops over golden raisin couscous.  There was a lemon cream sauce and asparagus as well.  This was amazing.  The crab cake was rich and the couscous was tasty, but not too sweet.  And I love asparagus any time.  We practically licked our plates.  Well, we didn't, but we wanted to.



Dessert course was a mixed berry crisp with a scoop of housemade brown butter pecan ice cream.  It was lovely, but I was so full by that point, I just ate about half of it.  My husband thought that vanilla bean ice cream would have been a better pairing, but I noticed that he managed to eat all of his crisp and ice cream.

We waddled out of there, satisfied and beyond.  The wait staff told me that I could ask for any recipes that I wished for.  I've emailed for the crab cake recipe, but have not heard back yet.  Not sure I could duplicate it anyway, nor that I should.  It was a fitting ending to our trip and the next morning, Sunday, we headed home.

I'm linking this post with Weekend Cooking at Beth Fish Reads.  I think it definitely qualifies.



42 comments:

  1. I should not have looked at this before breakfast! You would not believe how my tummy is rumbling now... everything looks delicious!!

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  2. I'm loving the sweet potato waffle and I feel the same way about a good salad. It looks like you had a wonderful trip.

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    1. That waffle was so tasty. I should ask for the recipe for that too.

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  3. Delicious! And the presentation of each dish is lovely. Thanks for sharing...and for visiting my blog.

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    1. Wasn't it pretty? Felt a little weird with my phone taking pictures, but I tried to be discreet. LOL

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  4. Definitely need to visit the hill country! I think I'm drooling!

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    1. You should! It wouldn't be that far for you.

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  5. Oh my, how tempting as I sit sipping overly-strong coffee on an empty stomach! Instead of mentioning which I would enjoy I will say I would like them all!

    I actually used to occasionally drink lavender green tea imported from a lavender farm in Oregon. I have to have my 3 cups of java caffeine to start my day and combat sleepiness of my medications, but then I switch to hot or iced tea the rest of the day, and my son and Iove to try unusual types :) I thought it was good, but then I got tired of it on a regular basis. Enjoy the rest of your wonderful trip.

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    1. Hmmm....lavender green tea. Sounds good actually. I really noticed the floral flavor in the lemonade, but I think I would get used to it.

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  6. Oh this looks amazing and now I'm starving! It looks beautiful while still seeming hearty at the same time. You have me wanting to visit Texas now!

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    1. You should, Katherine. You really should visit. Our area is so pretty in the late spring.

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  7. Wow, they all look delicious! I'm sure they taste great as well. I really enjoyed reading all your posts of your trip! Thanks for sharing! :)

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    1. Thank you, Melody!! And yes, they were yummy!

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  8. Everything looks sooooooo delicious! Yum, that crab cake and scallops entree would be something I would gobble right up.

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    1. Oh, that crab cake was so, so good. I'd never be able to duplicate it.

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  9. I'm hungry just looking at your beautiful pics! That sweet potato waffle looks heavenly!

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  10. Oh my gosh. That all looks incredibly delicious!

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    1. Gayle, you can't believe how good it was. And I didn't even share the other night's dinner. Pork chop and a soup and creme brulee.

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  11. Lovely pics, makes me want to go there. And, I'd like to try making those sweet potato waffles.

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    1. The waffles were very, very good. Nice texture.

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  12. All that food sounds so yummy. I swear that is the best part about staying at B&Bs - the delicious breakfasts. I love breakfast food! Sounds like you guys had a wonderful adventure!

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    1. We did have good time. Hopefully, we'll get to go back sometime.

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  13. Those waffles do look scrumptious. I am thinking of reverse-engineering a pumpkin waffle recipe with sweet potato instead.

    Thank you for sharing. It is very inspiring.

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  14. I would've been so excited to stay at the B&B, with such great meals to accompany the time spent there. It all looks delicious.

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  15. A 3 course breakfast! I wouldn't be able to function after that! Cheers from Carole's Chatter!

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    1. Ha! You are right, Carole. Think it might be why they don't serve lunch. No one needs it.

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  16. Holy cow! I am now suddenly very hungry and what I have in the house in no way looks as appetizing or sounds as delicious as what you described. I may need to go visit Hill Country the next time I'm in Texas!

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  17. What a wonderful trip! You were well cared for with such lovely meals!

    Joy's Book Blog

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    1. We certainly were. Thanks for coming by, Joy!

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  18. Is it sad that my eyes went straight to the dessert? I think I would have had to eat the meal backwards so I could enjoy that first!

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    1. No, it's not sad. At all. Honestly, by the time they served that dessert, I was full. But, it's not like I wasn't going to eat at least some of it. LOL

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  19. Wow, just wow! That breakfast was more like a brunch! I love staying at nice B&Bs who go out of their way to go overboard on delicious food. Looks like a great trip :)

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    1. It was and you are right. The breakfast is like brunch and could last until dinner (especially if you take your breakfast bread with you in a baggie). LOL

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  20. Yum! The hubby and I have a favorite Bed and Breakfast that serves amazing breakfasts like that. I'm glad the delicious food added to your trip!

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  21. That looks like a day of eating worth going back for!

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Thanks for stopping by! I am so happy to hear your thoughts and will respond as soon as I can. Happy Reading!