Soup and Crackers

You may not be able to tell from the picture, but last night I made Alisa's recipe for Rich and Creamy Potato Miso Soup. Check out her blog to see what it is supposed to look like. I used up the last of my big bag of Fingerling Potatoes on this. So my soup was purple since there were purple potatoes in the bag. I also may have used more than the required amount of potatoes, because my soup was closer to mashed potato consistency. I should have added more water or broth. But I'm not complaining! I love mashed potatoes and this recipe was delicious.
After making the soup, I was really wishing I had some crackers to go with it. So I made some. I've been wanting to make Celine's Cheezy Quackers for probably over a year now. I'm so happy I finally did. I cut some of them into hexagons, so the shape and the way they puffed up reminded me of Oyster Crackers (which don't contain any oysters). Did you ever used to eat those? I remember eating them growing up.
This soup reminded me of my sister, April. She loves potatoes and miso and I think she would really like this soup. Potatoes are so great because they are inexpensive and you can do so much with them. Perfect for a starving artist. Okay, she's not a starving artist, but she is a very talented fiber artist. You should check out her Etsy page.

Yesterday as I was out and about I decided to stop at Daily Juice Cafe. Daily Juice has been around for a while in Austin as a juice and smoothie bar. They recently opened an all raw foods Cafe on Duval and 45th street that I had been wanting to try. I went with my two kiddos in tow (3 years old and 6 months old). It is all Vegan, gluten free, raw and organic. We got the Banana Nut Smoothie (peanut butter and banana)--YUM! And for eats the Chile Con Queso. Here is the description off the menu: "Crispy organic corn and yam chips served with walnut chorizo, fresh guacamole, mango-habenero chutney, daily salsa, and our creamy red bell-cashew queso." I wish I had brought my camera so I could take a picture. It was a really beautiful presentation. The red-bell cashew queso was my favorite. It had the walnut chorizo on top and I really liked them together. The daily salsa was eaten all up very quickly, I liked it a lot. The mango-chutney was good--spicy and sweet, but just not what I was in the mood for. My son ate the guacamole and didn't share much of the smoothie with me. The best part of the whole trip was this little room they have just to the left of the entrance. My son wandered in and I'm so happy he did. It has a low table that you can sit at on pillows or tiny stools. So perfect for him. He said, "This stool is just for me." And there was a book shelf in there with all kinds of books and some puzzles and games. We did a puzzle and played with jacks and little plastic frogs while we waited and during our lunch. The whole place is really friendly and inviting with lots of windows. I really enjoyed my time there and look forward to going back to try everything on the menu. Plus the desserts--which looked fabulous!