Travel East Texas ~ Cooper

 

    Just fifteen minutes North of Sulphur Springs and The Oaks bed and breakfast lies the bedroom community of Cooper, Texas.  The best part about Cooper is the State Park.  Before you hit the park be sure to pop downtown and grab a cup of coffee or cappuccino from Vetch.  Vetch is a cute coffee shop with a little bit of a farmers market vibe going on.  They offer fresh veggies and meat from local farmers along with condiments and other items for purchase along side your caffeine option of choice. 

    There are just a few places to drop in for other shopping with in the square.  A little boutique called Rosie and Co, right off the square and an antique shop.  I would have missed Rosie's had they not set out mannequins on the sidewalk.  Rosie & Co, has lots of great options and styles that fit the season.  The Antique shop has a great selection of items that you could spend  hours browsing through to find exactly what you want.

    The dining options are very few, just the coffee shop and Tejano's Tex-Mex.  Tejano's was a popular stop for all the locals who happend to be downtown.  But make sure they remember you are there, otherwise you have to ask to be served.  I was suprised to see that they had a guacmole enchilada with a spinach enchilada option on the lunch menu.  It's always nice to be able to order food and not have to make changes to fit your needs.  I will say downtown Cooper does have a super cute, walking book "tour" to read while wandering around the square.  A children's book has been placed around the square on little podiums and made to be protected from the weather.  It's a cute way to keep readers engaged and provide a creative way to exercise while reading. 

    Cooper Lake State Park is the perfect spot to spend the day.  Pack a pinic lunch and hit the trails.  The State Park has great hiking trails and shore line for all your outdoor needs.  Plus the park is always hosting events that are fun for the whole family.  Be sure to check out their website for more information on activities and adventures you can have while staying with us at The Oaks bed and breakfast, while exploring the outdoors.  Grab a fishing pole, binoculars and lunch and spend the day exploring Cooper Lake State Park.  

Let's Eat ~ Tito's Ricos Tacos

 

 

   Happy New Year and welcome back to the Oaks Bed and Breakfast dinning out series "Let's Eat."  This year we are going to feature local food trucks that are in and around the Hopkins County area.  So if you have a suggestion please drop us a line on social media or send an email to let us know where you think we should head out to next, info@theoaksbandb.net.

    Our first visit this year is to Tito's Ricos Tacos.  Typically they are located behind the fire station on Bill Bradford across from Windsor Plaza in Sulphur Springs.  We drive by there all the time and so I could hardly wait to check out their eats.

    As you can imagine they have tacos, quesadillas, Mexican sandwiches, burritos and breakfast burritos.  There is bound to be a favorite that you can find and enjoy.  If you do not want to eat in your car they have a couple of picnic tables behind the truck to enjoy your food at.  

    I took my lunch back to the bed and breakfast to enjoy on our deck, since the weather has been pretty mild for January.  I picked up a few different options so the kids could let me know their favorite.  I asked the cook what is their best item and he told me quesadillas so of course we tried out the beef steak quesadilla.  Everyone really enjoyed it and found it to be their favorite.  They were even nice enough to make me a cheese only quesadilla, which was great. 

    I also picked up Marinated Pork and Chicken Fajita tacos just to add some variety into the meal.  The tacos were good but everyone enjoyed the quesadilla the best.  I should have picked up a sandwich too to see how they make their tortas, since back in the day we used to throw those down as a daily special at Coffee off the Square.  Maybe next time.  The red and green sauce that came with the quesadilla were on point.  A little more heat with the green than the red but each added wonderful flavor to an already great tasting meal. 

    Be sure to swing by Tito's Ricos when you are in town or passing by, I don't think you will be disappointed.  Next month we will stop by our next Food Truck looking for the best options in the county.  

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Pomegranate Champagne Spritzers

 

    To help ring in the New Year, we decided to select a cocktail that would have a few bubbles, since the New Year brings out all the sparkles and joy of making it around the sun one more time.  This drink is so simple to make and can be done in a big batch if you choose.  

    The flexibility of the sparkles makes this drink an easy one to fix directly to your taste buds.  We had a lovely sparkling wine to mix with ours, since I'm not the biggest fan of champagne.  I know, I'm sure I'm one of a few people who don't like champagne.  

    Based on what you select for your sparkling drink will determine how sweet your drink is.  The sweeter your wine or champagne the sweeter your drink.  The more dry your wine or champagne the drier your drink will be.  You get the idea.  

    Taylor this drink to your taste, that way you can get exactly what you want to drink to celebrate your next big event.  Since Pom is pretty much found year round now, you can enjoy this drink at any point in the year.  Here is how to make it.

Pomegranate Champagne Spritzer

1 oz. Fresh squeezed Orange Juice

2 oz. Pomegranate juice

6 oz of Champagne or wine of choice

    Pour everything into a high ball glass that is filled with ice.  Garnish with a fresh slice of orange, rosemary and mint.  You could go a little crazy and add some pomegranate to your glass as well.  Enjoy!

    It's that simple, the most amount of time spent is squeezing the orange juice from the fresh orange.  One medium sized orange should yield enough juice for a single serving of this cocktail.  Be sure to ask about our cocktail of the month on your next stay at The Oaks bed and breakfast, they will soon be the featured drink of the month.  

    Until then please drink responsibly and always have a designated driver.  Cheers from the Oaks bed and breakfast.

PS.  if you want to have see an herb featured this year in our cocktail series please be sure to drop us line at info@theoaksbandb.net.  We can't wait to hear from you.  

January Happenings

 

January is going to roll in with a bang this year, start the New Year off right with a little bit of adventure and fun. 

Thursday, January 5 Hopkins County Chamber of Commerce Law Enforcement banquet at the Hopkins County Civic Center.  The Chamber honors our local hero's every year with a banquet in their honor.

Friday January 6-8 - Region Four High School Rodeo at the Civic Center

Saturday, January 7-8 - Kirby Hill Roping contest at the Civic Center

Friday, January 13-15 - Martha Hayward Horse show at the Civic Center

Friday, January 27-29 - USCHA cutting show and Bowles Gun Show at the Civic Center

Cooper Lake State Park has events every weekend during the month of January for the whole family.  Be sure to check out their events page for more information.  

Let's Eat ~ Foster's Place

 

    Foster's Place located at 15244 SH-11, Pickton, TX, is a long standing local restaurant that has seen it's fair share of regular customers and those that stop in for a pint and a burger.  Foster's currently has hours, Saturday 11 a. m. - 10 p. m., Sunday 11 a. m. - 9:30 p. m., and Monday 4 p. m. - 9 p. m.  Bring the whole family or just your friends to enjoy a meal or live music, most weekends on Saturday night.  The spring and summer are get times to visit as well, with their outdoor dining options, and a great stage to see those who come out to play some tunes.

    The core menu at Foster's is made up of pizza, wings and burgers.  You can select your pizza from an option they have put together or build your own.  Same with the burgers, they have three selected options or you can build your own.  All of their beef comes from local butcher, Rail 19 and much of their produce also comes from local growers.  Foster's strives to use, people in the community to provide the freshest ingredients for their customers. 

    Along with the core menu Art has created daily specials that will be a little more creative and fun for your dining experience.  These daily specials are always changing so it makes each visit worth the time.  We had a poblano chicken mac and cheese, which was from the specials menu and it was delicious. You could taste the peppers and the cream sauce on the mac and cheese was just perfect.  

    We also enjoyed Foster's Fries as our starter, that are made from a special cut potato so diners can experience the softness of the potato with a bit of crisp on the end.  Plus the homemade Foster's seasoning on the fries makes them just perfect.  The seasoning can be purchased at Foster's or at Lander's Creek in Sulphur Springs.  You might want to pick some up to place in some stockings for this holiday season. 

    That's not all you can get from Foster's.  If you enjoy craft beer, this is the stop for you.  They regularly do a nightly beer special and they feature a wide variety of choices from around the state.  The fun does not stop there, they can customize a pack to go home with you at the end of the night mix and match the beers you tried or bring  home something new.  Either way you will no be disappointed with your choices in restaurant or at home.  

  Foster's also happens to carry a large variety of whiskey for the whiskey lover in your house.  If you want something a little stronger for your visit and have a designated driver, be sure to try something new when you stop in.  We have sent guests down there for that reason alone, and they enjoyed their entire visit.  Art and his staff are attentive and ready to help answer any questions you might have.  Art loves to visit with his guests and will probably stop by your table when  you stop in for a bite to eat.  Be sure to check their Facebook page for Holiday hours, since the big days this year are on the weekends.  After the holiday's for sure plan your next night out for lunch or dinner to Foster's, or on your next stay while at The Oaks.  

Travel East Texas ~ Pittsburg

 

    This month we stopped down in Pittsburg, Texas for a little visit and a robotics competition.  Pittsburg is best know for being the base of operations for Pilgrim's Pride chickens.  The adventure does not stop there, in September the downtown streets are taken over with the Pioneer Days event.  An open air market with food vendors and artisans from all over the state.  The City of Pittsburg, has many more exciting events scheduled throughout the year and can be found on the city website.

    For our visit I wanted to be able to find some good coffee to start our day and followed our Siri suggested stop and discovered that they might have coffee items but not really coffee to drink.  The shopkeeper at The Bleu Hen Country Market was still very helpful and friendly, and directed us to a new, open that very day, coffee stop.  So after picking up some cute Christmas ornaments we made our way to the coffee stop.

    

    Lala Pops, starts out as an ice cream shop that has just recently added coffee service.  They had a very small pastry container with a few offerings.  There was not any signage for the coffee shop portion, so I walked into the ice cream shop and was directed to the right spot.  Fortunately the buildings are connected and that makes it easier for patrons to swap between the two.  The coffee was tasty and the service was friendly, hopefully they will figure out their atmosphere and offerings quickly. To me it seemed a little scattered but that could have been first day jitters.

    For lunch it was suggested we try the Samoan based restaurant, but she could not remember the name so we just walked around downtown until we found a spot that looked good.  As luck would have it we managed to pick the recommend restaurant.  Madeline Cafe, was very delicious and reflected the Samoan tastes and feel within the restaurant as well as on the menu.  Now the menu is not dedicated to Samoan based foods, because as good business owners they realize that they are located in East Texas and need to offer food that the locals would eat who might not be adventurous.  

    I wish we had, had time to visit Los Pinos Ranch and do some wine tasting but this trip did not afford us that opportunity.  Since we have had their wine before we were sad to miss out but knew that we could come back at any point and take a visit.  Los Pinos is on the East Texas wine trail and by staying at The Oaks bed and breakfast you can easily visit the multiple wineries on the trail and use The Oaks as your home base.  Be sure to check winery websites for hours of operation so you don't arrive and not be able to do a tasting.

    We did enjoy our time in Pittsburg and we are sure to be back again soon.  Until then, we hope you can make the visit while you are in Sulphur Springs and staying at The Oaks.  Until next year, when we find new towns to visit and share our adventures with you.  

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Rosemary Cranberry Margarita

 

Tis’ the season to be merry and drink with friends. At least if that’s your style and you enjoy the occasional adult beverage while entertaining or having dinner. For our herb infused cocktail series this month we are bring you a little bit of holiday flavor from the cranberry.

 Cranberries are an amazing fruit that makes an appearance as whole fruit mostly in the month of December. They are related to blueberries and were eaten by sailors to help prevent scurvy. I’m not sure I would eat them raw outside of a baked good or dried but I guess in a pinch to prevent illness I could choke some down.

 At least in this recipe they are cooked down to add flavor to the simple syrup. Along with fresh ginger the simple syrup is what really adds a punch to this drink. The combination of the sour with the bite of the ginger gives the cocktail a tangy yet enjoyable finish.

 

Rosemary Cranberry Margarita

 1 oz simple syrup

3/4 oz grand Marnier

1 oz tequila

Juice of two limes

 

Add everything into a shaker cup filled with ice. Shake until the cup is cold. Pour into a salt or sugar rimmed glass. Garnish with a sprig or rosemary and some of the cranberries from your simple syrup.

 

Cranberry Ginger Simple Syrup

Equal parts water and sugar

Handful of cranberries

Couple slices of ginger

 

Cook over stove top until boiling. The amounts needed are based on how many drink you are planning to make.

You can watch me make this drink, and not remember all my words at our YouTube channel.  I tried hard but failed miserably this month; I promise I practiced.   

 The great part about this cocktail is that it can be made in a large batch and served when ready. While you are planning that holiday party be sure to use a designated driver and always drink responsibly.  Have a great Holiday Season from the Oaks bed and breakfast.