Western BBQ Burgers — Patio Daddio BBQ

Balsamic Reduction Burger with Warm Goat Cheese Spread — food 52

German Pork Burger — Simply Recipes

Blue Cheese Burger — Pioneer Woman

Old-Fashioned Juicy Burger — The Kitchn

Ultimate Umami Burger — White on Rice Couple

Asian Turkey Burgers with Spicy Lime Mayo — How Sweet It Is

And the grand finale …

In-N-Out’s Double Double, Animal Style — Serious Eats (y’all this is a recipe for this! I want to try!)

Ok, enjoy your hunger pangs.

Oh, and Food Blog South is this weekend! I am so excited to meet and mingle with fellow food bloggers (both newbies—like me—and legends) and learn how to be a better food writer/photographer/appreciator.

La Fogata is a Bralley family favorite. My parents have been taking us to this Sherman Oaks eatery literally our entire lives, and they’ve been frequenting it for even longer. And as you know, we Bralleys are quite particular about our Mexican fare, so whenever we make a trip out to the Valley (which we did on our most recent trip to California), we pay a visit to La Fogata.

Every time I came here growing up, I ordered the #16: the Two Flautas plate. It comes with two shredded beef flautas and is topped with sour cream, fresh guacamole, a tomato slice, and served alongside rice and frijoles. The shredded beef is something you must try if you go to La Fogata—it’s one of their signature items.

This time, however, I insisted that James order the flautas, while I ordered their tacos, just to shake things up. While my tacos were absolutely to die for (a crispy fried corn tortilla shell, juicy shredded beef, fresh tomatoes and lettuce) I looked longingly at those flautas. So James gave me a bite. The fried flour tortilla is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, and the shredded beef is hot and flavorful.

Also, La Fogata serves the best horchata I’ve found anywhere. Hands down. All others I’ve tried anywhere else have so far paled in comparison. But this might have something to do with the comfort factor of La Fogata’s sweet combination of rice, milk, and cinnamon.

So if you’re ever in the San Fernando Valley, I strongly and passionately urge you to visit this down-home Mexican restaurant.

Related post— what I ordered: Pinches Tacos

Take a look at some of the images of this styled shoot by Green Wedding Shoes. I am loving the succulents, and the use of green tomatoes and cotton is so clever! Not sure we’ll go as far as to have cotton, though. Anyways, enjoy!

We left Bettola so happy we came, raving about the meal.

To start, we ordered the Insalata Argulua. Y’all—from the moment I took the first bite I sincerely regretted not taking a picture. What was I thinking? I guess my mind was just ready for pizza, and my fork moved faster than my brain. This salad is prepared with local arugula, 2-year aged Parmesan, thinly sliced red onion, and a lemon and oregano emulsion as a dressing. I am going (to make a sad attempt, most likely) to prepare this at home. The peppery flavor of the arugula was brought out even more by the lemon and oregano (brilliant!). The red onion added an extra kick and each bite was perfectly coated in dressing. An unassuming leafy salad turned out to be bursting with bright flavor. I recommend this so highly.

Then we each ordered our own pizza. And we each just about finished our own (had to hold off on the last piece only because I wanted it for lunch the next day). I ordered the Pancetta e Cipola pizza, which is caramelized onions, pancetta, and hot peppers. The sweetness of the onions, the spice of the peppers, and the saltiness of the pancetta made this a well-rounded, very flavorful pizza. And the crust has a rustic, delightfully charred flavor. It’s thin and crispy, and it tastes even better whilst gazing at the brick oven in the center of the restaurant.

Taylor ordered the Beitola pizza, and we traded a piece for a piece. It was topped with the house sausage, spinach from Owl’s Hollow Farm in Gadsden, fontina, pecorino, mascarpone, and finished with a farm egg. Well it was my first time trying a pizza with an egg on it, and the buttery rich flavor complemented the earthy essence of the sausage and the creaminess of the cheese. And the spinach tamed all that richness in just the right way. It was beautiful.

Ok and then—the dessert. Our waitress sneakily placed menus in front of us (otherwise we might have held back), so we ordered the  Torta Cioccolata, which is described as warm truffle chocolate, baked in a toasted almond tart, topped with toasted almonds, and served with espresso gelato.

As my roommate, Elana, articulated it, this dessert is a good example of why I love food. The subtlety and the flavor was so spot on and creative, it just about made me cry. Each bite of gelato was accompanied by a tiny crunch of caramelized sugar that was layered beneath. And the chocolate was deep, deep. dark chocolate—as bittersweet as it comes. The espresso gelato was actually sweeter than the chocolate, and the tart shell was crunchy and the almonds purveyed a pleasant nutty addition.

We left feeling that our money was well spent and grateful for the fabulous experience and last evening out together. I highly recommend Bettola. And if you can’t make it for dinner, head over for lunch and try a flatbread sandwich!

So here’s a quick roundup of exciting events that occurred in 2011, and I’d like to share some hopes for 2012.

1. Well…. I got engaged! This only happened about 11 days before the year ended, but James surprised me with a beautiful proposal on the shores of Lake Nicol in Tuscaloosa. It was dark, misty, and wonderfully romantic. I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with him.

2. I got my first real job. I started the year with a great internship at Coastal Living magazine, but in March I was hired at Hoffman Media as the assistant editor for Celebrate magazine. I love my job, and I feel utterly privileged to go to work every day for such a beautiful publication.

3. I started up this blog. This had existed before with a different name and focus, but for the longest time I wanted it to be something more. Cactus & Kudzu is constantly a work in progress, but I am writing about what I’m passionate about, and I hope to keep it going.

4. I’ve grown closer to the Lord through my involvement in Brook Hills Church in Birmingham. I’m so grateful for the fellowship and opportunity I’ve had to better my relationship with Him.

My hopes for 2012:

1. Get married! And as we are hoping for a summer wedding…the planning begins!

2. Improve as a writer and as an editor. Celebrate is on the verge of making great changes, and I’m so excited to be apart of it.

3. Continue to grow in the Lord through opportunities for serving Him and spending time in His word with other believers.

4. Become a better budgeter and saver. Learning how to manage money can be tricky, and I have a lot to learn. I did get better this year at keeping track of my income and spending, but I want to really get that nailed down by the time I get married!

5. Let this blog blossom. I am so excited to see where Cactus & Kudzu will be at the end of 2012.

And before all of the excitement ensued, I received a blog award! And since coming home makes me probably the world’s worst blogger, I’m just now getting around to accepting it. Ashley from Lifevesting (a great blog to check out, by the way) nominated me for The Versatile Blogger award. Thanks so much, Ashley!

These are the rules for The Versatile Blogger award:

- Nominate 15 fellow bloggers.

- Inform the bloggers of the nomination.

- Share 7 random things about yourself.

- Thank the blogger who nominated you.

- Add The Versatile Blogger badge to your blog post.

Here are my 15 nominations in no particular order for bloggers that show fabulous versatility:

1. Constants Become Surreal

2. all things splendid

3. strataflora

4. Inspire; to breathe

5. E Tells Tales

6. Happily Nesting

7. Maple Macaroni

8. Home Dreams

9. Simple Speedy Snacks

10. Allison Eats

11. publikworks

12. Running On Cereal

13. Dramshop Beer

14. Brewly Noted

15. so.chic

Seven Random Tidbits:

1. My idea of a great Friday night can be as simple as ordering a pizza and uncorking a bottle of wine (or grabbing some beer or whipping up some margaritas) and enjoying a movie or a TV show we love.

2. I don’t have a great sweet tooth—foods I crave are typically savory. But if I do crave something sweet, it will be chocolate.

3. I want to start saving up for an SLR camera, and I want to learn more about food styling and photography.

4. I also want to take cooking classes and improve my skills and overall food knowledge.

5. I have three sisters and our names are unique. Brett (me!), Brynn, Brass, and Brikk. My parents followed the BR – short vowel – double consonant.

6. I have two dogs on the West Coast (Angus, a westie, and Diego, a spaniel of some sorts), and one dog in the South (Leroy, a German Shorthaired Pointer). I wish they could meet!

7. I feel so incredibly blessed to be marrying James Jaillet! And my new last name will rhyme with my first name. I’ll be Brett Jaillet!

We eat, we drink, and we sing.

So happy to be celebrating the holidays at home.

My sisters and I pose with my Grandpa, who is wearing the Alabama "Nick Saban-style" shirt we got him for Christmas.

Drumroll please….

The winner (randomly selected out of all the entries) is… Amber Gaddy! Congrats, Amber!

Thank you all for participating. And stay tuned for another giveaway after the New Year! And click here to see the bit of news I have to share!

My tablescape was easy. I used wooden cutting boards to create a rustic feel and allow the cheese to be the stars of the show. I put out a few more items (cherry tomatoes, olives, pigs in a blanket for a hearty snack) and I designed my own little cheese labels. I purchased a small rosemary tree (which I see as an investment because I can cook with it!) to bring the holiday spirit to the table. And I was inspired by the tree to pull off sprigs and use them as skewers for mozzarella (Thank you, Celebrate, for teaching me that little trick). And finally I created and printed out a sheet that suggested beer pairings for guests to use as a guide.

I also set up a bar, and asked everyone to place their empty bottles so we could admire what each person was drinking. And I set out a bottle opener and a little bowl for caps (to add to my collection, of course).

Host your own party! It is easy and inexpensive to pull off this time of year. And you can use my printables. Click here to download them.

Also — don’t forget to participate in my first giveaway! One lucky reader will win a $15 gift card to Whole Foods. Contest ends soon, so get your entries in asap. Check out the details here.

Because I am so very grateful to you, my readers, and because it is oh so fun to give this time of year, I’m giving away a $15 gift card to Whole Foods to one reader! You can have a little fun and pick up a nice bottle of wine, some fancy cheese, or a six pack of craft beer. (Obviously those items would be the first on my shopping list.) Or you can use it toward your holiday meal planning/budget.

You can enter four ways. Each option counts as an entry, so you can have up to four entries altogether.

1. Comment on this post and tell me what special dish or meal is part of your holiday tradition. (Note: Liking this post does not count as an entry.)

2. Subscribe to cactus & kudzu. You can do so by clicking the follow button on the top left (if you’re a WordPress user), or you can click the signup button on the right toolbar under Email Subscription.

3.  Tweet the following post to your Twitter followers: I hope I win the holiday giveaway at cactus & kudzu! @brettbralley: http://tinyurl.com/7zp9sdc

(Note: Be sure to include my Twitter handle (@brettbralley) in the Tweet!)

4. Post a link to this entry on your Facebook page. (Leave me an additional comment letting me know you posted it.)

Contest ends Tuesday, Dec. 20 at 12 p.m. central time. Winner will be announced Wednesday, Dec. 21, and the card should be in the mail shortly after!

Happy Holidays!

—Brett