Chef Biography
Born in the early 1950’s in Pittsburgh, PA., Jeff Blank was raised in Houston and graduated from Oklahoma State University with a degree in hotel and restaurant management. While working at the Lakeway Resort in Austin, Texas., he met Great Chef Gert Rausch. They opened the Wineskin Restaurant in Snowmass, Colorado.,in 1973 and five years later, with no snow nor diners, they closed it. The lesson …never own a restaurant that is dependent on the weather.
Chef Jeff went on to work the next three years in San Antonio, and Chef Gert opened Austin’s Courtyard Restaurant. In 1984, Chef Blank moved to Austin, and tied up with Chef Rausch to open Hudson’s on the Bend. Great Chefs caught up with both chefs in 1986 and taped Chef Blank for their Great Chefs of the West series for sponsor Billy Arhos of KLRU-TV and the other 300+ PBS stations
In 2002, Billy Arhos and Terry Lickona who started and ran Austin City Limits, reached out to Chef Jeff Blank to help spearhead the Austin City Limit Music Festival’s food court. He invented a wrapped chicken in a tortilla and then popped into a paper drink cone and called it the “Hot’n’ Crunchy Chicken Cone”. In 2013, he opened the Mighty Cone, with different variations, in downtown Austin.
Hudson’s on the Bend still operates on the shores of Lake Travis, and Chef Jeff Blank still conducts cooking classes when time permits.
Recipes
Wild Game and Mushroom Terrine
Serving: 20 Print Wild Game and Mushroom Terrine By Great Chefs November 10, 2015 The richness of game marries perfectly with the woodsy taste of wild mushrooms in this terrine, and the center medallion of venison wrapped in green spinach makes a stunning presentation. The pate has every wonderful woodland taste imaginable, from the game […]
Pork Tenderloin Stuffed with Chorizo
Serving: 5 Print Pork Tenderloin Stuffed with Chorizo By Great Chefs November 10, 2015 This dish gives new meaning to the term sweet and sour. The tangy apple chutney is a wonderful complement to the succulent pork stuffed with spicy sausage. Use any leftover sausage for breakfast, fried as patties and served with eggs. The […]