Cooking in the Fishbowl

 I was trolling recipes for how to cook wings in my combo convection oven/microwave and came across this bit of advice: Place leftover beings in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.  Alrighty, then. Just for the record, there were no leftover beings OR wings tonight. They were, however, just ok. And not nearly as good as the oven-roasted ones I made back when I was staying up on First Hill. So far, my attempts at using the convection function have had lackluster results. The secret to crispy skin, this recipe claimed, was to add some baking soda when seasoning the wings. This seems like it might have some merit...but didn't work with the prescribed technique. Pretty sure the ones I liked were: Seasoned with the usual, salt, pepper, Chimayo "dry rub". Seared in some olive oil in my trusty cast iron pan. Roasted (in said trusty pan) at 400 degrees. As I recall, the skin was good, but not what I'd call crispy. Next time, maybe I'll add a teaspo...

  You're probably thinking that doesn't at all sound low carb or grain free. But really, it was! And, perhaps more surprisingly, it was pretty darn good.  There's been a flood of gluten-free pasta products the last few years, but most still rely on high-carb ingredients.  I did some research over the holiday break on ways to make low-carb pasta. Which got me to trolling the pasta aisle to see if there were any new commercial offerings, as it does indeed seem possible. Low and behold: Explore Cuisine Edamame & Mung Bean Fettuccine. 6 grams net carbs per 2oz serving--which is about 1/3 more than what is on that plate. No way I could have eaten more. Coincidentally, a friend recommended I try this, not knowing it was already sitting on the counter. Good call, Ananda! Ingredients 1.5 oz Edamame & Mung bean pasta 1 tbsp minced garlic 2 tbsp minced shallot 1 cup chopped mushrooms 2 tbsp blue cheese 2 tbsp mascarpone cheese 2 oz pecans Generous handful baby spi...

Took my new Staub tall cocotte for a test drive tonight! I haven't figured out where to store it, but it was the last piece of cooking hardware I *really* wanted to add to the menagerie.  When I was perusing meal ideas, lemony, citrusy things appealed. I think it's because I associate those flavors with brighter, sunnier times. Yeah, I miss the "margarita tree".  Haven't (yet) sorted how to grow lemons here, but can source bags of little Meyer lemons reliably. For a price I choose to ignore. I miss the Lisbons, but I'd rather buy the Meyers by the bag than pay a ridiculous sum for a single Eureka lemon. Yeah, I'm kind of a lemon snob.  Kept this simple & just served it up with some greens. A slightly more interesting spin on protein + salad.   Ingredients 2 whole chicken legs 1 Meyer lemon, zested & juiced 1/2 yellow onion, diced 4 cloves garlic, minced Chicken stock Amontillado sherry Crystal sauce Olive oil Dried thyme, basil, and marjoram Granul...

I suspect I am not alone in being tired of figuring out how to feed myself. Raise your hand if you've eaten way too many cans of tuna and bowls of soup the last couple years? Fairly early on, I realized that I needed to have a dinner plan before the Thai place around the corner opened. Or be able to throw something together for lunch in less time than it took to walk down the street to the Grub Hut. Even so, the "Covid 15" can be largely attributed to take out noodles and fries. I'm about a month into scaling back on the carbs, with about 5 weeks to go before I'm supposed to be ready to ride the Costa Brava on horseback. I was fatter and less fit when I was cantering down the El Camino Real in Oaxaca five years ago, but there's no question it will be easier and more enjoyable if I shed a few pounds.  While a salad or veggies and a protein is an easy low carb meal, it can get a bit monotonous. It's a fine fallback (right along with those cans of tuna), but ...