Cooking in the Fishbowl

This weekend is going to feature a couple firsts. I’m entering a Chili cook off on Friday, and have two pieces of art that are going to be in an art show on Saturday. The art is ready and I’m proud to show it. I don’t expect it to be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s fun and original. While I would love for someone to bid and take home both pieces, I wouldn’t be sad about bringing them home and adding them to the grotto. It’s just cool to have the opportunity to show them off. I’ve done a fair bit of design-on-demand, but this is the first time I’ve ever created artwork that I hoped someone might want to buy. The chili? Oh, I am so less prepared. The one thing I can guarantee is that it’s not going to be like the others. I rummaged through the freezer and pantry to see what might go in the pot. A pork tenderloin? Some bacon? A half pound of ground pork. Anasazi beans? Dried chiles? No, I’m not doing a straight-up pork chili. Nor am I sacrificing the prime NY steaks I found. Tri tip? Bott...

When I was much younger, I settled on cheesecake as my favorite birthday cake. We’re talking the Jello-brand sort with canned cherries and a graham cracker crust.  Though I have fond memories, I’m certain I would find that rendition a sickly-sweet disappointment if I had it now. But the memory motivated me to learn how to make a proper cheesecake. I’m not much of a baker, but if you want a cheesecake or a banana cream pie, I can probably deliver. Still need to work out those Draeger’s chocolate gateaus, though. If you know me, you might be wondering why I’m talking birthday cake in March. No, I’m not still celebrating *my* birthday, it turns out Mark shares my fondness for cheesecake. Of course he does. Turns out I was wrong, mom—we have rather a lot in common. It just took some time for that to become apparent. This has nothing to do with baking, but that really struck me as we were hanging out with my friend John today. The discussion turned to dating, particularly app-based dati...