Fat Meets Flame

That's a slightly ironic title, considering my recent cooking efforts have been lower in fat than normal.

I love butter, olive oil, lard, you name it. If it isn't awesome for me I probably love the taste of it. But, Spring has a way of putting us all on notice.

It whispers, "Oh, that's right ... you thought swimsuit season was so far away, but here's that sunshine. Here comes the warm weather faster than you expected!"

Devious being.

I've done my best to make sure we only have healthy options on hand. That's when I do things like this:

Asian Beef Stir Fry.

Lox on scrambled eggs! These were leftovers from an event I did this past weekend. 

There's no point in throwing out the last vestiges of smoked salmon. You know I'm right about this.

Which brings me to my next point. I've been meaning to update on some food reading I've been doing. After my lovely cousins in San Francisco sent me this gem, I haven't been the same:

Thank you Jessica and Mike. Your support means the world to me ... You read me like a book.

Badum-ching!

Oh, I love puns.

So I've been taking notes and picking through chapters with precision. So far so good, but every once in a while I could use a lighthearted read before I lay my head down. So I've been picking this up every once in a while:

This is perfect for short stories and articles ... for those times when you want to read something but a chapter full of anything is too much of a commitment.

In the spirit of my doing work so you don't have to, here are a few of my favorites. One or two of them I've run across already, but a re-read is never a bad thing.

1) Peasants, by Geoff Nicholson. I'll admit, I hadn't read any of his work (knowingly) until now. And then I found his blog. The guy is a genius. The story is too short. I, too, hope to one day own a swine to call my own- and feed it my kitchen scraps. Wait til you get a load of his blog. Now *that* is a good time. The title alone stops you in your proverbial tracks.

2) From Kenya, With Love, by Rick Nelson. I love the truth of food. It brings people of dynamic backgrounds together with ease. Everyone's gotta' eat- interesting how food can help us to magically cross boundaries, oceans, large expanses of land, without ever leaving our seat at the dinner table.

3) Purple Reign, by Alan Brouilette. Lots of fun on this one. I've felt that rush of performing in a kitchen. It's thrilling- addicting. Plus, I love Prince ... and potatoes ... and pie.

4) And circling around to what this whole post was about ... intuitive cooking ...

How To Become An Intuitive Cook, by Daniel Duane.

My cooking skills were learned through years of not learning any real basics. My mother is the type of cook that has a litany of cookbooks that she never opens. Her food is always flawless, but where she gets her guidance, I'll never know. This was my introduction to cooking. Just make the food. Know what your ingredients taste like, throw them together, and stay confident. When I finally got down to the brass tax of learning how to cook professionally, there were a lot of stricter elements I wasn't really prepared for. There were skills I hadn't learned the correct way ... there is always room for improvement, but it seems that my experience was the exact opposite of Mr. Duane's. This could be an asset, it could be a downfall. Only time will tell.

I haven't gotten much farther in the book. I read one or two a night depending on how early I hit the sack and how tired I am. If there's anything worth reporting, I'll certainly let you know.

Happy reading ... happy eating! xo