[84] & [85] Bacon, Roasted and Microwaved

How to Cook Everything, Revised Edition by Mark Bittman

Okay guys, I have to be honest. Angelique sent me “this Food Network Humor link”:http://foodnetworkhumor.com/2011/01/ridiculous-food-network-recipe-of-the-week-paula-deens-english-peas/ the other day, and I laughed a lot. Then I commented that I shouldn’t be laughing because I’ve posted some similar recipes, and would do so again.

Her response? “Two ingredients?” She was incredulous and doubtful that anything so unlike a recipe had ever appeared on this site. Just for honesty’s sake, please examine the following two links: “Rachel Ray”:http://foodnetworkhumor.com/2010/11/the-most-ridiculous-food-network-recipe-of-all-time/ and “MetaCookbook.”:http://www.metacookbook.com/archives/37-18-Bacon,-in-our-toaster-oven-broiler.html

Of course, we admitted it was a bit of a cop-out from the get-go. And we tried to make it up to you by including an amusing story to go with your cop-out bacon. Furthermore, if you didn’t know this already, all the photos on our page go back to our flickr site, and some of the photos have “notes” on them.… Continue reading →

[73] Coq Au Vin

Cover of Cooking for Two

I can’t remember why I decided to make this recipe. The sane and reasonable reason would have been, “Because I didn’t want any leftovers before Thanksgiving” and that may have played a small role. However, probably not as large a role as you might expect. I think the biggest reason was wanting something that wasn’t out of How to Cook Everything. Basically, I wanted to cook out of a cookbook we haven’t used in awhile.

On top of that, a very sane Thanksgiving reason also encroached. Not only did I not want leftovers before the big food day, I knew I wanted more freezer space as I cooked beforehand and for leftovers afterward. So I did a lot of digging through my freezer to see what I could use.… Continue reading →

[58] Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

How to Cook Everything, Revised Edition by Mark Bittman

Until a few days ago, I’d never eaten brussels sprouts. If I recall correctly, this is because my mother loathes them. Like most people, as a child/teen, I mostly ate what my parents fed me. Especially when it came to vegetables, because I certainly wasn’t putting vegetables in my mouth of my own accord! (I wish now that hadn’t been true then. It might’ve made doing so now easier. I am getting better. Evidence? You’re reading it.)

Thus, I really hate peas, and all things that taste like peas, to this day. Peas being basically the only vegetable my father would eat (at least in any quantity). My mother hates peas, but served a ton of them anyway. I just don’t get why she’d do that to us (us being her, my sister and me).… Continue reading →

[51] Beer-Glazed Black Beans with Bacon (and Tomatoes!)

How to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman

Oh man, oh man! I’m so far behind on getting recipes up, and I’m not quite sure how that happened. Still, it’s an exciting time for me. We knocked out seven recipes last week (including this one and the previous post), and are on target to knock out another seven or eight this week. And that’s including having punked out and had pizza last night, our attending a game night Thursday, and our being off to a birthday celebration Saturday.

Woo! Of course, that means I better get a crackin’ on posting these old recipes, eh? Well, here’s the starter.

My hint for this recipe is to be careful with your chili/chile powder.

h2. Ingredients

4 – 8 oz bacon, cut into cubes or small pieces
1 onion, chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic (I just used about 3 big cloves.)… Continue reading →

[46] Pasta Carbonara

How to Cook Everything, Revised Edition by Mark Bittman

You’ll notice this recipe looks a touch out of order. Specifically, you might be wondering, “Where is recipe #45?” Well, I didn’t get any response on whether “Everyday Pancakes” out of “How to Cook Everything” and “How to Cook Everything Vegetarian” were multiple recipes or a single recipe. So, for the moment, I’m counting them as separate recipes, but not giving a post to something you’ve already heard about unless something truly interesting happens, or I figure out a very good new technique or something. That’s boring. So, let’s move on to more interesting topics.

I picked last night’s dinner idea mostly out of my brain, assuming one of my cookbooks would have a recipe. Actually, to be honest, I assumed more than one would. I was wrong, and so we ended up with yet another Bittman recipe.… Continue reading →