Sorry I really haven't been posting recently. If it makes you feel better, I haven't been cooking recently so there's been very little to talk of. Mostly due to an obnoxious bout of carpal tunnel that cropped up on Thursday when I was peeling potatoes. It got worse on Friday and, thanks to my wrist brace, is only getting better now. Also, aside from the pancakes I made on Friday for Julie and her mom, it's been leftovers for us all until about Sunday night, but you read about that already. ...

Aside from breakfasts (I made turkey hash last weekend with the left over braised turkey legs) I haven't had a meal that didn't involve turkey since Thursday. I mean, everything came out great so it wasn't horrible, but I miss variety. So what's for dinner tonight? Smoked turkey legs (somehow those didn't go to the table... :)) with collard greens. But no mashed potatoes. No stuffing. No sweet potatoes. Just greens and smoked meat and some black eyed peas. But what about the rest of the recipes for thanksgiving? Aside from the bread and the turkeys, I've already given you ...

I'm way too exhausted to finish writing about all the food we had today so these photos will just have to suffice. I'll explain it all later.

Until that sucker comes out of the oven. For now, feast your eyes upon Darth Birder: Smoke Smoking Smoked

I'm already exhausted and it's not yet Thursday. Shit; it's not yet Wednesday. Next year I'm letting someone else cook. Tonight I've: Made a brine (basic Cook's Illustrated brine) Made sweet potatoes (mashed with a butter rum sauce) Made the base for Pumpkin ice cream And I should be starting the rolls tonight, but really, I'm just way too exhausted to do anymore. It just makes me tired to realize that I still have to smoke one of the turkeys, brine and roast the ...

So that tally hasn't gotten any larger, and I did more cooking. I guess once you've cut yourself twice in one day you start to get more careful. Also I'm holding off from photos until the actual event. For now, you're just going to have to deal with stock image photography. So far I've gotten the stuffing, cranberry sauce and gravy made. Tonight I'll be starting the rolls (making the sponge) and doing the sweet potatoes as well as brining the turkey that is getting smoked tomorrow night. Stuffing

We're off to a fantastic start so far. Two cuts (left hand thumb and index finger — they did a fantastic job sharpening my knives, by the way) and a burn, three inches down my left forearm (it's an oven thing.) I can't wait to see what the final tally is. And I also can't wait until I can start touch typing again. It's very difficult to use your middle finger to hit the keys your index finger is supposed to be hitting in addition to the keys its supposed to ...

Sometimes it's nice when Julie isn't around for dinner. I get to make things like pork chops smothered in sauerkraut (that's actually for Saturday). Or I get to make shellfish. Like mussels in white wine sauce with linguini and barely cooked broccoli rabe. And god I love Mussels. And not necessarily these pythons to which my hands are attached (sorry I couldn't resist). Moules frites are my preferred way to eat these, but making french fries is a pain in the ass (and uses a lot ...

Julie learned a good lesson today. me: about dinner? Julie: tonight? Julie: whatever Julie: you want me: whatever i want? me: don't say that Julie: okay me: because i want to make pork chops smothered in sauerkraut with apples and onions Julie: right! Rule number 1: If you're a picky eater, don't let your not-picky fiance (yes, the masculine form is finace, by the way) choose dinner. Okay, so there's no rule number two. Whatever. I'll come up ...

So I did make my chicken stock on Saturday. Thanks to my new multi-pot it was super easy. 5 chicken backs, 2 carrots broke in half, 2 stalks celery split down the middle, 4 peeled coves of garlic, 1 quartered skin on yellow onion, a small handful (18?) of peppercorns and a few stalks of fresh thyme with water just to cover. Bring to a boil and then bring down to a simmer. Let simmer for 6-8 hours or until the bones crush easily with a pair of ...

Sorry I haven't been in much of a cooking mood this week — it's been pretty hectic. We went to my dad's for dinner on Wednesday night (which was awesome, of course: pork chops with onion gravy, mashed potatoes and brussel sprouts) and then last night I wasn't feeling all too well so we just had soup and grilled cheese. Of course, grilled cheese should merit some sort of a discussion here. (Sadly the soup was not homemade — it was late and I was really hungry, although the latest issue of Saveur has got me major craving Udon.) ...

When I was in my teens (actually, probably before that), there was this vegan cookbook but out called Soy! Not Oi!. It was replete with some downright horrible recipes, but it did include a listening guide. But this phrase is so ingrained my head that whenever I hear the word "soy" all I want to do is say "NOT OI!" and raise my fist in the air and listen to Propagandhi while I pass massive amounts of vegan gas. This whole thought process inevitably ends up with my memory of ...

This doesn't have anything to do with cooking (don't worry dinner is cookin' away on the stove as we speak) but as of Sunday night I am engaged to the most beautiful, wonderful person I've ever met in my life. That is all.

Sorry about leaving this up incomplete and with no introduction. I was so full from eating the chili that I could barely think about cleaning, much less typing. Awesomely Julie usually cleans after I cook so that was an easy one for me. I just got to sit on the couch with Rob and play Halo 3. Ah, lazy Saturdays. But you're not here to read about my Saturday nights, now are you? No. You want food. And, really, it's probably much more interesting to write about that my day-to-day. (Hint: There's ...

Julie was very lucky this morning because the homemade brunch fairy decided to visit me. Yes, I feel like I can say she was lucky because I cooked for her. No, I'm not egotistical. Well. Okay. Maybe just a little. I couldn't help but to cook breakfast though. I rarely have eggs, potatoes, cheese, milk, bread, onions, garlic and butter in the same place at the same time in the morning, much less potatoes that were peeled and sliced. (Thank you potato spinach gratin!) And, what, with leftover roasted pumpkin I can make a simple potato-pumpkin hash. And a ...

First off, let me apologize for the lack of photos of the meal tonight. I didn't want to take photos because I didn't want to share with anyone; tonight was my anniversary with Julie so I made her a super nice meal. You will get to see the pie and the cat try to eat the chicken though. So for tonight I wanted to try to make something above and beyond my normal meals — and I'm not just talking about making a dessert (although I did!). Being that the cold ...