Eating

This wasn't supposed to be a Way. Wasn't even supposed to be a meal. It just happened. A pot of the most flavorful, satisfying, soul-warming soup. A beef brodo with everything in it.

Today: Happy National Bean Day. Tonight: something hot, steaming, rich but light. Something spectacularly delicious that cooks itself in one pot.

It's a weird thing, fish skin. It can be as a good as a really good potato chip. Thin, light, crisp, dry, slightly salty. Or it can be slippery, oily, chewy and even a little fatty. Something that could strike you as ... gross. Here's how you make the really good version.

Jamming to finish the last unfinished business before vacation. Delighted to make a great meal in six minutes. A fish entree that's thoroughly satisfying, hugely flavorful and completely healthful. Light but hearty, high-protein, zero glycemic load.

Next week: vacation. This week: lots of work to do - and great appreciation for batches of leftover deliciousness that require no real cooking. Like salsa verde-topped "tostadas" made from leftover polenta. Tart, sweet, spicy, warm, soft and crispy in each bite.

Molten Chocolate Cake. The last course of the last meal of the year. Out with a bang. A warm, soft semi-sweet one with a super-low glycemic load. Spectacular in your mouth, with or without Champagne.

In South Carolina, USA, they eat a lot of Hoppin' John next week. Rice and black-eyed peas. For some, it's the hangover cure. For others, it brings good luck for the New Year. In this version, South Carolina meets Italian cuisine. I feel lucky already.

'Tis the season for handheld snacks. Sometime between now and the end of New Year's Day, you're gonna eat some chips. So let's think about making Better Cheaper Chips. Chips that taste better. Chips that are actually healthy foods, not junk.

A cheese that puts the party in dinner party. A tradition that combines sitting around a fire with sharing and passing around good food. What more could you want?