Project Bear Fat .02

Project Bear Fat is off to a great start, 3 pounds in just the first week. One of the highlights was a lasagna handmade by my friend Heather. The before baking photo shows the snowcap of savory cheese and one of the red bell pepper hearts that covered the surface.

I was going to take a photo of it after baking, all golden brown, but the aroma was so compelling that I simple forgot about anything other than serving it up. Later, after a third serving, I really couldn't do anything other than stair into space like a contented cat.


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Project Bear Fat .01

Project Bear Fat was created upon the advice from a person of clout and persuasion. Project Bear Fat is all about eating, a thing that I enjoy doing several times a day, but, Project Bear Fat takes the consumption of food to the level of actually putting on and maintaining some serious weight.

Of course my first impulse was to gobble down a few boxes of cookies, eat ice cream after every meal, and switch over to eating peanut butter, jelly and banana sandwiches for breakfast. But sugar based fattening is not what I am necessarily after here.

Project Bear Fat is a bulking project that needs to come mostly from savory dishes high in protein. This means I will be eating a lot more meat than my flexitarian diet usually includes, and just to make Project Bear Fat harder, I am working out at the gym three days a week in order to re-awakening some of those mussels that have been asleep for several years.

Fortunately I am surrounded by family and friends who are exceptional cooks, and who all have special dishes guarantied to turn event the most scrawniest toothpick into a substantial red wood. To each of you, I savor every bite and the love there in.

What makes an White Elephant

The standard definition of a White Elephant is something that you have received as a gift that clearly demonstrates that the giver has absolutely no idea who you are and/or that the giver is seriously out of touch with the basic concepts of quality and good taste. There is also the possibility that the giver lives deep inside a world of their own making.

The unwrapping of a truly bad White Elephant gift often shakes the social etiquette of the receiver as a flood of emotions, questions and helplessness washes over the receiver's face. This often resulting in stuttered statements such as "Oh my, how very interesting." "Wow, where in the world did you find one of these?" " You made this yourself, No, Really?"

Surprisingly we often remember those White Elephants more clearly than most of those really good gifts we have received over the years. A backpack made from old dirty smelly blue jeans, The Jolly Monk, who pees in your face when you open his robe, the box full of juicy mold that was at one time a loaf of banana bread...

Above is a seed picture that I did using lentils, rice, and mustard seeds. It was created for the Gorham's Traditional White Elephant party. A party where all the guest are encouraged to regift some of the their more painful receivings. Among this years offerings/dumpings was an indoor dog poo pad, a portrait of a Spanish conquistador on black velvet, and and baby juicer (the kind that you use to actually juice babies with)

So be happy this new year.

Eating the best food in Taos, New Mexico

On our way to go hiking in the Wheeler Peak Wilderness we stopped in at the Dragonfly Cafe for a quick snack. It is a rustic house turned European cafe' where people eat in the front yard, the porch, and in the house. Organic ingredients locally grown, and the eggs that come from the chickens raised by the chief made this an intriguing choice. 

I ordered the Beef hash, and it was so good I had to take a picture! Yummy!

The beef hash looked more like a beef stew cup cake. Standing tall, crowned with a poached egg and drizzled with hollandaise sauce. It was served with two slices of extra hard bread that I used the to clean the plate with as opposed to licking the plate clean.

Hiking up the mountain later was a real struggle.