I’ve been really consistent with posts this year, right? Since everything slowed down a few months ago, it almost felt like the early days when I had an endless backlog of ideas, and time to make them! I missed last week, so now I’m trying to catch up. This one is simple, but it’ll surprise…
Category: Pork
“Bánh Mì” Carnitas Tacos
Flashback to 2012– it’s my senior year of high school, and we would do anything to rebel against the “powers that be” during the weeks leading up to graduation. After twelve years of waiting in long lines for terrible school lunches, the simple banh mi became an unconventional lunch time status symbol. My school was…
Chorizo Meatballs | Black Bean Purée
In today’s productive diversion from the state of the world, let’s talk about innovation. It took a while to find this old picture, but aww look at my early thought process. Chorizo-Stuffed Squid, Avocado Crema, and a Black Bean Cake. From what I remember, the squid and cream were awesome– but the bean cake dried…
Savory Crepes | Arugula & Spinach Gremolata
I’m on a roll– this makes it three weeks on the fly with new food. Ahhh, it’s good to be back. This week, I’m taking on breakfast– rather, brunch for dinner. I’m making crepes from scratch, and filling them with mushrooms, onions, and bacon. There’s a lot to unpack here, but it’s going to be…
Pecan-Crusted Pork Tenderloin | BlackBerry-Fennel Sauce
It’s always cool when I find old pictures buried on my laptop, especially from back in the days before Craving Mad. I had a lot of cool ideas that I can push even farther today. Take this Pecan-Crusted Chicken: I made this for the first time almost four years ago, and you can see derivatives…
Ras el-Hanout Rib Tips | Apple-Fennel Sauté
How did I forget about Ras el-Hanout? It was one of those gateway drugs- I mean spices- that got me started with a phase when I was obsessed with *attempting* Moroccan food. It’s been a while, but it’s good that I had it lying around when I ran out of other ideas. What else? Uh……
Grilled Italian Sausage | Smashed Cannellini Beans
There’s a good chance that you’re reading this after a long day– maybe you got up early, worked through lunch, stayed late? All three? Ouch. Sometimes you just need something quick, and filling and those Buzzfeed videos just aren’t hitting it for the day. Don’t lose hope! Look through all the Craving Mad posts under…
Black Eye Pea Stew
Simple, slow, and delicious. Sure, no one asked me to summarize this dish in three words or less…but I love a good challenge. I’ve had dried black eye peas in the house for about a year– initially to make akara, a Nigerian fritter that’s delicious…but labor intensive. I’m still craving it, but I am admittedly…
Five-Spice Braise
In another post that sounds much fancier than it really is…I give you: braising. Regardless of spices, or proteins, the basic process is the same: sear, then stew. Here, I decided to leave the pre-made 5-spice in the pantry, and try my hand with the raw ingredients. I had everything except Szechuan peppercorns, but I…
Seared Pork Chop | Pickled Fennel Salad
That’s right: this week I’m just searing a pork chop…I couldn’t think of anything special to do with it, but somehow it ended up with that awesome red color, so prepare for landing. This one turned out waaay better than I expected– just because it’s so simple. In fact, the only reason I didn’t call this…
Craving Mad 