Steve's Notebook

Creativity and Life

Food

My love of food, drink, and cooking began sometime when I was in college in the late 1990s. As a freshman, I would cook my own dinners at the "wok station" provided at the cafeteria.

Later on, when I moved off campus, I bought a cookbook called the "Better Homes and Gardens New Dieter's Cookbook," and began experimenting with the recipes. I would visit the stores to stock my kitchen and buy ingredients. It started as an attempt to save money by cooking at home, but developed into a passion for cooking.

I was never a bartender, but being a 21+ college student, I also developed a taste for alcoholic beverages. I built up my collection of liquors and bartending gadgets, and began experimenting with building cocktails. I also developed a taste for craft beers and tried new beers whenever I could.

Then while I was in graduate school, I met my future wife. We began going out to eat a lot, and I discovered the foodie world of trying different restaurants and styles of food.

These days, I still cook almost every day for my wife and three kids. There are about 50 unique dishes in "The Rotation," featuring dishes I've perfected for convenience and taste. I take pride in cooking Indian chicken biryani one night, Ghana peanut soup another night, and Peruvian lomo saltado the next night.

The love of food is a lifetime evolution. With this section of my blog, I hope to publicly explore new cuisines, restaurants, technologies, and ideas surrounding the world of food.

Cooking with Books: Just Four Ingredients Fast!

Food

  While established cooks might scoff, cooking with recipes is the best way you can learn how to cook.  All you have to do is find a recipe and follow the directions.  Yes, you will make mistakes, but each time you work your way through a recipe, you learn more about cooking.  It is a […]

Cook Meals Fit for a UFC Champion

Food

Georges St-Pierre (also known as GSP) was once considered the best welterweight fighter in the world.  He is a UFC 3-time welterweight champion.  In 2013, Tim Ferriss profiled GSP’s training diet, including a few recipes. I made two of the recipes, and they turned out surprisingly delicious.  They’re worth trying out even if you’re not […]

Roasted Beets with Fresh Mint and Chèvre

Food

I read a guest post by Darya Pino Rose on Tim Ferriss’ blog about convincing your loved ones to lose weight.  As an example, Darya wrote about both her and her father never liking beets but growing to love them after trying beets prepared in a particular way.  The particular way was listed as a […]

Cilantro Lime Chicken Thighs

Food

Makes 6 servings Ingredients 3 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs seasoned salt pan searing flour avocado oil 1 lime 16 oz jar of roasted salsa verde bunch of radishes, thinly sliced bunch of cilantro, chopped Directions Preheat oven to 350°F. Dust chicken with pan-searing flour and seasoned salt to taste. Heat oil in a large […]

Lemony Almond Bites

Food

A friend gave me a can of “mandorlita” that she picked up on a trip to Italy.  It is sweetened almond paste.  I tried a little and it was way too sweet to eat out of the can, so I decided to turn it into a baked dessert. I gathered some ingredients: A lemon An […]

Boneless Rib-Eye Steaks with Killa’ Chimichurri

Food

Boneless Rib-Eye Steaks with Killa’ Chimichurri and Mushrooms with Spicy Cajun and Wilted Spinach adapted from Rachael Ray 365 (affiliate link) ingredients: 2 of 12 ounce boneless rib-eye steaks Extra-virgin olive oil McCormick’s seasoning salt sea salt pepper 1 tsp dried oregano 1 tsp dried sage 1 tsp dried thyme 1 handful parsley 1 garlic clove […]