It doesn't seem that long ago...

During a dinner of pasta and sauce I had prepared for Mrs. COBW (at that time my sweet, hot, new girlfriend) and my roommates, I recoiled in shock and horror as I watched her pour sugar out of a bag onto her portion and then mix it in! Can you imagine that? That was how she ate pasta! With about a 1/4 to 1/2 cup of sugar in it! There were times when I forgot what she did to her pasta and when asked if I wanted to finish her plate was mortified to bite into this sickeningly-sweet blech!

To me that makes her transformation from pasta-adulterator into an able cook an amazing one. Today, she's a great cook, with good flavor intuition and growing skills. Some of her dishes are my favorite things to eat and that is no small compliment.

Beef picadillo is an easy-to-prepare, full-flavored rustic Portuguese dish. Tender beef strips in a spicy, rich and delicious gravy, accented with salty pimenta salgada and black olives. My first experience with this dish was at the Terra Nostra restaurant in Fall River, Massachusetts, where it is offered as an appetizer.

Beef picadillo is best with sirloin tips but it will work really well with many economical cuts of beef including London Broil, top round, etc. When using more economical cuts of beef be sure to increase the simmering time so the beef reaches desired tenderness.

As recipes go, this one is easy and quick! These wings are GENUINE Bufalo wings (no, the spelling is correct), because these spicy and delicious little bombs use both Mexico's Bufalo brand Jalapeno hot sauce and Bufalo brand Chipotle hot sauce. Both these hot sauces can be purchased inexpensively from my friends at MexGrocer.com. As far as cooking these wings goes, I'm going to give a nod to good ol' Alton Brown on this recipe, though I do make a few changes.

Again, as recipes go, this one isn't rocket science, but the payoff far exceeds the effort!

Chili is one of those foods that people get passionate about. The definition of what chili is depends on where you live and what you're used to. Chili comes in many varieties made with an ever-growing list of ingredients. There are chili purists and chili revolutionaries. I've seen recipes calling for all manner of unorthodox ingredients including one that requires coffee, beer and wasabi. In our home we tend to fall on the purist half of the chili spectrum. For me, something that is changed too much, reaches a point of departure from the essence of what it was, and becomes something entirely different altogether (did you get all that?). I'm sure a "chili" made with coffee, beer and wasabi might be a damn fine thing, but is it still chili? Not to me. I'm fine with different meats, beans and corn (which would bother a real chili purist), but when it comes to coffee, wasabi or something like potatoes? That's just not chili to me. THERE ARE NO POTATOES IN CHILI!

The recipe below is about as far as we go with a chili recipe in my home. Mrs. COBW came up with this recipe as a healthier alternative to a red meat chili. It has since become one of my personal favorites and is ensconced on our homes heavy rotation dinner list. It is hearty, chunky, flavorful and delicious. Coupled with her cornbread it spells COMFORT FOOD to me. This recipe is enhanced with the use of Bufalo Brand Chipotle Sauce (our house hot sauce) and I additionally turn up the heat in my bowl with a good dollop of Dr. Gonzo's Jalapenomash.