Upcoming changes

Things are going to get very fishy on here in the next few weeks—literally. Practicing Catholics 14 or older who are medically able to do so are bound by liturgical laws not to eat the meat of warm-blooded animals on the 7th Wednesday before Easter (Ash Wednesday) and every intervening Friday (until and including the last Friday before Easter, Good Friday).  It is out of this liturgical law that the custom that Catholics eat fish on Fridays, especially during the season of Lent was created. Furthermore, Catholics who are at least 18 and who have not yet turned 60 who are medically able to do so are told to have 3 meals such that the two small meals do not equal or surpass the large meal on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.

Since I definitely fit both categories (I’m 21 and healthy: this means that I’m older than 14, and I’m older than 18 but not yet 60) and you may also be in at least one of these categories, especially if you are Catholic, you will notice a number of changes coming to the content and difficulty level of the dishes being posted here between now and mid-April. This coming Friday, up until (and including) April 8, every recipe will contain fish. The recipes will all be shorter, simpler, and will all be designed to have smaller portion sizes. In addition, there will not be any recipes posted on Friday, April 15, but at least one recipe will be posted instead on Saturday night, April 16.

Beginning Friday, April 22, portion sizes will increase back to normal, and, if the dish is a main course, the protein will no longer necessarily be fish. Recipes will return to their normal complexity.

Hummingbird Tales: A friend's review

{Before we get started: Brittney is a dear friend without whom I definitely would not be so close to publishing my own book. All of the things I say here take into account the fact that we’re friends and have been for years (and all the praise I give her and her book are absolutely genuine, not just because we’re friends). She doesn’t even know I’m writing this review, so no, I’m not being paid to write this. What you’re about to read is about 1700 words of spoiler-free praise of one author’s work by another author who happens to be good friends with her.}

I love to write. I've published dozens of recipes and other short-form pieces on this blog, and I love taking a walk out in nature and just writing down my thoughts for the day. For the most part, I've stayed away from long-form writing, with a notable exception: I have a 100,000-word manuscript I've been working on since I was 15 which I hope to finish soon. Shortly after I opened my Instagram account, I wanted to find out if there was a community of people like me: teenagers who were really passionate about something and who were writing books about their passions as I was. In August 2016, I started working on a book (the manuscript I mentioned above), and I knew I would need community and friends to support me through the project. I found one author around my age fairly quickly, around the time I was 16 or 17. I looked around her profile, and I was pretty amazed by what I saw. So, I followed Brittney, and pretty soon, we had messaged for the first time. We introduced ourselves to each other, and we talked about our books. Forsaken had come out a few months before, so, definitely prematurely (in retrospect, years prematurely, since I’m days away from turning 21, and yet I’m still nowhere near being ready to publish), I had lots of questions about formatting, and editing, her process, and pretty much anything an aspiring author would venture to ask a published author with whom he was messaging on Instagram and who was friendly enough and had enough free time to actually respond.

Through those initial interactions, I grew closer to her, and now I’m lucky to call Brittney a very good friend. I got involved with Brittney’s second novel, Fifty Days (which, by the way, has won several awards, so you should totally check it out!) when it was basically finished. In 2018, she put out a message asking for beta-readers, in the midst of all the adorable shots of her cats and the other glimpses into her life she gave us on social media. I didn’t really know what beta-reading was, so I messaged back saying I was… cautiously interested, but that she’d need to bear with me, explain what I needed to do, and correct any erroneous assumptions a few hasty Google queries might have created.

But eventually, I figured out exactly what I was supposed to do: read Brittney’s book ahead of its release to the general public later that summer and help catch plot holes, grammar issues, formatting quirks—anything that a second pair of eyes would be good for before publication. I loved the idea, so I sent Brittney my email address, and I soon received a PDF of Fifty Days. There were a few minor issues (when aren't there?) if I remember correctly: something had corrupted the PDF, so she had to resend it, there were a few minor formatting glitches once the PDF was in good working order, a few typos, minor plot holes. But the communication with Brittney was great, and all the problems were sorted out. Though I’m nowhere near ready to put out a call of my own, working with Brittney helped me to understand what to expect when my own book will eventually get to that same stage, and so I’m very thankful to Brittney for giving me that wonderful opportunity. Truthfully, by the end of the beta-reading process, once I’d read the fiftieth day in Fifty Days, it was one of my favorite books, if not my favorite outright. A few more weeks went by during which Brittney sorted out the logistics of publishing, promoting, and distributing the book; took our advice into consideration and implemented some of our changes; and made her own final changes to the manuscript. Once the beta process was complete, I got a physical copy of Fifty Days, personalized with a signed message for me.

In 2020, my beta-reading epicenter shifted from North Texas to Singapore, and I beta-read a novel written by another friend I met online. I had no apprehension that time since I knew from working with Brittney what a beta-reader’s role was supposed to be. I enjoyed the experience immensely, and I was impressed with how many of my friends around my age (late teens through early 20s) were published or were on the cusp of publishing. That other friend’s book, as far as I know, is still in final edits, but it’ll be out soon, I’m sure. That book too will be a phenomenal read by another young author who I'm honored to call a friend.

I think it was shortly after I finished working with my friend from Singapore on her book that Brittney put out another post, asking if we wanted a collection of short stories that she’d written to be published. Knowing how much I liked Brittney’s previous work, I was so happy that this was even a possibility. That collection eventually became Hummingbird Tales. 

Hummingbird Tales came out in mid-September of last year, and I got it in the mail having made its way all the way from Texas soon after. Unlike with Fifty Days, I wasn’t one of the beta-readers, so I only read Hummingbird Tales once it was released to the general public. Unfortunately, though, I couldn’t read it when I got it, since less than a week later, I got sick for the first time that semester. That flu lasted a few weeks, I had maybe a week of full recovery, and then I was down again, until just before the end of the semester. Then, I left my apartment for 6 weeks, unfortunately realizing as soon as I got home for winter break that I’d left Hummingbird Tales on my desk.

I came back to my apartment to find a raw, engaging, book that I know was written from the heart, a book that demands emotional vulnerability from both author and reader. And those, honestly, are the best books. I’ve read quite a few anthologies, but none have woven together fiction and non-fiction as Hummingbird Tales did. Britney is an incredible writer, and you’re practically guaranteed to feel like you’re in the scene she’s laying out for you. I had already read some of Brittney’s prior work, and I remember how blown away I had been by her ability to achieve this when she was even younger, and yet, the sky is the limit. Keep it up, friend! You got this! This book truly is one-of-a-kind and should be on almost anyone’s reading list. So, if you like collections of short fiction (and non-fiction) pieces, go get Hummingbird Tales!

I started reading it a few days ago after I finished all the work I needed to do that day, and I pretty much didn’t put it down until I finished it at bedtime, except to send Brittney a few updates along the way. The book is organized into 3 parts which contain a total of 48 short pieces, so in theory, you have 48 good stopping points—more than that, actually, since some of the stories have multiple parts. But trust me when I say that you’ll only want to put it down when you finish. So wait until you have a few spare hours all in one unbroken period and then sit down and enjoy Brittney’s latest. A great storyteller is one who puts words on a page in a way that transports you into the world in which those events occur—real or not—in such a way as though you feel yourself a spectator in that world in real-time. This is a twofold challenge: setting up the world in which the events occur and then writing the events themselves. Fueled both by her real experiences and a vast imagination, the worlds of Hummingbird Tales are among the most vivid I’ve ever read. This book receives my highest recommendation, and surely is and will remain one of the best I’ve ever read. Sometimes, it takes a while to find your style as much as a reader as it does as a writer. As far as reading styles go, I've found what's as close to a perfect match as there can be, in Brittney's writing. Beta-reading or not, having such close access to an author—this is even more true if you're friends with that author—provides a reading experience unlike any other. With this close access comes the opportunity to have greater access to the author and thus to better understand her voice by knowing what her life is like. It creates opportunities for spontaneous discussions about writing or anything else. Most of all, it builds community.

What started out with Brittney has grown to a community of dozens of authors who I know. We all have two common goals: to write as well as we possibly can and to motivate each other to do the same. Even if a book only has one listed author, so many more people are vital to its success. And that’s one of my favorite things about writing: the community. I’ve had a lot of doubts about my own work, but this wonderful little community I’ve found myself in has been nothing but supportive. Thanks to Brittney for being my entry point into this wonderful community, and thanks to everyone else for your support!

If you know Brittney well like I do, you know about the importance of sea turtles in her life, as creatures that give hope, joy, and meaning to life. Well, Brittney, thanks for being a sea turtle in my life through our friendship. I am the writer I am today—and I’ve kept at it for so long—because you’ve always been so kind, motivating, supportive, and friendly. Whoever you are, wherever you are, you are perfectly equipped to take my good friend’s advice: go be a sea turtle in someone’s life! Be for them a source of hope, joy, and life. 

____________

You can find Brittney on any of her social media channels:
On Twitter as Brittney Kristina (@mindfulbrittney) / Twitter
On Instagram as Brittney Kristina Dear (@brittney.kristina) • Instagram photos and videos
On Facebook as Brittney Kristina - Home | Facebook
On Goodreads as Brittney Kristina (Author of Forsaken) (goodreads.com)
Online at Mindfulness Blog | Mindfully Brittney (brittneykristina.wixsite.com)
You can buy her books at Amazon.com: Brittney Kristina: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle

Super Bowl Party Wings

Credit

The most-watched broadcast of the whole year in the United States is just a few days away, and with the game come several traditions: listening to see if the singer will spontaneously forget the lyrics and/or the melody of the Star-Spangled Banner, hoping the coin actually flips when someone tosses it, arguing with friends and family about which commercials were the best or the worst, enjoying or thoroughly hating the halftime show… the list goes on. Of course, here I mean to list only the traditions not proper to the game of football itself.

Today’s recipe comes out of another one of those traditions that are integral to the game experience, but which have nothing to do with the game per se: food. Specifically, finger foods, namely, chicken wings.

As I’ve covered many times in several chicken recipes already posted here, poultry and fowl have two different kinds of meat: white and dark. White meat is the meat that has the least myoglobin, hemoglobin, proteins, and connective tissue. Dark meat is just the opposite—lots of myoglobin, hemoglobin, proteins, and connective tissues. Especially because of the differences in that last category, dark meat tolerates a much higher temperature without going dry. (In fact, if you go to my Signature Dish, you’ll see that there I tell you to cook the meat 20-plus degrees more well-done than “well-done” for chicken, according to the government.) 

Connective tissue melts at a very high temperature, which explains why it’s beneficial to “overcook” (according to the FDA/USDA) dark meat—because if dark meat is eaten at 160, the experience will be suboptimal since the collagen in the dark meat will not have fully converted into gelatin. This collagen-to-gelatin melting reaction is part of what makes poultry (and other meats) “juicy.” White meat has very little collagen, so it’s much easier to dry it out, which explains why it's important to stop the cooking process as soon as white meat reaches a safe temperature. Even 5 or 10 extra degrees will feel overcooked and grainy or gritty if you deal with white meat.

Anyways, back to the wings. Chicken wings, if they’re intact, look kind of like a Z. One end was obviously connected to the body of the bird. The first of the three segments of the “Z,” the part closest to that connection to the body via a joint, is the drumette. After the drumette comes the flat, which has less meat on it. Further out still is the wingtip, which has the least meat. When you eat a chicken wing and you find yourself in a part of the wing with one thick bone, that’s the drumette. If you see two thinner bones, that’s the flat. If you can, try to buy wings that only have the first two sections, since the third section is basically only bone and/or cartilage. (But if you’re making chicken stock, buy whole wings—you need the extra cartilage in that case.) If you prefer one of the parts of the wings, of course, buy only that part. For all intents and purposes to a home cook, the flat and the drumette can be treated exactly the same way.

Here, I’ll present 3 recipes for chicken wing rubs. All these wings should be cooked the same way: in a single layer on a baking sheet in a 400-degree oven until they reach at least 180 degrees internally. 40 minutes should be perfect, but that could fluctuate depending on how accurate your oven is, how big it is, how full it is with chicken, etc. Go by how cooked the chicken is, not by how much time has passed. If you deal with wings enough, you’ll know by feel if they are done.

First, let’s begin with a true classic for the chicken wing: buffalo sauce. A day before the wings which will become buffalo wings are to be served, take them out of their containers and place them on a sheet tray (ideally with a wire rack to maximize air circulation). Liberally salt the wings. Leave them uncovered in the fridge on the sheet tray for 24 hours. This process is known as dry brining. It more thoroughly seasons the wings, and it dries out the skin, allowing for more crispy skin that won’t go soggy even when the wings are totally coated in the various sauces. (This method should, like the cooking method, be observed with all the sauce combinations. Buffalo sauce is a mixture of butter, hot sauce, and spices. 

Over medium heat on a stovetop in a small saucepan, 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter per dozen wings, and add to that garlic powder, onion powder, fresh cracked black pepper, and your choice of paprika style (hot, smoked, sweet, or any combination thereof). Whisk to dissolve the powders. Once the powdered spices have been activated by the hot fat in the butter and the spices are fragrant, add to that mixture 1 ounce of hot sauce per dozen wings (more if you like the heat, less if you don’t). Whisk again. Cook over medium-low heat for another 5 minutes. As soon as the wings are done in the oven, place them in your biggest heatproof bowl and transfer your sauce into that same container where the wings are. If you have a big bowl, you can toss your wings by flicking your wrists, but if you aren’t comfortable with the technique, use a pair of tongs to toss the wings and evenly distribute the sauce to coat all the wings.

For lemon-pepper wings, follow the same procedure of dry-brining and then roasting the wings. The sauce is again made up of 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter per dozen wings, plus the zest and juice of 3 lemons per 2 dozen wings, salt to taste, and 20 cranks of freshly ground black pepper per dozen wings. I have worked with “lemon-pepper” seasonings before, and I have also made my own lemon-pepper chicken (not necessarily wings), and the two versions of the seasoning—the premade “lemon-pepper” and the seasoning I make myself—are worlds apart. Lemons are quite acidic, so if you want, feel free to use limes, oranges, or another citrus you prefer instead. If you would like to, you could also add a shot of tequila to the butter, fresh citrus juice and zest, and ground pepper. If you do this and you choose to make tequila-lemon-pepper wings, be sure the alcohol completely evaporates before using this sauce with the wings, especially if you’re making these wings for a party and little kids might be watching the game with you.

This third recipe is a riff on the Signature Dish I mentioned above. Combine the spices from the signature dish (paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, dill, oregano, thyme, basil, salt, fresh ground black pepper) with the butter, and, as before, infuse the spices into the sauce, then toss the wings in the sauce as soon as they’re done.

Finally, a honey mustard sauce. Combine the butter, garlic powder, salt, pepper, paprika, and 2 teaspoons each of good Dijon or whole grain mustard and raw clover or other wildflower honey. Adjust the seasonings as necessary so that the tangy mustard, sweet honey, and rich butter are balanced. As before, prepare the sauce and toss it immediately with the wings.

(Credit to Bon Appetit's BA's Best Wings)