If my father were a pizza, he'd be a cracker-thin crust, sauce just slightly thinner than tomato paste with a ton of marjoram, barely able to support the toppings of ground Portuguese linguiça, green pepper, and onion, just like so many pizzas he ordered from Pa Raffa's in New Bedford, MA when I was growing up.

This isn't comprehensive, but it's not too far off, either: Bulleit Bourbon, Makers Mark, Glenkeith 10, Aberlour 16, Laphroig 10, Lagavulin 16, Macallan 18, Mortlach 16, Hendricks Gin, Sazerac Rye, Tanqueray 10, Greylock Gin, vodka of some variety, Bacardi white rum, some Gosling's dark rum, Herradura Reposado tequila, Sambuca Romano left behind from a party, red and dry vermouth, Luxardo Maraschino, Lucid absinthe, some creme de violette, Allspice dram, Grand Marnier, Kahlua, Godiva Chocolate, Bailey's, Campari, applejack (Lairds, maybe?), some Calvados, some Armagnac, various other flavored liqueurs (cucumber and a few tropical fruits), and assorted bitters. Plus whatever beer and wine is in the house. A bottle of St. Germain is on the shopping list, and I'm sure there's at least 2 bottles of blended whisky in the house, along with something Irish. Yes, we like to entertain.

I haven't tried preparing this at home (yet; deep-frying calls for I-can-open-the-windows weather), but I did just have this at The Spotted Pig, and while it had some toothsomeness, it certainly wasn't chewy. And, certainly, don't let it being a "nasty bit" scare you: my two eight-year-olds sampled it and both loved it (they're adventurous in the sense that they'll try things, and like a broader range of things than many kids their age, but there's still plenty they don't like.)

I'll be cheering on the Pats at home with friends.

Bacon, followed very, very closely by the various forms of slow-cooked shoulder.

Straight up, possibly with a little good balsamic to drag it through en route to my gaping maw.

It's working now.

Fondest pork memory? Easy. Portuguese pork caçoila, made by my former Scoutmaster's mother, every Christmas Eve at his annual open house. I've since taken over doing the open house, and after his mom passed, he graciously shared her recipe with me. I make it every year, where it sits right alongside French meat pies made with my own Grandmémères also-pork-heavy recipe.

Sure, but, other than fruits that a lot of folk think of as vegetables, not on their own. Has to counterbalance some other ingredient.

Canned pineapple on a pizza, though, is an abomination. Just sayin'.

I've experimented a bit with fruit caviars (cherry caviar on cocoa blinis with whipped cream, mango caviar topping lobster salad in phyllo), made "nori" out of kale and basil to do oddball "sushi" presentations, and played a little with making peanut butter and nutella powder with tapioca maltodextrin. I don't think I'll see those techniques take over for more "classic" techniques in my own cooking, but they make for fun little elements.

I'm interested in trying some of the other techniques (like some of the more subtle uses of transglutaminase) but the cost so far is prohibitive.

I remember helping my "great-aunt" kill and pluck chickens and other fowl when I was very young, and toured a local abattoir as a Scout when I was younger. I still occasionally dispatch wee beasties myself, although we're talking lobster, shellfish, fresh-caught fish, and the random frog these days. I suppose that if I hunted or did more fishing I'd do more of it myself, but frankly, hunting would just be another expensive hobby I have little time or money to pursue.

I know a lot of people make the assumption that we'd see fewer meat-eaters if more people saw even responsible animal husbandry and slaughter, but I'm not sure I buy that (I think that educating the public about responsible practices might actually result in more carnivores, but less meat consumption overall--then again, the sight of blood makes me hungry, so what do I know?)

I do think we'd see more pressure on factory operations if we had a better-informed general public.

Timely post! Just last night I was just contemplating the stash of pistachios that are always around to keep the snack jar at home filled, and wondering how they'd taste in butter form. Now I have even more motivation to try.