I’m not so sure about that, using non-meat filler in sausage is an ages-old concept that Taco Bell could’ve been applying to their ground beef. They may not have been using a soy-based filler but they certainly could’ve been using a starch-based filler. I’m just going to guess that they were able to keep costs low by…

I would think that part of the appeal of living in a place like Chicago (or any other urban area with lots of nearby options to choose from) would arise from those options being rather unique to the area. Having a lot of large-chain fast food options around doesn’t do anything to make an area unique, it just makes…

I like incorporating things like gochujang, curry paste, and unused pho broth into roux-thickened gravies, and I’m just gonna continue describing these sauces as being gravy despite the objections of people unwilling to get a little creative.

I live in a city of 30k and there’s three Subways within city limits. The only other place with more than one location is Burger King and there’s two of those. 

You do realize that deep dish crust is actually fairly thin, right? On a scale of 1-10 (with 1 being NYC paper-thin and 10 being a focaccia/pizza hybrid), deep dish is like a 3 or 4. Also, the crust on a good deep dish pizza has way more in common with pie crust than it does bread, so you’re wrong there too. Do you…

I’ve loosely followed Chef John’s method for cast iron skillet deep dish pizza, and to call that a casserole wouldn’t be doing it justice. I ended up getting a wonderful creation that felt more like an Italian-American spin on biscuits n’ gravy. The nice, light butter crust works as a stand-in for biscuits, the…

Last fall, I noticed cook time discrepancies in mug-microwaveable pumpkin cakes despite preparing each one with the same carefully weighed amount of pumpkin puree and syrup. I was curious as to what was happening so I weighed the eggs in the carton and I found out that most of the eggs were 5-15% heavier than the…

I use the packaged protein shakes for protein oatmeal, and maybe I’m just being weird here, but after microwaving the oatmeal, I let it cool down for 15 minutes before stashing in the freezer (where I’ll let the oatmeal get to the point where it takes noticeable effort to dig a spoon into the oatmeal along the side of…

I’m considerably less picky now than when I was younger, so it’s been fun getting to try out “new” foods and flavor combos that teenaged me would’ve shot down on the spot. It also doesn’t hurt that I happen to like both peanut butter and burgers, so yeah, I’d give a peanut butter burger at least a cursory attempt to…

I’m not gonna use the term “flexitarian” to describe my eating habits (mainly because I’m not sure where the line between moderate and low levels of meat consumption is), but I have cut back on meat as a source of protein. As a result of my decreased meat intake, I’ve come to rely more on things like PB2 and light…

Sounds like it could use some veggie bouillon and a little fennel seed. I’m not a vegetarian, but I have made an effort to introduce some meat-free days into my weekly routine; one thing that I thought would be hard for me to make the meat-free switch with was pizza (mainly because I’ve always been a “pizza needs to…

I used to put garlic powder and Italian seasoning into my overnight doughs, and then I switched to just a salt/water/yeast/sugar dough with a 3-4 day cold ferment time. I’m not sure if I was covering up the “pizza dough” taste with garlic and seasoning or if I wasn’t really creating much of it with such a quick cold…

I had pretty much ignored pepper jelly after buying a jar of underwhelming Tabasco pepper jelly, and then my uncle towed a jar of this stuff up with him when he visited for last year’s Christmas dinner with the family. Honestly, the pepper jelly biscuits were the best part about that dinner, because for as good as…

In retrospect, I should’ve put the “maple syrup” part in quotes, as it’s not actually maple syrup. Since real maple syrup is a little more expensive, I tend to save my bottle for super active days where a nice little dose of carbs is actually needed. Otherwise, I figure if I’m planning on using the cheap imitation…

I don’t know if the hand in the top photo is making the Whopper look small in comparison, but that photo gives the impression that one of these things can be taken down in less than ten bites. The calorie count of the melt isn’t that much lower than the OG Whopper but at least the latter isn’t an apparently inhalable…

The powdered stuff has most of the fat removed and needs some kind of liquid to be prepared, but that’s where versatility and a little bit of creativity really comes in. It has a very robust peanut-forward flavor but you can put the fat back into it if you mix it up with a higher fat dairy product instead of water.…

Of course this works, because it’s just swapping out one form starch for another. If anything, it removes the worst part of the PBJ sandwich (the crust) and replaces it with more bites of glorious pasta.

I almost always go for the burger first. I don’t use mayo, so I can’t rely on a layer of mayo to provide the bun with any kind of protective coating. I like BBQ sauce/hot sauce/guacamole, but combined with juicier toppings, they help to turn the burger into a giant ticking time bomb. Squirmy toppings like tomato,…

Yeah, I understand that the amount of calories burnt doesn’t wholly translate in endurance activities, I only brought up calories to put into perspective just how little of an energy demanding event (as a whole) a 5k really is. I’ll admit I’m not too familiar with cross country, so I don’t know how long the events…

I’m over here laughing at the idea of carbo-loading for a 3.1 mile jog. Jogging 3.1 miles burns roughly the same amount of calories as a 3.1 mile walk, so for me that would end up being right around 200 calories. Remember folks, burnt lungs doesn’t equal burnt calories, it just means your ass is outta shape.