MY favorite things

(As opposed to my son's)..

What have we here?

Oh, I love it beyond words when The Big Guy walks into my house with a 5- gallon bucket brimming with crustaceans. I don't care what kind of crustaceans. I'll take anything I can get. I'm sleazy that way.

This night it happened to be crabs.

(I don't see much in the way of lobster in these parts. He once said, "If I were a jeweler, would you expect me to bring home diamonds every day?" I think I put Ex-lax in his dinner that night. I don't like to be Out-logic-ed. Shut up, that is too a word.)

Oh, the beauty of the crabbage! All hail the crabbage!

They begged, begged I tell you, to be sauteed with some garlic and hot oil.

(Do you make hot oil? You should! Just put some olive oil- and don't let Martha or anyone else tell you it has to be $15 oil, any olive oil will do- into a jar, add some split hot thai peppers, and let set for a week or so, covered, in a cool dry place. After a week or so, it should live in the fridge so it doesn't turn rancid, but it will still impart flavor. Make sure the seeds are out there, fornicating mingling with the oil. Mmmmm.)

      I know the Old Timers left this out indefinitely, but they left meat out all day, too. And butter. And eggs. Apparently, things were different then. Better to be safe than sorry. Food poisoning not only sucks, it can kill you.

pardon my steamy, garlic infused, sauteed-ness! I wish you could smell me right now!

And when mixed with some basic seasoning, like my ever-present fresh basil plant here...

And some tomatoes...

And yet more hot pepper flakes...

Fra Diavolo.

meaning: from the devil.

I made 2 pounds of cappellini with this gravy. It was gone in two days. 

He's under strict orders to bring in another bucket tomorrow.