It's a fact of life that the TBR (to-be-read) pile never shrinks. Each book you read is replaced with another ... or two, or three. I've finished two books this month, will finish another in a matter of days, and have sunk my teeth into two more. How many of those books are on my 2008 TBR list? Three. How many aren't? *counts on fingers* Two. That doesn't bode well, considering that my 2008 TBR list consists of over 60 books. Not including the reading for my course.

Anywho.

Any herbivores out there may want to avert their eyes for the rest of this entry.

...

I love beef. But I love chicken more. Its texture, taste, and versatility = vast appeal for me. Since it's no fun to cook it the same way every day of the week (practically), my ongoing quest is to discover as many ways as possible to cook chicken. My favourite method so far is to marinate it.

One of the cookbooks I got last year has several pages filled with nothing but marinades. You mix it up in about three minutes, stick it in a plastic bag with the chicken (I like to use chicken filets: you can cut a piece of chicken into strips yourself or just pick it up already sliced at the store) and throw it in the fridge for however long you have -- a few hours is great, but even half an hour will impart flavour. Dump the chicken (and even the rest of the marinade) into a pan, cook it up; grill some vegetables, cook some brown rice, and that's one deliciously simple meal.

Here are a few of my favourite marinades from Starting Out (these make enough for 4 to 6 pieces of chicken, i.e. 4 to 6 thighs/legs/breasts, so adjust accordingly; you can eyeball it if you're an intuitive cook):

( Yum yum )

I've grown more confident with marinades and have started throwing my own together. Tonight, it's fresh orange juice with some sort of herb (whatever we have on hand), a titch of maple syrup, and a splash of Worcestershire sauce. I'm off to cobble it together.