I made a steak this weekend--all by myself--and it was good. Wasn't sure for a few minutes there if I'd actually get to enjoy it while it was still hot. I don't have an outdoor grill (nor have I ever been all that great at grilling, too worried about whether the meat is done), so I pan-seared the steak in a cast iron skillet for 90 seconds on each side and then stuck it in the oven. Well, guess what happens when you toss a slab of meat into a hot cast iron pan?

Smoke.

Lots of smoke.

Even with the stove fan on high and all the doors and windows open, it got pretty bad. I fully expected my smoke alarm to go off and summon the fire department who would all laugh themselves silly over my dinner (while it got cold).

But no, it was great. The smoke alarm did not go off. I rested the meat, threw it on a plate with some salt & vinegar potatoes, poured a glass of 1992 Heitz cab (ask Ben someday how I came to be in possession of that great bottle of wine), and had an excellent dinner.

I also succeeded in baking a nice loaf of the no-knead bread this weekend. The first attempt failed last weekend when I forgot to add the salt, but this one turned out quite nicely. I agree with Uncle Bob that the crust is awfully crusty, but the bread is nice and chewy.

In random bird news, a huge hawk swooped down right in front of my car this morning as I was leaving for church, startling the heck out of me and a runner on the sidewalk. It alighted in a tree in the center divide of my street and proceeded to eat its breakfast (a rodent, not the runner). I couldn't see it well enough in my side mirror to figure out what kind it was, and the light turned green before I could turn around and get a good look. There haven't been all that many hawks around lately, mostly crows. A wild turkey stopped traffic briefly on Crow Canyon the other morning, but even those haven't been around as much as usual.