Forgetting to Eat + Tortilla Pie

Really shoulda taken a picture of dinner last night.

Just spent a few moments over with Dr.S, reading, heartstruck, her beautifully spun recent post about food. Especially profound is the way Dr.S "smites" with the revelation: "I have lost my appetite again." Now, it may surprise some of you lovely readers to know that StinkyLulu knows what that means. That Lu -- who happened to be consuming Valentine's peanut M&Ms by the handful while reading Dr.S' prose, a fact which will remain acknowledged but undiscussed -- also forgets to eat, especially when consumed by satisfying work. Really, it's part of a more general experience that is obstinately opaque to those who don't share it. And it provides a simple reminder that Lulu's relationship to food is oddly, if consistently, disorderly -- very occasionally disordered -- but more frequently just disorderly.

Of course, of the two, MrStinky is the one who's completely food obsessed. MrStinky's the one who plans meals days in advance, who fasts so he can feast, who's a trained nutritional consultant. Meanwhile, Lu'll casually share at bedtime about having not eaten anything since breakfast & MrStinky'll be all "whaddayamean you forgot to eat?" MrStinky's also the one who's skinnyskinnyskinny. Lulu, on the other hand, is a big boned gal. It's a curious discordance.

Yet Lu loves food and, just last night, after forgetting to eat all day, StinkyLulu concocted a favorite signature recipe. So, as testament to the strange discordance of Lulu's food life, now's as good a time as any to offer StinkyLulu's first recipe:

StinkyLulu's Tortilla Pie*
Ingredients: Almost stale flour tortillas. Almost old pinto beans. Leftover pork roast. Can of black olives. Scoop of hot salsa (Sadie's works real good). + Gobs and gobs of cheese (cojack works best).
Assembly Instructions: Mix scoop of salsa into pinto beans. Slather butter all over the bottom of a baking dish. Place a tortilla or 2 -- torn into irregular chunks of about 3" -- along bottom of dish. Scoop bean/salsa mixture to cover. Toss hunks of roast, crushed olive chunks, and gobs of cheese (grating unnecessary). Repeat layering until out of ingredients or space, whichever comes first. Be sure to save some cheese for top of dish.
Cooking Instructions: Place dish on a cookie sheet & put uncovered into oven, preheated to 350 degrees or so. Cook the fuck out of it. (Usually at least 75 minutes) When all bubbly & crusty, remove from oven, stir all to hell, & let rest for at least 30 minutes. Serve however. (Leftovers can be reheated for most of the following week.)

*Please note that the "pie" in "Tortilla Pie" -- while clearly acknowledging the influence of FRITO PIE -- also signals the simple fact that the word "pie" has a magic effect of making anything sound tasty, decadent, & homemade.