Boiga Belly and Everything Bagels

Who invented Everything Bagels? If it were me, I would have had all the ingredients separated nicely into lovely storage containers- until I spilled a bunch of them when making one type. I couldn't waste all those delicious tidbits, so, since I had spilled them into a clean, bagel-filled tote, I would just say- I meant to do it that way. Which, indeed, is what I often do in the kitchen. When something comes out different than I intended- I just pretend that I meant to do it that way. Culinary accidents don't have to be wrong- they can be considered new flavor combinations just realizing their time has come. We had everything bagel burgers tonight. I had some nice ground beef that practically made itself into patties. While they cooked (in a frying pan because 2 degrees above zero is not the grilling weather I wanted to wander into tonight) I sprinkled them with a generous amount of garlic powder, a pinch of sea salt and several grinds of black pepper. They cooked up nicely to a warm pink-centered medium. I baked up some everything bagels and drizzled the cut halves with garlic oil. The burgers were slid onto the bagel and topped with everyone's choice of condiment. I made a "special sauce" for my burger- not the most heart healthy- but certainly delicious. Take 1 part sweet relish, add 2 parts mayonnaise, 2 parts katsup and 3 parts crumbled feta cheese. A pinch of cayenne spices it up if you want your tongue to tingle and I love it when my tongue tingles! That ought to be a whole episode of my up and coming cooking show- temptations to tingle your tongue.
When we were little my brother, fondly referred to as "bruver" Todd had a Tshirt that he wore until the picture was almost worn off the front. In those days he ate rice, corn, potatoes, peas(under duress), plain chicken, hamburgers, butter and butter sandwiches(bread and butter alone) and steak. Desserts were the exception to the rule of course. It made sense that this shirt, his favorite at the time, depicted a large hamburger with the words Burger Belly underneath. Somehow it morphed into Boiga Belly and stuck. It always brings back fond memories.
There are some things that always evoke the feelings of being young and safe and happy. Many cause an automatic response. I know wherever we are if one of us says, "Ma na Ma na" (remember the little aliens on Sesame Street) the other will echo, "Doodoodoodoodoo" or when asked "Whoooo is it?" the answer will always be, "Its the plumber. I've come to fix the sink!" Now our kids say the same things. Ahh, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Life is good!