Back in the 1980s, I used to love to travel down to Bellingham to visit the used bookstores downtown and then take a quick detour to the amazing Village Books in Fairhaven. Just a block away was a bar named “Bully’s.”

Bully’s no longer exists, but I still have the occasional fantasy about their “loaded fries”–a delicious combination of french fries, melted cheese, ranch dressing, chopped onions, and bacon bits. It was kind of like an over-the-top, American version of poutine…and it was SO much better than poutine. You really can’t beat the Americans for inventing crazy junk-food combinations that will clog the hell out of your arteries….but taste amazing nevertheless! Henry’s Taphouse in the Pearl District in Portland has a similar version of loaded fries that’s even MORE decadent: gorgonzola waffle fries with blue cheese crumbles. The proprieters really should require that everyone over fifty sign a waiver when they order those things. I’m sure they have an ambulance with a defibrillator parked in the lane!

Anyway, after perfecting my air fried potatoes, I decided to try a vegan version of loaded fries. Oh, and not just vegan, but WFPB–that is, NO extracted oil! I didn’t even use a quick spray of oil in the air fryer!

Loaded Vegan Fries

• Air fry a couple of pounds of peeled, chopped russet potatoes at 400 degrees for 25 minutes.
• Add a big dollop of smoky vegan cheddar sauce.
• Drizzle with a couple of tablespoons of cashew-dill dressing.
• Top with chopped white onion and freshly ground pepper.

Oh, and here’s a comparison of air-fried potatoes sprayed with a bit of oil and air-fried potatoes without a trace of oil. The oil-free ones really are just as good (though the salt doesn’t stick as well, which might be a good thing!).

And I’ve been listening to a Beatles playlist today while I cook. As I may have mentioned in an earlier post, my entire family (barring my dad) loves The Beatles. Indeed, I swear each one of us knows not only every Beatles song, but every word to every Beatles song. Two of my brothers once had a MONTHS-LONG feud about the title of a Beatles song. I can’t even remember which one it was, but it may have been “Norwegian Wood (This Bird has Flown)” because, if I recall, the bone of contention was a parenthetical title.

So the song of the day is “Blackbird” because it’s on the soundtrack of the Ken Burns series we’re currently watching (The Vietnam War) and because I love it when James plays this particular song. Its tone in the original is wistful, but, when James sings it, he imposes his particular Eeyore quality on the song, and it sounds like the saddest song you’ve ever heard.

And, in honour of my darling Jamie-boy, here’s a little clip of his Pooh counterpart:

And lest you think I’m laughing at Jamie, whenever I play him this clip of Eeyore talking, he laughs in recognition.

And apparently, MY Pooh-counterpart is Winnie the Pooh!! Cool–I get to give up wearing pants!!