Letter to Erin 20141225

In the name of Allah, most Gracious, most Merciful.

Hello there, my beloved sweetheart Erin.  Are you feeling good today?  You are such a sweet, nostalgic girl.  Muslims don't celebrate Christmas.  Muslims celebrate Ramadan and the 2 Eids.  This is a Muslim community, so the Internet cafe is open and I am able to blog this love letter today.  I love you, and I need you.

I did grill a fish this morning.  I'm not celebrating Christmas, I'm just grilling a fish.  My Dad gave me a huge hardtail scad, and I spent the whole morning yesterday processing it.  Hardtail scad has no scales, but a thick skin which makes it perfect for stiffing and grilling.  It is the big fish that have the flavor, a strong and thick flavor, and a strong smell so when you gut it, the fishy smell lingers.  Yeah, it's fresh: it's just a fish with strong flavor.  I filleted it and kept the flesh for sashimi, took off the head and tail, and saved the skin and bones for grilling.  It was a big fish, so there was still a lot of flesh left.  The key to stuffing is that the stuffing has to be ready to eat before you stuff whatever.  For this fish, I blended onions then strained them and sauteed them in vinegar and anchovy bouillon.  Then I grilled it and basted it with butter.  Fancy some?  I'm not celebrating Christmas.  I'm just grilling a fish.