I have made some great meals in the past, but this week it was time to raise the bar. I once again enlisted the help of Dan Miller (he’s becoming the Robin to my Batman and not because we like to cook in tights). This time the stakes were a little higher. We had a lady to impress. Ana Martinez (you know, that girl who knows the Soulja-Boy dance) was joining us for dinner. I called my dad to get a good recipe for the occasion. I don’t know the dish’s official title but I’m going to call it: “broiled salmon with a ginger maple syrup soy sauce glaze with rice pilaf and garlic spinach.” Sounds tough. To the Batmobile, Robin!First we needed to puree about a tablespoon of ginger, which we interpreted as chop off a nub and stick it in the blender. It worked, sort of. To make the glaze, Ana combined the somewhat pureed ginger with what she predicted was three tablespoons of both maple syrup and soy sauce.

I started on the rice pilaf, which, after our experience with the “Success Rice” last week, was “Rice-a-Roni” this time. Following the box’s directions I mixed in some butter and two cups of water and put it in the microwave for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, Dan prepped the salmon in a baking dish. A true Jackson Pollock in the kitchen, he artfully drizzled the glaze over the salmon and we put it in the oven to broil.

When we got to the garlic spinach I once again I realized just how important it is to have a cutting board in the kitchen. Instead Dan minced the garlic on a plastic bag on the counter. Completely safe and sanitary. I bought a whole container of spinach, but when sautéed with the garlic and oil it shrunk dramatically and leaving us with a meager pile. It almost justified a Teeter run, but we saved the day by mixing in a whole container of baby greens.

If looking into the microwave gives you cancer like my mom always said, then our rice pilaf was a goner. After basking in radioactivity for 20 minutes, it finally beeped ready. It was time to eat. I forgot about the salmon and broiled it for 14 minutes instead of ten, but it still looked great.

Being the gentleman that I am I gave Ana first choice of plate color (dark blue, dark green, or light green). Of the three she chose the blue one and, while I celebrate her individuality, I reminded her that geniuses pick green. Genius is a strong word, but I guess Dan and I just can’t help being marginally smarter than the average person.

The meal was a complete victory. We all agreed about its divine tastiness. The salmon wasn’t noticeably overcooked. The garlic spinach was awesome and next time I will get three containers worth because we all wanted more. Although there were some crunchy rice-chips (probably the more cancerous ones), Dan liked them. I guess if he dies unexpectedly in his sleep we’ll know the cause. One to many San Francisco treats.

I don’t know if Ana was impressed with our cooking skills, but she definitely enjoyed herself and was helpful in the process. We’ll see if she comes back.

If you need Dan and I, we’ll be in the cave. Just shine the bat symbol in the night’s sky and we’ll come running. And, if it’s daytime, I guess you’re out of luck.