By Week 442. Fall 2024. I am 41 years old and standing in my kitchen — the Bench house kitchen, the one that held cancer and divorce and cinnamon rolls — and the stove is on and something is cooking and the house smells like cinnamon and falling leaves and this is my life. This is the life I built.
Brett came Wednesday. We sat on the porch and talked about nothing, and the nothing was perfect, the way nothing between siblings is always perfect — full of history, empty of agenda, the purest form of company.
Mason is 13 and navigating middle school with the quiet competence that has always been his way — focused, kind, certain of who he is in a way that took me thirty years to achieve.
Lily is 11 and riding horses with the fearlessness of someone who has never considered the possibility of falling.
I made chicken pot pie this week. The food continues. The food always continues. It is the thread that connects every week to every other week, every year to every other year, every version of me to every other version — the woman on the kitchen floor, the woman at the chemo recliner, the woman at the grill, the woman at the outdoor table under the string lights. All of them, connected by the food they made with their hands. All of them, me.
The story this week wasn’t really about chicken pot pie — it was about the fact that I made it, that the stove was on, that the house smelled like something warm and alive. The food is never just the food. So when I went looking for what to share here, I wanted something with a little heat, a little sweetness, something that feels as alive as this ordinary, extraordinary week felt — and these Sweet Sriracha Wings were exactly that. A little fire. A little comfort. The kind of thing you make with your hands and set on the table and the people you love just reach for it.
Sweet Sriracha Wings
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 1 hr | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken wings, split at the joint, tips removed
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/3 cup sriracha
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- Sliced green onions and sesame seeds, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 425°F. Line a large baking sheet with foil and place a wire rack on top. Pat the chicken wings very dry with paper towels — this is the key to crispy skin.
- Season the wings. In a large bowl, toss the wings with baking powder, salt, garlic powder, and black pepper until evenly coated. Arrange in a single layer on the wire rack.
- Bake until crispy. Bake for 25 minutes, then flip the wings and bake for another 18–20 minutes until the skin is deeply golden and crispy.
- Make the sauce. While the wings bake, whisk together the sriracha, honey, melted butter, soy sauce, and rice vinegar in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir for 2–3 minutes until slightly thickened. Remove from heat.
- Toss and serve. Transfer the hot wings to a large bowl, pour the sauce over them, and toss to coat thoroughly. Arrange on a platter, scatter green onions and sesame seeds over the top, and serve immediately.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 420 | Protein: 31g | Fat: 24g | Carbs: 18g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 820mg