In last week's Food section, we had a story on sausages, which seem to be on every menu in town (lucky us). A dish of orecchiette with crumbled pork sausages and greens from Alma Nova in Hingham was on the cover.

Owner and chef Paul Wahlberg talked me through the dish, which I made on the weekend. To make it, cook orecchiette, which is a firmer pasta than most and may take a little longer, saute greens, make a little porky sauce with sausages, and toss everything together with romano cheese and pine nuts. It's Wahlberg's specialty and may become mine too.

Pardon me while I brag for a moment. Husby Stephen Meuse makes some of the best pizza I've ever had. He wrote about his quest for an ultra-thin easy crust a few years ago.

So he and I were both quite interested when we heard about the new Baking Steel ($79) made at Stoughton Steel in Hanover, the brainchild of Andris Lagsdin. The story was in the May 22 Food section.

The steel, which weighs 15 pounds (shipping is free), has been blessed by "Modernist Cuisine" author Nathan Myhrvold. Writer Ann Trieger Kurland picked up a sample of the Baking Steel to try it before she wrote the story. The plan was that it would then go to me, and then back to the factory.

Stephen tried it last night and here is his report (the stunning pie it made is above, and let me assure you it tasted as good as it looks):

"You have to have more than a passing enthusiasm for homemade pizza to get excited about the Baking Steel. The 15 pound, 1/4-inch-thick sheet isn't easy to put in or remove from the oven, takes a long time (45 minutes) to heat to baking temperature, and wrestling its awkward bulk into the sink for cleaning isn't much fun.

"But if you're determined to turn out a Neapolitan-style pie none of this will matter. The steel does a better job of reliably producing a nicely-sprung, chewy-crispy crust than any baking surface we've encountered. Cooking times varied between 8 and 11 minutes -- longer than the accompanying instructions say, but we love a pie with scorched black here and there. Tip: turn on the broiler for last couple of minutes."

The next stop for the Baking Steel: back to Stoughton. You'd have to make pizza weekly to justify the cost.

Stephen had another idea: Baking pizza on a flat cast-iron griddle that's gathering dust in the basement, a purchase we know now we couldn't justify. We hardly use it. Almost relegated to what Bill Cosby calls "the equipment graveyard."

There is something totally irresistible about the sweet creaminess of grits, the briny taste of shrimp, and a smoky element (bacon, sausage). Last Spring on a road trip across the South, I had grits two or three times a day and couldn't get enough. After my story came out in the Travel section, Patrick Long, chef of The Green Room Restaurant & Bar in Greenville, S.C. (three hours from Charleston) sent me his version. I didn't get to his place. He uses stone ground white grits (we used yellow), which he simmers in milk with a generous dash of hot sauce. You don't have to stir the grits constantly like you do polenta, but don't leave the kitchen. The shrimp are tossed in Old Bay seasoning and sauteed with andouille and tomatoes. Cook the grits in a larger pot than you think you need. They splutter as they thicken. I took the advice of an innkeeper I met in Alabama: Cook grits in much more liquid than you need for much longer. It's the secret to getting them creamy.

GRITS
3 cups whole milk
2 cups water
Few dashes liquid hot sauce, or more if needed
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup stone ground white or yellow grits

1. In a saucepan, combine the milk, water, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Whisk in the grits and when the mixture returns to a boil, turn down the heat. Simmer, stirring often, for 20 minutes or until the grits absorb the liquid.
2. Taste for seasoning and add more hot sauce, if you like.

SHRIMP
1 can (28 ounces) chopped tomatoes, drained
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 pounds shrimp, shelled and deveined
8 ounces andouille, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup white wine
1 cup clam broth mixed with 1 cup water
4 scallions, chopped

1. In a bowl, toss the tomatoes and balsamic vinegar.
2. In another bowl, sprinkle the shrimp and sausage with Old Bay, salt, and pepper.
3. In a skillet over high heat, heat the oil. Add the shrimp and andouille. Cook, stirring constantly, for 4 minutes or until the shrimp start to turn pink. Remove from the pan.
4. Pour in the wine, clam broth mixture, and tomatoes. Cook, scraping the bottom of the pan, until the mixture comes to a boil. Simmer, stirring often, for 10 minutes.
5. Return the shrimp and andouille to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the mixture is hot and the shrimp is cooked through. Ladle grits into shallow bowls, add shrimp mixture, and sprinkle with scallions. Sheryl Julian. Adapted from The Green Room Restaurant & Bar

This is one course of an exquisite lunch at Hauner Winery, on the Aeolian island of Salina off the Northern coast of Sicily. We had just eaten little spreads that included one made with capers; the little buds thrive on the land (the winery preserves them in sea salt and packages them for sale). We were dining on a patio overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea.

The little fried bits are fresh sardines and another fresh fish indigenous to that region. The salad is made with potatoes, tomatoes, capers, and olive oil (a combination we saw several times on the island). Dessert was homemade cannoli.

The meal was simple but perfect in a magnificent setting. "Making wine is an excuse to live here," the winemaker told us.

It was one stop on a whirlwind time through Sicily with a dozen Boston Globe subscribers, crossing from one coast to the other, with several other stops on the Aeolian islands. Cultural Crossroads made the arrangements and found our guides on land. Stephen Meuse and I tweeted our experiences (@stephen_meuse and @sheryljulian on Twitter).

I'm writing a story about the food that will run in the Travel section this summer. In the meantime, where do I get fresh sardines and fresh anchovies caught that morning?

On Sunday, I'm leaving for Sicily to meet a dozen Boston Globe subscribers. We're on a whirlwind tour that looks, from the itinerary, like we'll sleep standing up. Follow me on twitter @sheryljulian, using the hashtag globeciao (ciao is pronounced chow). Lots of good food to report on. 

Chicken tikka masala

Serves 4

During the lockdown in and around Boston on Apr. 19, blogger Kathryn Nulf made this spicy chicken dish, which she posted on her blog www.litfromwithinwellness.com. The recipe originally comes from The Chicago Tribune, who published it on Apr. 17, 2002 (almost 11 years to the day when Kathryn made it). She found it on food.com and likes to make it with coconut milk and/or coconut milk yogurt, she writes, and add vegetables to the sauce. Serve it in bowls over rice.

CHICKEN

1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 cup plain yogurt

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons crushed red pepper

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

1 piece (1 inch) fresh ginger, chopped

1. Soak 6 bamboo skewers in water for 30 minutes.

2. In a bowl, combine the yogurt, lemon juice, cumin, red and black pepper, cinnamon, salt, and ginger. Add the chicken pieces. Thread the chicken on the skewers and refrigerate for 1 hour.

3. Discard marinade.

SAUCE

1 tablespoon butter

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 jalapeno or other small chili pepper, cored and chopped

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground paprika

1 teaspoon garam masala (available at specialty markets)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce

1 cup heavy cream or coconut milk

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1. In a flameproof casserole over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the garlic and jalapeno or other chili pepper. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the coriander, cumin, paprika, garam masala, and salt. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

2. Stir in the tomato sauce and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

3. Stir in the cream or coconut milk and simmer 5 minutes.

4. Light a grill or turn on the broiler. Grill or broil the chicken skewers, turning occasionally, for 8 minutes or until cooked through. Slide the chicken off the skewers and add it to the sauce. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.

5. Serve over rice, sprinkled with cilantro. Adapted from The Chicago Tribune

City Bakery oatmeal raisin-chip cookies

Makes 4 dozen

1 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 2/3 cups old-fashioned oats

8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2/3 cup dark chocolate chips

1/3 cup raisins

1. In a bowl, stir the flour, baking soda, salt, and oats to blend them.

2. In an electric mixer, cream the butter. Add the granulated and brown sugars and blend well. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Add half the flour mixture, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the other half.

3. Remove the bowl from the mixer stand. Use a large metal spoon to stir in the chips and raisins. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, press plastic wrap directly onto the surface, then cover the bowl with another sheet of plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 6 to 24 hours.

4. Let the dough sit at room temperature for 1 hour so it is soft enough to scoop.

5. Set the oven at 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

6. Scoop out about 2 tablespoons of the dough for each cookie, and place on the prepared pans, spacing them 1 inch apart. Press slightly to flatten the balls.

7. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden brown, turning the position of the baking sheets from back to front halfway through baking. Cool on wire racks; store in an airtight container.  Sheryl Julian. Adapted from “One Sweet Cookie”

Hungry Mother taunted Oleana with a "turkey" (left), a bowling term used for three consecutive strikes, while Oleana responded with a bird of its own.

By winning Munch Madness for its third consecutive year, Hungry Mother successfully completed a "turkey," a bowling term for three strikes in a row. As part of the playful trash-talking that the tournament tends to incite -- a tradition that the Southern-style restaurant has helped cultivate over the last four years -- Hungry Mother and Oleana exchanged barbs during the championship round.

Hungry Mother took the first shot over the weekend, sending Oleana a Butterball turkey with a mock Boston Globe headline that read, "Hungry Mother scores a turkey in Boston.com's Munch Madness. Oleana continues to cook food from turkey." Oleana responded, though the first-time finalists might not have been familiar with the bowling lingo, as they sent back a different bird and a confused note, "We have no idea what's going on, but here's a quail … and we're gonna kick your ass!" Hungry Mother countered by tweeting a photo of the quail cooked up next to its much larger chicken, saying "go big or go home!"

"We're not sure if anyone gets quite as into it as we do, but we're proud of our fighting spirit," Hungry Mother co-owner Rachel Miller Munzer told us, shortly before edging Oleana by 311 votes.

Indeed they do get into it. Last year, the restaurant sent its opposition Craigie on Main a sympathy card for coming in second – during the middle of Craigie's Saturday-night service (voting ended the next day). The previous year, they picketed East Coast Grill, while the Cambridge seafood spot hired a witchdoctor to hex them in retribution. In 2010, when East Coast Grill won our inaugural competition, they received an anonymous threatening note while competing with Hungry Mother that read, "To ECG: Drop out of the contest now or you will really know what Hell Night is!"

Obviously, at this point Hungry Mother is an old pro at psyche-outs, but kudos to Oleana for getting into the spirit of the competition and digging into the dark side of Munch Madness. The Inman Square spot remained classy in defeat and Hungry Mother showed the love, too.

@oleanabuzzIndeed! So close! Thanks for keeping it real..love yuns#cambridge

— Hungry Mother (@HungryMotherMA) April 1, 2013

Congratulations to all the restaurants on another great year.

Chef and owner Barry Maiden posed for a portrait outside of Hungry Mother in Cambridge in 2012. (Kayana Szymczak for the Boston Globe)

Hungry Mother has three-peated as Munch Madness champion. In a matchup of Cambridge heavyweights, the southern-style favorite held off Oleana, which specializes in North African and Mediterranean cuisine, by 311 votes to claim its third consecutive title in our annual tournament of 64 local restaurants modeled after the NCAA March Madness basketball bracket.

It was the fourth straight trip to the final round for chef Barry Maiden’s Hungry Mother, which has only lost once – in 2010 to East Coast Grill. In one of the biggest surprises of this year’s competition, that former champion was knocked off in the opening round by the Kenmore Square mainstay Eastern Standard. However, Hungry Mother and the only other previous finalist, Craigie on Main, were paired against each other in the Final Four. In that rematch of last year’s finals, Hungry Mother edged chef Tony Maws’ restaurant by a little more than 300 votes to advance.

On the opposite side of the bracket, Oleana made its first championship appearance. To get there, chef and owner Ana Sortun’s Mediterranean spot had to sneak by the French-inspired Gaslight, defeating the South End brasserie by a razor-thin margin of 211 votes. The right side of the bracket was guaranteed to provide a fresh finalist, since all previous visitors to the championship round were placed on the left this year.

Boston.com readers cast more than 176,000 total votes in this year’s competition. In crowning Hungry Mother yet again, they merely cemented the Cambridge restaurant’s status as a local food titan.

Check out the bracket to see the results of each round.

Inside the burger zone. I overhear that the delicious custard contains about 20 percent eggs, which justifies eating it this close to breakfast. A lady in Shack Shake gear answers questions for patrons queuing up in front of a giant green, grey, and white peg board menu on the wall.

Due to our excitement (eyes bigger than stomachs), we order more than we need: a single Shack burger (standard comes cooked medium), a chicken dog made with apple-chicken sausage, a side of crinkle fries, the lobstah shell concrete, tea, and housemade lemonade. Leaving the counter we wonder if we should have ordered more, just in case. Now we wait for the glorious hum of our little green buzzer.

Recycled wood and other building materials make up the interior of the shack, yet everything is sleek and stylish with green and brushed chrome accents. Workers attired in all black ensembles with shake shack monogrammed Patagonia jackets to keep them warm.

Line outside growing and diners looking in through the big glass storefront envious of our metal trays lined with packages of burgers and cups of fries.

The Shake Shack concrete (like a frozen custard ice cream), creates a whole new medium. You have to eat it with a spoon. The lobstah shell concrete has vanilla custard, strawberry puree, and pieces of lobster shell pastry (think cream puffs) from the North End. The burger, deceivingly plain in its paper wrapper, is perfectly juicy and layered with fresh veg and the secret sauce.  Fries are also plain, hot, and crispy, but not as outstanding as the other things. And there's something incredibly comforting about a plain grilled dog -- pork, beef, or chicken. We leave the burger joint full, wiping mustard from our mouths so as not to taunt those waiting in line.

Today is the first day of spring and there's snow on the ground and the scent of grilled angus in the air.  Here amidst the  nearby construction and the late morning traffic, the well-praised shake shack is opening its first Massachusetts location in Chestnut Hill, near the movie theatre on Route 9.

In 2010, the first year, the Southern-style staple was knocked off by the seafood and spice of Inman Square’s East Coast Grill. Both restaurants climbed back to the finals the following year, with Hungry Mother exacting revenge and winning.

Last year, our readers crowned Hungry Mother the champion once again, voting out its nearby neighbor Craigie on Main. Three years, three finalists from Cambridge. As we set the field for this year’s tournament, will there be a new challenger to stick a fork in the competition?

Check out our bracket of 64 restaurants, divided roughly between contestants from the previous year and new entrants. Make your picks, then log on to www.boston.com/munchmadness to cast your vote. You’ll find information about each restaurant to help you decide, and a chance to sound off on why your favorites deserve to move on.

Voting for Round 1 starts Wednesday, March 20, and goes through March 21. For Round 2, vote March 22-23. Round 3 takes place March 24-25, and Round 4 on March 26-27. That leads us to the Final Four, March 28-29. Voting for the championship will be March 30-31. We’ll tally the results and announce them online April 1.

This year, the restaurants that previously have made the finals are all on the same side of the bracket, ensuring some fresh blood in the championship round.