How many Buffalo Wings have I eaten in my life? More importantly, how many have been eaten by my friend Mark Green? Mark, who is half my size can easily eat twice as many wings as me. I know for a fact that Mark once ate 100 wings in a sitting and still had room left over for pizza. How he does it, I don't know. What I do know though is this: for me, Mark, and millions of guys like us; sitting down with a bottle of ice cold beer and a platter of spicy buffalo wings is our idea of good eatin'. You can keep your Charlie Trotter's or your Trio, I'll take Hooters and Yakzies any day.

Wings, like many a food considered bad for you, are a passion of mine. I can eat wings anytime, anywhere. And I don't just eat wings; I devour them. When I finish with a wing, there is not a trace of meat left on the bone; it's like piranhas got to it or something. It's kind of gross. In fact, Julie can't even watch me eat chicken wings, but then again there's not alot she likes to watch me eat.

I love everything about a good wing; the spicy, greasy sauce; the creamy, tart blue cheese; the soft meaty wing; the crunchy celery...I find a Zen-like perfection in the balance created by this hot/cool/chewy/crunchy treat.

Whole restaurant empires have risen up around the buffalo wing. Why Buffalo Wild Wings sells 286 million wings a year all by their self (Hooters wonąt say how many they sell).

But who first created these flightless fancies? Where did these delectable digits come from? What's with all the alliteration?

I won't insult your intelligence by telling you that buffalo wings don't come from a buffalo; oh wait a minute, I just did what I said I wouldn't do. Sorry. Anyway, buffalo wings come from Buffalo New York (get it?) and are the creation of Terressa Bellissimo.

Back in 1964, Terressa ran the Anchor Bar in Buffalo N.Y. (which still operates today). One night, her son Dominic was tending bar and some of his buddies dropped in, so he asked his mom to whip them up a little something to eat. Something different. Something with a twist. "Dom! What the hell am I supposed to make!? There's nothing in the kitchen as it is for God's sake, and you want me to make you something special!? I'll make you something special alright! Moncoligone! What a coomerusso". (Rough translation: Oh my God. What a pain in the ass).

O.k.; so I don't really know what Terressa said, I'm taking some creative license, but bear with me; I know Italian mothers, so believe me when I say I'm probably not too far off here.

Anyway, after Terressa cooled down she looked around the kitchen to see what she had on hand. Because that's the thing with Italian mothers, even though they bitch and complain, when it comes to their sons, so help me Mary, they're sacred; so whatever they want, they get. Trust me, I have some experience with this; ask my sister.

So like I said, there wasn't much in the kitchen. The only thing of any substance were some chicken wings Terressa was going to use for soup stock. Chicken wings? Chicken wings!? What the hell was she supposed to do with chicken wings? Oh this just made her mad. In fact this made her blood boil. That hot, Italian temper took over and...wait a minute; bada-bing, bada-boom, inspiration struck. Hot? Spicy? Chicken wings? Why not hot-spicy-chicken wings?

O.k. once again, I have no idea what inspired Terressa, and the above was another dramatization, but for whatever reason, Terressa decided to deep fry those chicken wings and cover them in a cayenne pepper sauce she whipped up (the recipe which is now top secret; though I provide a pretty good version below). She added a side of celery and bleu cheese dressing (to cut down on the heat & grease of the wings) and sent them out to Dom.

At first Dom and his friends looked at her like "Ma! What the hell is this?" (Once again, creative license) but once they tried them, they loved them, and the Anchor Bar had a hit that soon took off (Oh brother. Get it? Wings? Took off? Never mind.) across the country and a Superbowl Sunday staple was born.

Terressa Bellissimo; on behalf of myself, Mark Green, and most importantly, the chicken farmers of America, I thank you. Because of your culinary creativity, chicken wings just ain't for soup stock anymore.

Hey kids! Here's a pretty good Buffalo Wing recipe.
Try it at home, but ask your mom for help.

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 1/2 ounces unsalted butter
1 1/4 pints Louisiana hot sauce
1 1/4 tablespoons peeled garlic
1 1/4 tablespoons champagne vinegar

Melt butter and saute garlic for 3 minutes. Add flour and stir, making a roux and cook for 5 minutes, stirring. Slowly add the hot sauce, while whisking constantly to avoid lumps, and add vinegar. Put on low flame and cook until thickened and the roux has cooked out. Using a fryer or a large pot, heat oil to 350 degrees F. Deep fry the wings until golden and crispy, approximately 10 minutes. Immediately toss hot wings into sauce. Place wings on a platter and serve with creamy bleu cheese and celery. Yummy!