I have many favorite foods. From my mom's Shrimp Marinara to a giant plate of sushi to a huge spicy chili bean burrito, my menu is pretty extensive. But if I had to pick my absolute favorite thing to chow down on - it's gotta be a nice, big, very rare steak.

For as long as I can remember, I have always loved steak. I have had so many steaks in my life that I am surprised there are still cows left in the world. The thing is that I like my steaks a way that will make most people sick. Instead of the normal "medium rare" - which is the most popular way people eat steak - I like mine "alive." By "alive" I mean so rare that it is almost uncooked in the middle. So rare that many restaurants have refused to serve me a steak the way I have requested - and so rare - that the steak actually gets cold before I can finish it.

I know to most people, the way I eat steak is gross, but I cannot eat a steak any other way. To me, rare meat is the juiciest, most flavorful and most tender way to eat meat. To overcook it makes it dry and rubbery - and is worthless to me. Believe it or not, I have actually thrown out steaks that have been overcooked either by me or someone else - because I would not eat and overcooked steak to save my life.

As of late, I have eaten at least five steaks a week. After a long day of work, nothing beats a huge piece of Black Angus beef fried in a pan with sauce and served with grilled onions and mushrooms. There are times I don't even make anything with it in the way of potatoes and vegetables - just a steak that is at least two pounds in size. In fact, the largest steak I have ever eaten was at SPC2 last year in Colorado - the steak was four pounds - and blood rare - and I ate the whole thing.

I have at least a dozen different recipes for steak and love each and every one. From fried steak to barbecue steak to steak marinated in a balsamic glaze - I can do a lot to a piece of meat - and I love cooking steak for other people - I just have to cook it for them a lot longer then I do for myself. But I think that nothing comes closer to the perfect meal than a rare, warm piece of meat just waiting to be devoured by a hungry raptor like myself.

After writing this column - I sure know what I am having for dinner tonight...