Cooking Survery via gloucester
Everyone should do this because I like to talk about food!
1. What is your favorite spice or spice blend?
Honestly? Salt and pepper. They go on EVERYTHING. That said, other than those probably cumin and dried red peppers. Or better than that, my homemade curry spice blend. It's wonderful.
2. What do you cook for yourself when you are sad?
I'm not sure that I do cook something every time I'm sad. But I suppose an ultimate comfort food for me is chili-mac.
3. What do you cook for yourself when you are sick? Do you have a "cure-all"?
Eggs, usually scrambled, make me feel better and they're easy to cook when I'm feeling awful.
4. Describe your most memorable taste adventure - good or bad.
good: New Orleans
bad: chocolate-avocado cake/pie thing. Just did not work like it should have. A waste of foodstuffs, sadly.
5. What comes to mind when you think the word "garlic"?
Essential. I put it in almost everything.
6. Who taught you how to cook?
My grandmother taught me about Indian cooking and baking. Most everything else I learned over time through the internet and cookbooks and cooking with myriad people.
7. Are you a "pretty" cook?
I don't think food has to be perfect. I do think that there is beauty in even the messiest food. Food is beautiful. I have no problem with pie filling bubbling over my beautifully criss-crossed crust.
8. What do you most like to make when you are entertaining guests? Do you have any "designed-to-impress" recipes?
hmmmmm there's a lot of fall back/entertaining recipes I like to call on: Nathan's chili, gumbo and jambalaya, briyani, mince pies, toffee cheesecake
9. What was the last thing you ate? More importantly, why did you eat it?
chocolate covered banana, wanted something sweet
10. Do you have a favorite herb or herb blend?
Rosemary. I have a very strong scent memory associated with it so it makes me very happy every time I use it. I most often use sage and thyme together though.
11. What is your favorite food that you haven't made/eaten in a long while?
red beans and rice
12. What is your "fall back" meal? Something you can make anytime and it's always a hit?
Lately, soy-mustard vinaigrette salmon fillet on wilted spinach. Usually served with Asian green beans or edamame
13. What was the first real recipe you learned to make?
scrambled eggs, from my mother
14. What is the most difficult dish you've ever tried to make? (whether you succeeded or not)
hmmmm. Thanksgiving turkey?
15. What is the most often used ingredient in your kitchen?
ground black pepper/sea salt
16. What is the most often used kitchen gadget in your arsenal?
spice grinder
17. If you could only keep/have 1 pot or pan, which one would you choose and why?
my oldest big pot. It's from my grandmother and it's wonderful, heavy, and nothing sticks to the bottom.
18. Do you have a favorite fruit or veggie to experiment with? Why?
anything new! Recent new fruits: dragonfruit, champagne mango Recent new veggie: garlic scapes, lemon basil
19. Name 12 ingredients that you ALWAYS like to have on hand (besides butter, sugar, salt, and pepper….)
tomatoes, basmati rice, turkey breast fillets, shrimp, frozen okra, soybeans, green beans, garlic, onions, olive oil, white and red wine, mushrooms
20. What’s you’re favorite food to cook - not only for the taste and nutrition, but also just for the SMELL that permeates everything around?
jambalaya
21. What’s the last recipe you cooked for people other than yourself?
I made spaghetti with ham and mushrooms with marsala wine for Rob and I last night
22. What’s your favorite cookbook and why?
Healthy South Indian Cooking. It's wonderful and really started making me learn about how spice blends are composed.
23. When you’re looking/searching for a fresh idea - something new to try - where do you go first? A cookbook? A person? One of the food channels on TV? A magazine? The back of a specific product’s packaging? The internet? Someplace else entirely?
Food blogs are a great place to get ideas.
24. What was the first recipe you “invented” yourself?
Bananas Foster upside down baby cakes
1. What is your favorite spice or spice blend?
Honestly? Salt and pepper. They go on EVERYTHING. That said, other than those probably cumin and dried red peppers. Or better than that, my homemade curry spice blend. It's wonderful.
2. What do you cook for yourself when you are sad?
I'm not sure that I do cook something every time I'm sad. But I suppose an ultimate comfort food for me is chili-mac.
3. What do you cook for yourself when you are sick? Do you have a "cure-all"?
Eggs, usually scrambled, make me feel better and they're easy to cook when I'm feeling awful.
4. Describe your most memorable taste adventure - good or bad.
good: New Orleans
bad: chocolate-avocado cake/pie thing. Just did not work like it should have. A waste of foodstuffs, sadly.
5. What comes to mind when you think the word "garlic"?
Essential. I put it in almost everything.
6. Who taught you how to cook?
My grandmother taught me about Indian cooking and baking. Most everything else I learned over time through the internet and cookbooks and cooking with myriad people.
7. Are you a "pretty" cook?
I don't think food has to be perfect. I do think that there is beauty in even the messiest food. Food is beautiful. I have no problem with pie filling bubbling over my beautifully criss-crossed crust.
8. What do you most like to make when you are entertaining guests? Do you have any "designed-to-impress" recipes?
hmmmmm there's a lot of fall back/entertaining recipes I like to call on: Nathan's chili, gumbo and jambalaya, briyani, mince pies, toffee cheesecake
9. What was the last thing you ate? More importantly, why did you eat it?
chocolate covered banana, wanted something sweet
10. Do you have a favorite herb or herb blend?
Rosemary. I have a very strong scent memory associated with it so it makes me very happy every time I use it. I most often use sage and thyme together though.
11. What is your favorite food that you haven't made/eaten in a long while?
red beans and rice
12. What is your "fall back" meal? Something you can make anytime and it's always a hit?
Lately, soy-mustard vinaigrette salmon fillet on wilted spinach. Usually served with Asian green beans or edamame
13. What was the first real recipe you learned to make?
scrambled eggs, from my mother
14. What is the most difficult dish you've ever tried to make? (whether you succeeded or not)
hmmmm. Thanksgiving turkey?
15. What is the most often used ingredient in your kitchen?
ground black pepper/sea salt
16. What is the most often used kitchen gadget in your arsenal?
spice grinder
17. If you could only keep/have 1 pot or pan, which one would you choose and why?
my oldest big pot. It's from my grandmother and it's wonderful, heavy, and nothing sticks to the bottom.
18. Do you have a favorite fruit or veggie to experiment with? Why?
anything new! Recent new fruits: dragonfruit, champagne mango Recent new veggie: garlic scapes, lemon basil
19. Name 12 ingredients that you ALWAYS like to have on hand (besides butter, sugar, salt, and pepper….)
tomatoes, basmati rice, turkey breast fillets, shrimp, frozen okra, soybeans, green beans, garlic, onions, olive oil, white and red wine, mushrooms
20. What’s you’re favorite food to cook - not only for the taste and nutrition, but also just for the SMELL that permeates everything around?
jambalaya
21. What’s the last recipe you cooked for people other than yourself?
I made spaghetti with ham and mushrooms with marsala wine for Rob and I last night
22. What’s your favorite cookbook and why?
Healthy South Indian Cooking. It's wonderful and really started making me learn about how spice blends are composed.
23. When you’re looking/searching for a fresh idea - something new to try - where do you go first? A cookbook? A person? One of the food channels on TV? A magazine? The back of a specific product’s packaging? The internet? Someplace else entirely?
Food blogs are a great place to get ideas.
24. What was the first recipe you “invented” yourself?
Bananas Foster upside down baby cakes