Adventures in Cooking
I have recently acquired a cookbook titled “The Ladies Home Journal Adventures in Cooking”. It is a spectacular bit of mid-century misogyny (“perfect for the new bride at a loss for how to cook for her new family and guests”). However, it is also a treasure trove of cooking information, full of useful (How to make a basic white sauce) and not as useful (How to pluck a goose) tidbits. I love that I can look up the proper way to boil an egg or variations on french toast. You see, I have been having some “Adventures in Cooking” of my own. Mainly that I've started really cooking at all. It helps to live with someone. When I'm on my own, sometimes I forget to eat, and I rarely have the motivation to whip up a whole meal. Usually it's mac and cheese from a box or a peanut butter sandwich. But these days I've been creating all sorts of things. Pasta with my very own, homemade, white sauce, Taco's with tunafish and potatoes, apple cinnamon biscuits, chicken fried rice, chili... the list goes on.
Most recently I've cracked open an Indian food cookbook, another thrift store find. I have never cooked indian food before, but I love to eat exotic food. Living out in the middle of nowhere, there aren't a great deal of worldly dining options available, mostly there is American fried food, and Italian. (However, I will say that there is a really good sushi restaurant, and an excellent Irish pub the next town over.) First attempt was homemade naan, which is a kind of savory flatbread. It came out giant and kind of dense, but tasty. Overall I declare it a success, because I've never really made bread before. Next came a chicken with cashew nut sauce pot. This was particularly difficult because the recipe calls for a food processor. Now I only have some cutting boards and cheap knives from Ikea. I can tell you today, that with those tools, it takes a long time to do to a couple of onions what a food processor would accomplish in about a minute. I wore my sunglasses, because I do not currently possess any other form of protective eyewear and those onions were strong! I imagine I looked pretty cool with my apron and my shades, mincing away at a giant pile of onions. In the end I screwed up the recipe a bit because I accidentally added a whole can of tomato paste when it only called for two tablespoons. It was still very tasty, just not that yummy masala flavor I was really craving.
Every dish is a lesson learned. For instance, I recently learned just how horrible icing is for you by making some from scratch. Of course it is made from fat and sugar! How else would it be so delicious? The hardest thing is keeping my love of baking in check. Baking is so wonderfully formulaic. You simply assemble your ingrediens, mix and pop in the oven for the appointed time. What could be more soothing? The problem is, whenever I do it, I suddenly find myself with a house full of delicious cookies and not nearly enough people around to eat them all.
I think that cooking is a decent substitute for a stalled out artist. You get to work with your hands and create something (hopefully) enjoyable. My favorite activities.
Come for a visit and there might be cookies in it for you.
Word Count: 586
Most recently I've cracked open an Indian food cookbook, another thrift store find. I have never cooked indian food before, but I love to eat exotic food. Living out in the middle of nowhere, there aren't a great deal of worldly dining options available, mostly there is American fried food, and Italian. (However, I will say that there is a really good sushi restaurant, and an excellent Irish pub the next town over.) First attempt was homemade naan, which is a kind of savory flatbread. It came out giant and kind of dense, but tasty. Overall I declare it a success, because I've never really made bread before. Next came a chicken with cashew nut sauce pot. This was particularly difficult because the recipe calls for a food processor. Now I only have some cutting boards and cheap knives from Ikea. I can tell you today, that with those tools, it takes a long time to do to a couple of onions what a food processor would accomplish in about a minute. I wore my sunglasses, because I do not currently possess any other form of protective eyewear and those onions were strong! I imagine I looked pretty cool with my apron and my shades, mincing away at a giant pile of onions. In the end I screwed up the recipe a bit because I accidentally added a whole can of tomato paste when it only called for two tablespoons. It was still very tasty, just not that yummy masala flavor I was really craving.
Every dish is a lesson learned. For instance, I recently learned just how horrible icing is for you by making some from scratch. Of course it is made from fat and sugar! How else would it be so delicious? The hardest thing is keeping my love of baking in check. Baking is so wonderfully formulaic. You simply assemble your ingrediens, mix and pop in the oven for the appointed time. What could be more soothing? The problem is, whenever I do it, I suddenly find myself with a house full of delicious cookies and not nearly enough people around to eat them all.
I think that cooking is a decent substitute for a stalled out artist. You get to work with your hands and create something (hopefully) enjoyable. My favorite activities.
Come for a visit and there might be cookies in it for you.
Word Count: 586