Foodie
Two of my friends want me to teach them how to cook. Which I think is kind of hilarious because I don't really know what I'm doing in the kitchen most of the time. I throw things together and then hope for the best. Thankfully whatever I've concocted turns out pleasantly edible 9 times out of 10, but that was not always the case.
Ashlea wants more meal ideas.
Samantha wants just the basics, including a one week grocery list and a pile of recipes to go along with it.
Sonja, seemingly out of nowhere, messaged me, "Food is your passion, now GO!"
And it gets me excited, thinking about it. I'd love to create some meals with Ash, and take Sam by the hand through the grocery store. I have an idea for an interactive website that provides easily modifiable recipes.
But how? And when? And who's going to pay me for any of this??
It's funny, I was talking to Sami about how I got started cooking. It definitely wasn't a natural thing. My mom wasn't the best cook. She tried, but she was young, had four little kids and a husband to feed three times a day, she had a strict budget, and she hated doing it. We ate spaghetti, roast beef and potatoes, Ichiban, pancakes.... Nothing out of the ordinary, certainly nothing interesting. I occasionally baked while growing up, but I rarely cooked a meal.
So what changed? Living on my own. Roommates. Traveling. Adapting my eating habits.
My cooking skills really morphed when I became vegetarian while going to college in Red Deer. At the time I hated salads and beans and didn't have any notion at all as to how to eat a balanced vegetarian diet. But I made the decision and stuck to it steadfastly, not consuming even a hint of meat for over a year. Suddenly I had to find new things to cook, new things to order at restaurants, and instead of feeling limited, it was as if a whole new world opened up for me. I started experimenting, and my tastes and skills began to expand.
The next growing phase came while I was living in New Zealand. There's nothing terribly exotic about Kiwi cuisine, but even simple things like savoury muffins, meat pies and pumpkin in pretty much anything seemed novel to me. And I loved it!! My favourite dish at the cafe I worked at was the Caesar Salad. Sounds boring, but the dressing and croutons were house made every morning, the greens were always so crisp and fresh, and left in full leaves so you had to use a knife to eat it, and there were tiny anchovies and fresh curls of parmesan scattered amongst the greenery. So delicious. I'd learned the difference fresh ingredients made while working at La Dolce Vita, a fine dining Italian restaurant in Calgary, where a simple bowl of pasta with tomato sauce tasted like heaven because the pasta was made by hand in the kitchen, as well as the fresh tomato and basil sauce. Simply amazing.
While in NZ I lived with three rowdy boys, and I don't think I cooked dinner once. We grocery shopped together and almost always ate together, which was such a pleasure. My roomies taught me how to make Thai Green Curry, pumpkin soup, and NZ style nachos. I still have the curry recipe and use it -unadulterated- to this day.
Somewhere along the line a deep appreciation for good, quality food was born, and an equally adventurous spirit about trying new things.
These days I love to cook. I don't do it every day, particularly because I work in a restaurant where I have cheap, cooked-for-me food at my disposal. I rarely make anything that's complicated, but I also rarely make the same dishes more than a handful of times. I have two shelves of cookbooks and I'm regularly trolling the internet for new ideas.
So I suppose that it really is my passion. Huh. Who knew?
Today's breakfast:
Blueberry Oatmeal Crumble
Ashlea told me that a friend made this for her not long ago. It sounded simple and delicious, like a dessert crumble, but for breakfast!!! She outlined the basics, but I didn't have a recipe, so I just made it up as I went this morning. And it went a little something like this:
Melt 1 1/2 TBSP butter and 1 tsp coconut oil in a small sauce pan.
Stir in 2 tsp palm sugar (or brown sugar) and 1/2 c instant oats. (I also added a small dash of cinnamon)
Pour 1/2 c blueberries (or strawberries or raspberries) into a small oven safe dish.
Sprinkle oatmeal mixture on top.
Put in toaster oven warmed to 375 and bake for 10 minutes (until fruit is bubbling and oatmeal is golden).
Remove and ENJOY!!!!
This made enough for one, but it would be a snap to double or quadruple and make in a casserole dish in the oven. You could serve it with yogurt to help cool it off. Oh, amounts are VERY approximate, but I think it would be hard to go wrong.
Ashlea wants more meal ideas.
Samantha wants just the basics, including a one week grocery list and a pile of recipes to go along with it.
Sonja, seemingly out of nowhere, messaged me, "Food is your passion, now GO!"
And it gets me excited, thinking about it. I'd love to create some meals with Ash, and take Sam by the hand through the grocery store. I have an idea for an interactive website that provides easily modifiable recipes.
But how? And when? And who's going to pay me for any of this??
It's funny, I was talking to Sami about how I got started cooking. It definitely wasn't a natural thing. My mom wasn't the best cook. She tried, but she was young, had four little kids and a husband to feed three times a day, she had a strict budget, and she hated doing it. We ate spaghetti, roast beef and potatoes, Ichiban, pancakes.... Nothing out of the ordinary, certainly nothing interesting. I occasionally baked while growing up, but I rarely cooked a meal.
So what changed? Living on my own. Roommates. Traveling. Adapting my eating habits.
My cooking skills really morphed when I became vegetarian while going to college in Red Deer. At the time I hated salads and beans and didn't have any notion at all as to how to eat a balanced vegetarian diet. But I made the decision and stuck to it steadfastly, not consuming even a hint of meat for over a year. Suddenly I had to find new things to cook, new things to order at restaurants, and instead of feeling limited, it was as if a whole new world opened up for me. I started experimenting, and my tastes and skills began to expand.
The next growing phase came while I was living in New Zealand. There's nothing terribly exotic about Kiwi cuisine, but even simple things like savoury muffins, meat pies and pumpkin in pretty much anything seemed novel to me. And I loved it!! My favourite dish at the cafe I worked at was the Caesar Salad. Sounds boring, but the dressing and croutons were house made every morning, the greens were always so crisp and fresh, and left in full leaves so you had to use a knife to eat it, and there were tiny anchovies and fresh curls of parmesan scattered amongst the greenery. So delicious. I'd learned the difference fresh ingredients made while working at La Dolce Vita, a fine dining Italian restaurant in Calgary, where a simple bowl of pasta with tomato sauce tasted like heaven because the pasta was made by hand in the kitchen, as well as the fresh tomato and basil sauce. Simply amazing.
While in NZ I lived with three rowdy boys, and I don't think I cooked dinner once. We grocery shopped together and almost always ate together, which was such a pleasure. My roomies taught me how to make Thai Green Curry, pumpkin soup, and NZ style nachos. I still have the curry recipe and use it -unadulterated- to this day.
Somewhere along the line a deep appreciation for good, quality food was born, and an equally adventurous spirit about trying new things.
These days I love to cook. I don't do it every day, particularly because I work in a restaurant where I have cheap, cooked-for-me food at my disposal. I rarely make anything that's complicated, but I also rarely make the same dishes more than a handful of times. I have two shelves of cookbooks and I'm regularly trolling the internet for new ideas.
So I suppose that it really is my passion. Huh. Who knew?
Today's breakfast:
Blueberry Oatmeal Crumble
Ashlea told me that a friend made this for her not long ago. It sounded simple and delicious, like a dessert crumble, but for breakfast!!! She outlined the basics, but I didn't have a recipe, so I just made it up as I went this morning. And it went a little something like this:
Melt 1 1/2 TBSP butter and 1 tsp coconut oil in a small sauce pan.
Stir in 2 tsp palm sugar (or brown sugar) and 1/2 c instant oats. (I also added a small dash of cinnamon)
Pour 1/2 c blueberries (or strawberries or raspberries) into a small oven safe dish.
Sprinkle oatmeal mixture on top.
Put in toaster oven warmed to 375 and bake for 10 minutes (until fruit is bubbling and oatmeal is golden).
Remove and ENJOY!!!!
This made enough for one, but it would be a snap to double or quadruple and make in a casserole dish in the oven. You could serve it with yogurt to help cool it off. Oh, amounts are VERY approximate, but I think it would be hard to go wrong.