Standing (leaning) on the shoulders of culinary not-so-giants
Thursday, July 30, 2009 at 11:32AM As my links page says, without online food blogs, I would not be able to feed the hubby and myself. I don't recall spending any time cooking as a child. My mother didn't force it upon us and I never felt an ounce of interest in learning anything about cooking. I stayed out of the kitchen completely so that I wouldn't be asked to help with anything. I just wanted to eat, not work to get the meal on the table.
What was I thinking? Did I think I was going to marry a chef one day? That cooking was this super simple thing I would just pick up and master and move along with my life?
In short - yes. I never put much thought into how much planning and thinking goes into being solely responsible for your own meals, seven days a week - much less someone else's meals. And, yes, I did also just assume I'd marry a guy who could cook, which the hubby can, but quite often it just makes the most sense, time-wise, for me to cook dinner.
I have baked for a long time, though - and baking is right up my alley. It requires measuring and precision, which is why I think I always got a bit befuddled and overwhelmed when recipes said to add something "to taste". How am I supposed to know what tastes good? And what if my taste isn't someone else's?? My relationship with food is so complicated and fraught with guilt, love, and hate that it's hard for me to even slow down and recognize when I'm enjoying something sometimes.
But I'm getting there and my food bloggy friends are a huge help.
For one, they post pictures! I NEED pictures to cook otherwise I'm never sure that what I've made looks like it's supposed to look (which, of course, means it will taste like it's supposed to taste... in theory).
Two - They note successes AND failures and adjust recipes as necessary. In the explanations for why something was altered, I gain more understanding of how different food elements work together.
Three - Some food bloggers mix in a touch of their lives with their meals. They'll add a short note about how something had to be changed because someone was late or forgot an ingredient. They'll edit to add that a planned meal was scrapped because someone worked late and pizza was faster. If it weren't for this, I would fully believe that there was a whole world of women out there who planned weekly meals and carried out their plans without fail (no, seriously - I always think everyone is doing something better than I am). Their honesty helps me when my food plans go awry or need altering.
I'm learning so much about different foods and gently pushing the boundaries of what the hubby and I would live on if left to our own devices without any internet access. I notice myself smelling and tasting everything as I cook so I can learn how the different flavors blend and meld, how they change from prep to presentation.
When I have kids, though, they will definitely be helping me in the kitchen - and not because I don't want to do the work, but because I want to share with them how fun and adventurous cooking can really be.
{must get this from cafepress}
Check out my links page for some of my fave food/recipe blogs. Last night for dinner, I made 101 Cookbook's Red Pesto Ravioli (minus the spinach salad) and some cheesy garlic bread. Sure, it was a carb fest and the hubby ate his ravioli with just garlic butter because he doesn't like sun-dried tomatoes, but I'm okay with that. This food journey isn't a straight line down a stone path. It's a meandering walk through a grassy garden.
Reader Comments (2)
I am the same way! My mom stayed at home with us and I had no desire to learn how to cook or clean. Luckily my husband knew this about me before we got married. I like to cook now. I'm just terrible at grocery shopping. I feel like we spend $100 and then the next day we don't have enough for a meal lol.
I came here from your link on NaBloPoMo. Love the name of your site. Have you visited $5dinners.com? I'm going to try some of her recipes - trying to save money by planning meals instead of relying on the frozen food aisle (man does not live by taquitos and Hot Pockets alone). I'm going to check out your food links and see what I like. (I've got some frugal cooking links on my site, as well.)