Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Love #4


I love to cook, which is strange considering I hated it when I was young. Over the last decade my mom has said on more than one occasion, "you know, for a kid who hated to cook you sure have turned into a darn good one." I don't know why I didn't catch the cooking bug when I was young. I liked to do breakfasts and still do. I make a mean omelet and french toast, but beyond that I had absolutely no interest in the kitchen except to eat from it.

My little brother on the other hand took to it from the very beginning. He could flip the pancakes without a spatula and cooked Chinese food for my dates several times. It took being a missionary to finally find the joy in cooking for me.

See, I was craving something sweet and had run out of money. There was nothing in the house but stuff to bake with. I had no idea what to do with it, and there was no cookbook to be found, so I winged it. I grabbed some cocoa powder, flour, sugar and a bunch of other random ingredients, threw them together, tasted, and adjusted it before finally tossing it in the oven. Was it a contest winning recipe? Oh, heavens no . . . but it was edible and that was all I needed to satisfy the chocolate bug.

What I discovered was that cooking the traditional way bored me. Following recipes and cooking so that things tasted the same way every time I made them held no interest, but once I found a way to cook creatively, I was hooked. I have adapted over the years so that I can use a recipe now and then . . . but I never cook it exactly the way it says to. I always find some way to spice it up. A dash of curry or garlic can do amazing things to food.

Cooking is just another creative adventure in my eyes, just one more way I can express myself and share it, if not with the world then at least the neighbors.

11 comments:

The Blonde Duck said...

Saying hi from SITS!

Island Girl said...

Just wanted to welcome you to SITS!

I, too, love taking a recipe and making "my own" - sometimes it doesn't turn out, but oh well, it was still fun to try!

Shari said...

I must say the neighbors thank you.

Melinda said...

I could use you around here...
I'm strictly a recipe gal. My creative efforts have gone by the way-side or, should I say, the waste basket.
I wish I was intuitive in the kitchen, but I guess I don't want it badly enough to figure it out.

Christine said...

I want to be your neighbor. Okay that just reminded me of Mr. Rogers..."won't you be my neighbor"...LOL

Karen E. Hoover said...

Hey, you'll be my neighbors at Storymakers. I'll see what I can whip up. :D

Julie Wright said...

You know I don't love to cook, and since I've had your cooking I know you are good at it!

Small House said...

Came over from SITS! So many blogs I didn't know which one to choose. Nice blog! I'll try to check out your other one's.
Have a good day.
Sandra

ali cross said...

Oh, I SO admire you!

This is a skill I truly admire and wish I possessed.

YAY for you!

Nichole Giles said...

Yeah, I wish I was your neighbor, too. Pick me, pick me, pick me...

I wonder if I would like cooking more if I DIDN'T follow the recipe? I'll have to give that a try. =)

Nichole

Karen E. Hoover said...

I wish I could pick ALL of you to be my neighbors. What a writing group we would have!