Hello everyone. I've already made my first post and received the world's fastest answer EVER, which left me with an excellent first impression of this site.
I'm a mom of 3 (2 adults who don't want to grow up, 1 almost-adult who thinks she's an adult, sigh). My husband and I are cooking fanatics, and that zeal has caught on with our youngest daughter, who is attending a special cooking program and aspires to one day attend Le Cordon Bleu. Big, expensive dreams from that kid, but you reap what you sow, I suppose, at least 1/3 of the time in our case--our son considers reheating things in the microwave "cooking", and our older daughter is afraid to take hot pans out of the oven.
I'm a self-trained cook. My mother hated cooking, so she only had about a dozen meals in the dinner rotation, and they were all about as fancy as throwing an entire chicken in the crockpot with some water and a pinch of
salt. Ah, good times. Anyway, I rebelled as a teenager, and forcibly took over cooking and grocery shopping duties. It was a traumatic (and not entirely bloodless) coup, but it was necessary for all involved. (Actually, when I told her my plan for taking over cooking duties, she said, "Good, what's for dinner?")
That night I made a simple lasagna that today I would be embarrassed to serve, with garlic bread (I use that term very loosely) made by spreading lo-cal margarine on Wonder bread and sprinkling it with garlic powder.
My family thought it was the best food they had ever eaten.
It's been 25 years since that day, and I've moved on from my signature dishes such as Tomato-Soup-But-We're-Out-Of-Tomato-Soup-So-I'll-Use-Cream-Of-Chicken-Instead Chili, Baking-Soda-Can-Be-Substituted-For-Baking-Powder Biscuits (no it can't), and Rice Krispy Chicken with Grapes and Tartar Sauce (don't blame me, it was my experimental phase). With my hubby (and now my daughter) by my side--er, pushing me out of the way because they're kitchen tyrants--I make all sorts of foods now, from various world cuisines to foods from different American regions. I enjoy employing a variety of cooking techniques, new ingredients, and new combinations. I love inventing recipes and trying them out. Mostly I just love the fun and artistry involved in cooking.
Oh, and I love eating, too.
I'm a mom of 3 (2 adults who don't want to grow up, 1 almost-adult who thinks she's an adult, sigh). My husband and I are cooking fanatics, and that zeal has caught on with our youngest daughter, who is attending a special cooking program and aspires to one day attend Le Cordon Bleu. Big, expensive dreams from that kid, but you reap what you sow, I suppose, at least 1/3 of the time in our case--our son considers reheating things in the microwave "cooking", and our older daughter is afraid to take hot pans out of the oven.
I'm a self-trained cook. My mother hated cooking, so she only had about a dozen meals in the dinner rotation, and they were all about as fancy as throwing an entire chicken in the crockpot with some water and a pinch of
salt. Ah, good times. Anyway, I rebelled as a teenager, and forcibly took over cooking and grocery shopping duties. It was a traumatic (and not entirely bloodless) coup, but it was necessary for all involved. (Actually, when I told her my plan for taking over cooking duties, she said, "Good, what's for dinner?")
That night I made a simple lasagna that today I would be embarrassed to serve, with garlic bread (I use that term very loosely) made by spreading lo-cal margarine on Wonder bread and sprinkling it with garlic powder.
My family thought it was the best food they had ever eaten.
It's been 25 years since that day, and I've moved on from my signature dishes such as Tomato-Soup-But-We're-Out-Of-Tomato-Soup-So-I'll-Use-Cream-Of-Chicken-Instead Chili, Baking-Soda-Can-Be-Substituted-For-Baking-Powder Biscuits (no it can't), and Rice Krispy Chicken with Grapes and Tartar Sauce (don't blame me, it was my experimental phase). With my hubby (and now my daughter) by my side--er, pushing me out of the way because they're kitchen tyrants--I make all sorts of foods now, from various world cuisines to foods from different American regions. I enjoy employing a variety of cooking techniques, new ingredients, and new combinations. I love inventing recipes and trying them out. Mostly I just love the fun and artistry involved in cooking.
Oh, and I love eating, too.