Why do I cook?
Why do I cook? Why do I prefer baking desserts to savory food preparation? How come I believe the world would be a better place if everyone had the wherewithal to just gather to prepare a meal together?
In crisis, I cook. In uncertainty, I bake. To reconcile, I make dinner for my former adversary. To celebrate, I assemble cake. When mourning, I make stock, slowly simmering out the last bits of flavor from bones and vegetables. When I’m angry I roast meat and fry onions. To console I don’t cook; I simply make myself available to the consolee to go to a bar together to drink scotch.
To repay debt, I remit tamales. To entertain my children, I bake cookies, squeeze juice from limes, carve pumpkins, melt chocolate, peel apples (one apple – one strip of peel), mash potatoes, make gingerbread houses, griddle pancakes in the shapes of states, cook perfect over-easy eggs and eggs in a hat.
In homage to John Carroll Lynch’s character, Norm, in the movie Fargo who says to his pregnant wife, Marge, (Francis McDormand) as she is about to go out in the cold, “Ya gotta eat, Margie” then wakes up to prepare breakfast for her. For me, preparing meals for someone is a basic expression of affection. Most times I cook for others because I like them, because I want to comfort them, because I want to impress, seduce, surprise, amaze, shock or simply please them.
I don’t always cook with good intentions. I know I can make someone feel guilty by cooking for them. I am sometimes competitive with my cooking. My friend Patricia is just gifted. For my birthday she prepared banana splits with three kinds of homemade ice cream and scratch fruit syrups and purees. I got her back on her forty-fifth birthday when I made her a chocolate cake in the shape of a 45 record player. (I cast the 45’s in different colors of tinted white chocolate). Somehow the end result seems to nullify any less honorable intentions. After all, in the end there is food to eat.
By cooking, I announce myself, I demonstrate my existence – I cook, therefore I am maybe. But really, what better way to call attention to myself than preparing something good to eat?
posted by Champurrado at 8:48 AM
12 Comments:
I'm pretty sure you have some outstanding debt with me....so fork over those tamales.
You owe me too. Somehow. I'm sure of it.
And I agree with you that nothing beats cooking for someone you love to show them you love them. Well, a few things. Including knitting them a sweater. Or teaching offspring how to cook family recipes. The holidays are coming up. Danish Christmas cookies! And homemade marzipan dipped in chocolate.
Dear Champ...
Please promise that if you ever need to go away again you won't delete your archive of wonderful recipes. Of course we'd all rather read your words whenever you feel like sharing them but your recipes are not only timeless and true and may also prove to be useful ammunition when times are tough at home, work or the neighbors!
My computer is waiting to be repaired:(
(know any recipes computer technicians can be seduced or bribed with??) Its not easy keeping up without wifi or a laptop! Please blog us a few recipes for turkey leftovers if it's in your repetoire...
Schaumi, Foil :
While I would certainly enjoy sharing remission tamales with you, I don't see you all on the list. I must have borrowed from you in my sleep again.
DD (if that's really what you're going to make me call you these days):
I promise as long as it's free, I'll leave it alone. Good luck with the wires and circuit board stuff.
what an incredible summation of the joy of cooking. i am inclined to follow some of the same patterns you outlined and felt a certain solidarity with you, or at least with your words. i like the way you write. it is so clear, precise and lofty at the same time.
my skill level is not very high yet with baking but i am coming along. i have a couple of questions regarding the art of fine pies and hope you don't mind answering them. do you use the same recipe for crust (as in Pie for Shaumi) when you are baking the raw crust with a filling such as apple or cherry or do you modify the dough? also, i often use a half and half mixture of lard and butter because it is supposed to be flakier. any suggestions, comments?
Patina:
Thank you. Very nice of you to say.
On crusts and pastry. There is just so much you can do with flour, fat and binder here. Yes, the type of fat matters to the texture, flaky-ness and taste - Butter is going to melt at a different rate than lard or vegetable shortening. This results in different little magic mini-globs of expansion within the structure of the overall form of the pastry when it bakes. (I know it's Mr. Wizard Science hour here - sorry.) Many people use half lard half butter and create lovely crust. They say it balances the flavor (butter) with the texture/flakyness - (lard). If you have the time to experiment, make several batches of pastry and bake them up in a mad weekend experiment all filled with different sweets and savories. When I was in England my family made meat pies for me and I still crave them.
I am essentially a lazy baker. Once I find a recipe I like I stick with it. That is not to say I don't use different pastry for different items. For example, tonight I'll use puff pastry to make apple and pear turnovers. Puff pastry is ridiculously rich and pretentious. Lots of OOh AAh's from the diners. The masa I use for for tamales is essentially a pastry made with corn flour. Very different texture and flavor.
You asked, so I blabbered on. Hope this is useful.
The best pie crust I've ever had was made with rendered beef suet. Really!
Dotty:
Eggs in a hat is essentially a combination of grilled bread and eggs. To make this wonderful comfort food, cut exact 2 3/32 " dia. circles out of two bread slices. Keep the part you cut out as an accessory. Butter one side of the bread slices. In a medium skillet, over moderate heat melt a tablespoon or so of butter and place the bread slices butter side up into the pan. Break an egg into the void of each bread slice. When just set, flip over to cook the other side. You will enjoy this more if someone else makes it and serves it to you very late at night in the quiet hours after some adventure.
Over easy eggs are just as you've proposed.
I first learned about eggs in a hat from that drunk, Graham Kerr, before he reformed. I so miss his earlier wine sloshed lessons.
Eggs in a hat...birds in a nest...you say tomato...I say to-mah-to.
Seriously, Champurrado, this is a beautiful post. I'm so very glad I stumbled upon it in my blogospheric wanderlust!
Manchego, Gaw:
Thanks for looking in. Gaw, I don't underestimate a nice meal out; especially if I'm lucky enough to have good company. Really, does the food matter or who you eat with? Lots of my overpriced meals out have been ruined by a lack luster co-conspirator. Then again, I can sit on the curb eating tined sardines and drinking our budweiser with the best of them so long as the dining companion has an interesting or funny thing or two to say. I suppose that answers my question.
i am returning with a late Thank You for the pie crust information. you are very kind to share your knowledge with aspiring cooks (or maybe kooks).
Post a Comment
<< Home