For my inaugural post, since I'm laying in bed and not cooking anything, I'm going to talk about my aspirations as an amateur cook, and what my intention is with this blog. Though I never intended to perpetuate the heteronormative way, the kitchen has become one of my favorite places to be. It makes me feel productive, and I get to play mad scientist in a lab. At the end of it, there is typically delicious food. What's not to love?
Like millions of other people in the world, I'm mildly obsessed with a website called reddit. Today I was catching up on posts, and I saw a picture of someone's rendition of The Guardian's shooter sandwich (link to The Guardian). Obviously I need to make that sandwich, but what really struck me was one of the captions where the cook mentions using bone marrow. I got to thinking, and went for a ride on the intertubes. Bone marrow. Delicious, meaty, fatty bone jelly. I don't know about you, but I think that sound freaking delicious. Sometimes it's poached, but typically roasted and spread over a crusty bread and garnished with things like parsley. Believe me, you will be seeing a post about this in the future.
I love to cook, but I rarely challenge myself. I cannot remember the last time I prepared to cook a meal that I wasn't confident would turn out at least satisfactory, if not delicious. This isn't because I'm a fantastic cook, but rather because I stay within my comfort zone. It's time to break out of that. You know what that means? Baking. Baking has always terrified me. It requires exact measurement, which is something that my scattered brain resists. Today, I was checking out my newest website addiction, foodgawker and saw a recipe for Schiacciata, a simple bread typically topped with grapes but quite versatile. I realized that I'd never heard of it much less baked it, and if I wanted to call myself Italian by ancestry, I needed to start baking.
Speaking of comfort zones, another way in which I need to bust out is trying to cook things that are both healthy and appeal to the palate. I've always been a proponent of the idea that a stick of butter will make anything delicious, and while true it's not a great idea for the everyday meal. My stepmother, who more than anyone else taught me how to cook, grew up in New Orleans and uses enough butter in her meals to make Paula Deen blush. I am the monster that she made, but in the interest in my waistline I'm trying to reform.
I've always been sort of a culture slut when it comes to food, and there are few things that I won't try. It's enjoyable to spend an evening with a particular cuisine, whether it be the rich and aromatic flavors of Morocco, or the hearty, satisfying simplicity of the British Isles. I intend to pay homage to as many cultures as possible in my cooking, if for no other reason than I crave variety in my ingredients. After all, variety is the spice of life.
This is going to be the place where I'll be recording all of this. I'll take pictures, actually write down what I'm putting in my food (I've always been very much a chop and throw sort of cook; no measuring cups in this kitchen), and do what I can to make this interesting to read. I expect to make plenty of mistakes, but how else does one learn? I'm going to cook some fun stuff, some weird stuff, some healthy stuff, and I'm sure there will be plenty of bacon and cheese along the way. Or at least, I hope.
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