When I cook, I get a great sense of relaxation as I create my masterpieces. Well they are masterpieces to me. Every meal I make is done with a certain purpose. Cooking for family and friends is one of the most important things in life to me. It is just not about the food, it is about pleasing my family and friends. I want people to be pleased to come over to my home and taste a great meal.
I am an individual who like to please. Pleasing people is one thing, but pleasing people with cooking is another. When I was a child my family had our best times at the dinner table. Whether it was my father or mother cooking each meal was always a thing of beauty. Great meals made happy children.
Some of the recipes I have made over the last year were hits and some were huge misses, but I will try and try again to get it right. As long as you try, half of the battle has been won.
Cooking doesn't have to be a scary endeavor, that it can actually serve as a means of alleviating stress or anxiety, two things I'm feeling a lot of these days. I can understand why people are scared to cook, especially if they haven't spent much time doing anything in the kitchen other than eating or cleaning up after a meal. Thinking back, I can remember the questions that would run through my head as I was learning how to read and break down recipes How much is a pinch? How do you know when to turn something over? How do organize yourself so all of the food finishes cooking at the same time? Over time, I became more comfortable in the kitchen, and now, I use cooking as a way to relax and unwind.
We've all been there. We get excited about a recipe that sounds delicious on paper (or on the screen), but after attempting to make it in our own kitchens, the dish falls flat and we're left with something that disappointingly did not meet our expectations. However, just because a recipe doesn't work out the first time doesn't mean it's a lost cause. The first time I attempted to make Beef Stew, the wrong ingredients were part of the recipe. Sure, the stew tasted okay, but it didn't turn out the way I wanted. So, I tried it again, tweaking the ingredients a bit here and a bit there and wound up with a dish that I loved. In fact, I loved it so much that I recommended it to friends and they enjoyed it, as well. Not every dish is going to be a winner the first time out of the gate, but if you persevere and try again after taking some time to think about how you can change the recipe to make it better, you might surprise yourself.
I have always wondered if my meals were worth the time I spent cooking it. Time after time I feel that I have done a great job, but I get so nervous that the meal is not any good, I study the faces of the people I cook for to see if I have gotten it right. When people go for seconds and thirds I feel like I have done a good job, Mission accomplished.
So, the next time you're feeling overwhelmed or stressed out, get in the kitchen and cook something! Better yet, get in the kitchen with family or friends and share the experience with them. Turn the preparation of the meal into a social occasion and enjoy the food together. Good food tastes even better when you share it with good company.
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