I have volunteered to cook every Tuesday night for the family I live with now. I have planned meals for May (lemon chicken, pot roast, shepherds pie, and crockpot mac and cheese). I'll keep you posted on how it turns out... As a single woman, I welcome the opportunity to cook for others. I was so proud of my experiences in Maine, especially those in which I opened my humble apartment and cooked a meal. It was always with so much gratitude and love. Living in Maine was wonderful because I had so many opportunities to grow in this way. I attended a weekly fellowship group every Wednesday night for years where we gathered around a big round table and shared a meal. It was often the highlight of my week. We had delicious meals as Kathy is a great cook and so are some of the others. Xin taught us how to make Chinese... do I remember? I learned about red dogs, marshmallow salads with fruit, apple crisps, blueberry pies, fiddleheads (yum!), and homemade whoppie pies. I also learned about what everyone in my group likes. I learned that Rachel likes bacon and even though she's a health instructor, she's not big on her veggies. Go figure! I learned Katie loves macaroni and cheese, B usually asks if there's dessert before dinner is through and so on. I loved soaking up what each person brought to the table as far as their culture and background was concerned. My budget was always so tight and I don't remember sharing as much as I'd liked, but I do remember baking and bringing cinnamon mini-muffins and everyone raving about them. It dawned on me that cooking is an act of love but so is the receiving. All of their compliments affirmed me and my simple heart.
I feel like in the last few years my love of cooking boomeranged. Not only did I have the fellowship group, but I had Tom's friendship and open door to me. He let me come into his home whenever I wanted to, even when he was away. He knew how much I enjoyed trying new recipes. He also knew that I was struggling to eat, but he never made me feel underserving. He always welcomed me into his home for a meal in front of the fire. He is a fantastic cook, although he would say he just cooks the same things all the time. I would have to argue that at least he doesn't reach for Hungry Man or Lean Cuisine. The very thought instantly upsets my stomach. T prepared scrumptious meals like fish chowder, sausage links with a vegetable, stir fry, shepherds pie, butterscotch brownies, chocolate mousse, macaroni and cheese, meatloaf, beef stew, and so forth. He taught me how to separate an egg from the yolk, how to whisk an egg with a fork, and even how to make the perfect mushroom omelet. I enjoyed reading through his cookbooks and soaking up the comfort of a warm meal in a caring home. I also cooked quite a bit. I made cookies, brownies, pumpkin pie, granola, apple crisps, cupcakes, muffins, banana cream pudding, fruit torte (shown below) Those are the things I can remember...
I think of all the jobs I've worked as well, and I have had my share of restaurant experience. It's true, I've normally been on the serving end, but it's still a connection with food. I guess I have had some experience working with food, too. I remember making big batches of tuna salad when I worked at Lenny's Deli. I also washed and prepped a lot of veggies when I worked at Sunshine Grocery. I've worked in Mexican, American, Italian, Greek, Southern, etc., and currently I'm working at a Mediterranean bistro. It all adds to the experience. I'm not exactly sure in what quantity or quality, but it has been a big part of my life.
A couple winters ago I also attended a donation based cooking class held at the Common Good in SWH, Maine. The recipes were very unique and not necessarily ones that I would keep in my repertoire, but it was still an exciting adventure. It was a basic healthy sharing meals class, and it felt freshly satisfying and necessary to cook. All things I believe.
Last summer I worked on an organic farm for six months called Triple Chick Farm. I would not be exaggerating to say that almost every day we had a conversation about food. I think that was our link and what draws everyone to the farm in the first place. We are growing good, colorful food full of nutrients, flavor, and so, so, so different from what you buy in the store. It's hard not to become passionate about food in that environment. My budget again was tight, but one benefit of the farm was the surplus of food. I learned to cook beet greens and love them, kale, roast cauliflower and fennel, enjoy many of the vegetables raw, bake potatoes, fresh tomatoes and cucumbers. The best meals, I learned, were the simplest. I learned to really appreciate food.
Another huge thing that has been part of my love of food is having a space and place of my own. When I lived in South Carolina- this is the first time I remember really setting up house. I fell a little more in love with cooking with each recipe I tried that awakened my senses. I remember making homemade applesauce and thinking it was the best thing I had ever tasted. It was truly that climatic of an event in my life. I also made lots of banana bread and soup.
My college years were more lean, and I confess to questionable eating patterns when I haven't lived on my own. It's hard to make yourself at home in someone else's kitchen. After killing one of my old roommates antique cast iron skillet, I think I was scarred. But then I had a place of my own again and the cooking got up and running. I made lots of soups- broccoli, lentil, kale and sausage, chicken and dumplings, and so forth. It was enormously nourishing. I loved it. I started having people over, too, which was fun but a little nerve wracking at first.
And then I went away and came back and finally got my own place again. The cooking again started back up and this time with even more creativity as my budget was seriously tight. I made so much vegetarian chili and turkey chili this past winter - wow! I also made myself a lot of grilled cheese sandwiches dipped in tomato soup with milk (only good with sourdough bread- trust me!) and I ate a lot of eggs. The reason for this was because I had a friend that traded eggs for rides from me. I made omelets, scrambled eggs with jam, hard boiled eggs, deviled eggs, quiches, egg salad, and it was actually a lot of fun. I was really keen on how to eat on a budget but still be relatively healthy. One time I broke down and made myself brownies from scratch. They were oh- so good, but it's dangerous to be in a snowed in apartment alone with a pan of brownies. Just sayin'!
So that's a little time line of my food history. There is a much deeper history, though, and it's too long to go into right now. But I will leave it at this. I think sometimes when you do without, you appreciate what you have in a deep way. I feel that to be my case with food and cooking. There is family history and that ties into years of not treating myself well as a young adult. Again, that is another blog, but I deprived myself of food because I didn't feel worthy enough.
The honest to God truth is that while I don't have a food rich family history, I can look back and see that I had this in me all along. One of my childhood memories is being so excited to have a small little gray file box. I filled it with little 5 by 7 cards and started writing out all kinds of recipes in them. Even as a youngster I was very curious about how food came together and what was involved. I was curious about the creation and excited about the possibility of sharing.
And this leads me to today... Grown up Krista...
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