What to expect

This is a record of the recipes that I have been making for my family.  This is not a nostalgic reminiscence of grandmothers or the story of a connection to a culture or the past.  There are plenty of other options for descriptions of how an old lady’s hands mooshed dough.  This is what I do.   This is what I have learned.  Who am I?  

I love food and I love to tinker with it.  Food was always very mysterious when I was younger.  It was magic.  Something that normal people couldn’t do; not in a normal kitchen; not with normal tools; not without a tall, white, mushroom shaped hat and an accent.  I am a muggle and therefore cooking well was not my destiny.  But I had a friend that was magic and I also had very little money. 

One day, we were watching TV and an ad for fried shrimp came on.  

I said, “let’s go out and get that.”  

He said, “why don’t we cook it.”  

I said, “Huh?”

And so I sous cheffed; in a filthy kitchen, with slap dash tools, and it was delicious.  I then cooked some terrible casseroles for a few years.  They were mostly mac and cheese mash-ups with undercooked veggies and ham chunks.  But I kept cooking.  I took control of that power and here is a record of what I have learned.  This is my spell book.  I am not Gandalf but I’m ok.  

I am going to provide you with recipes that I make.  But full transparency, I never measure.  So, I’ve gone back and calculated quantities.  However, and this is important, this is your food.  Your preferences matter.  Primarily because you are eating this stuff.  My goal is to give you resources and suggestions to allow you to adapt to your style and taste.  Follow word for word or improv.  I won’t be offended.  

Enjoy.