I got an email today from someone who read this blog. It was from someone I didn't know and that shocked me; I am surprised when people tell me they are reading but I am even more shocked by the fact that someone would randomly contact me. In this email, the sender was very sweet and told me she enjoyed my musings but questioned why, in my posts, I didn't provide a "recipe" with ingredient lists and clear cut instructions on how to make a dish.
I immediately went to my blog and read my posts - low and behold, she was right. I never even realized I was doing this. I sat for a couple of minutes and thought about it. When I cook I never really know exactly what I'm going to use until I check my fridge to see what's on hand but then it dawned on me. It was my mother. As a young girl, I did with my mother exactly what my son does with me. I sat in the kitchen watching as she created meals that have inspired my culinary adventures throughout the years. I diligently followed her instructions as she told me to feel if a batter was right or to smell if something would taste good. A few years ago during a visit to my mother she was cooking a curry in her kitchen. This was a dish that I never really mastered. I asked if she would write down the recipe so I could take it home. "What recipe?" she queried, "Just watch me." And I did. I watched as she sweated her onions, how she added her spices and tomatoes, how she seasoned and cooked her chicken, all without measuring, but smelling and tasting as each step progressed. It was then that I realized I had been given this great gift, this want to nourish those I love, from my mother.
My mother (above on the right) passed away a couple of years ago and I often think of her while I cook. I do regret that she never wrote down her recipes but as I try to recreate those dishes I use my own creative license. I haven't responded to the email yet but I'm going to tell that reader to use my blog as an outline for cooking, to add or subtract ingredients as she pleases, to be inspired by food and the joy it can bring. I am going to tell her to just feel what she wants to eat. That's what I do. I learned from the best.
