All Intents and Purposes

I love everything about food. Real food. Food from the earth, gathered and prepared with passion, shared with loved ones or savored alone. Better with people, though, because of the shared excitement, the mutual moans of delight, the words of description, and expressions of wonder.

I'm not entirely certain how it is that I have become the cook/baker that I am given my childhood experiences. Mom liked the 50's convenience foods. I didn't encounter real spaghetti with fresh marinara sauce until I made it myself when in my 20's. Mom's version of spaghetti was Franco-American from a can. Chinese food was Chung-King from a can and I hated it. I made myself a peanut butter sandwich on Chinese night. French fries were frozen, chicken always fried, pork chops were leather, and vegetables were canned or frozen and cooked to mush. When Mom began to garden after I left home, still the veggies were cooked to mush. Freshly harvested from the garden then cooked till all that was left was the pulp. Dad made her mad when he suggested she cook her vegetables they way I do.

So, how did I wander from Cool-Whip to fresh whipping cream, from canned pumpkin pies to pies made from fresh grown pumpkin roasted in my oven, from cheap meats to grass-fed, from Oscar Meyer lunchmeat sandwiches to marinated mojito chicken on crusty grilled bread, from stale herbs in a jar to growing my own, from fast food to well, nausea at the thought of fast food?

I don't know. It was such a slow journey.

But I suspect it began with my hearing loss. Our bodies being the amazing things they are compensate for deficiencies by ramping up somewhere else. Born with a moderate loss seems to have enhanced my palate. Much pleasure is to be had from energetic taste buds, and much pain, too, when they encounter frown-inducing food-like substances set on a dinner plate.

My taste buds saved me. They shouted at me that, 'There must be a better way! Find it! We're dyin' down here!"

So, I found it. My sense of smell - equally enhanced - led the charge and worked hand in hand with my tongue. I took Home Ec. in school where I learned some techniques, but again, the courses were pretty deficient. Tenacious me found recipes and articles in Mom's Ladies' Home Journal and McCall magazines. Not great, but a place to start. Then I discovered Julia Child and her enthusiasm went a long way. PBS had some excellent cooking shows in addition to good old Julia.

Eventually, Tom and I summoned our courage and began frequenting good restaurants in order to broaden our experiences. We have never looked back. The world of real food with its glorious tastes, textures, scents, colors, and robustness - gorgeously presented - opened up for me. Soon I was shopping in better grocery stores and creating dishes out of my own imagination and wowing my family.

And wowing the family was extremely satisfying because not only were they being nourished they were happy, eager, and connected. We all were.

I'm pretty pleased with the fact that I halted Mom's less-than-stellar cooking legacy in one generation. Nipped it in the bud. All four of my kids have refined palates which crave food as it was meant to be. That's my legacy.

It's a valuable one.

Together my family and I continue to learn from one another, to brave new cuisines, techniques, crossing barriers into the unknown, and enjoying the passion together.

Mangi!