If I Could See Me Now

If the newly married me from 8 years ago could see the me now, she (or I guess, I...) would probably drop dead from sheer shock. Why, you ask? Let me 'splain!

The me from 8 years ago liked to cook just fine, but was a severe "by-the-book" (or in this case by-the-recipe) kind of gal. Toss a roast in the crock pot with some carrots & potatoes - now I could do that all on my own. But when it came to recipes and trying new ones it was follow directions, measure everything or DIE! Without much of anything in the way of cooking lessons I was timid in that area, but as long as everything was measured & done just like the recipe said, there was no reason to worry if the food item would come out tasty or not (unless I ran across one of those "what were they thinking" kind of recipes & then the distaste could be blamed on someone else!)

The me from now is a brazen, pinch-of-this, dash-of-that lover of cooking. Not really the make up my own recipes kind of cook (I'd rather let someone else do all that work!), but the not afraid to add/subtract/substitute or try it my way kind of cook. The new me seldom uses measuring devices - I can now "eyeball it" -  & no longer panics if she can't follow the directions to a T. I don't care about "the presentation," & I've discovered that neither does anyone else! And as for all those fancy meals, "gourmet" cooking shows & ingredients you've never heard of... okay, I never cared about those anyway!

The following quote now decorates my kitchen: "We'd all be better off if we admitted there is no such thing as gourmet cooking... there is simply good cooking." I believe it & live by it & the old me can drop dead!!!

PS. I learned my carefree, non-measuring, sometimes brazen cooking skills from my best friend. As a frequent spectator of her jaw-dropping antics in the kitchen I always longed to cook the way she did. I finally feel like I possess the skills to toss that measuring spoon, it just took me a while to find them! I think she'd be proud!