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there are (somewhat obviously) so so many aspects about being a mom that i adore. i love cruz's little imagination. i love knowing the difference between a skid steer and an excavator. i love teaching him new songs. i love that he hands me the etch-a-sketch and demands, "write words, mommy." i don't even mind some of the bad stuff; i barely blink at a poopy diaper.
but i hate bath time.
i can't even get into what or why, i just have a mental block about bath time. i will do absolutely anything to get out of this chore.
my mom was here last weekend and like a saint she was upstairs giving cruz a bath. as the water began to run and bubbles were poured, i walked into the kitchen to prepare dinner. i didn't know exactly what i wanted to make, so i decided to employ a couple of shauna's cooking lessons that i had learned from bread & wine.
the first: start with what you have. i opened the fridge to find a half container of goat cheese and plain greek yogurt-- the building blocks of shauna's goat cheese biscuits. i pulled out a mixing bowl and started dumping. yogurt, milk, salt. the dough squished in between my fingers as i formed it into balls and dropped them into a pan.
the second lesson: more salt, more heat. in her chapter the chopping block, shauna describes a culinary boot camp she attended (and mom, we are so doing this!). the head chef told the students that all meals can be improved with "more salt. more heat. more butter." as the biscuits started to rise in the oven, i chopped chicken sausage, poured olive oil into a pan on high heat, salted gnocchi, picked basil from the pot next to the sink. the ingredients sizzled and melded and the house got quiet as cruz went to sleep under my mom's gentle watch.
the most important part of the evening was that i got to cook for my mom. she, who has cooked so many many meals for me, who has basted and roasted and stir fried and sauteed, all with love. when she comes to visit, i want to pay back just a smidge of that kitchen love. even though she put my son to bed, and probably even cleaned up afterwards, it made me feel good that i could make her one delicious meal. come back soon, mama. there are a lot more recipes in bread & wine for us to cook through. and cruz could use a bath.
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want to win your own copy of bread &wine? leave a comment below telling me who you love to cook for. good luck!
i love to cook for my lovely wife, the beautiful Val or tbV as i call her - i have not traditionally been a great cook [growing up] or known that way but once i started living by myself i used to love experimenting in the kitchen and now that i am married [coming up to 4 years] i have someone who can share in my creations - Val is very much a find-a-recipe-and-enhance-it girl while i am more of a see-whats-in-he-fridge-and-cupboards-and-experiment guy and so i come up with some unusual ingredents at times but it generally works out really well - i am a taster cook so as i cook i taste and add accordingly as opposed to a measurements cook... and i really enjoy cooking for or with my lovely wife.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE this post! Shauna is one of my favorite authors and I've been meaning to get a copy of this book for the last week! Can't wait to devour it!
ReplyDeleteIronically, MY mom is coming to visit me at the end of May and I'm already planning what I'm going to cook for her and what we can cook together! I can't wait. It will be such a fun experience.. and also the first time I've cooked for her! (I'm totally gonna copy your meal from this post... my mouth is already watering!)
As far as who I usually love to cook for, well, that would be my husband. He is so adventurous and willing to try whatever I make and it is such a joy to cook for him. I love how he comes and sits at the bar when I'm making dinner... it's the highlight of my day.
This book is totally on my "to read" list. I have read SO many great things about it!
ReplyDeleteErika
I love cooking for my son. He is in a season where he appreciates almost everything I make for him. Whether it's a Nutella toast or a special slow-cooker something, he melts my heart by saying, "Mama, I love this food." The icing on the cake is his usual follow up, "How did you make it?" It is such a delight to share in my enjoyment of eating and making food with my little son.
ReplyDeleteAlicia
Such a thoughtful post, Becca. I loooove to cook for anyone who'll let me. But my favorite people to cook for are my husband and our friends. I keep hearing such great stuff about this book...hope to read it soon!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE cooking for friends! Throwing a dinner party fills my bucket. But my absolute favorite person to cook for is my Dad. He loves my cooking and always makes me feel like I have just made the best thing he has ever eaten.
ReplyDeleteKrista
A second chance to win? Awesome! I would say that my husband is my favorite person to cook for, he's also probably the most gracious. However, we hosted a couple for dinner a few months back and it was so fun to cook for them. We spent the day preparing a 5 course meal (check that one off the 30 before 30 list!)!!
ReplyDelete