Monday, September 6, 2010

Welcome to the soup kitchen

Welcome to my new blog.  I have been blogging for several months about fiber art, and thought it might be just as much fun to write about what goes on in my kitchen as what goes on in my studio.  I hope you'll enjoy it too.

I like to fix meals but I don’t particularly want to spend hours in the kitchen or obsess over recipes.  I want to eat healthy foods with a minimum of salt, sugar, fat and preservatives and a maximum of vegetable matter.  We’re not vegetarians by any means, but we try to make vegetables a major part of practically every meal.  We’re willing to eat canned or frozen foods, but we read the labels carefully and don’t buy things with a lot of salt, sugar or other strange additives.

My favorite kind of meal is one that starts with reconnaissance in the kitchen.  What’s on hand, what needs to be eaten soon, what’s left over in the fridge.  Then I call upon a favorite plan (I don’t like to use the word recipe because I rarely follow the plan exactly).  Sometimes the plan gets executed to closely resemble meals of the past; other times it takes off in a different direction.

My approach to meal preparation is something like my approach to fiber art – start with some ingredients and a general plan, then use your good judgment and improvise.  I have lots of cookbooks, one or two of which I actually consult, but mainly I cook by instinct.  In this blog I’ll share some of my plans and favorite ingredients with you – maybe one will be just the thing you need to jump-start your dinner tonight.

7 comments:

  1. Not scrolling up to the top to look at the soup again. Must make some soon. Will endeavor not to read this blog while hungry!

    Mary Anne in Kentucky

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  2. Mary Anne -- this is exactly when you should read this blog -- to get a good idea for a fast, easy dinner! at least that what I hope I will be able to write about. thanks for visiting!

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  3. This is exciting! You are a wonderful cook and I'll eat your food any day of the week. Can't wait to see what you present here!

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  4. Kathy: I've decided I want you to be my new best friend. You're a great quilter and could be my mentor and invite me over for dinner too. I'll bring the wine. We could have a good time. Do you live anywhere near Calif? Sigh...I'll bet not.

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  5. Diva - no, I don't live anywhere near California but I wish I did. The wine is better there! But I can be your long-distance mentor and friend.

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  6. Okay if I have to settle for that I will. But you could always come visit. I have a great blowup mattress in my studio. And you're right....there is great wine here. Do you like Big red zinfandels? Here's a recipe for you.

    Get some juicy red high acid tomatoes. A sweet cantaloupe; a perfectly ripe avocado. Cube all in 1 " chunks and then squeeze lemon juice all over them. Season with white pepper and salt sparingly. Delicious. The flavors of sweet, bland and acid blend perfectly. Enjoy.

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  7. Love your art and love your cooking style! This blog makes me want to get up and fix something healthy before I finish off the pan of brownies.

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