snowy

- Do you love cooking? Yes, it's a passion of mine. I love to create meals of all kinds, whether they're super complicated or something simple. I have a number of recipes I've devised on my own, and enjoy experimenting with my culinary skills. For instance, last night I made old-fashioned macaroni and cheese flavored with a bit of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale.

- Do you like cooking any more when you cook for others? Yes, I like my food to be appreciated.

- Do(es) your significant other(s) enjoy cooking? Yes, and so we switch off cooking responsibilities. Some nights I'm too tired to put all the effort into preparing a meal that I would like to, or too busy with other obligations (work, volunteering, etc), so he takes care of it.

- Do you feel obligated to cook, and does this taint your experience? That's the great thing, because of the equitable division of labor in regards to cooking, I never feel obligated to cook.

- How does your role in the kitchen differ from that of your mother? Grandmother? My mother is an amazing cook, but she has performance anxiety. She is always fearful that people aren't going to like what she cooks, but they always do. Plus, she would prefer to entertain than be stuck in a kitchen, and given their current house setup, it's impossible to do both (so on holidays like Thanksgiving, I do her a favor and cook so she can go socialize). My grandmothers--one was a terrible cook, and the other was very gifted (my mom's mom). Not only a good cook, but an excellent baker too--but that's true of all the women on that side of the family (my great-great-grandfather was the man who introduced the PacNW to the maple bar). Baking is something we do in my family. My mom's specialty is pies. Mine is cakes.


For those of you who cook regularly:

- Do you see it as your role as a woman to cook, or do you enjoy it "just because"? Just because. My parents divided up the cooking between them for family dinners when I was younger, so I definitely wasn't raised with the idea that it's the woman's job to cook. I have just always enjoyed the steps it takes to plan, prepare, and serve a meal.

- Are you frequently inclined to depend upon frozen meals, or do you prefer to build a meal up from scratch? It depends. In summer, it's easier to make things from scratch, as there is an abundance of market-fresh produce to be had, but in winter, I rely more on frozen goods to round out the lessened offerings of the market. I try to prepare at least one meal per week from scratch as much as possible, though I admit that I am a fan of many of Rachael Ray's shortcuts.

- Did your mother prepare your meals when you were a child? Some of them--as I said above, she and my dad split up cooking duties. My dad makes some mean tacos. I was also encouraged to cook for the family--I made my first meatloaf when I was 6 (it turned out gray and no one could eat it, but now I am a meatloaf master). I always helped my parents in the kitchen with the cooking, too.

- How much do you try to incorporate Organic or otherwise healthful products into your meals? We shop at the farmer's market every week in spring/summer/fall, and every other week in winter; most of our produce is organic and local. We also buy jam made from local strawberries, honey from local hives, milk from local cows, eggs from local farm chickens (yay for fresh farm eggs), etc. We eat a vegetarian diet at home, because my SO is vegetarian.

- Do you take time to plan balanced meals in advance? Yes. It really isn't that hard.

- Does it thrill you just as much to shop and prepare for the meals as it does to eat them? Yes. I love food, and I love shopping for it.

- Do you appreciate a helpful hand in the kitchen, or do you consider meal-making your "alone time"? It depends. My SO makes an excellent sous chef, because he knows if I'm the one cooking dinner, I'm in charge. He gladly grates cheese or chops vegetables according to my instructions. Makes my life easier.

- Do you have a specific kitchen design that lends itself to your style of cooking or entertaining? I have a horrible kitchen. I live in a rental. I try to keep everything organized, but the kitchen itself is a little beat up. Invariably when we entertain people end up in the kitchen--it's where the foosball table is. My parents' kitchen is also awful--only two people fit in it at a time as it's poorly designed and small. It's unfortunate, because some meals, like Thanksgiving, are meant to be prepared communally, but in their kitchen, that's impossible.

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If I am not better, at least I am different. --Jean-Jacques Rousseau