Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Recipes

I may have mentioned this before in a previous post, but this time I think it needs a post of its own. Besides I don't have any pictures of things I have been making to put up yet, but my new computer is on it's way. It took me much longer than I thought it would to decide on a computer to buy, hence the delay. So back to recipes. 

Do I use recipes, yes mostly for cakes and other sensitive baked goods or for the first time I am trying a new recipe. The rest of the time I wing it. I am of the school of thought that if you want to learn how to cook, then you just have to do it. If you always follow a recipe you will never make mistakes and then you will never learn. We learn through failure, not through repetition. If I use a recipe on this blog I will cite the source, otherwise I am not using a recipe and just using my intuition and memory. 

It is very useful to learn to cook this way, because making tomato for four can be easily scaled to tomato soup for twelve without much effort. It also allows things to change, grow, and evolve. If I don't have an ingredient on hand I may substitute and find out I like it much better. And to be honest 85% of the time I am following a recipe for the first time I modify it. I can't help it, I have a problem. I like to own my work and that allows me to be a better cook. Try it, you will come to love it. Meanwhile if you do want a recipe from the site I can vaguely type something up that should come close.