striving for happiness...

So here is something that you may not know about me: I.love.cookbooks. I mean, I really love them. I was just talking to a neighbour and she told me that she reads cookbooks in bed at night - ok, I may not be there yet, but I think I am close. I love going through new books to find recipes that I am interested in cooking, as well as just reading about different techniques. In our home, Sal really does most of the cooking at suppertime, and I am the baker. I love baking anything. One thing that I have begun to do more often is actually read the whole recipe before starting - what a concept, hey? Too many times have I started to cook an onion or meat, add the other ingredients, only to discover two sentences down that I was supposed to marinate the whole thing overnight or let something sit for three hours when I am already starving!

Sal and I watched the movie 'Julie & Julia' last night - hence, the gastronomical posting! I really, really enjoyed it. I loved all of the dishes being prepared, and I especially loved the character of Julia Child - I wish she was a family member of mine who I could go see on the weekends and cook with. I am always fascinated by french cuisine, but have not had much luck cooking it. There are too many ingredients, too many steps, and too many things that can go wrong. I hate spending time in the kitchen only to have prepared a disappointing dish (this happened most recently with potato salad - I blame the recipe. How can potato salad taste bad?) I often will take out cookbooks from the library and spend hours going through them and re-copying the recipes I like into my own cookbook. You cannot understand how happy the process makes me.

I have a couple of favourite cookbooks. My cooking bible is 'The Joy of Cooking'. I was given this book by a wonderful friend and her mom for my wedding shower, and believe me - it is well loved. One thing we have always done in our family is to date the recipe the first time we cook it and write a review. Many a page of my copy has been reviewed:



Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook is also wonderful. I photocopied a lot of recipes out of there, including the coconut cake I made for Sal's birthday. I really love making new things. It provides a real sense of accomplishment if it tastes good! Here is the front and inside of my own recipe book - the one that I copy recipes from friends, family, and other cooks! (Yes, it is a Harry Potter blnk journal that I got as a gift...seriously...what else was I supposed to do with it?)




Again, that is my very well used and well loved book! I always take a look at the Martha Stewart Everyday Food magazine when I am at the grocery store. Super easy and generally healthy recipes. That is something I also look for in a recipe. I am starting to eat more and more fruit and vegetables and less meats. Sal and I have not eaten red meat in over 6 months, and ever since reading the book 'Food Matters' by Mark Bittman, I am even more set on that way of eating. I am so glad we grew so much lettuce in our garden as I have been eating so many salads as of late.

So that's me, and what I make, and what inspires me. My question to you: do you use cookbooks, or are you one of those free spirits who can't stand the thought of following recipes? What cookbooks do you turn to?

c.