You've heard the question a million times..."What's your passion?" W hen it comes to cooking, the term is used all the time....and I think it's appropriate.Throwing a bunch of ingredients into a bowl, mixing them about then throwing the stuff into an oven for a specified amount of time can be considered "cooking," if you want to get technical. But is it really?
Have you ever thrown your heart and soul into a project? By contrast, have you ever just "phoned something in"? I believe there is a noticeable difference in the quality when extra effort is applied. It's impossible to do that when distracted or your heart's not into it.
Being passionate about cooking doesn't mean you have to give up your present life, go to le Cordon Blu Academy and get a show on the Food Network. Fundamentally, being passionate about cooking means that you are interested, engaged, enthusiastic about what you are doing and why.
People can loose their passion. I've seen it a lot. Folks who've been in the restaurant business can get burnt out as the burdens of running a business overshadow their love of preparing food. Homemakers can get sick of things, too; being forced into a culinary rut because of finicky family members, having too many mouths and not enough food and having to cook after an already long, duty-filled day constitute only the tip of the iceberg. Personally I'm amazed at how many mega-multi-taskers survive!
So how does one keep passion alive? That question has been asked since the beginning of time. Granted, most folks ask it with regards to their sex-life, but passion is passion....to me, anyway.
The answer to both is surprisingly similar....keep it interesting.
Try new ingredients or new methods of preparation. Consider involving family members, including kids, in cooking projects. Change the meal menu once in a while; if Mondays are always meatloaf try burgers instead. There's no reason why chicken and stuffing should be reserved for Sundays, either!
If you feel overworked, consider delegating some chores to those wonderful people who live in the house with you! Why should everything fall on to your shoulders? You'll be surprised at how much more time there is when others help keep the household in order! You may even find some of that elusive "me time" hiding in the rafters!Between the heat, manipulations and mess, one might say that cooking and making love have a lot in common. Just like in the bedroom, you have to work at it to keep passion alive in the kitchen too.
We're heading into the "food holiday season" - a perfect excuse for bringing some fun back into your kitchen!
Try making food gifts...a way to try new and different recipes without alienating finicky family members. Their curiosity may be aroused as they see new dishes being made....and who knows?
They may try something new, and like it!
So go ahead....turn up the tunes, put on your favorite comfy clothes and have at it!
Enjoy!
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