By the Books

Though I've said time and again that I like cooking and baking, and even recounted some of my forays into the kitchen, there seems something lackluster in my recipes. They're disorganized, unclear, and generally unhelpful.


I obviously look at recipes, I mean I own several cookbooks. Which I refer to often. But if you asked me, I think I don't like recipes. For one thing, I hate buying specific ingredients or tools. I'm poor. For another, sometimes my tastes don't align with others.

But honestly, part of me likes the guidelines and structure; it's sort of a safety net to make sure I don't make something completely foul. I think that's why I, and so many others, are initially drawn to baking first. It's a little more predictable I think. It reminds me a little of chemistry too (in a good way). Or something.

I WANT to believe I know enough about cooking and especially baking that I can do it, not from memory, but from intuition. I'm getting better at it, pairing spices and flavors, balancing the 5 tastes, etc. But I'm not there yet.

So I play fast and loose with the rules. Bend them to suit my situation. But rarely break them. So these "recipes" are notes. Things for me to look back on to learn from. Because I keep changing.