Here’s the problem with the way my mom Helen cooks: she doesn’t measure nor does she exactly follow recipes.
Anna: “Mom, I don’t think you’ve ever made it through a recipe without changing something about it.”
Helen: “That’s not true.”
Anna: “Really? Mom. You can’t even explain a recipe to me without changing it. Name one you’ve left as is.”
Helen: “Well, maybe I do change something, unless it’s like a cake or something.”
It is a kind of magic, the way that she is always shifting ingredients here and making adjustments there. It’s what makes her meals so unforgettable and what makes guests come back year after year. But, how do you write that down? How do you record such a thing that is done by intuition, taste and experience?
Well, here is the answer: You guess.
Anna: “So how much garlic powder do you add?”
Helen: “Well enough. Just so it’s, you know, covered.”
Anna: “So like ½ teaspoon?”
Helen: “Well, I’m not sure. Maybe. Or ¼ teaspoon. No maybe that’s not enough. Well it just depends you know. Maybe say ½ teaspoon. That should be fine. Or a tablespoon. That could also work.”
Anna: ……
The recipes on this blog are the closest I could get to what my mom does in the kitchen. I followed many of them exactly so I could photograph the finished product, and my husband said the meals tasted just like they do on The Farm. I think we got pretty close, but pay attention and follow your intuition. If it seems like the recipe calls for too much of something or not enough of something else, go with your gut. It’s the only way to develop one.
Also, taste taste taste as you cook. Some people like a lot of garlic or none at all. Or a lot of salt or no salt. Don’t forget that cooking can be PLAY if you let it. And if you make a mistake, then you learned something the hard way, which means it will stick!
We’ll try to note when it’s a good time to do a taste check. Obviously, NOT when something is dangerously raw. LOL!
tips
1. My mom doesn’t own any frying pans that aren’t cast-iron or newer than 1943, so whenever a frying pan is used, assume it’s cast-iron
2. One of my mom’s favorite tricks in throwing sugar into savory dishes. She says that sugar blends the flavors of a dish, especially when you can balance that salt and sugar taste just right. That’s her favorite.
3. When we say greased, what we mean is sprayed with cooking spray. She goes through cases of that stuff.
4. My mom and I get almost all of our spices and herbs from Penzey’s Spices or local co-ops that sell spices and herbs. It’s important to start with quality spices when cooking simply. So make sure you are buying the freshest herbs and spices you can find. You can tell how fresh they are by how they smell. If your spices have a weak smell or no smell at all, chances are they won’t taste much time anything either. Penzey’s does have a website you can order from if there isn’t one near you.
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