Cooking has always been my passion. I started cooking when I was 8 years old. My parents divorced and my mom went to work. I was a notoriously picky eater, so I learned how to create dishes that I loved with very basic ingredients. While most 8 year olds were mastering the PB&J sandwich, I was experimenting with crepes.
My grandmother was a wonderful cook. Hearty meals that were slow cooked. I mention that because she was always cautioning me not to cook my foods too high. “The world is just in to big of a hurry when it comes to food.” She was right. I accompanied her many times to local butcher where she would meticulously pick her choices of meat. She made the most wonderful rolled roast with roasted carrots, and potatoes. It always amazed me how attention she would give to such simple dishes. She carefully seasoned the meat, browned it and then slow cooked it for hours. Nothing fancy but the most flavorful, tender roast I have ever had. I miss her. She was my personal culinary teacher, as I would call her regularly for advice or recipes.
I was married young and had three boys. I was blessed to be able to stay home with them while they were young. Financially things where tight, but I learned that cooking from scratch could make our money go much further. You wouldn’t find packaged cookies, or processed foods in our house. We were poor but we ate well!
Life changes and eventually I found myself a single mother with three boys who were 11, 9 and 8. I joined the workforce at age 30. My time to cook disappeared as did any extra money. I picked up the book Once a Month cooking, and became a huge fan of freezer cooking. I would spend my Sunday’s cooking and freezing meals. I still had a homemade dinner every night but none of the stress
Fast forward to today. I am remarried to a wonderful man and my boys are now 19, 17 and 16. After spending most of my life taking care of others, I am finally getting some time for me. There are not many things that feed my soul as much as being in my kitchen and I have decided to expand my culinary repertoire. Thus the title from Peanut Butter to Porcini. I love the basic Midwestern staple meals but I’m ready to delve into Indian, Mediterranean, and Italian. The sky's the limit. I’m hoping to enroll in some culinary classes, read every cookbook I can get my hands on and master some new cooking skills. Who knows maybe someday I will be able to transfer my cooking skills into a viable career! But even if that doesn’t happen following my passions makes it easier to sit behind my desk at my unfulfilling corporate job.
