Cooking

I grew up in Indonesia and in those days all ex-patriots had maids and often cooks. We were one of those families who were blessed with a cook! And what a cook she was too!!! I still have a few of her recipes and cook them for my children now. We had two big tins in the kitchen that she kept full for us. One was with prawn crackers, an Indonesian snack, and the other was full of brownies :) We were allowed to eat as many as we wanted and it magically just kept refilling!!! Needless to say my mother did not cook much!

When I was a teenager I went to Holland for High School and lived with my Aunt and Uncle. My Aunt was a fantastic cook. I never heard her say at five in the afternoon – “Now what will I cook tonight?” We never had take out – did you hear that right? NEVER!!!!! She went shopping once a week and planned the meals somehow, though I never actually saw that. Again, food magically appeared at the table each night :)

There was one big problem with the women chefs in my life. They never taught me how to cook! Oh, Ibu Jum (our Indonesian cook) did teach me how to make taco shells when I asked her once, and I got her recipe for brownies that I still use today. I have a few favorite recipes from my Aunt of baked goods, but…… most of what they cooked each night did not come from recipes! I couldn’t even boil potatoes without having them slightly raw or overcooked and ready to be made into mash!!!

When I got engaged I started collecting recipes. I was good at following a recipe, so our first meals when we were married consisted of lots of casserole and one pot dishes. Mashed potatoes – yes, I developed them to a fine art! I did learn to cook a roast lamb dinner thanks to my mother in law. But simple chops and veggies…. And steak and veggies….. I was always worried that I would undercook them and usually ended up over cooking them!

Nearly 15 years later I still mostly cook casseroles. My children are ages 12, 10 and 8 and I have started to teach them some of my recipes. I often have days when I think – what am I going to cook? And I often have days when I am tempted to get take out. But I am striving to learn new techniques and new recipes all the time. I love looking at my friends’ favorite recipes. I am always bound to pick up something new! I love to talk to older women and ask them how they plan their cooking and what some of their quick and easy meals are.

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