Prior to this year, I wasn't much of a cook. I didn't understand naturally how certain flavors and textures work together, and would have to follow a recipe every time, and would not understand what the purpose of a certain ingredient was (and thus not be able to substitute things very well if at all). Not only that, but I couldn't just sort of duck my head in the fridge/pantry and make something out of "whatever" - it had to be a full meal planned with all the ingredients.
So we joined a CSA this spring, and I've really kind of started to figure it out!
: At this point, I can just get certain staples at the store (milk, cheese, flour, rice, beans, yeast, oil, peanut butter - I get eggs from the CSA), and of course keep a stock of different spices, and I'm all set! I can make different things out of whatever I get. Yes, I consult recipes still, but I feel free to take liberties with them. Last night I looked in the fridge and there wasn't much left except two eggplant, and I'd only cooked eggplant once before (and it was an oil-devouring nightmare, I tell ya!). But I pulled together some random ingredients and baked a casserole that was really delicious! The only thing I looked up was how long to bake eggplant. I told DH when I took it out of the oven that I had NO IDEAa how it would come out, but it was great!
I have had a few "failures" but they were still edible, and the big thing is that now I'm able to identify why they failed and fix it the next time. For example I made this curry dish with zucchini and chick peas and sour cream last week and it was terrific. So I made a very similar dish this week with swiss chard instead of zucchini, and it came out ok but not really great. I realized the chard was a lot more bitter than the zucchini and I should have balanced it with more sweet. Probably next time I'll use some milk or something sweet (plus I didn't have sour cream this time), but just to save the dinner I dropped a pinch of sugar over the dinner and it perked up again. There is no way I could have done that last year. (No, I don't usually cook with sugar, but it was an emergency!!).
So... anyone else find a CSA really drove their cooking skills?
So we joined a CSA this spring, and I've really kind of started to figure it out!
: At this point, I can just get certain staples at the store (milk, cheese, flour, rice, beans, yeast, oil, peanut butter - I get eggs from the CSA), and of course keep a stock of different spices, and I'm all set! I can make different things out of whatever I get. Yes, I consult recipes still, but I feel free to take liberties with them. Last night I looked in the fridge and there wasn't much left except two eggplant, and I'd only cooked eggplant once before (and it was an oil-devouring nightmare, I tell ya!). But I pulled together some random ingredients and baked a casserole that was really delicious! The only thing I looked up was how long to bake eggplant. I told DH when I took it out of the oven that I had NO IDEAa how it would come out, but it was great!I have had a few "failures" but they were still edible, and the big thing is that now I'm able to identify why they failed and fix it the next time. For example I made this curry dish with zucchini and chick peas and sour cream last week and it was terrific. So I made a very similar dish this week with swiss chard instead of zucchini, and it came out ok but not really great. I realized the chard was a lot more bitter than the zucchini and I should have balanced it with more sweet. Probably next time I'll use some milk or something sweet (plus I didn't have sour cream this time), but just to save the dinner I dropped a pinch of sugar over the dinner and it perked up again. There is no way I could have done that last year. (No, I don't usually cook with sugar, but it was an emergency!!).
So... anyone else find a CSA really drove their cooking skills?
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