If there is an upside to the last year it's that I am home more. And that means more nights in my own bed. More time to exercise. More time with family. And more time to read, clean, fix, put away, nap, think, straighten up, mess up, daydream, volunteer and a bunch of other things that fell by the wayside when every day used to mean getting up early, getting out, racing through projects, and then rushing home at the end of the day or week.
It also means I have more time to cook. I'm hardly a chef, but I do like to play around in the kitchen. It used to be restricted to those days when I wrapped early or the odd weekend. That might mean a birthday cake or a pot of chili, some Sunday morning omelets or using up some too-ripe bananas for bread. And especially when the weather was warm it might mean some chicken or sausage, and that sub-genre of cooking called grilling, which is more about timing than technique.
But as any homemaker will tell you (or you know from personal experience) those one-offs are not the same as doing it every day. As with any activity, be it going for a run or heading to the store or even taking out the garbage, doing it once every now and again can be interesting; doing it every day can be a drag. Still, for me at least, it's a new challenge. And so I gladly offered to take on the day to day assignment of conjuring up dinner for my wife and me.
The good news is that we both are pretty open to eating anything, and have similar tastes. We enjoy bold flavors and different cuisines, generally eat lighter vs. heavier, and shy away from really rich concoctions. She might be a little more vegetable centric, I might like a few more starches, but there are few things either of us make that the other wouldn't eat. That said, the surest way for her to ensure I will take the reins is to say "I have an idea for a tofu scramble."
It's also important to point out I'm a guy. Not trying to stereotype the genders or anything, but while I do like a good salad I'm happy with something greasy, calorie laden and/or loaded with preservatives. I used to get that out of my system when I was on the road. That not being an option for the time being, I reserve those adventures for nights when my wife has an evening meeting that conflicts with dinner time and we decide we're each on our own. She goes for a yogurt, and I go for a hot dog.
When either of us is cooking the rule is chef's choice. While we might ask what the other feels like, the answer is likely to be "food." And so he or she who makes the dinner makes the call. Since we have a pretty well stocked larder that gives me a wide latitude. And on a side note I view it as a challenge to find the oldest things in the pantry and figure out what I can make that will a) use them up, b) make enough for leftovers, and c) be edible. I mean, "best if used by" dates are just a suggestion, correct?
As to recipes, I treat them as a guide for basic steps and ingredients, and go from there. Usually I look at several variations of a dish and then cherry pick the bits I like best. I might swap chicken for pork, add an extra can of tomatoes, larger measures of most spices and flavorings, and always, always more garlic. It might not be classic minestrone or authentic jambalaya, but we always seem to go back for seconds.
So what will it be tonight? As I take our palates around a bastardized version of the world, will it be Indonesian fried rice with chicken and peanut? Maybe a healthier version of shepherd's pie using ground turkey and sweet potatoes? Or a Greek shrimp and feta concoction? Or perhaps I will finally figure out how to use up those 5 jars of hot and sweet mango chutney that have occupied our cabinet since the Obama administration. The first one. Want to come over for dinner?
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Marc Wollin of Bedford has no luck baking bread. His column appears regularly in The Record-Review, The Scarsdale Inquirer and online at http://www.glancingaskance.blogspot.com/, as well as via Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
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