It's about day 75 of my COVID-19 quarantine. Like most people it's been a mental roller coaster. I was feeling down this weekend so I decided to spend some time reflecting on how the pandemic has positively changed my life. (Trying to maintain a 'glass half full' attitude). I discovered two things -- I rediscovered my interest in fitness and I'm a better cook. This post focuses on the latter because food brings everyone joy right?
Before quarantine life, my husband and I would eat out or order delivery all the time. We barely cooked. On occasion I would try new recipes but my success rate was about 50%. I literally always had a back-up plan on new recipe days. Lots of people started cooking and baking as a hobby during these uncertain times. That's not me. I started cooking because take-out wasn't appetizing to me anymore. Rather than enjoying the yummy food, I was hyper focused on the number of people who were involved in the preparation, packaging, and delivery of my order. This was early on in the pandemic before restaurants and delivery services implemented safe guards. So I started cooking. Once I started to cook more, I began to understand how various foods and spices react with each other. I became more adventurous with my meals. And yesterday for the FIRST time, I prepared a meal based on what I thought would be tasty and not a recipe!
I made beet burgers with an almond crust, a side of crispy (baked NOT fried) sweet potatoes, and for dessert a mango cherry shaved ice.
And while this meal is not going to win a James Beard award (or any awards for that matter), I am proud that I'm able to make an edible meal without a specific recipe. Maybe it's because mom's and grandmom's recipes are always "add a pinch of this, a dab of that", I feel like cooking without a recipe is a different level of cooking. Does that make sense? Is it just me?
I decided that I would start documenting my meals so I don't forget them. I have a feeling the recipes are going to be a lot of "a few shakes of spice A and a few of spice B" 😉 One of the greatest thing about plant-based meals for non-cooks is that you can totally taste as you cook, everything is edible for the start. I season as I cook.
I leave you with my non-pro tip of the day: To get crispy baked potatoes, cook them in boiling water with some baking soda before they go in the oven. I don't know why that works but it does.