Fast is not always better

I don’t have fancy pictures to put up on my posts…..I’m really not a photographer…..I’m a chef. And hopefully, I am perhaps a better writer than photographer and maybe even a better chef than writer. Anyway...
Today was my Mom's birthday – she turned 79. She wanted to go to Typhoon (restaurant) at the Santa Monica Airport. I picked her up at her house and we drove to the restaurant – a delightful venue overlooking the runway with sightings of small aircraft taking off and landing right before our eyes. During lunch I gave her a framed photo of me in my Chef jacket (same photo as on my blog). She got teary-eyed taking in the photo for a minute and then said....”you look so happy.” Truer words could not be spoken….yes, I am a happy cook.

Why do I love to cook and why am I so happy?

I love the scents, the colors, the textures. I love feeling the food in my hands…working with it, looking at it, selecting it, holding it, washing, chopping and mixing it. I even love treating it like precious jewels that I care for by mindfully wrapping it for storage when necessary. It’s my art and it is my therapy. I love to present a pretty plate with vivid colors and textures placing them just so, so that they create a pleasing picture.
Much of my time is spent thinking about what I will prepare, how I will create it and what I need to create it. And that doesn’t even include the time it actually takes to prepare it…..as you know…..it can be time consuming. Which brings me to share this: Several days ago I watched, for the very first time, the Food Channel Show “30 Minute Meals” with Rachel Ray. I was fascinated. Fascinated at her ability to put together some pretty good dishes in less than 30 minutes, but also I was a little unnerved at the franticness of being sooooo fast. I don’t want my life to be so fast that I can’t savor the moment. However, I do respect her for her passion about fast and good and I give her credit because she is good and slick. I see how our lives here in the US, and especially California, have become based on how fast we can accomplish things. That is the message I got from “30 Minute Meals”.
So, this evening I spent 3 delightful hours in my kitchen preparing a meal and eating it with a friend. I loved every minute of it and I am grateful I have the time in my life to spend doing what I love – cooking.