Back To Basics

Rico, Colorado

I WAS CLEANING out my pantry a couple of days ago, trying to get it better organized, and I discovered a tiny treasure trove hidden back behind the pasta. In the far right corner of the top shelf a little grey metallic box sat. Upon pulling it out and opening it I found it was filled with recipes of all sorts, hand written on well worn index cards. Some of them had headings such as From The Kitchen Of... or Here's What's Cooking...

There were cookies, cakes, casseroles, sauces and soups, main meals and mayonnaise. A time capsule from the 50's, 60's and 70's. Family recipes passed down from mother to daughter. I went through them all and put aside a few I wanted to make in the coming weeks. The first being a chocolate chip combination different than my own.

I remember one of the first times I attempted to cook. The butter turned black, both from the burning of it and the melting of the plastic spatula. Later I attempted steak, but not before calling my neighbor to find out how to cook it. College had been all about Ramen and the 101 ways to serve it. It wasn't really until I headed off to Alaska to do some commercial fishing that my culinary skills took a 180 degree turn for the better. I had to learn quickly how to turn a wholesome meal from nothing into something. Have you ever seen tinned bacon? When you open the top the fatty rinds are swirled together with bits of wax paper. With the steering set on auto pilot I was often seen peeling potatoes, while muffins baked, and the fish marinated.

My old ratty copy of Irma Rombauer's Joy of Cooking says one should always keep onions, carrots, celery and potatoes on hand. You can make anything with those ingredients, and it's true. More so now than ever before my cupboards are stocked with those very same items along with flour, sugar, baking powder, and other standard basics. What's in my pantry, although small as it is, is not far off to what woman like my great, great, grandmother Mears would have had in theirs. Just like any good pioneer we pick up fresh veggies, keep the freezer stocked with hamburger and steaks, and always have bacon and coffee on hand for mornings with eggs and pancakes. And if I'm really lucky Dave will catch a few fresh fish that we can serve up with a slice of lemon and basil.

Traveling around has given me opportunities to improve my kitchen skills. Where $5 will get you an already pre-cooked meal of very little, for the same amount I can make a dinner that will last several days. Instead of buying the prepackaged cookies for $3, I can buy the chocolate chips and have warm, gooey, chewy homemade ones in less than an hour. They eat just as quickly and I can drop more per batch. the other night I threw together a meatloaf and later this week I'll sacrifice the black bananas turning them into bread. With the holidays coming my skills will be tested on the propane stove as I whip up pumpkin pies, green bean casserole, and later fudge. I know there is a bit of June Cleaver in me just trying to get out.

THERE IS SOMETHING to be said about having such a skill. We live in a society where speed is the thing, fast food, pre-heated dinners, right to your door deliveries. We justify this speed as our ability to save time in the kitchen in order to spend more quality time with our families. Cooking today isn't the same as when I was growing up. I remember my mom having us stir the gravy after the roast came out of the oven. Explaining how to add the potato water to the drippings, stirring slowly as the beefy juice got thicker and glossy in color. I think she said stir it until the color looks like melted chocolate. Another time we made gingerbread cookies for the church's Christmas bazaar. Hundreds of little men and women were decorated in bikinis, muscles, fig leaves, Elvis jumpsuits and other non traditional cookie men outfits. My brother and I took turns mixing and rolling out the dough, using the cookie cutters and competing to see who made the perfect cookie. We laughed the entire time we were doing it and ate a few broken bits along the way. It is scientific, it's fun, and it's yummy, and like everything else in life it just takes practice.

It is through cooking that I have found a way to connect to the women in my life; my mother, my aunt, my grandmothers, and even those pioneer woman, who traveled in tiny wagons with only core ingredients and what they harvested along the way. Cooking with its simple methods and complex combinations, without electric mixer, food processor or microwave, armed with my whisk and wooden spoon, allows me a freedom to express myself in a way I never could have imagined. I once loathed the kitchen and the idea of cooking up my next meal, but now I look forward to the challenge. Finding a recipe in the box, or cookbook, or magazine and regardless of the skill level knowing I can do it and it will taste fabulous when I am through. It also helps when you have someone who will eat pretty much whatever you put in front of him.

Try it, start with something simple, but try it one night at week for a month. See what happens. You might find you like getting back to basics, you may even uncover a bit of June Cleaver in you.

Sending you all warm thoughts.

Happy Cooking!

Dave, Vanessa and Sackett