Thursday, August 30, 2012

Day 92: The Kitchen, My Other Home

One of my favorite things to bake - Cream Cheese Pound Cake

Aside from the stage, studio, and classroom, the kitchen is my home.  I've been in the kitchen since I was about 7 or 8 years old.  Learned so many things from my mother and grandmother in the kitchen (still learning).  I'm so glad I received this gift.  I come from a long line of gifted cooks/bakers, especially on my mother's side of the family.  Good food (and drink) has been just as much a centerpiece of family gatherings as the communion and the entertainment (mostly us acting crazy and talking cash shit—doing what we do best, in other words...lol).  There's nothing wrong with loving good food, especially if you're blessed enough to make it, share it, and enjoy it!  

One of the things I've learned over the years with cooking/baking is that food truly tastes good when you've put your heart and soul into it.  The love emanates through the food and touches the spirit.  This is why people enjoy it so much, and why we find some eating with their eyes closed (totally enraptured with the taste, how it makes them feel, and memories it conjures up).  The best advice:  if you're not feeling it—step away from the stove!  Put the utensils down and the pots and pans away!  Get out of the kitchen and call for takeout/delivery!  Because the food will tell the story.  I apply this to many of my creative gifts and talents.  I have to feel it.  I have to be able to get into to it.  I can't do it just for the sake of doing it.  If I'm not feeling it, I can't do it.  It's that simple.  

So let me get back on schedule.  I have a Honey Cornbread, Orange Cream Cheese Pound Cake, Baked Yams, Buddah's Teriyaki Pork Chops with Apples, Onions, & Peppers, and Spinach to make. Happy cooking, baking, and eating! Enjoy!

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