Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.
—Anonymous
Now, I admit that I’m not much of a cook. Being my favorite meal, I approach breakfast foods with a sense of adventure. Indeed, the 24-hour-breakfast restaurant is like heaven for me. I can bake, though, because baking isn’t so much cooking as it is chemistry. The proportions matter, more or less, and while you do have some leeway (cheddar cheese for Parmesan in the cheese bread recipe; onions for sage and parsley), you’ve also got guidelines.
We did a potluck holiday party at my new office last night. There was a ton of food ranging from the pedestrian (summer sausage, cheese, and crackers platter) to the exotic (samosas, artichoke dip, and tandoori chicken). And, of course, my contribution, cheese bread. Not loaves though for I’m bored with making loaves (that’s what making cheese bread for both Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners will do for you), but tiny little cheese muffins.
I made three dozen and we had about 50 people at this party. This morning, there are at least two dozen left and just about nothing else from what was offered.
So what is it in my psyche that wonders what’s wrong with my cheese bread (nothing: I tasted both kinds and they were both good) instead of wondering what’s wrong with people who didn’t eat it?
Yes, yes, I know, it’s possible it’s just that there was an overabundance of choices. It’s possible the tiny muffins instead of bread put people off. It’s possible that people who stayed later than I did took their leftovers home which is why it appears that everything else was consumed.
Still…I wonder where the reflex to judge myself, or my work, inadequate comes from.
No answers…just a random thought.
Two comments – first, the reflex to judge or at least wonder what one has done wrong is natural, I think. In the same circumstances, I think anyone would have wondered.
And second, that saying is not the Dalai Lama’s. He’s a monk – accomplished in neither romance nor cooking. But the quote was widely circulated in a letter claiming to be quoting the Dalai Lama. It contained a number of such pithy remarks, none of which really reflect a Buddhist point of view. It’s picky of me to mention it but…….
It’s actually not picky to point that out. I’ve seen this quote often and variously attributed to him and to the proflific “Anonymous.” So, I’ve made the edit to reflect the latter. Thanks for the clarification. 🙂