First Of Many

Wow, What a blast. I had the last class at Maggie's last night, and it was so much fun.
Thank you wholeheartedly to all of you who attended. I hope you all had as much fun and learned as much as I did.

To the rest of you poor souls whom regrettably were unable to attend..... bummer.

Seriously, we had fun. The basic premise was the fact that varying techniques change flavors. I prepared 2 salsas, a basic salsa fresca, with the addition of diced nectarine and replacing the cilantro with some lovely fresh and varied mints brought by my friend and colleague. (Pineapple, apple, mountain, pepper, and chocolate varieties were in attendance, though not all used) and half I served raw, the other I blasted in a 475 degree oven for a few minutes. The change was obvious and very telling of how in that instance heat changed the flavors and textures. I also made a lime, mint cream cheese to accompany the salsa, we had wholegrain corn chips and slices of fresh cucumber, and showed that with few parts, you can offer quit a diverse array of snackages, canapes, and credit without a lot of work.

I believe thew most impressive/self empowering/inspiring (pick one) idea i managed to convey was that the standard rule of thumb that we live and die by the recipe, is a load of... stuff. You only need a basic understanding of the basics and the freedom to experiment to open a whole new world of cooking. You don't cook to impress the person that wrote the recipe. as soon as your check clears, they don't care.

You cook to please your friends, family, guests, and yourself. You like what you like for your own reasons, and if you are taught to cook for your own tastes, you wont be disappointed, and as you learn to cook for your tastes, you will begin to cook to please those around you. That is why cooking is best done as a community event. More impute, and ideas will only help you grow in your experience and e\overall enjoyment in the kitchen.


Thanks again to all those who attended last night. It was quite an insightful and enjoyable evening. To the rest, well.... sucks to be you. Maybe I will see you at the next one.

Be around or be a square.