Inspiration

When cooking, I think inspiration is of prime importance. What makes you happpy? Why do you enjoy cooking? I find cooking inspiration in multiple places. Much of my inspiration derives from my senses.

Sight: Perhaps its in the beautiful displays of fresh produce at Whole Foods, or the many samples that let me try new things. Sometimes its a desire to try something new, or learn a new technique. Other times, I just like the look of a vegtable, or a can of tomatoes with a cool label on it. The farmer's market provides many inviting inspirations in the colors and freshness of everything. More than anything I love the colors mixing together in a saute pan- green celery, orange carrot, red tomato. Better yet are the mutiple shades of green produced from a diced leek. I love the colors of food.

Smell: As I walk by a fresh cart of oranges I am drawn to their citrus smell or the smell of fresh basil. Such smells pull me in and inspire a meal. Again the smell of freshly sauted produce YUM!

Touch: Sometimes I like to touch the food I'm looking at (yes I know this is perhaps unhygenic) what about those ripples on dinasaur kale? or the tightly held together broccoli heads?

Sound: The crack of a celery stalk, or the crunch of a carrot. The quick slice of a potato and the chopping sound of an onion.

Taste: I almost forgot the whole reason for all this cooking-- Your Taste Buds. Obviously, taste plays a big part in my inspiration. I remember a recent trip to the farmer's market. I had a sample of sorrel. I bit into the leaf and in return I had an explosion of lemony citrus flavor in my mouth. It was so juicy and all the flavor was packed into a little leaf. Taste leaves an imprint on my taste buds and continues to inspire all that I eat. Try some sorrel all by itself just washed, or add a light vinnegerette and you too can expeirience the joy of sorrel.

DESIRE: The strongest sence perhaps-- Sometimes I just have a craving for something-- my mom's beef strogenough, or minstrone soup. Desire many times controls my diet.

Inspiration is the root of good cooking!