Tagged, or Stolen?

OK, so I stole this from SF Knitter's blog, but since I read her blog, that kinda counts as a tag, right? Not sure about the blogiquette, but who cares -- this one was about cooking, which is a subject I could go on and on about (even though I haven't yet here...)


What is your first memory of baking/cooking on your own?

True memory -- making a cheese souffle at age 8 or 9 because I wanted to see what all of the fuss was about. As I recall, it rose perfectly. Thank you, Joy of Cooking.

Memory that I don't really have, but my mom told me about -- I was 8 or 9, home alone while my parents went to a neighborhood party in the middle of the day. Don't remember if my brother was supposed to be watching me, or if they really trusted that I would be OK for a few hours on my own. Anyway, when my mom called to check on me, I said, "I made cookies! But don't worry, Mom, I remembered to turn the oven off."
My mom said her heart kind of lurched, but I don't think she scolded me for using the oven without a grownup, since no actual disaster had occured.



Who had the most influence on your cooking?

Hmmm, probably my parents. My dad was the adventuresome one, so I learned to dig in and try cooking (and eating) new dishes from him. True to her midwestern roots, my mom was more about casseroles and pork chops, but from her I learned consistency. Dad's dishes could be up and down, but Mom's always came out the same.

Do you have an old photo as “evidence” of an early exposure to the culinary world and would you like to share it?

Now that you mention it, I can't think of any.

Mageiricophobia - do you suffer from any cooking phobia, a dish that makes your palms sweat?
There's an eel dish in a Mario Batali cook book that I would love to try, but the thought of touching raw eel creeps me out. I always think of this scene in the bad Julia Robert's movie, "Mary Reilly", where the cook fishes a live eel out of this bucket and peels the skin off. EEEEE -- kind of stomach turning, even though I love me some unagi.

What would be your most valued or used kitchen gadgets and/or what was the biggest letdown?

I have a bird's beak paring knife that I love, and my chef's knife that was a going a way present from the staff at a kitchen I worked in.

Hmmm, biggest letdown...I guess this lime juicer of the kind that you put half of a lime in and press down the handle like a garlic press. It really doesn't extract all of the juice, so I've gone back to my trusty citrus reamer.

Name some funny or weird food combinations/dishes you really like - and probably no one else!

Peeps that have been left out with the package open so they get slightly hard and stale. Ditto for Red Vines.


What are the three eatables or dishes you simply don’t want to live without?

anything Mexican
peanut butter on warm tortillas (my lazy lunch/dinner staple!)
Desserts/sweets in general, Jelly Bellies in particular

Three quickies:
Your favorite ice-cream…

Pistachio (with a close second to Chubby Hubby)

You will probably never eat

I'll try most things once, but given our upcoming trip to Southeast Asia, I'd have to bow out if presented with certain unidentifiable meats more identified with domestic pets here. (I can't even say it...way way way too stomach churning)

Your own signature dish

I consciously don't have one -- too boring to do the same things over and over.


Wow -- look at that -- instant post!