Chemistry in the Kitchen

Nature Walk Salad:

My husband is easy to please. I’m grateful for that.  He announced to our family at dinner one evening that this was his favorite salad. “It’s like a nature walk in Spring-time,” he said.  I had to laugh.  What a poetic compliment! (Although the salad really is more in season at the end of the Summer.)

1 Head of Green Leaf Lettuce

1 Cup Fresh Basil Leaves, Cut into Small Strips

3 Ripe Peaches, Peeled, and Sliced

½ Cup Cucumbers, Peeled, and Diced

2 Garden Tomatoes, Sliced, and Halved

3/4 Cup Salted Cashew Pieces

Dressing:

½ Cup Grapeseed Oil

4 Tbs. Fresh Lemon Juice

4 Tbs. Sherry Cooking Wine

¼ tsp Real Salt

A generous Dash of Black Pepper

Learning and Toleration~

Connor allows me to make mistakes and experiment in the kitchen, and elsewhere. There have been so many times where I have tried to make something that failed, or wasn't quite right.  He's my taste-tester.  A true loving critic to tell me when something tastes good enough that most people wouldn't notice upfront how healthy it is.  When we first got married, I didn't know how to make anything, but he still raves to this day how I spent hours learning how to make Chicken Parmesan just for him for one of our first meals.  I grew up appreciating good food.  I grew up wanting to experiment as well.  (Maybe I inherited that trait from my Grandfather Anderson, the Chemist.)  My two favorite toys when I was little were first, my easy bake oven, and later, my chemistry set. 

Don't be afraid to make mistakes in cooking, or anything else.  I'm grateful that my family tolerates my habit of experimenting on everything--making myself and them the guinea pigs most of the time.  There is always something strange on the countertop--something growing, or fermenting, or taking over the kitchen with some new aroma.  Expectations and demands are low from Connor, and he's always appreciative when things turn out.  His willingness to try anything, and thank me for what I do makes it a lot easier to keep trying new things, and easier for our boys to do the same.  It's in this process of testing and trying that I've learned so much, and will continue to do so.  So take Thomas Edison's example to heart, and realize that there are many failures to one great success.  People all around us make things happen by their diligent patience more often than by some gift of luck.

"I have not Failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." ~Thomas Edison