March 10, 2006
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It’s ironic that I have no one to cook for, now that I’m in my prime. I have been cooking for so many years, never using recipes, that I can pull shit out of my cupboards, grab some spices, add a little lemon juice or some diced tomatoes, and find some sort of wrap or chip or pasta. Even though there was nothing planned for dinner, I end up with a tasty concoction whipped up in no time.
It’s such a shame my family never appreciated my style. They do now. But when the girls were younger they didn’t like “interesting” food. Henry liked meat and potatoes and nothing red. White sauce was his thing. Lots of cheese and butter. Never fruit. We had exactly opposite tastes in food. The only thing we agreed on were the vegetables.
My kids wouldn’t even eat pizza. “The sauce is too spicy,” they’d say. I had to make my own. They all had such different preferences that often I’d make them each something different for lunch. I love feeding people so I didn’t mind. Now that it’s just me I’m thinking about cooking for the dog. Seriously. Ever since she started dining out in the backyard — I think she’s been eating truffles — now she’s not that interested in her dry dog food. How good could dry dog food be for her? I mean compared to brown rice and organic beef stirfry or baked chicken with roasted vegetables. I just bought a new 20 pound bag for $17 that will last maybe two weeks. I don’t know if that’s right. She eats four cups a day. Does anybody out there feed their dogs real food?
She would be in absolute heaven. When I go into the kitchen to cook she’s right behind me. I know I shouldn’t let her but she gets up on her hind legs to have a closer look. I let her lick the knife if it’s peanut butter. When I’m not looking she takes her paw and pulls the scraps out of the sink, if I’ve been cutting up vegetables or fruit. She loves it all.
Anyway, what I wanted to say tonight was what a delight it is to have been cooking so long that I can just sense, without even having to taste, what to put into a dish to make it shine. More and more I find that whether it’s cooking or stocks I can feel when it’s right. Same with gardening. True, I don’t know this soil over here yet but I’ll get the hang of it. It’s wonderful to be old and experienced. So much of the time I am pushing to learn, trying to figure things out. I can’t wait to be able to sit back and reap the benefits of these years of exploration. It makes me think of those wise old men at the coffee shop. They had the rich satisfaction of KNOWING things. They knew how to do life.
Comments (18)
I know an eccentric woman who has 11 cats and 2 dogs. While she feeds the cats cans of cat food, she cooks for her dogs. She eats the same thing that her dogs eat….that cheap 98 cent/lb. pork “picnic roast”, with some other stuff thrown in. I had it once; it ain’t bad.
And I once had a dog – an outdoor dog. I fed her the dry dog food, but I noticed pretty quickly that she wasn’t eating it. Turned out that she was making the rounds of the neighbors, and being fed table scraps at each stop on her “route”. So I stopped feeding her altogether. She lived for at least another 10 years.
Your cooking sounds divine. I’m so glad you have that knack. It surprises me when my mom tells me that the only thing she could cook when she got married was spaghetti. Now she can make any combination of foods taste like heaven. I would be honored to eat at your table. I’d even bring dessert and wash your dishes. Carey (http://www.xanga.com/Rachelsmommy) cooks people food for her dog, Milo. They’re on the more high-strung end of things but in a very adorable way. I’m glad you liked the bit in my last blog about smelling like a sheep. That was my favorite part of writing it
As I was walking in my apartment yesterday, the woman who lives upstairs from me commented on my sweater, and we talked about Irish things for a few minutes before I darted inside. Perhaps I’ll get frisky one day and make her some of my famous banana bread or something. I think that she and I could be kindred spirits if I built up the nerve… just as you and I are kindred 
this is so coincidental… I’ve wondered for a while now how good the puppychow is for the puppy… I don’t think feeding him fresh meat veggies fruits and grains would be such a bad idea…
methinks we cook alike, by the way.
I think if you stick with the rice and beef and chicken your pooch should be just fine. The stuff that is bad for us is horrendous for them.
I, too, am eagerly awaiting the day of realing knowing. I’m getting there.
ryc: thank you! :>) And my mother-in-law cooked for her dog for years – she’s a vegetarian/vegan and took the pooch to a homeopathic vet…you should locate one in your area – that person can recommend real food that you can cook for your dog that will be healthy for his or her needs…and yes, it will be much healthier for the dog than the dry dog food! Or, you can just look around online for homeopathic vet care….I’m sure there will be something about food for dogs. :>)
TNG cooks for his dog and can’t believe I feed mine that dried stuff. I know when my border collie was dying from cancer, the vet had me feed him nothing but rice, chicken broth, and chicken. It was about all he could (barely) keep down. I just simmered a chicken every few days and he loved it. Neighbors once commented that the dog ate better than they did.
Oh my. . .if my kids wouldn’t eat pizza, I wouldn’t know what to do on the weekends!
And you have now, officially, made me hungry. Do you have any leftovers?
You should open up a little restaurant
Hey.
I find that I don’t enjoy cooking so much anymore, but I think it’s because I had to do it for my nanny job in the summer, that now I associate it with work, not fun.
I’m not sure if you’ve visited, but check out http://www.allrecipies.com it’s a fantastic site, and every now and then I can’t decide what to make, and end up finding something delicious there. Also, you can put your own recipeis on for others to enjoy.
As for the message you left me regarding the girl who went looking for me, I’ve been looking for her as well. We live in the same city, and have been conversing for some time. We’ve lost touch. It looks like she’s mid-crisis, so I should get back to reading her journal daily. Thank’s for helping us get back into touch.
*jean*
everybody feeds their dogs real food…don’t let em tell ya they don’t. but it isnt good for them. too fatty. causes liver problems, or pancreatitis.
you can cook for me…. i’ll be very grateful.
i find having an occasional party or overnight guest solves the need to cook! you should see my fridge today!
i haven’t given up being published!
most human cooked food will mess up a dogs stomach lining till they have none left which will cause a plethora of problems, not to mention horrible gas
now, things like baby carrots are great for them, in limited moderation..we also give peanut butter as a treat…if they are throwing up for whatever reason, the vet told us to cook some plain white rice, let it cool and feed that to them..
and never ever feed a dog grapes, raisins etc…they can kill dogs
ryc: apparently not. unfortunately I appear to be the target.
Cooking is that timeless type of work that gets me thinking about things on a level thatgoes beyond but doe not exclude eating and savoring. Lucky dog! I do know a person who fried a quarter pound of sirloin for her dog every day. I don’t know if that was healthy, but it was devoured in seconds.
You are already very wise to me. I think it is the continuum at work. You may not feel like you’re exactly there in the riches of knowing things, but to others you may very well be.
On a last note, I’ve tried put her away for a time until I get my work done. But I am reserving an hour here and there to let things fly out so that when I do get time, I’ll have a start. The problem right now is that I don’t know if I can wait and grad classes and work must not suffer. I feel like kicking things all day.
I love how you have embraced this stage of your life.
I cook for Max and Jenny, my dogs, every night. When I was living at Dave’s ranch and his son Tommy was still in high school, he would ask what smelled so good, more times than not I had to admit it was the DOGS food. He would laugh and say they ate better than we did..some nights we’d order pizza and the dogs always had home cooked…still do every night, heated in a pan with gravy most nights…marilyn
My dog eats mostly chicken legs — 2 drumsticks or a fat thigh. Once a week he’s supposed to have a hard bone to gnaw on, but sometimes I forget to get the soup bones, so he’s not getting them as often as he should. He can eat anything we drop on the floor, but he’s not fond of fruits or vegetable. He loves nuts of all kinds, though.
I’m a decent cook, but I can’t do that. In fact I seem to need the recipie books more than I used to…. well, maybe not. I guess I’ve just changes what I eat, so I need the books. I’m sure part of it is that I don’t like to cook. Not sure if I can do it with gardening or not. We’ll see when the front yard is done. (Although I did ask my mom’s help and she’s the one who’s done it and knows how.)