Cooking Love

There are times I just love to cook and bake, especially bake. I'm not a natural at it by any means, and recipes are a must. I usually read through a recipe several times before tackling it, and then double or even triple check as I try to put the ingredients together. It takes me forever to fix a meal.

I love to watch shows on Food Network. For a while, I thought Rachel Ray would help me get dinner out in a timely manner. It didn't work. She may be able to get the meal made in thirty minutes, but it takes me a minimum of an hour, and that's a recipe that I've prepared at least three times before.

I think I know why it takes me so long, there are two children underfoot, or at least nearby enough to distract me. Once I realized that Rachel's kitchen was child free and mine wasn't, my frustration level significantly lowered.

In a perfect world, time would not be an issue, there would be a kitchen fairy that would clean up after me, and my children would heartily eat everything I made from scratch as much as they do with Spaghetti O's and Mac 'n Cheese. Nothing kills the cooking mood more than a child who just picks at his/her food. Why bother doing all that work, especially when hubby has to work late and I'm the only one really enjoying the meal? I would rather spend the hour playing with my kids.

But still, the cooking/baking bug is in me, and I occasionally try a new recipe.

By the way, I secretly want to be Paula Deen. The woman just loves her food and she's absolutely adorable. On a show, she was giggling with glee as she made a dessert and then commented, "I use a lot of butter, because I can!" Amen.