12 Sep What are you creating for an evening meal?
For someone who’s single, it may seem like too much ado to make dinner for one person. And for college students, there might not be any budget for real food; Ramen and baked potatoes may be as exciting as it gets.
For many other, however, cooking for them is like butter to bread: they think that they were created for it. There’s a magic that occurs when you’re adding diced onions to some melted butter, your kitchen starts to smell yummy, and you’ve got a little Frank Sinatra on in the background. Playing around with spices, growing your own food, and feeling at home in an apron might be signs that you match this category.
Even for those who love to cook, it’s easy to fall into the slump of coming up with something new to make for dinner. If you’re one of those that is making food every night, you probably fall into the temptation of making the same things again and again again, and you begin to get exhausted. If this appears familiar, listed below are some techniques you might aim to help switch things up a bit.
Everybody has gotten those chain recipe emails where you have to add your name and send it on to the persons that are provided in slots 1 and 2 above. Everyone attending has to bring three of their favorite go-to recipes, with copies of the recipes for everyone else. At the end of the night, everyone walks away with a bunch of new recipes, and you know they’re going to be tasty because you invited folks who love to love and cook to eat.
Watch cooking shows. If you geek out on food, you’re possibly the person who oozes while watching one more episode of Barefoot Contessa, can’t wait to take a break while watching America’s Test Kitchen, or laugh out loud at Julia Child’s wit as you YouTube old episodes of The French Chef. But hey … watching shows can give you inspiration for new meals, and lets you see demonstrations of new techniques before you provide a whirl.
Make use of apps. Get the Food Network’s app and take a look at the recipes of your favorite chefs. Download FoodGawker and peruse different categories, depending on what you would like to make. (Be forewarned, though; you’ll drool!) Enjoy the beautiful photographs and incredible flavors of vegan cook Angela Liddon on her Oh She Glows app. Perusing different recipes and amazing food photography in various apps will leave you motivated and make you want to get back to the kitchen ASAP.
Explore cookbooks in a local bookstore, or surround yourself with them in Crate & Barrel or Williams Sonoma. There’s something to be said about positioning yourself in a place where the encouragement can flow. Examining recipes while you’re surrounded by beautiful sets of pans and pots and big, beautiful whisks makes it hard not to be told of why you love food so much, and why you’re nervous to get back to it.
Give businesses like Blue Apron or PeachDish a try. Fresh ingredients that are pre-measured to correspond to the meals so you avoid excess waste, no last-minute running to the grocery store, and no more trying to come up with something to make on your own.
And finally, did you know we offer transportation for cooking tours? If you’re in a rut and need some new yum in your life, consider hiring a cooking tour with us. Going to classes, watching live demonstrations, and having the chance to taste test and sample as you go along are all beautiful things, and they can liven up your regular caloric routine.
You never know what inspiration you’ll find, new recipes you’ll discover, or flavors you’ll fall in love with. Bon appetit!