I’m very fortunate to have grown up with a very diverse chosen family, so I was raised around many different types of food. Learning to cook for me was based on who was in the kitchen. My entire chosen family would just walk into the kitchen at holidays with their ingredients and just start cooking. There was no such thing as a “lowkey” holiday. We also have a pretty loose definition of a holiday.
My uncle Lance (an airman under one of my aunts in the military), is originally from Mississippi and Louisiana. I don’t remember much of my childhood, but I can remember sitting on the counter next to my uncle, next to the stove and bottle of Bacardi as big as I was at the time (not saying much).
My Aunt Barb is Arizona born and raised, but had her mother’s old recipes and a love for finding and trying something new at every gathering. So we never knew what she was going to bring to make for her addition. It was usually vegetable-based because she used my mom (a vegetarian) as an excuse to try a new veggie dish. She always has had such a great diversity in her palette, that she taught my sister and I just how much flavor you could put into any recipe.
Of course both my mom and my dad played a role in my learning to cook. Most of the recipes that I have committed to or nearly to heart are from my dad’s side of the family. My mom lovingly contributed to my love (possible obsession) with vintage and church potluck cookbooks.
Dad-man did a lot of the baking part of me learning to cook. He’s the one that taught me how to properly make pie crust for a really complicated cookie that we only make at Christmas. He’s also the one who taught me how to make stuffing and Chili.
The last part of my journey of learning to cook was teaching myself. That part is still in progress. I'm what you would call a forever student. I love to learn new things, especially about food and the stories behind them. Through that I learned that I have a talent for piecing recipes back together with just the stories behind them and the memories people have of them.
My best advice to people learning to cook is to experiment. So, something doesn't work out - that's science and the joy of learning. Get out there, get messy and try new things! Who knows you might find your new favorite food.
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