| 8/04/2005 |
BEANS & CORNBREAD by Louis Jordan
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I'm in love with Rachel Ray. If you've ever watched the Food Network, I'm pretty sure that you've at least seen a commercial for one of her four shows that she has running. That's even more than Emeril has in the line-up and he is (though I'd say 'was') the Frontman of the network.
I've always enjoyed cooking. Though, I really never got a chance to put it into action until I moved out of my Grandparents house and took on a job where cooking was part of the deal. I worked in a group home with eight guys and a set of house parents. As an assistant I'd heard from other Assistants, stories about bad things happening if you left your food or drink unattended for too long. As a result I always carried more soda/beverage glass with me wherever I went in the house. If I left it, I'd pour it out and get a new drink. It wasn't paranoia, it was just smart thinking. Any of the guys might still be upset because I got onto their case about their behavior earlier in the day. Why take the chance? The same line of thinking with the food. Except on a larger scale, because everyone would be eating the same food. I wasn't going to take any chances.
It also 'helped' that of the two sets of house parents I worked with, one set was a pregnant wife and a husband who didn't cook much other than breakfast foods. The second set the wife literally couldn't boil water. No lie. Boiling noodles was difficult. The husband only grilled, but we didn't have a working grill. Thus he didn't cook. I wanted to eat. So I took over the cooking responsibilities. I quickly grew accustomed to making easy meals for (at most) 13 people in one sitting. Of course, I had help from the guys in the house, whoever was on kitchen duty that week.
What started out as necessity, then became more entertainment. I was trying to cook new things. I was coming up with different ideas and menus. I wasn't creating dishes, per se. Just getting more into the idea of cooking and what to make with what.
When I left that job for another one (that didn't require me to work 70 hours a week), I wasn't cooking for a dozen people anymore. Yet on more than one occasion my roommate and I had plenty of food for days. I was stuck in large group mode. I've calmed down since then and now only cook for two. But I still love to cook.
When I started watching Rachel Ray and her 30 Minute Meals, I really was inspired. "Hell, I could do that. That's simple." Fancy-looking dishes that took less than an hour to make. Wow! Though, what takes her 30 minutes takes me about 45, but you get the idea...
Rachel is so much fun. She's lively. She's funny. She's goofy. She has great stories. On her show $40 a Day, she is always running around various hotspots looking for food, folks, and fun. I'd love to go on vacation with her. She would be a fun person to play Texas Hold 'em with. You know she'd be a great person to go dancing with. Not only would she the first person on the dance floor, but she'd grab you by the arm and have you laughing on the dance floor before you even knew what to say.
She could come over and we'd make margartias, and play poker. She'd start off playing goofy like she didn't know what was going on, only to lure you into a false sense of security. Then someone would suggest playing for real money and Rachel would haul out the big guns and complete clean everyone out. She'd send you a Christmas card, but not one of those hand-stenciled home-made paper ones like Martha would try to pawn off on you. She'd send you a funny one with Santa writing his name in the snow. She'd call you up and tell you to turn it to MTV, because Lindsay Lohan is on a public bender on the MTV Movie Awards. You'd call her and watch The Price Is Right together, and she'd always know the price within 5 dollars because she shops like the credit card is stolen. I'm sure we'd be BFF!
I love Rachel Ray. And as soon is the restraining order is lifted I'll give her a call and invite her over for brunch. |
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I posted this @ 8/04/2005 11:05:00 AM.............Need a link?..........
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