If you are keeping up with my posts, you know that I recently left corporate life and am taking time to rest, reset, and renew. I am building a vacation planning business as well as other things, but the key point is that they are all things that I really enjoy. But if I am completely honest, this has opened a whole new world to me that can be summed up as “Do whatever you want today.” And it feels fantastic.
It comes as absolutely no surprise to me that I am really, really, good at this. You know in the Barbie movie when Ken is asked about his profession? He says, “Actually my job … is just beach”? Well, yeah … I get it, Ken. So far, my job has been … “fun”. To be fair, this is helped tremendously by the fact that our daughter is now a flight attendant. This means we fly stand-by for free. Yes, you read that right. FREE. This opened a whole new world of possibilities, and the timing could not have been more perfect. And hell, even if there is delay or we must take a later flight, I don’t care. It’s free. I am so incredibly grateful for this perk, and her airline is amazing!
Even though I would like to keep traveling week after week, at some point I do need to slow my roll. Even with free airfare, traveling is expensive … especially for people like me who like nice meals and wine and convenience. So now I need to get back to that list of “all the things I’ve always wanted to do but never had the time.” The time is now. And one of those things is cooking.
Now, I am realistic enough to know that I won’t ever be super enthusiastic about cooking, but I also know that given enough time, it’s something I could actually enjoy. And heck, God knows I like compliments, so if I cook for someone and they tell me it’s super yummy, this brings me joy. To be honest, my husband has always been more of the cook in our family, so now it’s my turn.
Earlier this year when I knew I was going to quit my job, I went to the bookstore and browsed cookbooks. I’ve always been more of a “physical book” person; I’ve never read books on any device, and I prefer looking at recipes in an actual cookbook. I had an idea that I was going to “cook my way through an entire cookbook”. I thought it was a fun and creative way to try new things and feel accomplished. I settled on a cookbook called Half Baked Harvest: Super Simple, by Tieghan Gerard. Never in a million years did I think I’d be writing about a cookbook and singing its praises, but here I am.
Here’s what’s so nice about it:
It doesn’t use a bunch of obscure ingredients.
It doesn’t require that I make absolutely everything from scratch if I don’t want to. (By the way, the pizza dough from Aldi works well and tastes delicious).
It features a lot of things that can be meal-prepped and/or prepared in different ways, i.e. oven, crock pot, air fryer, etc.
Most recipes are simple, yet when I’m done, I still feel very accomplished.
It features stuff that I actually like and will eat.
The recipes have been super tasty so far.
This cookbook has made me actually enjoy cooking.
So far my two favorite recipes that also garnered much praise from my husband:
Three-cheese and nectarine white pizza with balsamic drizzle
Walnut-crusted chicken with walnuts and brie
Yes, both of feature my favorite thing in the world (cheese), which the author is not afraid to use. But anyway … Yum, yum, YUM!!! Chef’s kiss to you, Tieghan Gerard. I love your recipes.
I'm reading this waiting for my dinner to cook! Winging it.