| The Curious Cook's Book | ||||||
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| Comments from people who have bought or received the book | ||||||
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In my thirties I trained as a Head Chef and Manager and went on to work in many different locations. Cooking had always interested me, and I had learned all I could while raising two children on my own (from the ages of 5 and 3). It was difficult in those days to make ends meet, and I could not think of going to college until they were old enough to be left. I began with the Good Housekeeping cookbook which my mother in law gave me as a wedding present, then there were recipes in magazines like Woman and Woman's Own. I bought the books of Beck, Bertholle and Child and worked my way through them, as well as Recipes for a Small Planet. In 1974 I enrolled on City and Guilds Basic Catering (for the industry) part time, and in 1975 entered Leeds Polytechnic on the HCIMA (Hotel, Catering and Institutional Management) course. This had formerly been a three-year course, but in 1975 they decided to make it into a one-year crammer, for professional chefs and those already working in the industry, to gain a quick qualification, pieces of paper suddenly having become more important than hands-on experience. My sights were set on the HND (Higher National Diploma), a three-year course. I had plenty of time, the kids were only 12 and 14, but as I found out later, people like me were dubbed 'housewives' and they did not want me in with the 18 yr olds, so I was shunted onto the HCIMA which I was assured was 'better for me' and was 'of degree standard'. What did I know, I trusted them to know what was best. If you want to know what it was like, read Fresh Out of the Pan.
Because I can cook, people often confide in me how much they want to be able to cook. Now more than ever, people have lost the art of preparing food. In one way it is good, no one absolutely has to cook - there will always be people who hate it, but what saddens me is that the option of cooking is being removed from the ordinary, everyday person. There are people alive now whose mothers could not cook. Cooking is not being taught in schools. And yet it is not only simple, it is satisfying to prepare your own meals. From a health and safety point of view, it must always be better than being served something full of preservatives, colourings, flavourings, fat, salt and sugar. When you cook your own food, you know exactly what went into it. And to tell you the truth, if I eat a meal I have not cooked, I feel empty. I have been deprived of 75% of the satisfaction of that meal, the 75% pleasure I derive from preparing and cooking it. So as time went on, and every time I met one of those young women who told me from the heart how much she longed to be able to cook, I would think, "I must write my cook book". Finally, I met Heidi in Killarney, after my husband died there, and I knew I had to do it for her, as well as for all the others.
This is not just a cookbook for those who cannot cook, though they will find it a very good place to start. Everything is explained simply and thoroughly. It is not just a list of ingredients and instructions, I am at your elbow every step of the way. In writing this book, I was in the kitchen (in my mind) cooking each and every one of these recipes, I could see myself doing it, and I was explaining to you how it was done, and why it must be done one way and not another. The more experienced cook will find lots to delight and entertain her (or him) in this book - it is in no way an insult to the intelligence, and many of the recipes are my own creations, so you cannot have seen them elsewhere. I also give you the professional chef's lowdown on many classic dishes, as well as more everyday ones.
What you will get out of the book As a novice cook, you will get a basic training that takes you through many and varied processes. Once you master these, and the tips and tricks I teach you, you will be more than capable of buying any ordinary recipe book and following the recipes. As an experienced cook, you will get new takes on old dishes, you will have mysteries explained, you will learn how to produce perfect results, the professional chef's way, every time. And you will learn many new dishes previously unknown to you.
The book is arranged in 21 different sections, plus an appendix and an index. It has a contents page which lists the different section heads with their page numbers. At the head of each section is a list of the recipes in that section. You can also find any individual recipe by consulting the index. The book begins with a 'Basics' section which tells you how to set up and manage a modern kitchen, with stores and equipment lists. It goes on to give general advice about shopping, storing and the different types of cooking.
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