I have recently been told by a few different people, one with professional training in such matters, that I need hobbies. There was once a time when I was a passionate amateur writer, churning out melodramatic drivel with the best of them. From time to time, some of that output would be borderline readable. Regardless, at some point ego got whisked into the heady mix of passion and activity. I expected to be results or progress, however defined. I am starting to understand that the act of doing the activity is your only guarantee; the rest of it is just window dressing. We do things because we should, not for some outside reinforcement.
Since this writing hobby had waned, a few less constructive hobbies had reared their heads. So, here I stand with understanding that I need to reintroduce hobbies back into my daily mix. This all a roundabout way to say I did a lot of cooking yesterday. I made things I wanted to make, I made things I didn’t even know what they were until they were more or less finished and I made cheese. All of it brought me a sublime level of satisfaction, a pure feeling of accomplishment. I felt altogether Zen to be honest.
So, here is the lineup of what I made.
1. Hummus (salted to my taste, that is very salty)
2. Salsa Fresca
3. Mango Salsa
4. Quesa fresca
5. Lemon cheese (fail)
6. Muhamarra (Syrian dish using pomegranate molasses)
7. Frisee salad with walnuts, blue cheese, grapes and apples
It all turned out rather good, aside from the lemon cheese which jut flat out refused to curdle. No worries.
More importantly, it is something I hope to incorporate into my basket of hobbies in the future. One recipe per week. One step towards adulthood, Zen tranquility, balance.