Do You Cook like a Creative Artist, a Cook or a Chef?

Do You Cook like a Creative Artist, a Cook or a Chef? 03/18/2010

I am wondering how other artists and creative people cook meals.

The reason for my question is that I own recipe books, my current favourite is the Michelle Bridges, Crunch time, cookbook, but I never follow a recipe, I think I cook like an artist. Lol J ,not sure that’s a s good as a cook and certainly not as elaborate and skilled as a chef, but it works for me.

I think of food, like an artist from the time I hit the shops, I love the fresh fruit and veggie department and I buy a rainbow variety of coloured food. The fish, meat and poultry counter has the same attraction to me and I love to mix colours, something cream, this week it was turkey mince, a pink salmon steak, some red strips of beef steak, and then to the pulses and legumes and there were black and yellow legumes added to my trolley. Even my bread, is dotted with texture and colours, lol J.

When it comes to planning and preparing the meal, even when I have this lovely array of cookbooks I have read, I do little more than glance at the photos of the meal. My system is look in the garden for any fresh vegetables ready to pick, then open the fridge and see what I have, choose an assorted selection of items that will work well together. I then head to the pantry to add any extras, and pick some fresh herbs from the garden, and then I produce a concoction using any one, of the simplest, of cooking methods, except for deep-frying, which I never do.

I probably read nutrition books, more than cook books, and I occasionally amend the food choices I buy as I learn more, this has been successful as aside from taking prenatal multivitamins, when I was younger and pregnant and now that we are seniors, adding some calcium and anti inflammatory fish oil to my diet. I am currently looking into information about managing fibromyalgia, through diet, 10 Food Rules for Pain Patients - fibromyalgia - Health.com, to help Reg, so he can join me on more of the bush walks we love doing together.

My colourful palette of food has provided all the nutrition I have needed and I wonder how many other, creative people never ever follow a recipe and manage perfectly well, producing delicious, healthy meals, just treating every meal as its very own, original creative work.

I would LOVE to hear your responses to this. How many creative original cooks are out there?

Lifelike Drawing in Colored Pencil with Lee Hammond