Kitchen Envy

I think your attitude about kitchens says a lot about your personality. I love kitchens. On the other hand, some people detest setting foot in a kitchen and find no joy in cooking or baking. When I am in a Lowe’s or Home Depot, I relish the opportunity to stroll through the kitchen vignettes. I imagine the endless counter space, the center island with room for bar stools and food prep, the cupboards that provide storage beyond your wildest dreams. Reality check, if I’m having “wild dreams” about storage space in my kitchen…I obviously need to spend some time in therapy. Sometimes I imagine what my dream kitchen would look like - lots of windows facing south-east so as to catch the late morning/early afternoon sun, room for a big table that everyone can sit around to talk, play cards, and do homework, and plenty of wall space for framed art and photos of my family. I once visited the home of a former co-worker and she had a fireplace in her kitchen. I loved the warm, cozy look and feel. The feature I most wish I had in my current kitchen is ample display space for my ever-growing cookbook collection. So you get the point about me and kitchens. I grew up with free reign in the kitchen. As the youngest of three children and the only girl, my Mom was more than ready to let me learn how to help myself. It also helped that my mother was not fussy about whether I made a mess. So at about five years old, she started me out scrambling eggs and other basic things. I couldn’t join 4-H soon enough! And the rest, as they say, is history. My expertise in the kitchen is very basic and simple. I am not a gourmet or pastry chef, nor do I care to be. However, I like to think that I come from good lineage in terms of kitchen talent. Unfortunately, I don’t possess the pioneering spirit that my grandmother had. My Grandma Blue created numerous recipes, experimenting and perfecting until it was worthy to be entered into a recipe contest. I, on the other hand, prefer to play it safe in the kitchen, following recipes to a "T." Once in a while I will consider creating my own recipe and then I chicken out. The Type A personality in me just isn't enough of a risk taker to gamble on wasting a grocery sack worth of ingredients. So I will stick with my obssessive compulsive recipe collecting, sorting them into categories in my binder (there goes the Type A again) and trying them out one at a time. My guinea pigs, I mean family, doesn't mind...most of the time!