I ended up with both married daughters who love to cook. How did that happen? They were such picky eaters growing up I thought they’d need to go to mac & cheese rehab as adults. But not so. The oldest married into an Italian family, so that may explain some of the conversion to dedicated cook on her part.
Today I picked up a used cookbook for my youngest daughter because it fits her style, and it was only 25 cents. OK, I confess, I got it at the Swap Shop at the town dump (err, Recycling Center). Always the Yankee – what a Dad, huh?
So the book is a 1996 release called: Wild Women in the Kitchen: 101 Rambunctious Recipes & 99 Tasty Tales by The Wild Women Association (of course). Peppered (groan) with not only great recipes, but gender-basted (more groans) anecdotes and humor, its well-worth the price! If you don’t believe me, here’s a tasty sampling:
A Rose by Any Other Name. Ever notice how many of the pet names and metaphors for women are based on food? … honey, honey-bun, cream puff, cheesecake, muffin, dumpling, pumpkin, sweetie, sweetie pie, cutie pie, cookie, cupcake, baby cakes, sugar, sugar buns, a chick, a peach, a hot tomato, a hot tamale, a tart, a dish, etc. Concocted by men, says feminist Brinlee Kramer disapprovingly, they “exemplify the oral fixation men are all subject to.” Take that you guys!
My response: The book is still in print and men are still around. So something must be going OK.
Perhaps our daughters like to cook because they picked it up from their mother. But I realize that wasn't your point ...
ReplyDeleteAn excellent influence and continuing fount of cooking knowledge. So I give credit where credit is due!
ReplyDeleteI look forward to the cookbook! And to think, one of John's faaavorite dinners is *dramatic pause* homemade mac & cheese! See? You were just preparing me!
ReplyDeleteI mostly learned to cook because I hope to be half as good as my mother someday and because I was embarrassed that my husband could cook better than I could!
ReplyDeleteWomen call men by food names as well. I think the simpler explanation - that people like food and like their romantic partners - is more to the point.
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