The Idea That Started It All...The Cooking Gauntlet Has Been Thrown!

The Bonne Femme Cookbook- I found mine at Amazon.

So the night I first found out about Mason's passing I knew that I was going to need to start cooking. In my life, when I have faced difficult times, times of stress, times when I felt like I didn't have a clue I go to my kitchen- I slice and dice fresh veggies, I go through cookbooks, I create food (not just tasty, but aesthetically pleasing food). I spend time letting my mind focus on the flavors and smells, on the precision of a cut or the placement of a garnish. I pray. I sing.

As I went to my kitchen I was thinking about the movie Julie and Julia, where Julie decides to cook her way out of her rut in life with a Julia Child's cookbook in hand. A friend from work said, "Julie and Julia! Are you going to try Julia Child?" I knew, instantly, that I'm not on level with Julia Child, and well, let's face it, it's already been done. I had visions the Hubs coming home and finding me with my head half way in the oven, holding a partially baked chicken and crying because I got nervous and drank all the wine that said chicken was supposed to be basted in. No- no complicated French cooking for me.

In complete disclosure- I needed something easier. 

I'm not a fussy cook. In fact, I was not a good cook for years. Practice truly does help! My family has been gracious over the years...and did I mention practice...

I like things that are easy, tasty, and pretty to serve. I like finding short-cuts without short-cutting the taste of the dish. You see- I love entertaining, and I don't want to be stuck in the kitchen. I want to mingle with my guests. I want to look them in the eye and ask them how they're doing without worrying about what needs to come out of the kitchen next. I like finding the ingredients I need in grocery store! Please don't send me to 8 different places to try to find some obscure spice I need for this one recipe...that I will never use again...!

So I went to Amazon. "Easy French Cookbook". 

The result: The Bonne Femme Cookbook! 

It boasted all the things I hoped for: streamlined steps, grocery store-friendly ingredients and recipes that will be kitchen to table quick! 

I placed my order. I waited. I wondered. Was it really going to be able to come through on all it promised...?

At Last It Arrived!!!

And to my surprise...it did deliver! I poured over its pages, looking for the spot that proved too difficult for this modest home-cook...but it seemed possible! Best yet, it told stories and gave insights on French food, dining, ingredients, and instructions on traditional and Bonne Femme cooking techniques. 

It came to me: I Could Do This!

La Bonne Femme means: The Good Wife. It is also the term that the French use for a style of cooking. It is a streamlined, simple approach to putting great food on the French table. Seems like a great idea to me! It also seems very much like Mason. 

Mason did cook, but not much. Her husband did a lot of cooking, and a lot of complicated cooking at that. She made excellent cornbread, a great cheese ball, and wonderful pork chops...but that was about it. Mason enjoyed her guests and the meal they shared together much better than being in the kitchen. While I probably enjoy cooking more than Mason did, I have learned an important lesson from her, in that the time with family and friends is far more valuable than being a perfectionist in the kitchen.

After Mason's passing, I told the Hubs that I wanted to get a cookbook and work my way through it as therapy to help me deal with the loss. I believe the Lord lead me to the perfect cookbook. One that fits the lesson Mason taught so well- make it simple and easy, so that you can enjoy your friends and family. 

But then I thought of all of Mason's encouragement of my writing. She loved for me to come to her house and share my recent work. She always encouraged my efforts in writing. So then I thought: why not write about about the journey...my eating, drinking, cooking, party theming journey. This would pair a great "Tracy-Mason kinda cooking model" with a story.

And that friends, is how it all started. 

Sure the cookbook throws a certain "cooking gauntlet", but it won't be nearly as difficult as Julia Child!

La Bonne Vie Y'all!

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