Sometimes a picture can be as satisfying as the real thing. More even.
Okay, so sometimes looking will not cut it, but I find a joy in looking back on baked goods past, and it certainly does not hinder my efforts to reduce my sugar intake. Like many around me, I am spoiled by my baking, and have become very picky. At first I feared ballooning with every step I took toward baking and pastry, but then I realized that most pastry chefs, bakers and cooks I admire are at a healthy weight, or even skinny. Suddenly it seemed possible for me.
There was a time I assumed a passion for food and cooking was almost gluttonous, and that to be vibrant and healthy I needed to squelch this desire to cook, and especially to bake. Then I discovered that the physical act of eating is a small part of a huge world, and that no food is leaving the planet tomorrow, so there is no rush to eat it all.
The inspiration, selecting ingredients, chopping, cooking, baking, conversation, post-meal revelry, and even the washing up of dishes, envelop the necessary act of eating with a cushion of civilization which might be unnecessary, but makes life worth living. Satisfaction.
Instead of calculating the amount of time spent preparing and cleaning versus the time spent eating a meal in a race to nowhere, I enjoy the process. Don't look on me with pity and explain, "but that's so much work!" I like washing your dishes after you are gone.To some it is just a chore, but it is my pleasure.
Comments