2011: Cookbook Challenge Inspired by 'The Art of Eating In'

 

cookbooks for January

In 2010, I read this delightful book The Art of Eating In. The author, Cathy Erway, is a young professional in New York City and finds that she's loosing sense of self and her savings by eating out all the time. She disliked the crazy amount of waste that comes with eating take-out and that she didn't really know what's in her food. Lastly, a point I very much identify with, often times the food she would order out wasn't as good as what she could make for herself at home! So she decided to not eat out at all in New York for one year. And what follows you learn about in the book. It becomes much more an adventure than a challenge, and she enjoyed it so much that she continued for an additional year! She now writes the fantastic blog : noteatingoutinny.com.

So I read this book toward the start of 2010, and it did inspire me to cook at home more. In August of 2010, I moved into my current place with my adorable teensy tiny kitchen that I absolutely love and now I cook loads! That said, I'm a yoga teacher and I run all over town teaching yoga and so have grown accustomed to picking up tea, chai, muffin, toast and more when I'm on the run. It doesn't happen all that often but enough that I'm not wild about this habit. I also don't love that the food I make at home is (on average) sooooo much better than what I buy out.

Then for Christmas, I received two great cookbooks: Mayumi's Kitchen: Macrobiotic Cooking for Body & Soul and Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison, the original chef of Greens Restaurant. These two are now part of a beautiful collection of cookbooks in my kitchen all full of juicy inspiration! With all these wonderful cookbooks, that I don't use as often as I would like, I've made a plan:

For the month of January, I am not going to eat out* and will pick one cookbook for each week to utilize for recipes and inspiration for meals of that week. From these cookbooks, I will use seasonal recipes that support Ayurvedic dietary wisdom.

Week 1 (Jan 2-8): The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters

Week 2 (Jan 9-15): Ayurvedic Cooking for Westerners by Amadea Morningstar

Week 3 (Jan 16-22): Mayumi's Kitchen by Mayumi Nishimura

Week 4 (Jan 22-29): Eat-Taste-Heal by Yarema, Rhoda, Brannigan

Week 5 (Jan 30- Feb 5): Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison

On the Sunday following each week, I will post my favorite recipe(s) from that week of cooking, hopefully along with some entertaining stories. I've already made three recipes from The Art of Simple Food, and one of them was so delicious it will definitely be making the Sunday posting.

*Note: There is one exception: My love is a cook at the fabulous A16 and if I do not go out with him to eat it would make him oh-so-sad. Fortunately, he only has exquisite taste in food and restaurants, and this will not be more often than twice a week.

If you want to join me...

Using a cookbook you already own (or purchasing the one I'll be using for the week), sit down on a Sunday and pick out four or so recipes that you want to create over the next week. Be sure to pick out easy or make-ahead recipes for the busy hectic days and perhaps a more elaborate recipe for the days where you have more free time. Write the days of the week down along with recipe title and page number of the recipe under each day. Keep this schedule in the front page of the cookbook. Make a grocery list of the things you need. Go grocery shopping. Take a deep breath, and cook away! 

Suggestions for Single Diners:

If you're a single diner, which means you're cooking for just one, the very important YOU, try taking photos of your finished dish then show them to a friend. This can make the dining alone experience seem a little less lonely. You might just inspire this friend to start cooking too; how great!

So that's the plan. Not the most outrageously abitious pseudo New Years Resolution, but I'm pretty happy with it. Time will tell how it all turns out... 

Happy Cooking! Happy Living! and Happy 2011!

with gratitude & joy, 

Kate

p.s. If you're joining us for the Winter Digestive Revival, this is a perfect kick-off that you'll be able to maintain during our ten days! Sign up closes January 19th; don't miss out! It's going to be a ball!