Wednesday, July 18, 2012

On failure

I've been baking and cooking (successfully) since I was ten, which means I've been at it for over half my life. Why I am telling you this? Because my long history in the kitchen means that I've failed a lot. I've become pretty good at impressing people with my cooking, but that's because no one was around to see me under mix my cashew brioche batter, short change the liquid in my short rib braise, overcook the custard base of my coffee ice cream, and put my chocolate cake in an oven that wasn't turned on for 50 minutes, among other blunders. (And these all happened in the last four months). What I'm trying to get at is that I know a lot of people are intimidated by cooking/baking and give up when they make a mistake (or several). But I don't let failure keep me out of the kitchen, and you shouldn't either.

Here are just a few of the recipes I screwed up (but will try again). Maybe you'll master them on the first go!

Cashew Brioche
Short Ribs Braised in Coffee Ancho Chile Sauce
Coffee Ice Cream
Farmer's Secret Chocolate Bundt Cake

1 comment:

Katie Truelove said...

I definitely don't try many ambitious recipes bc I hate failing in the kitchen- a combo of cheapness (real word?) and perfectionism-- so I admire that spirit! I can safely say that I have sampled lots of your winning recipes, too:)