Are You Cooking? Not so much anymore

Been there? Cooked that? We’re both experiencing cooking burnout. Our joy of cooking has waned along with the yellowed and food-stained pages of the cookbook by the same name. 

After years of being excited to try a new recipe, study a new cookbook, read a new food magazine and subscribe and test new recipes from food blogs and other social media, we’ve largely put away our whisks, spatulas and aprons. And we’re happy as clams at high water. (It’s an expression, but who knows if clams are really happy! ) 

Reasons include the fact that we’re tired and so many foods today contain ingredients we’ve never heard of or would imbibe. Our preference today is to settle for simple, straightforward, something soothing and cool (it’s hot outside) and recognizable. Foods we can assemble rather than cook over a hot stove are preferred. Salads and cold soups made with an immersion blender are fast and easy. The fact is, we have nothing to prove, nor do we care to prove anything in our culinary pursuits unless we’re making something special for a family member or close friends. Cooking for them makes us feel good because it makes them feel good and loved and sometimes helps them recover from an illness. 

We are not alone. It’s just a fact, fewer of our friends are entertaining at home, or we’re cooking now for only one or two on a regular basis. Barbara and her beau eat very differently at night, and they’ve become pros at simple prep. For breakfast it might mean cereal and fruit, for lunch a quick sandwich or salad or leftovers if they have them and for dinner something sauteed, roasted or grilled in the oven or atop the stove with a little seasoning, plus a vegetable or potato and salad. Voila! Bon appetite. 

If you think takeout is the solution, it is not. We each rarely do takeout because of prices and healthfulness and often takeout food just doesn’t translate well once brought home. It might be cold or congealed, not fresh tasting. 

This is not to say that we’ve lost our interest in food, however. We still enjoy watching cooking competitions on TV but aren’t about to use 10 pantry ingredients that we’ll use maybe once to make some creative chicken or pasta dish. We still enjoy hearing what others are preparing. Barbara continues to love reading books about food and recently devoured The Editor about the late editor Judith Jones, who edited Julia Child’s cookbooks and others’ tomes. And we still relish meals out with friends for the foods we wouldn’t make at home—oh, those crispy French fries and eggplant parm--and for the sustenance of good conversation. Eating alone is lonely, and even a good movie or opera playing in the background doesn’t serve up quite the same company. 

For us it’s hard to rev up interest when we each had cooked meals for decades after we each married and tried to be good homemakers. Back then, being a good wife and mother meant a good dinner on the table at night—protein, starch, vegetable and a salad--in our small first apartments. And it was every night; we saved restaurants for big celebrations.   

We mastered perfect meat loaves, mac ‘n cheese, Mrs. Paul’s fish sticks, spaghetti and meatballs and tuna noodle casseroles. We passed on our love of food (better than those recipes) and good wine to our offspring. 

Years ago we enjoyed friends who shared our interest and at one stage we were pretty good at throwing a dinner party—a nice table setting with good china and silver, plus a cocktail hour with wine and hors d’oeuvres and a three-course meal, which reflected the food tastes of the day. Now we look back at some of those more complicated recipes--Julia’s boeuf bourguignon or Silver Palate’s chicken Marbella and some complicated but colorful Jell-O molds and wonder what were we thinking—spending hours shopping, chopping, sautéing, molding and unmolding and whipping fresh heavy cream so the peaks resembled a tall mountain.

Margaret recalls that when first married, she and her late husband had her parents over for dinner. When she tried to unmold the Jell-O mold, it melted down the drain. Oh well, we learned from our mistakes. Same for Barbara and her “homemade” mushroom soup with heavy cream, mushrooms and zero taste. It went into a tureen on the table, never to be made again. 

On some level, our disinterest in cooking is a blessing giving us time to pursue other hobbies and volunteer work. That doesn’t preclude the fact that we still know how to prepare some of the toughest meals whether it’s popovers, souffles, puff pastry desserts, bagels, donuts and challah from scratch and occasionally we will. Margaret is a pro at tall, skyscraper style popovers. We are also eating simpler as we age; our stomachs are smaller and appetites less. And speaking of skyscrapers, prices for food in many cases are out of stratosphere. 

Of course, there are some exceptions. Cooking for family members when they’re sick and crave homemade chicken soup from one of us or the other one of us with grandchildren is asked to bring food to help out because of a new baby or simple overload is extra special. Suddenly, we turn into five-star chefs buying the best ingredients despite the prices and lovingly bring out a favorite recipe or cook from memory, which long-time cooks can do. We also cook periodically for friends—chocolate crinkle cookies, tart lemon bars, brownies and blueberry muffins. 

Most importantly, the possibility of adding joy in someone else’s life is a great incentive, and the reason we initially got interested in cooking in the first place. One advantage of being a long-time cook is we know how to prepare certain dishes so well that the few times we do cook, we have them mastered well enough to sit down, relax and enjoy the meal.

Two of our favorite recipes: 

Scrumptious Salmon Burgers, thanks to Mark Bittman, New York Times

INGREDIENTS

Yield:4 servings

• 1½pounds skinless, boneless salmon
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 2 shallots, peeled and cut into chunks
• ½ cup coarse breadcrumbs
• 1 tablespoon capers, drained
• Salt and black pepper
• 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
• Lemon wedges
• Tabasco sauce
• Avocado slices
• Tartar sauce
• Garnish of red onion, tomato, lettuce

PREPARATION

1. Step 1

Cut the salmon into large chunks, and put about a quarter of it into the container of a food processor, along with the mustard. Turn the machine on, and let it run — stopping to scrape down the sides if necessary — until the mixture becomes pasty.

2. Step 2

Add the shallots and the remaining salmon, and pulse the machine on and off until the fish is chopped and well combined with the puree. No piece should be larger than a ¼ inch or so; be careful not make the mixture too fine.

3. Step 3

Scrape the mixture into a bowl, and by hand, stir in the breadcrumbs, capers and some salt and pepper. Shape into four burgers. (You can cover and refrigerate the burgers for a few hours at this point.)

4. Step 4

Place the butter or oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet, and turn the heat to medium-high. When the butter foam subsides or the oil is hot, cook the burgers for 2 to 3 minutes a side, turning once. Alternatively, you can grill them: Let them firm up on the first side, grilling about 4 minutes, before turning over and finishing for just another minute or two. To check for doneness, make a small cut and peek inside. Be careful not to overcook. Serve on a bed of greens or on buns or by themselves, with lemon wedges and Tabasco or any dressing you like. 

I like to serve on a brioche bun with tartar sauce, avocado slices, red onion, tomato and lettuce. 

Perfect Popovers (use a real popover pan, not a muffin pan)

3 tablespoons of melted butter, divided                                                                                                  

2 eggs

1 cup of whole milk, warmed for 30 seconds in the microwave

1 cup all-purpose flour (or use bread flour to make the popovers rise even higher)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Preparation

Set the oven to 450

Using a pastry brush, coat six popover tin cups with 1 tablespoon of the melted butter mixed with a little flour to ensure the popovers pop out of the pan easily.

Put the tin in the oven for three to five minutes.

Meanwhile, mix the eggs in a blender until light yellow.

Add the warmed milk and blend.

Add the flour, salt and the remaining melted butter and blend until smooth.

Pour the batter into the warmed muffin tin and return it to the oven to bake until golden, about 30 to 35 minutes.

Remove from the oven and serve warm.

Serve with good butter, stawberry or raspberry jam