In Which I Struggle To Follow Rules, And Suggest Some Ways to Break ‘Em
I tend to be a stickler for the rules. I firmly believe in stopping at a red light before making an allowable right turn, much to the irritation of my fellow Massachusetts drivers. If something can be recycled in my township, into the bin it goes, no matter how much cleaning and scrubbing I have to do to get it recycle-ready. People who cut in line anywhere, any time (except in dire emergencies) irritate me to no end. I only jaywalk in Philadelphia, where jaywalking is something akin to Pamplona’s running of the bulls – dangerous, yet traditional.
All this being said, there is one area of my life where it’s almost impossible for me to follow the rules: Cooking. We’re not talking about baking, that is way too close to chemistry to fool around with (and I’ve had my metaphorical eyebrows singed off enough to know better), but any other type of cooking seems to bring out the rule breaking rebel in me. I suppose this can generally be a virtue and not a vice, but there are times when I have to actively suppress the ingredient-subbing, spice-adding side of myself and just follow directions. And, if I’m being honest, I must say that even though those are rare times in my life, they are ones that I dislike intensely. It usually only happens when I turn my kitchen into a Whole Grains Test Kitchen, or when Oldways is running a recipe contest. There was one memorably horrific stuffed grape leaves recipe I was assigned to test that irked me from start to finish, but I dutifully followed the recipe and instructions to the letter, all the while knowing it would be a disaster.
Case in point – making this recipe in honor of Buckwheat, our December Grain of the Month. Now, please don’t get me wrong – it’s a great recipe! Buckwheat in a casserole?! Very cool! I certainly wouldn’t have thought of it on my own, and that’s why we adore Culinary Advisors like Lorna Sass, for thinking up new and creative ways to work whole grains into our diets. But looking the recipe over, I knew right away I was going to have issues sticking to the rules. Here’s why…
To read the rest of this story please go to: Oldways Preservation Trust/Whole Grains Council
