Flavor Fidelity

In our little world, there are no certainties. There are however, spices. I know for a fact that if you mix sauteed onions, garlic, red wine, and sage the world is right and good. I know that lavender, butter, and carrots lead hearts to sigh over unexpected side dishes. Rice cooked with chicken stock, sea salt, and rosemary will make even the non-believers ask for seconds.

There are things I do not know, and am willing to admit. I do not know why sometimes tapioca flour turns gravy to snotty, clear grossness that I refuse to acknowledge at my table as a food item. (Actually, I do know why it does that, I just seem to have faith that one day, when the cornstarch is gone, that the tapioca flour will pull through for me.) I don't know why eggs sometime make me think of chicken babies and I get sad and eat too much of them in omelette form with goat cheese and banana peppers. I don't know why these sad little omelette death orbs taste so much better rolled in blue corn tortillas. I also don't know why I start thinking of dinner at 11 in the morning and am distracted all day until I decide what to make. I do not know why everyone's day is not centered around food.

Then, in the midst of this angst, there is the daily come and go of everything. The waking, the working, the cleaning, the boyfriend, the dog, the family. These things can make or break anyone in a day. In my world, the boyfriend and dog are saving graces akin to baked apples on a rainy fall day. I am blessed that my love will always allow for crazy meal ideas, the turning right-side-up of his sandwich (so he eats it the right way), and teasing of his ketchup affection. He knows I have clout, he trusts me and I feed him well. The dog is one of my own heart: lover of secret salmon bites and sticky goat cheese fingers.

As daily life continues to be a dubious foe with the constant catch up and dishes no one wants to do, I do have faith in flavor. I have faith in myself to present a meal to friends that will beg to be oooh-ed and ahhh-ed over. I have faith in the knowledge that food is love.

Right now, however, there is squash roasting in the oven, waiting to be stuffed and covered in goat cheese. It's a favorite dish of mine, perfect for the day I'm having. It always comes out right and I've been thinking about it since last night.