Sunday 17 November 2013

Week 47: The Mindful Cook

You know those days when it seems like such a chore to put a meal on the table? Those evenings when you sit and think "I could just as easily eat toast tonight ... or pizza". It can get tiring feeding yourself, not to mention your family. I mean three meals a day - plus snacks?! That's asking for a bit, isn't it?

I love to cook and bake - probably because I also love to eat. Yet, as I walk into the kitchen for the umpteenth time I often think "Again?!" When you feel like this, cooking can become something to simply get through. There's little pleasure in it - it just needs to be done so the food can be consumed. Not very rewarding, really ... especially since that food will be gobbled up (or thrown on the floor) far too quickly.

What about mindful cooking? Cooking for the sake of cooking? That doesn't mean taking on more cooking to do it mindfully - but simply using those inevitable opportunities to do it in a way that values the process, not just the outcome.

I hope that by being more mindful with my cooking this week, I'll find myself shifting my focus from what will end up on the table at the end (and how quickly it will disappear), to the process itself. Because there's lots of joy to be found in cooking (and baking!). And if there's bowl licking involved, well, that's a bonus! Might be a cook week to bake a chocolate cake ;)

No comments:

Post a Comment