Yes Chef! – Tasty Reads 👩‍🍳

Yes Chef! – Tasty Reads

Saturday, July 8 , 2023

The idea for Yes Chef! Tasty Reads was “cooked up” one Sunday evening while making pasta sauce from scratch. Since my daughter graduated college and moved home, she asked me to teach her to cook. The shear comedy that ensued. In the directions, the recipe stated “blanch the fresh tomatoes.” Giggle. Giggle.

A little backstory. Our stovetop has been periodically dusted while she was away at college. It seemed ridiculous to cook an extravagant meal for one person leaving days on end leftovers. My meals consisted of coffee, microwavable dinners, soup, and frozen pizza. As an exhausted teacher, the mere thought of cooking was out of the question. Yes, it was not the healthiest meal plan.

Back to cooking. After searching, I located my favorite cooking apron. Ok. I am now wearing the apron that I excavated from the bottom kitchen drawer. Said apron has what I believe to have permanent creases from being folded for too long. Sigh. By now, we both are armed in aprons and ready to conquer the culinary world.

Stovetop. Blanch the tomatoes. When I was younger, much younger, my mother would spend hot summer days canning vegetables and fruit from our garden. I recall hearing the term “blanch.” Also, there is a glimmer of a memory of Mom standing over a pot of boiling water.

My daughter proceeded to ask me, what do they mean “blanch the tomatoes?” Little, grown girlie I can’t remember. That’s when the banter went back and forth. You blanch the tomatoes. No, you blanch the tomatoes. Finally, it was decided to check YouTube. Yup. There it was. How to blanch tomatoes. It was exactly how I remembered.

How did the sauce turn out you ask? It was delightful and we are now fighting over who will finish the rest.

Fast forward to Thursday. We are at Target and I find a magical gadget that makes a mug of ice cream. No really. A sweet, cute little mug of ice cream. Yes Chef!! You’re coming home with me. I spent most of today researching the perfect recipe for my new treasure. YouTube for the win! 5 Easy Ice Cream Recipes! I’m now researching new salad recipes. A girl needs balance in her life.

We are open to trying new recipes, please share below. Keep in mind I am brushing off my culinary skills and adding a new fire extinguisher to the shopping list. Just in case.

Sidebar: Speaking of new recipes/cookbooks, in August I have a new cookbook arriving from Chef Gary Maclean. In June, we had the distinct pleasure of meeting him at a cooking demonstration at the Scottish Festival and Highland Games in Itasca, Illinois. And that is a conservation over coffee for another day.

—Jenn

Picture Books

1. Arnie the Doughnut, by Laurie Keller
2. Lady Pancake & Sir French Toast, by Josh Funk *Series/Collection
3. A Mango in the Hand: A Story Told Through Proverbs, by Antonio Sacre
4. Duck at the Door, by Jackie Urbanovic *Series/Collection
5. Dragons Love Tacos, by Adam Rubin *Series/Collection
6. Pig the Slob, by Aaron Blabey *Series/Collection
7. Spaghetti in a Hot Dog Bun, by Maria Dismondy
8. The Smart Cookie, by Jory John & Pete Oswald *Series/Collection
9. Pancakes, Pancakes!, by Eric Carle *Series/Collection
10. Tea for Ruby, by Sarah Ferguson The Duchess of York
11. If You Give a Dog a Donut, by Laura Numeroff *Series/Collection

Chapter Books

1. Bliss, by Katherine Littlewood *Series/Collection
2. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Roald Dahl *Series/Collection
3. The Chocolate Touch, by Patrick Skene Catling
4. Amelia Bedelia Bakes Off, by Herman Parish *Series/Collection

**Please note: At this time, I am not affiliated with the bookshops linked above (wink, wink I would love the opportunity). Direct links are included for your convenience.