Two Years Without The Chef

Today marks the second anniversary of losing my Mom. It is still tough without the Master Chef for advice, Yet her legacy is with me every day, in every teaspoon and cup.

It is tough to cook on your own, even tougher to cook for one at times. I miss making one of our favorites , croques monsiuers. These are the famed French bistro fried cheese sandwiches of Gruyere or Swiss cheese paired with ham. They're fried in plenty of butter and the taste is melt in your mouth delicious. I miss those over processed chicken and turkey pot pies from Swanson and later Marie Callender. These were part of my growing up and let's face it -  who doesn't love them? She and I used to split one, with me getting my childhood favorite - the crust.It's kind of hard to eat any of that yet. As she used to say "It's time to make new traditions." and that's true.  Yet it's hard. Harder still is recreating family recipes and sometimes forgetting one ingredient. That happened to me not long ago when I made the butternut squash version of our family's zuppa di zucca - pumpkin soup. I freaked out when I didn't have an actual onion and had to use onion powder. I thought for sure it just wouldn't come out right. It did  - with a flavor similar to what my Mom and great-aunt created.

Then there are times when I wish she was here (she is on some astral level) just to see some of the gadgets I've bought and received. What would she have thought of my air fryer?She would have marveled at its' rapidness to cook and its'  whole electronic dashboard. Its' versatility would have amazed her and I know we would have tried everything from steaks to chicken wings and drumsticks in it. How would she have felt about the Beyond Burgers I tried out back over the summer? My Mom wasn't a big beef and burger eater. She may have liked them - maybe on buttered toast as she always liked to have them. Heavens only know what she would have thought about the ice cream loaf I debuted on Memorial Day. I could just hear her saying that I could buy the exact same thing at Dairy  Queen." Yet she may have applauded the fact that I created my signature summer dessert. I know she would have liked my Asian cole slaw because, like me she wasn't a fan of the gloppy mayo soaked kind. She would have loved the salty, scallion packed flavor that had a finishing note of ginger.

The two years have gone by too quickly.  No one can replace this very influential Master Chef.Her advice though is permanent and eternal.