do you know how?

It’s culinary.

Did your mom show you how?

Well

I heard from a friend tonight about a very proud moment in my friend’s life.

A few years ago her daughter was in a college cooking class. Freshman. 200 kids.

And the Professor asked in broad daylight if anyone in the class knew how to make  cheese sauce for macaroni and cheese.

Out of the 200 students, only one,  1,   the lady’s daughter, had a clue about roux….

1!

the Daughter explained to the professor and the entire class the blending of butter and flour as the basis of roux...

 

PROUD! 

 

VERY PROUD MOTHER.

 

Those evenings, tired, husband not home yet, trying to draw it out, educating the kids. 

 

And the kids paid attention.   Enough attention to actually remember how to make roux

 

Life’s to live.

 

Live it!

 

Man, what a pay off - MY KID REMEMBERED!

(I heard it in the woman's voice - she couldn't have been presented with a more spectacular personal compliment - her kid remembered!)

 

Nothing better than that. For sure. 

 

(it may sound trite, but I must say, that this one incidence of a child's self confidence in a class of 200 - to announce that "I know roux", is a tear jerking momentous moment for a parent.   20 years of support for your child, all more than compensated and honored in  an instant when that child raises her hand and says:

 

I KNOW HOW!)  

 

Wow.  

 

Parents and advocates out there: you know this monumental feeling!

 

 

Recipe:  from the mother

To make a roux

Typically made from butter but can be made with any oil(butter, olive oil, safflower oil, bacon fat, lard, )  acceptable to you,

to which you will add an equal amount of flour.

You need equal amounts of fat and flour and an amount of liquid equal to 4 times the amount of fat and flour. eg. 2Tablespoons fat blended and cooked with 2 Tablespoons flour to which is added 1 cup(8Tablespoons fluid.)

If you are making a straight cheese sauce for macaroni and cheese, you would use milk for the liquid; if you were making cheese sauce for cauliflower you might combine the liquid from steaming the cauliflower with milk to equal one cup of liquid;for a vegetable pot pie, you might use 1 cup vegetable broth for 2 T oil blended with 2T flour.

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

Heat the oil and flour in a pan to bubbling and let brown slightly, add liquid and constantly stir till smooth – continue to cook until thickened slightly, then add grated cheese (1+ cups /cup of sauce for a cheese sauce) or other ingredients....

 

(I am taking notes as we go here - JB)

 

So the most important impression I took away from this interview was that the mother knew all this cooking science by heart, in her gut, reflexively.  

She didn't need any book.

It was the same as a car mechanic looking for the right sized socket - he knew it was 11/16Ths. 

This is where we all want to be - knowing, instinctively, how to operate in our environment. 

 

I love this stuff.  No answers. Everything amiss. Trying to organize and fraternize.  Adversaries everywhere. 

 

That's ok. 

 

Here I am.

 

Here I come.