I Guess I am My Father's Daughter

So I know I've been MIA but I refused to violate my one and only rule when blogging which is to never blog when I have absolutely nothing to say. Lucky for you today is a new day and I have oodles to discuss. But first I'd really like to know how you all are doing? How's cooking coming and if you've tried any other the recipes. Post pictures I would love to see what you've come up with! I myself have been a cooking fool. I made the BEST big mama style dinner on Sunday. The Roommie and I had fried pork chops smothered in gravy, summer squash (yea I know its fall whatever!) and a peach cobbler that my great-grandmother would have been proud of. I have been trying to think of something that I wanted to blog about. Inspiration came to me last night in the form of frustration. So here it goes!

Ted Kennedy is my favorite politician of all time. I just love him and completely appreciate the politician he was. I cried my eyes out when he passed away last year and I remember exactly where I was when I heard the news because I was legit traumatized. Before he passed away his book True Compass came out and I had every intention of reading it. I was on a flight back to DC from CA during Thanksgiving of 2009 and the woman sitting next to me had the book. We got into a conversation about our mutual adoration for Senator Kennedy and she offered me her book to read during the flight home. In addition to it being a great read, Senator Kennedy also offers up one of the most beautiful story about life, love and family I've ever read. This is in no way a review of his autobiography, but it is impossible to read his work and not be affected by how close he was to his family and how much love they shared with each other. The vivid way he describes them and his upbringing made me think back on my own childhood and household as well as how I want to raise my future family.

Have you ever read something that just connects with you on a spiritual level? Like the minute you read it you feel its truth and importance in your bones? I had never had that experience until I read this quote in True Compass "...my family did not so much live in the world as comprise the world. Though I have long since outgrown that simplistic view, I have never questioned its emotional truth. We depended upon one another. We savored food and music and laughter with one another. We loved one another." Isn't that just beautiful? I was raised believing that family is paramount. Nothing else is. It is one of a few sacred truths I know.

I give credit to my parents obviously. It wasn't until I went away to college that I began to get the distinct feeling that my upbringing was unique in that the way my parents chose to raise my brother, sister, and me was more experimental on their part then conventional. Taking into account how different my parents actually are, I suppose it was inevitable that they would raise us with so much openness. Super Hokie LaDonna as you know is a traditional mother in the most loving and literal sense of the term. My father is another matter. He is in many ways antithetical to my mother, her counterweight. Where she shielded us from the ugliness of the world he exposed us. Movies she didn't want us to see, he took us to. Taboo topics at the dinner table were readily welcomed by him. His parenting philosophy was not to avoid the hot pot on the stove but rather to grab it with both hands to experience its heat for yourself. He wasn't reckless in this. We always felt protected and we experienced life in a way that was of course guarded by my parents. However, we were raised more aware of the world in certain respects than many other children our ages.

Ours was a home of incredible openness and this fact made us close because there were no secrets, anything could be shared. I asked my father his motives behind raising us the way he did and he said "baby, I've never wanted anyone to tell you something about me that you hadn't heard from me first. I don't want to be a surprise to my family." Character wise I take after my father more than my mother. I used to resent that, if I'm honest (lol). We clashed a lot because we were/are so similar. Our relationship got a lot better when I went away to college because that afforded us the opportunity to miss and romanticize each other. But now I realized that the traits I admire most about myself, I've gotten from him. Mainly my frankness and my innate sense of skepticism. My mom tells this story about how I've always had a pretty strong personality. She would try to spank me when I was being a brat and my father would tell her not to do it because he didn't want her to break my "spirit" (bet he regrets that at times). Now when I say and do things others think shocking, my parents rarely bat an eye. Its something that they celebrate about me and so I've always thought it was a good thing. 

It has been suggested to me on numerous occasions that my straightforwardness masks insecurities I have and serves as my defense mechanism. While my skepticism about all things ranging from life in general to religion leave me lacking in "morals" and "family values" in some way. I would suggest the opposite. I am just that comfortable with myself and, much like my father, I never want some one else to shape my story for me. Sometimes my candor is to my own detriment. Sometimes its unrealistic to expect that other people be the same way with me especially if its not in their nature. What I don't like is when people perceive this part of me to be a character flaw of mine or they assume that because I operate this way there are certain things I am not and don't have to capacity to be i.e., domestic, sensitive, sensible enough not to make an ass of myself in front of people I've never met, and lastly "moral." But I am all of these things already. If you don't know at least that about me, then you don't know me at all and that's truly your loss.

I'm venting a little if you can't tell. Anyway on to more important things. What the hell am I going to eat tonight? Because I am an emotional cooker I want good old comfort food. It's been a weird few days for me emotionally I swear. I'm not a needy woman whatsoever but I'm having a needy week I think and my parents aren't around so The Roommie will have to do, and you all of course. Tonight I'm making baked chicken breast, sweet carrots, and rice.

Chicken Breast
1 package of chicken breast or tenders which ever you prefer
2 Tbsp of butter
2 Fresh Rosemary Springs
Salt and Pepper to taste

Sweet Carrots
4 large carrots
1 cup of water
1/2 stick of butter
1 cup of sugar

Preheat over to 375. Take chicken out of package and rinse in the sink. Put the chicken in a bowl large enough for mixing. Melt butter and pour over chicken. Season chicken with salt and pepper put in a baking dish and add the rosemary springs. Cover with foil and bake for 45 mins.

On to the carrots...
Peel and cut the carrots. Make sure you don't slice them to thin because you want them a little chunky. Pour one cup of water into a pot and add the carrots. The water should just cover the carrots so if one cup doesn't do it add a little more, if that's too much water...take a little out. Bring the carrots to a boil and add in 1/2 a stick of butter. Add the one cup of sugar. The goal is to get a syrupy consistency so if one cup of sugar doesn't do it add a little more until the liquid has the same consistency as syrup. Cook until the carrots are soft and then let sit for a few minutes.

Rice
I would just buy a box of you favorite packaged rice and call it a day!

Next blog I'm going to tackle seasonings. Its high time we delve into the different spices of life! Besides I am a seasoning fanatic and just salt and pepper will not do any longer.

Cook on my fearless ones,

Ryan.