Great people come and go, but their spirits remain

A week ago yesterday, an unfortunate event, one of true sadness, occurred in the lives of Kikko and Hines. Truly more so for Hines, his mentor, great friend, his hero passed away in a terrible accident and it has shook the world of culinary and Facebook. I will, however, let Hines pay him homage of his own, in his own time. For now, I wanted to share a story of my own hero, or heroin, for that matter.

My mom has been gone for about a month or two already. We all knew grandma, or "Batian" was soon leaving us as she had been suffering from esophageal cancer for a while. I had been babysitting in the hot summers day, days before band camp started, and I was on my way home. As I looked at my driveway, I saw my dad's car, an unusual event as he was to be at work. When I get inside the house,  he looked at me and said, " I am going to Brazil. Your grandmother just passed away". He had been on his computer looking for the next flight to my home country, in hopes to be with my mother as fast as he could. My sister and I, having band camp, couldn't afford to leave, so we were staying at a friend's house until my parents returned. I remember feeling very vulnerable and in disbelief. I talked to my mom for a few minutes before she broke down and had to hang up. I was alone. I didn't enjoy the feeling, but I knew I had to be good, to be a big girl. I never truly cried once. 

Batian was the only one who seemed to understand me. Love me and care for me while others tended to show otherwise. She always played with me when  my sisters ignored me, and she always supported my random crafts even though they were useless. I always loved her from the bottom of my heart, even though I only saw her once a year or so. She was so little and fragile, and yet, you would never see her sitting around doing nothing. She was an inspiration to me. No matter what life hands you, you keep on working. 

The first time I was able to visit her grave was a year and a half after she passed away. I wasn't sure how I would feel. We made it a trip with the whole family to pay our respects.  That was the first time I cried. I had visited that cemetery so many times for my grandfather, but nothing so emotional as that moment had ever occurred to me. I was a wreck. No one, not even me, could understand why I was so upset. Until now. 

I never got the closure I wanted with her when she passed away. I was hundreds of miles away, unable to do anything for the woman who had inspired me to be strong. She was my hero. Seeing the grave with her name on it made it concrete that she was truly gone. 

Memories are a funny thing. They can bring you so many emotions of different forms. They can cause you to suffer, laugh, become mad, smile, or even bring you to a deep thought. As I sat around this week, feeling for Hines, I also remembered my loving Batian. She was one of my inspirations to cook, and if I am right, same for my mother. It's a wonderful feeling, watching a woman in your life cook for the entire family, making so many wonderful goodness and do it out of the joy of her heart. She never had culinary training. She never went to school for an extensive number of years as my sisters and I had, and yet she was one of the smartest person I had ever met. I wish, sometimes, she was still alive to be able to see me cook, be able to taste what I can make now. I just hope that she is proud of me, that's all. 

Everyone has a hero, the one who convinced them to do their best every single day. Mine was my grandmother and I miss her. Although the times are passing, I like to share a few words of wisdom with all. 

-Remember to show your love and enthusiasm every day. You never know who you are inspiring.

-Be yourself. Don't let others change your attitude because that's the environment you are in. 

-Do what you love. Don't settle for something you aren't ready or excited to do. Life is too short. 

-and last but not least, "WORK HARD AND PLAY HARDER."- Uncle Joey

Kikko

Homage to the Cast Iron

I have found that a cast iron pan is one that not all people love and adore as much as my family. It is a history as rich and as dark as the coal that has filled those country roads, the place I call home.  Some are handed down from generation to generation while others are purchased from flea markets, where, in turn, will be passed down through the years.  Never the less, the pan needs love and uses to keep the seasoning rich and oils as fresh as possible.  Pass it on if you have one in your family or go out and buy one to have whether it is an eight slice cornbread pan, Dutch over, or just a cast iron skillet; it won't be a choice you regret. 

I wrote the piece a few months ago in a food writing class and I haven't had a chance to share it.  My family has influenced my cooking more than anything and if there is one thing that I've learned is that pots and pans are nice but cast iron is the best.  It may be a little rough around the edges but that's what you want. Just don't forget to oil it. 

Hines

Relationships... could it be sweet?

If you are a chef, cook, server, bartender, or anyone who works in the food industry, you understand when I say, being in a relationship with one (romantic or not) can be difficult. Whether family, friend, or significant other, there is never enough "we" time and too many one sided conversations. As a cook, I do take blame for a part of the neglect that comes from my side, but I also agree that the food industry is a major factor in disrupting relationships. In the past I had found this article that pretty much sums up how I, or any food person, feels about relationship. The link is here :Marrying a chef? Check out the little tidbits the chef has to offer. Feel free to comment, too.

While reading the article again, I had to smile when reading #19. True, I am talking about difficulty in relationships, and although the statement is 99% of the time true, I have to admit that I was actually productive on my last days off. I do have to use the word productive lightly, however, as it was more fun for me than doing work :) and my "productive" project was................................................

SUGAR COOKIE DECORATING!

Recently, I had talked to Roseann, the restaurant owner of The Country Corner Cafe, about expanding the retail side of the place and she had said that sugar cookies were one of the items they used to sell in the past. With that idea in mind, I baked off some sugar cookies in different shapes, made some royal icing, and decided to decorate them how I pleased. And here are the ends results.

Look at all the craftiness!

Here's one for the Cafe. (Yes, I will work on my penmanship) 

In honor of the Man of Steels

And, of course, I had to make Hines one, right??

Although I still need more practice, I enjoyed myself and I feel as if the cookies could go far. Tell me what you think of them or even help me come up with ideas for decorations. If they work, I might even post them on here ;)

I found the sugar cookie recipe here Sugar Cookie dough. The royal icing recipe that I used is Alton Brown's recipe found here Royal Icing. If you have any questions, let me know.

I hope everyone learned a little bit more about being connected with a chef/food person, but also to remember that, when you know one, you will probably get some really nice treats (aka: these cookies !) Just be patient, talk to us if you feel alone, and above all, know that we do care, we're just often really really tired.

Cheers and kanpai,

Kikko