Obviously its a necessity to feed ourselves, but im talking deeper here. What inspires you? Who are your muses? What beyond the basic need to eat keeps you excited about food?
I am endlessly inspired by Nigella Lawson and her entire ethos around cooking. “Food is both a pleasure palace and a sanctuary.” “Cooking is a balm in troubled times.” “Food has the ability to make a real difference, every single day.” So many amazing quotes of hers ring around my head when im in the kitchen.
For me, cooking is spiritual, practical, creative and scientific all at once. It gets me on my feet, off my screen, and allows me to nourish myself and those I love. It requires all of my senses and no matter how practiced a recipe is there is always an element of improvisation.
I could go on, but im much more curious…why do you cook?
A lot of good reasons in the comments and many of them apply to me to some degree, but honestly the main driving force is my own neurodivergent food apathy and pickiness. I know if I cook, it’s going to be food I like and prepared how I like and that makes it worth it to me. By elevating it, it’s enough to get me to want to eat which has always sort of been a battle for me.
And this is perhaps one of the most compelling reasons to cook. You can make exactly what you want in exactly the way you like it. Such freedom and joy!