To say that I am a disastrous cook is putting it lightly. I have shared soupy cookie butter pie at a Friendsgiving, burned and under cooked broccoli (somehow on the same pan), and hodge-podged empanadas out of half-frozen, half-thawed pie dough to create an end result that resembled a child’s art project more than food. Important people in my life have taken various recipe steps right out of my hands, partly because I was close to injuring myself, and mostly because I was doing it very, very wrong.
But I love to eat. I treasure new foods, fancy tasting menus, and meals so memorable years later you can close your eyes and remember every bite. So eating my pitiful homemade meals has been a drag.
Enter: ac&ar. In the vein of Julie & Julia, I will be attempting to learn how to cook by following Alison Roman’s recipes. My friends shared her New York Times soups with me, and I was drawn in by the gorgeous photography and her friendly, approachable way of writing about food. Also, sharing a mutual love of Burt’s Bees pomegranate chap stick with the chef didn’t hurt.
I’m sharing these attempts to keep myself accountable and give the friends and family who have tried (valiantly) to teach me to cook a good laugh. I’ll rank my execution for each dish out of five spoons, sometimes featuring guest judges, and keep a running tally of how many times I set off the fire alarm throughout this project. (Previous count was high. My neighbors love me, I’m sure.) Let’s rock and roll.
AC
ac&ar 