Monday, March 31, 2008

Black and White food.

YUMM!! was my first thought when I passed hundreds of magazines on a rack in a bookstore with a beautiful, oh so delicious, almost fluffy rich looking cheesecake and an almost chocolate crumbs with a complementary light blue background and it says "Light Cooking" on the cover. This sight always stops me. What doesn't:)

2 seconds! not even. If a book or magazine cover whispers at you like this, pick it up. When I say whispers, there's hundreds of those magazines in that Borders Store! It takes a great eye and mind that does this. How do you call out to readers with a slice of plain looking cheesecake as there will be tons of covers that does the same. SIMPLICITY. It screams with the inner voice.

I picked the Cook Illustrated magazine for the first time Sunday. I have with me a stack of other cook books. It's just my lazy Sunday things to do. Look at food as an inspiration for dinner! My only calming thing to do when I am stressed. Look at cook books. I can surf Food Network and watch at the same time and I was caught doing that several times.

I flipped the first page. Aaargh! black and white illustration of food. Thought my glasses played a trick on me. I flipped more and more of them. My appetite and my thoughts of food inspiring day was suddenly shut off! Aaaagh! this is not happening. It's not appetizing! My thoughts then said, "Hmm...this might be my weapon for weight loss." I put the magazine aside. I need food inspiration. Colors. We first eat our food with our other senses and color and aroma of food does it for me and for most people.

I then flipped the other cook books I brought with me. Ooh..Thai! Oh those Tom Yum soup sure helps with this cold day. ahhh...I can picture and taste those spicy almost sweet sour broth and the smell of the kefir lime leaves and lemongrass in the oh so good broth sounds soothing that moment for my hungry tummy.

Then, I picked up another cook book. Yummy Italian pasta curled around the fork with fresh basil and shaved Parmesan cheese makes me drool over the images. Oh ya..I'm making those. Note to self: Need to get chicken at the butcher.

After finish flipping all the pages, I am inspired. now I can go back to that blah black and white magazine. I flipped and to my surprise, actually started reading. Oh my, this is good stuff! these techniques and that recipe...oh okay! What black and white images? these are yummy recipes! Hey! I was about to make pasta, and now I want those cheesecake in the Cooks magazine.

Got home and bought chicken on my way, started chopping away and made rice beriyani instead. Oh well, pasta and tom yum, next time:)