Cooking Should be Something Fun and Pleasurable

By Cory Gallant, Zestycook

Seven years old, standing on a wooden chair in the kitchen, baking biscuits and cookies alongside my mother on a Saturday morning. This is one of my earliest memories.

Did I immediately fall in love? I think I did.

I loved watching Julia on PBS on the weekends. Intrigued by her personality and sense of freedom, I stared with awe at the TV and never wanted to look away. The way she carried herself in the kitchen was so different than anyone I'd seen before. Her low-stress, no-sweat attitude was what made her stand out to me. Julia took cooking from domestic drudgery to being a joy. She let the world know that cooking should be something fun and pleasurable.

As a child, time spent in the kitchen was full of excitement. Today, as an amateur cook and a true lover of food, I have a lot of Julia's characteristics (something I likely gleaned from those early days of watching her on PBS). I love sharing the joy of cooking with my own kids and believe that food does not have to be perfect; you just have to enjoy it!

One of my favorite things to do in life is to make people happy. Some people buy gifts to show their affection and appreciation for others. My medium just happens to be food. I have Julia to thank for that.

Ever since I was a little boy, I have always been fascinated with food. From the days of helping mom bake in the kitchen to now preparing large family-style meals for a crowd, something about pleasing people with food has always excited me. In 2008, I founded zestycook.com to share my ideas and communicate with the food community. I strive to create an interesting place for readers to stop by and see lots of new ideas, as well as a place for like-minded (OK, food-obsessed!) people to interact with one another.

You can find Cory at his website Zestycook, as well as on Facebook and Twitter.