Every woman’s kitchen has at least one recipe book – either self-bought or gifted. Mine has over 100 of them. No exaggeration. Seriously. Most of them are small supplements that come with various Tamil monthly magazines. My mom religiously collects them every month and hands them by the dozen or more when we meet, usually after3-4 months. That shows her confidence in my cooking :) Or she trusts me to get inspired and cook a lot of variety dishes, which I do.
The books cover a wide range. Sample this. The collection consists of 30 Chutney recipes, 30 tomato dishes, 64 pickles, 30 soya recipes, 100 age-old home remedies (those granny ideas!), what to do with leftovers, 64 cakes/cookies/chocolates, 64 juice, 200 Diwali tips, 30 biryani masala, 16 types of sambar, and 10 types of rasam. The list goes on. And believe me, it is really handy at times to break the routine and fix something different for dinner.
One practical issue I face is stocking these in the kitchen where it’s easily accessible; for, I know, if I lay my hands on the stack, I’ll end up cooking a dish. The block is in reaching out to the stack. Right now, it’s stashed in the farthest cabinet. I’m contemplating of binding them into just 4-5 books categorized by snacks, juices, pickles, desserts, and main course dishes.
Wondering if it should be in the open, or perhaps, by the windowsill, like the one in this picture:
Or, something that’s integrated into the kitchen as part of an open shelf. I’m afraid this might not totally work in Indian kitchens, unless there’s a separate cabinet away from the counter to keep the books free of grease.
Image sources:
First one taken by me.
