MMmmmm, cookies

Ok, well this post has nothing to do with cookies at all. I just had a picture of the Cookie Monster in my head and figured that would be as good a title as any. Actually, this post has to deal with me becoming a collosal beast of a woman if I continue to cook things and be the predominate eater of crap - oh yeah, and maybe considering a profession change. (Do the unemployed HAVE profession changes when they've just graduated from college and don't even have a profession???) Last Thursday, as I lay on the thinly matted table being massaged by the gentle electricity of a T.E.N's unit that is plugged into the wall (aka physical therapy), I had an idea: Apple bread with caramel chunks in it. Hmmm, that should be interesting. I even decided how I would roll it up. Every detail was run over in my head except for a few items. I am not the best baker from scratch because I cannot figure out the baking powder/baking soda ratio to flour for proper rise with or without acidity. Well, what I tend to do is find a recipe fairly similar to what I want, and adapt it. It works well and I retain the originality and interactivity in the creative process of my food product. I am OBSESSED with food. I love to cook it, to create, to feed it to other people and enjoy their expressions of delight. I've been through all of this before. I could probably just go through my archives and post a link...but I am much too lazy for that. At any rate...the bread. I went to visit LittleJoe - I got a tour of the new house and got to cuddle with their adorable little kitten whose name I cannot remember to save my life. When I got home I remembered that the next day was Nerd Day and that I was going to make Cream Puffs. But, since I am broke I couldn't manage to purchase the ingredients. So, I decided to try the bread. I altered a bread recipe that I had for these KILLER cinnamon rolls and proceeded to make the caramel, and dice the apples. After the dough was done, I set about the rather involving process of getting the three ingredients together. Well, There were a few minor mishaps (don't worry guys, nothing fell on the floor or got sneezed into or anything), but after 5 hours...all in all, it was a proud accomplishment - and DAMNED tasty to boot. LittleJoe actually mentioned it being an item I should consider selling. Considering the strict guidelines for selling foodstuffs, and my not knowing HOW to sell it, I am not sure if that will ever happen. But, it made me rethink my desire to go to a culinary school and become a chef. I am mostly afraid of the fact that I ENJOY cooking, and turning something I enjoy immensely into work might dampen the joy slightly. I doubt I would be like those people on FoodTV who are constantly gallavanting about joyously creating or sampling other people's foods. There is a hell of a lot of work that goes into the craft...and I am inherently lazy and have issues with follow-through once I get bored. But, I guess the main reason I am considering it is the fact I am so damned broke; and that is something I do fairly well- cook. Unless my friends are continually lying to me about my creations (except for cooking at Grau's house..nothing I ever try there turns out right.) Well, I guess that this long post amounts to this..I would love to be the "Caramel Apple Bread" lady, but I don't think it's particularly feasible. If it ever BECAME feasible, I would definately try it out for a bit. But, in the meantime, I will just cook for my friends (not family), because I enjoy the appreciative moans of ecstasy, the offers to pay for ingredients when I cannot afford them, friends who are more than happy to let me come over and show them how to make gnocche, or roast a chicken, and the hysterical "get this the hell away from me" from a friend who is on Atkins and feared he would eat the entire serving after his initial taste.