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My midlife crisis arrived about twenty years too early. The year was 2001 and I had been working in the modeling industry for almost 15 years — basically since I was a teenager. Modeling afforded me many wonderful opportunities for which I will always be grateful, but it didn’t really fulfill me.
I had always dreamed of going to culinary school, yet the thought of simply abandoning what I had done for so long to start something completely new gave me great anxiety, no matter how determined as I was to find my true calling. I researched several culinary programs but never could commit to do anything more than take a tour. And so there I remained, lost, two years shy of my 30th birthday and entirely too young to be so confused about what I was doing with my life.
I was living in New York back then and had made an appointment one day to see yet another school, the Institute of Culinary Education. The tour date was September 11th and as you can probably figure out for yourself, I did not get to visit the school that day. As it did for many people I know, 9/11 forced me to reexamine my life. I decided within days of that unspeakable tragedy that if I was ever going to follow my dream, that was the moment.
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I spent the next year as happy as I’ve ever been, working during the day and going to school at night. As hard as it was, I still romanticize that period of my life for the sumptuous meals (my schoolwork) that I would bring home from my classes for my future hubby and I to enjoy late at night after our long days of work and school.
This all finally brings me to the whole reason for the recipe below. While at I.C.E., I was blessed to meet one of the kindest, sweetest, most talented women I know. At a very young age, Sarah Copeland knew exactly what she wanted to be and she made it happen. A veteran of the Food Network, writer, food-expert, urban gardner and co-founder of Share Our Strength’s Good Food Garden’s Campaign, Sarah’s most recent exploit is The Newlywed Cookbook. Not only is this amazing book rich in information and stories, it features tantalizing food photography and delectable recipes which are perfect for both the newbie and experienced cook. Below is one of my many favorites from the book. I made it for Kenya’s snack one day and all the kids (and their moms) went nuts for it.
Rise and Shine Muffins
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 2 cups white whole wheat flour
- 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 medium carrots, peeled and grated (2 cups)
- 1/2 medium zucchini, grated (1 cup)
- 1/2 cup pecans, chopped
- 1/3 cup pine nuts
- 3 large eggs
- 2/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup buttermilk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° F.
- Place the raisins in a small bowl, cover with hot water, and set aside to plump.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.
- Stir in the carrots, zucchini, pecans, and pine nuts.
- In another large bowl whisk together the eggs, oil, buttermilk, and vanilla.
- Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and mix until just combined.
- Drain the raisins and stir them into the batter.
- Fill greased or paper-lined muffin tin 3/4 full with batter.
- Bake 25 minutes (15 minutes for mini muffins) or until a wooden pick inserted into muffins comes out clean.
- Serve.
- *From The Newlywed Cookbook by Sarah Copeland-reprinted with permission from Chronicle Books
We were going to the pool at my apartment that day, and I made sloppy joes, buttered corn, and homemade mac n’ cheese. I also remember the first thing I cooked for his parents: chicken satay, rice, and steamed mixed veggies….I was nervous!
Thanks for making me recall those memories. I look forward to checking our the Newlywed Cookbook.
A delicious omelet!
Chicken Parm
I am engaged but when my baby daddy and I started dating we cooked all vegetarian meals for our first month together. We made a potato and rosemary pizza together…..totally yum. 🙂
I don’t remember our first newlywed meal (NOT italian, as we had just returned from Italy and couldn’t have replicated that food!). But I do remember our first meal we cooked together dating – pasta with pesto, shrimp, and asparagus. At 23 and 24 years old, we felt very sophisticated!
Ched. Broc. Soup. First time using our new pans in our brand new house…kinda runined it by having the heat too high and having soup boil all over. Ya ALL over.
The first thing I made my partner was Japanese beef curry.
I made my husband Shepherd’s Pie and I even forgot a key ingredient! He ate it with a smile though. 🙂
Thanksgiving Dinner – and the smoke alarm only went off once during the process 🙂
I am pretty sure one of the first things I made for my dh was barbecue chicken pizza. I’ve thankfully come a long way since then
we got back from our honeymoon right before thanksgiving and made thanksgiving for our families together! I brined a turkey for my first time and i think the hit was sweet potatoes with a brown butter sage sauce. Everything was great but the gravy was a big fail. we used the brown butter sage sauce. huge hit!
It was a busy week for me with school and work, so I didn’t have a lot of groceries in the fridge. I made miso soup with tofu and scallions, sesame soba noodles with cucumber, and mushrooms with sake. Little did I know that when my husband was touring with his band, that was the kind of food he found comforting. We’ve been happily married for seven years now. 🙂
Chicken Tetrazzini :0)
I made him my family recipe of chicken adobo!
I made him a homemade coconut cake for his birthday. I hid it in another room and half way through dinner his dog came in wagging her tale with white frosting all over her mouth. She had eaten 3/4 of the gorgeous cake! Quit a laugh.
Hmmmm… between the two of us, I’m the cook, but I remember better what he first made for me – veggie stir fry with tofu! 🙂 (And he is a serious meat eater)