There are a few small differences in cooking that add up to lots of extra time in the kitchen. We don't have access to nearly the number of processed foods that we do in the US. For example, the canned soups that are part of many recipes aren't available - no cream of mushroom, no beef or chicken broth. Also, pre-made or frozen bread dough is not available, so stromboli or pizza involves making bread, too. Making everything from scratch is obviously better health-wise, but that also involves much more time to prepare and more ingredients which means more attempts at translating labels from Portuguese.
Additionally, the settings for stoves and ovens are different. Obviously, temperatures are in Celsius (an easy adjustment for her), but the appliances also don't use as much natural gas. It takes much longer to cook on both the stove and in the oven. She's found that you just about double cooking and baking times. Europeans generally do not bake, so cookies have been a big hit.
She's done a fantastic job adjusting and carrying on in spite of the challenges. Somehow, she still manages to be a great mother and wife as well as participating in teaching. Being here has made me much more aware of all that she does in her various roles.
Hail to the Chef!
2 comments:
Heather, I specifically prayed for you tonight (before I knew the blog would be dedicated to your work). It was great to chat on Saturday, if for just a little bit.
As Dad always annoyingly said (sorry, Dad, you might have been right), "keep your chin up."
I appreciate your prayers, Cody. There is something very rewarding about preparing meals completely from scratch even though it is time-consuming. Of course, I want to maintain a Mary attitude, rather than Martha, so your prayers in that regard are appreciated!
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