Since next week is the American Thanksgiving holiday, which revolves around a feast and therefore lots of cooking and baking, I pulled some Victorian era trade cards that went with that theme for Wednesday Whimsy.

Of course first one has to buy the groceries.

I love this quote from Wolfgang Puck: “Cooking is like painting or writing a song. Just as there are only so many notes or colors, there are only so many flavors – it’s how you combine them that sets you apart.”

And oh boy can I relate to this from Gail Simmons: “Patience was not something that came naturally to me, but in cooking it is the quintessential skill.” I’m not patient by nature at ALL but you can’t rush a turkey or a pie…

“Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all.” Harriet Van Horne

“Cooking with kids is not just about ingredients, recipes, and cooking. It’s about harnessing imagination, empowerment, and creativity.” Guy Fieri.  So true! And my adult children are going to cook the entire Thanksgiving feast this year, which will be interesting to say the least. Hard for me to keep out of the mix!

There’s a curmudgeon in every crowd (although I miss Andy Rooney who said the next quote):  “I don’t like food that’s too carefully arranged; it makes me think that the chef is spending too much time arranging and not enough time cooking. If I wanted a picture I’d buy a painting.”

“I’m just someone who likes cooking and for whom sharing food is a form of expression.” Maya Angelou.

“Cooking and gardening involve so many disciplines: math, chemistry, reading, history.” David Chang. Hmmm, not sure I want to think about cooking  SO seriously, although he does have a point!

Trying to represent all viewpoints here:

“I go out to the kitchen to feed the dog, but that’s about as much cooking as I do.” Betty White

“What my mother believed about cooking is that if you worked hard and prospered, someone else would do it for you.” Nora Ephron

I beg to differ with this next person! “Stuffing is evil. Stuffing adds mass, so it slows the cooking. That’s evil because the longer the bird cooks, the drier it will be.” Alton Brown. Stuffing is THE best part at our house! We have learned to cook it in a separate pan though.

“My grandmother was a typical farm-family mother. She would regularly prepare dinner for thirty people, and that meant something was always cooking in the kitchen. All of my grandmother’s recipes went back to her grandmother.” Willard Scott. Neither of my grandmothers was a “farm-family”, but my Irish gramma surely had some wonderful recipes!

“If you’re not the one cooking, stay out of the way and compliment the chef.” Michael Strahan.

“…cooking is the expression  of the land where you are and the culture of that place.” Wolfgang Puck

“I find cooking very sensual. I love getting in there with my hands instead of utensils. With all of the textures and everything, it’s very erotic. Also the time it takes to prepare, and the anticipation and the buildup, you know. Then finally, you get to eat.” Jacqueline Obradors

And then at the end, of course someone has to do the dishes!