For Jim
who tenderly listened to my dreams,
who tenaciously had faith in my quest,
who courageously fostered the marriage of our creative talents,
who generously shared his technical expertise,
who cheerfully tried dish...
after dish...
after dish.
I offer my sincere, heartfelt gratitude to
all the authors and publishers who openly and unselfishly offered their works to be used in this collection;
Jim Ramsay of Precisely: Documents by Design, who tirelessly formatted recipes, offered constructive support, edited copy and proofread the many versions of this work;
Magalis Higgins, who bravely typed page after accurate page...in her second language;
Duncan Larson, who graciously made thoughtful, articulate suggestions for techniques;
my mother, Jewel, who taught me the true meaning of hearth and hospitality;
my father, Steve, who taught me that patience and persistence are the foundations of success;
my siblings, Kathy and Steven, who made mashed potato faces and giggled until milk escaped their noses;
K Cowboy Davis, who gave the gift of true understanding in the kitchen--follow the recipe unless you can’t, then don’t;
my amiguitas at the stove, Lizzie, Elaine, Jo and Doris Gray, who had all the ideas, all the answers and all the best gossip;
and all the rowdy, ragamuffin, lightly irreverent friends who have graced my table and my life for the last half century.
Let's talk...
See no weevil!
I was not the least bit nervous about serving my very first meal. It was a decent affair...a few friends dropping by on a chilly Sunday afternoon. A respectable, hearty soup of some kind, a cast iron skillet of corn bread and a home-baked fruit pie. I don't remember all the details since it was over 25 years ago. But this aging hippie chick can tell you one thing she remembers in detail.
It started with a comment from one of the guests. The friend remarked on the delicious corn bread and oh, how interesting that I should use rye flour. Later, I thought about this one. Wanting to be as much a hit the next time around, I asked the last friend to leave what his opinion might be. After a minute of thoughtful consideration, he replied, "It was really good. I'm not sure. I mean, I think there were insects in your corn meal."
That's what they thought was rye! See no weevil!
Cooking in the dark has been an interesting experience. As I lose more sight each year, I continue to rediscover new ways to do the same old things. A dedicated cook, I refuse to give myself over to the microwaved dinner in the box. I think it is too easy to be seduced by these little jewels of technology and convenience. It is just as easy to create lively, interesting, healthy dishes with a little practice and thought.
Even though I speak from the point of view of the visually impaired, I encourage everyone to get in the kitchen and mess around. Often, a minimum of adaptation can make a world of difference. If you are comfortable and capable in the kitchen, you are much more likely to spend a little time there. Our society seems to have lost the grace of breaking bread together at home. In general, people seem intimidated by the thought of entertaining. It does not have to be the crystal and china affair to please and amaze your guests. A simple soup and bread will delight. It's the community of others, after all, that is the point. The food is just the excuse.
The suggestions in this book should be helpful in getting you into or back into the kitchen. You may have met your disability recently. You may have a degenerating situation. Whatever your story, I encourage you not to avoid the kitchen. It is the heart of the home.
When it comes to adapting sound techniques, my grandmother was the best. One of my favorite recipes comes from my Mamaw who used phrases like 'take 49 cents worth of almonds,' 'beat it till it looks right,' 'add just enough milk,' and 'bake it hot enough till it's done'. This was her way of telling me to use my good sense and to get a lot of practice.
Necessity may be the mother of invention, but imagination is her sister. I always think about a task and break it down into smaller components. Then I find alternate ways to accomplish the visual components...both in the kitchen and elsewhere. I would say don't be afraid to get right in there with the food. Don't use a spoon if your hands will do. In this way, you will get to know the ingredients, your equipment and how they act and react to each other.
Once you know your equipment, your ingredients and how to use them safely, you will be willing to step out and take a risk. Your friends and family are more interested in spending time with you than actually eating. But food seems to bring people together, and they flock around. You might be surprised at how nonjudgemental people are. The rewards are great for such a little effort.
Even the most prepared, experienced cook and entertainer can't meet all the challenges. Consider a recent attempt at rounding up the usual suspects for a more formal occasion. Thinking that I had solved all the problems and anticipated the disasters, I put the pizza coupons on the table by the door...just in case we might need them later. My next-door neighbor had graciously offered extra chairs for the occasion. When she brought them over, I asked her to check the place out for me.
She cruised on party patrol. Candles ready to light, flowers looking happy and straight, table set attractively. She giggled, "It's all very beautiful. You must have been folding laundry in here, though. You might want to take the underwear off the floor from under the table."
See no weevil!
Let's get down to business...
Who might benefit from this book?
° Cooks of any level of expertise with visual challenges who want to feel more comfortable in the kitchen. They might include:
° inexperienced cooks with slowly degenerating vision who need a boost in confidence provided by a step-by-step guide to food preparation
° accomplished cooks with catastrophic vision loss who want to continue using the techniques to which they are accustomed and who want to learn adaptive techniques for the visual components of food preparation
° blind cooks with tight schedules and busy lives who want to learn easy, healthy preparations
° teachers of the visually impaired and blind. This book is quite useful as a working curriculum guide for life skills classes
° friends and family of individuals with visual difficulties. The techniques offered here are sound practices for everyone. They will help the general public to understand the special needs of the visually impaired.
What is the purpose and philosophy of this book?
Basic culinary principles serve both the sighted and the blind or visually impaired public. Special equipment and wildly different techniques are not necessarily an integral part of a blind cook's entry or re-entry into the kitchen. Good technique and safely is more a function of competence and care, rather than of sight.
At the very heart of this work is the notion that a cook with visual challenges can do just about anything in the kitchen. To develop this concept, I sat with my own collection of cookbooks and chose authors with varying areas of expertise and interests. They graciously allowed me to borrow their recipes to show that one can take almost any food preparation technique and transfer it, often without adaptation to a variety of particular personal situations. Once the techniques have been mastered, a cook will have the confidence and talent to continue experimenting.
How do I use the two different sections of this book?
This book is divided into two sections, Techniques and Recipes. The two sections can be used separately as independent references or in tandem with each other. Together they provide a comprehensive array of cooking techniques along with recipes that employ these techniques.
The first section, Techniques, is a compilation of sound strategies for meeting the challenges of food preparation in the kitchen. It is divided into segments that reflect the different stages of cooking -- from shopping at the market to serving at the table. Each technique is explained with precise language intended to help the visually impaired or the blind cook meet the challenges in a safe, efficient way.
The second section, Recipes, contains a carefully built set of recipes which employ the techniques in the previous section. They range from easy recipes for beginning cooks to more gourmet preparations for cooks ready for an adventure. Each recipe is accompanied by a complete listing of all the techniques necessary to prepare that dish. The page numbers of these techniques are provided for easy reference. The cook should refer to those preparation descriptions in the technique section for a complete description. Once one is familiar with a particular technique, there is no reason to refer to it again. In this way, cooks are able to proceed to more difficult preparations.