Faster Than A Speeding Bullet

I do not  spend my spare time being shot from a cannon weilding knives, wearing a toque and chef coat.  I am not faster  than a speeding bullet.  I cook.  I cook alot.  I spend quite a bit  of time cooking for my church.  During a seemingly non stop  cooking session, the nickname canonchef took hold.  Seemed kind of fitting.  Canons can be many things.  In the Church, they are  rules/laws decreed by councils.  There are Canons of literature, Musical Canons ( Pachelbel's Canon), Aesthtetic Canons, Penitential Canons, and on and on.  BUT, what they all have in common is a set of rules...as does cooking.  There ARE rules in cooking, although cooking is much more free-spirited and free-wheeling than ..say...baking. Some things just can't be messed with.  Roux is equal parts fat to flour.  Vinaigrette is one third to three thirds ( depending on preference).  Don't under- cook poultry.  Don't saute' a pork butt for 3 minutes.  Don't boil milk.   Liquid measures and dry measures are NOT equal, and Don't whip cream too long unless you want/need butter....ok ok.. Point made.

I guess my Canonchef nickname means alot to me because of these rules. I am a free-spirited follower of rules....of recipes......of concepts.  Thomas Keller's cookbooks are Canons to cooking.  Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking is a major Canon.  My favorite; and my Canon of Literature ( the first thing I was told in school to buy) is Larousse Gastronomique.  Michael bought it for me $$$$$.  It is always on my counter.  I refer to it daily.

Even when winging it in the kitchen, some principles and rules of cooking should shadow.  But,  always fly through the air as if shot from a cannon. Cook with abandon!; and always remember, you have to know the rules to break them.