Cooking Soothes the Soul

That's just one of the phrases Bill Penzey weaves into the pamphlets in his gift boxes, into his emails, into his Facebook posts.  The store makes me smile, the spices are delicious and interesting and have expanded my cooking horizons, but up until yesterday I didn't really get the whole soothing my soul thing.

Fast Eddie and JannieLou, Dr. K and Not-Kathy, and TBG and I were all quite upset at the world around us, at events beyond our control, at the current political and social climate.  We were functional, but not by much.  TBG claimed to have malaise.

Everyone gathered at our house for dinner and commiseration.  Dinner for 4 turned to dinner for 6, with gluten free and carb-less and dairy avoidance in attendance as well.  Denizens of The Burrow know about my fractured relationship to the kitchen; in general, it's not a pretty sight.  But we needed to be together.  We needed community.  And I.... I needed to do something. 

So, I made brownies. 

Bill Penzey is right.  Cooking didn't solve the problem, but the brownies put smiles on all those forlorn faces.... even the I-shouldn't-eat-this guests.  This was something I could do for those I loved, even as we were frustrated out there in the world.  The knot in my stomach unclenched just a bit as I watched the small squares disappear from the plate, one happy set of fingers at a time.

It's true - cooking soothes the soul.