I am delighted to welcome Shaun Kellett from Clockwork Clouds as our Guest of the week.
Shaun agreed to share some of my home-made tried and tested recipes on his blog, and I asked him if he would care to tell us a bit about himself, so please sit back and relax and enjoy his post. Once done, please visit his blog and see for yourself what he has to offer and share the love by spreading the word of his blog and this post on all your social media outlets as far and wide as possible. Sharing is Caring – Thank you
If you’re here reading this it means you’re on the wonderful blog of Esme, home of the Recipe Hunter Extraordinaire, and you’re probably looking for the latest delicious treat to make for your friends and family. So, let me get the disappointment out the way first: I can’t cook.
It’s true. The extent of my abilities is putting something pre-made (and often mass-produced) into an oven. Sometimes I time some (frozen) vegetables well enough to go with whatever else I’m making; that’s the definition of success for me.
I am, however, a big believer in creativity and artwork. Whilst I’d followed Esme’s blog for awhile, I truly ‘met’ her when she applied to take part in my Work in Progress Wednesday; a series of posts I host that are designed to look behind the scenes as people create their works of art. You can read Esme’s contribution here: Esme’s Delicious WiPs – A WiPW Guest Post. So many bloggers are writers at heart and so I run the risk of simply spotlighting authors, as lovely as they all are, and not offering much variety in these posts; after all, there are many, many artforms out there and writing is merely one of them. That’s where Esme’s post came in; a post of delicious recipes and mouthwatering meals.
But does cookery fit with my project’s goal, is it sharing creativity and inspiration? More to the point, is cookery really Art?
Cooking something is simply something almost everyone does every day, isn’t it? We make our breakfast, sometimes our lunch, often our dinner. We cook for our families, or we put something in the microwave for ourselves. It’s an everyday activity, it can’t be art. Well, I’d argue quite the contrary. Writing work emails day in, day out, doesn’t make us authors, snapping selfies with our smartphones don’t make us photographers, cooking an evening meal for ourselves doesn’t make us an artist in the kitchen. Art is something that takes a passion, skill, and talent. Art is something composed of love, and effort, with the means to have an effect or to make us think. Compare my cookery skills to that of a Chefs and you see a truly stark contrast. My food is cooked out of necessity, it is cooked simply to fill my stomach. I don’t cook with the intention of impressing, I don’t work my ingredients from scratch, I don’t maximize taste or think about the meaning behind my food. For someone to prepare food, and I mean really prepare it from the ground up, they are thinking about their ingredients, they are thinking about the impact of their flavors, and most of all, they’re cooking with their love. Much like a photographer considers composition, a chef considers what sides may compliment a main, much like a writer tells a story with words, a chef wants you to learn something through a taste. Much like anyone with any artistic pursuit tries to improve their skills, a chef will learn and experiment, they’ll better a previous recipe or add a personal twist.
An artist at work: Photo courtesy of @nickkarvounis on Unsplash
Something that takes that much hard work and effort, something someone wants to continually improve upon and better, becomes a craft. So, I’ll leave you with that question again: Is cookery really an art form? Yes, most definitely. It’s even there in the title of the profession: the Culinary Arts.
*****
May I extend a heartfelt thanks to Esme, for both her support on my own site and for allowing me to Guest Post here. I hope you’ve enjoyed my article and I’d invite you to join me on my blog below for more.
My Blog: Clockwork Clouds
My Facebook: Clockwork Clouds Facebook
My Twitter: shaunkellett
Learn More about Work in Progress Wednesday: Work in Progress Wednesday – What it is and how you take part!
Thank you so much Shaun for linking again and hope your readers will enjoy your post here and also some of the other cooking and baking in this corner of the Blogosphere.
Take care and may you have a wonderful December
I’m with you Shaun, I can’t cook but I do consider it an art form. I cook because I have to eat end of story. I enjoyed this insight, thanks Esme.
Thank you Debbie.
How about you ‘cook’ any other niche post for us Debbie??
Well said, Shaun.
Thanks for visiting April. Now, how about you doing a Guest Post for us. If interested, please continue reading: Feel free to check out my blog: https://cookandenjoyrecipes.wordpress.com/ and then have a peak at the Guest Posts tab where you will find numerous posts or you can also go to the Search function on the blog and enter “Guest” and you will find even more posts you can review.
I accept post/s on any niche. If you wish, you can do a number of recipes in one post, or if you prefer, you can do more than one post (as many as you like) and I can spread them out over time. Very important, you DO NOT need to do a recipe post, you can do ANY post you like, on ANY topic you like.
Hi Esme, I could probably write something for you about medieval food/cooking if you think your readers would be interested.
April, that will be fantastic. Drop me an email at
co**********@sh**.ca
then we can chat further. Thanks so much. 🌼
Thanks, April!
And can I just say, I would be VERY interested in reading your Guest Post about Medieval Cooking! Sounds like a perfect fit for Esmes blog here 🙂
Yes, I am very much looking forward to April’s post.
Thank you.
Good article by Shaun, I’m addicted to watching Masterchef and seeing how beautiful food can look, shame I cant eat it too!
Thanks for visiting and yes Masterchef is a fantastic show to watch and as a foodie, I just love it.
Would you like to do a Guest Post here? Feel free to check out my blog: https://cookandenjoyrecipes.wordpress.com/ and then have a peak at the Guest Posts tab where you will find numerous posts or you can also go to the Search function on the blog and enter “Guest” and you will find even more posts you can review.
I accept post/s on any niche, NO NEED for a recipe post, but if you wish, you can do a number of recipes in one post, or if you prefer, you can do more than one post (as many as you like) and I can spread them out over time.
yes I’d love to, will get on it later on in the week when I’ve finished work, thanks!
That will be awesome thanks in advance.
Reblogged this on Clockwork Clouds and commented:
Instead of a Monday Blog Post for you today I want to share a Guest Post I had the pleasure of doing for Esme! Please take a look 🙂
Thank you for sharing Shaun! Sharing is Caring
Oh I agree, Shaun. Some of the amazing dishes that chefs cook and the presentation is not only mouthwatering but breathtaking too! 🙂
For sure. You need to be an artist as well
Thanks for reading, Judy! Completely agree, there’s definitely an art in all that.
🙂 🙂
What an excellent piece – I can’t fault the logic and the style in which it is written provokes thought throughout the read. This is my highest praise 🙂
Thanks, this is excellent and I am so honored to have you all as Guests.
Thank you so much! I was having such a dreary Monday morning, but reading a comment like this has perked me up no end 🙂 Thank you!
♥
Good – this makes me happy!