A new way of Cooking

In the holidays I went home and decided that it was time to make a big chocolate cake with proper ingredients – the last time I made something was in my flat and I had to use mashed banana instead of eggs, cheap chocolate drops instead of high percentage cocoa chocolate and we didn’t have a sieve for the flour or measuring cups and as I result it was a major fail! – So at home I checked and organised the ingredients the night before making the cake as I would be getting up extra early to make it as I was supposed to be starting work on the farm at 8am. This went well and I went to bed looking forward to baking something that would be appreciated by friends and family once it was completed. However, the next morning when I got up I was told that I was no longer needed on the farm as it was pouring down with rain. So I went back to bed and was thankful that the process of making the cake would now be less stressful. I started making the cake just before 10am and everything was going well. I was happy to be back in a familiar environment and to be able to use ingredients and equipment that would result in a better looking and tasting cake (fingers crossed). While mixing the cake i thought about i what i had learnt so far in this course. I recognised that the activity that i was completing was a form of labour as its main purpose was for consumption, and as i stated earlier the familiarity within the task was comforting and beneficial. This fits within ergonomics and because i was so familiar with the environment i was able to adjust this task for the better (this was required as stated further on). I also thought about fulfilling my need of being creative while i was able to. It had been a long time since i was able to do so as i am restricted with this in my flat. However, my plans were soon changed when my dad came in from work and said he was taking me to town for lunch. I had only just got the cake in the oven and it would take at least 1 and a half hours to cook and it was now 10:30am (we had to back from town by 1 to start work). I didn’t want to turn down the offer so I decided to turn the oven temperature up. Thankfully, i know the tricks with our oven and so this adjustment did not affect the outcome of the cake! That night after work i knew that the cake needed to be iced before we went our for dinner as i was giving it to family friends that were going to dinner with us. I thought i had plenty of time but i didn’t get off the farm until 6pm and we had to leave within 20 minutes. Not enough time for me to get ready and ice the cake...well so i first thought. Luckily i had measured out the ingredients needed for the icing after lunch so the task was sped up. I got help from my mum and we iced the cake in no time at all (it even looked presentable)! After all this rushing around, the cake was muchly appreciated and it also looked and tasted ok!

As described within a previous post on affordance, I typically find cooking to very peaceful and can complete the task without any interruptions. This fits within part of my spiritual self as i believe cooking can be therapeutic as for me it releases stress, improves concentration and can be very health beneficial. However, this was not the case this time and I now know that although i love to cook as it is relaxing, i can still enjoy it when i am in a hurry. This is because i have still achieved something and it can be enjoyed by myself and others through either viewing it or eating it.