In the beginning....

The chicken or the egg first? Was I born a foodie or was I influenced by the fore-runner of T.V. Foodland? The memorable programs opposite each other mid-morning were Captain Kangaroo and Graham Kerr- The Galloping Gourmet. Was I already programmed to love all things culinary, or did darling Graham, my first crush, influence me towards the kitchen? Not to disparage the dear Mr. Keenan at all, but the pull from Mr. Kerr was more than my six-year-old psyche could withstand. Besides, he said things like "It's time to take a leak" with that accent and when I found out what that meant it made him risque and I was a goner.

So, thus began my trek through life looking at everything in view of what and where do we, or will they, eat??? I was interested in every detail. If I bought a magazine to make the recipe on the cover, I had to have the same bowl pictured in the prep directions. I wanted to feed the world.

I was (and am) Southern to the core but wanted to know more about the food that others ate. It hasn't been until in my adult life that I realized that the food so familiar to me was considered "cuisine" by others not so fortunate to have grown up on home-made biscuits (almost every day even though Mother worked full-time), sausage from Hinson's Grocery that was good enough for the Sunday dinner table, and Grandmother Hughes' collards with cornmeal dumplings. Food that had glory, not glamour.

Unlike much of the faux-southern cuisine being bandied about as 'the real thing', I love the "whole" foods that we had on the table. Not casseroles - so there was no need for "cream of" anything, and you didn't have to add mayonnaise. It was just wonderful food, soulfully prepared and served in concert with the other things available at that season. Always with an appropriate bread - fried corn bread or biscuits. Never had a yeast roll in either grandmothers' or my mother's house. Mother's biscuits were drop biscuits, both grandmothers' biscuits had ridges on them where they were pressed against her fingers before being laid on the pan.

So why the name: Cooking Do?" There was a plaque I remember in some relative's house that had a little poem that ended "Kissing don't last, Cooking Do!" Next time I will start with the simple, foundational items that are necessary (IMHO - in my....well, you know) in any southern cook's repertoire. But I have a tendency to get side tracked, so stick around for the ride!