Healthy Eating: The Scent of a Meal: A Simple Guide to Flavorful Cooking

"...smell and taste are in fact but a single composite sense, whose laboratory is the mouth and its chimney the nose...." Jean-Antheleme Brillat-Savarin (1755-1826) A well seasoned meal is like a good perfume. Your first whiff captures you with an aromatic top note: citrus, mint, dill,.. you take a bite and the middle note fills your mouth with a full bodied sound of flavor: ...., brie, mushrooms, leeks... as you swallow your awareness turns to the foundation of the dish, it’s base note; the flavor that holds the whole meal together: milk, butter, garlic... earthy grounding tastes that satisfy your appetite. It is worth aiming for this gourmet level of cooking ... we don’t always create Chanel#5 sometimes it’s just Jean Nate. But that’s OK, its the striving that counts... the intent to make each meal better than your last...
A well cooked meal is truly one of life’s simplest pleasures.
So when you are throwing ingredients together, keep the thought in the back of your mind. “I want to create an enchanting perfume.” Try to include the three notes needed to make a full bodied cologne.

Top note (T): A teaser a light flavor that dissipates quickly. Middle note (M): The heart of a dish. The first flavor you taste after the top note fades. Base note (B): This brings depth to a dish. It makes it comforting and satisfying.

Here are some dishes from my blog to illustrate the notes of flavors: Basic Quiche: T: nutmeg, M: vegetable, B: eggs and cheese. Lasagna: T: Parmesan cheese (sharp aromatic cheese), parsley, M: meat, B: ricotta and mozzarella. Zucchini pancakes: T: garlic, M: zucchini, B: eggs. Chicken soup T: bay leaf, celery, M: chicken carrots, B: pasta and broth. Pierogi:T:Parmesan, M: vegetables, B: potato. Mashed potatoes: T: nutmeg, M: butter and milk, B: potato. Spaghetti and clam sauce: T: parsley, garlic, M: clams, B: anchovy paste and olive oiled pasta. So when you are cooking if you try to include all 3 notes I guarantee your dish will be more flavorful and satisfy to eat because so much of what makes a dish enjoyable is it’s smell. copyright 2012

MEAL PLAN:

Meatless Monday: Broccoli Cheddar Quiche with side salad lettuce and tomato.

Tuesday: Split Pea Soup, my husband's homemade Rustic bread.

Wednesday: Chicken and rice casserole (made from leftover veggies mixed with mushroom soup and white wine).

Thursday: Chili (leftover frozen), cornbread (from scratch), and salad.

Friday: Sausage, Polenta with Swiss Chard and tomato salad.

Saturday: Vegetarian unchicken nuggets, corn, mix veggies.

Sunday: Chickpea patties with quinoa and salad.