It's nice to have something unusual for dinner from time to time, and I feel making it at home is much more healthy and satisfying than going out to eat (not to mention spending half as much money on the meal.) It's much more rewarding too, when my husband enjoys the meal that I prepared instead of a high end restaurant meal. For example; we never go out for curry, or mango and sticky rice anymore (one of our favorite meals and dessert) because I now can make it at home just as well as the restaurant. Curry and Mango with Sticky Rice is so simple and cheap to make, so I can spend ten dollars making it at home instead of thirty dollars plus tip to eat it at a restaurant! Learning to cook ethnic foods has definitely made my life a little bit easier and more fun.
I finished reading
the first chapter of Mastering the Art of French Cooking entitled Soups. My family have never been big soup eaters; although I do enjoy soup, beyond what comes in a can I have just never had much exposure to making soup or the varieties available. Growing up, my mother would make potato soup from time to time, or a pot of beans, or a minestrone soup from scratch, but it just was not a big part of my meals. As an adult, when eating out, I hesitatingly would order a soup from time to time to see what as out there: French Onion, Clam Chowder, and Tortilla Soup but it was either a hit or miss as to which restaurants had good soup. So it was with courage I took on the task of choosing and making a soup last night. There were Potato and Leek Soup, Watercress, Vichyssoise, Garlic, Onion, Mushroom, and Fish Soups recipes to choose from. I have come to the unfortunate discovery that I dislike Leeks very much. I am not very picky as a rule and generally force myself to give all food a fair chance to win my taste buds over so I will allow myself to dislike leeks. Needless to say I did not want to make a leek soup, and I want to make sure I can make good soup before I take on a Vichyssoise, so since my husband 
and I both love mushrooms I settled on a Cream of Mushroom Soup. It took an hour of my careful and inexperienced preparation, a half a cup of some Wanna-Be European Butter (I bought special for the occasion,) and about half a cup of cream to make the rich "Grand Occasion or.. Sunday Supper" soup. It was divine. Not bland and viscous like that canned stuff you buy at the store for a dollar and a quarter, but steamy with a soft liquid creamy richness that makes one pause after a sip to savor and ponder the experience. I toasted some white bread and melted some real butter on it as an accompaniment to the lovely soup. Soup and bread was just the thing after a rainy day and a chest cold! Other than adding a bit too much salt at the end I would have to say my hard work definitely paid off. I think I will try making a Potato and Onion soup soon and maybe a fish soup as well. Mrs. Child said, "Once you have mastered a technique, you hardly need look at a recipe again." and I mean to master Soups.
The next chapter is on Sauces and I am so looking forward to making Hollandaise for the first time as well as Mayonnaise! Yippee!
