The Alchemy of Cooking

The transformation of the raw ingredients of our food into edible treats and savories really and truly is truly alchemy. I have no doubt that the first chefs transformed into the very first alchemists.

Thanks to a new course of drugs to keep me alive and keep the symptoms of Addison’s disease at bay I am wide awake night after night at 4 am. Not just AT 4 am but often until or still awake at…

Tonight I have a new symptom and it was the urge to keep moving. I quickly ran out of walking space in my living room. I then turned to the kitchen and grabbed a heavy pot, some cream, sugar and butter and stood for some time stirring these raw ingredients. Once the heat hits them they become dense and thick and after the boiling point they turn into caramel. Real caramel. My arm is almost sore from stirring. But I am finally able to settle down, if not to sleep but to write.

Here is the heavy sugary fudge that my grandmother made me as a child. It is Scottish in origin so beware its sweetness, as there is no sweet tooth in the world that can match that of the Scots.  

Scottish Table:

http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/usrecipes/scottishtablet/index.html