Cooking up some fun!

Last month, while recording our June podcast episode on FUN, Cynthia, Trudi, and I decided to be proactive about planning something new and fun for the three of us!

Cynthia discovered a lemon-themed cooking class at Culinary Cottage in St. Joseph, Michigan. The menu featured lemon kale salad, Greek herbed chicken meatballs in lemon herb sauce, roasted lemon tarragon dill salmon, grilled lemon garlic chicken with basil cream sauce, and a lemon blueberry trifle. We all agreed that sounded amazing and actually signed up! A real win for me, as I often have lots of big ideas but struggle with follow-through. 

The night of the class, we met at my house, and Cynthia offered to drive, which was brave of her because our destination was almost an hour away and a pretty bad storm had rolled in, making visibility very limited. Thankfully, we’d given ourselves plenty of time and arrived unscathed. We were grateful and relieved that the storm had finally passed, and that the Culinary Cottage was so bright and welcoming!

All the ingredients and the recipes were laid out and ready to go. After we all introduced ourselves, Chef Tara described each dish and how to navigate the commercial kitchen. There would be cooking stations we could choose from, and they would wash all the dishes for us (dreamy!). At the front of the kitchen was a set table where we would feast on our creations, family style!

It was a delightful and uplifting experience from start to finish! We arrived hungry, and all the dishes smelled and tasted fantastic! I learned some new cooking techniques and gained a bit of confidence—enough to recreate the massaged kale salad for dinner the next evening! I think my favorite part, however, was the community aspect of sharing that unique experience with strangers—working together, getting to know one another, and then eating a meal together at the end. The interactions were open, warm, and friendly in a way that made my heart feel full.

I’m proud of us for stepping out of our comfort zones and being intentional about engaging with our surroundings and community! Next up, a “Stories and Songs” singer-songwriter round at a public library a few towns over! I’m building up my “fun” muscles and increasing my joy in the process!