Creating your own recipe can be a lot of fun, especially if you make it a group effort. It's all about being creative and finding complimentary tastes. I love cooking and my husband is an artist, so you'd think we'd be naturals, right? Not exactly.
We patrolled through the local grocery store aisles, looking for something to create our masterpiece recipe. At first, we couldn't agree on flavors or even the type of dish we wanted to create. It's easiest to first choose the basics. For instance, do you want to bake, fry, broil, etc.? do you want to experiment with fish, beef, poultry or pork? Pasta, potatoes or veggies? It's all a matter of taste, literally.
It's good to play on what you know. Think of some of your favorite recipes and what makes them your favorite. Is it texture or subtlety of taste or even a mixture of colors? Also think about some of your favorite dishes from restaurants you like to visit
Don't expect to get it perfect on the first try. Great recipes are developed over time. Be open to suggestions from family members and friends, and don't take their words as harsh criticism if they suggest, "Why don't you try . . . instead?" Try different brands, subtle changes in flavors, textures and colors. Cooking is an artwork that takes time to develop and perfect.
Lastly, be creative! A recipe is your own design, so make it your own. Add something a little unexpected or perhaps your signature ingredient. Everything, down to the dish's name, is up to you!
What recipe did my husband and I come up with? We call it, "Cheese Ravioli with Clams." (It was temporarily and unofficially titled, "Darth Vader's Cheese Ravioli with Clams" because we figured, hey, it's our recipe, we can call it whatever we want! Maybe Darth Vader would have loved this dish! In the end, it was misleading, though. People would think he created it, and we wouldn't get the credit.)
Our recipe starts off very simple, it's still not perfected, but we enjoy it on occasion. The ingredients are: 1 package cheese ravioli, prepared according to package's instructions, 1-2 tbsp. Olive oil, 1 tbsp. Butter, 1 clove garlic, finely chopped, 1 can whole baby clams (drain and reserve juice), 1-2 tbsp. clam juice reserve, salt & pepper to taste, parsley, parmesan cheese.
Here's how you make it: Glaze a pan with olive oil. Add 1 tbsp. Butter, 1 garlic clove finely chopped, 1 can whole baby clams (drained), 1-2 tbsp. reserved calm juice. Toss with cooked cheese ravioli and top with fresh parsley and parmesan cheese.
By Tonia Jordan
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