In continuing the theme of revealing secret recipes, I have a few more thoughts. I try to be very thorough when writing recipes so that those with little experience in the kitchen, those working toward reducing weight and those who want an acceptable finished meal will all be satisfied. But, when I’m not composing recipes for posting, I’m a verrrrrrrrrry impromptu chef, I have a menu in mind, but it is altered (sometimes very seriously) according to my whim of the moment and the ingredients I have on hand. I wish that style of cooking could be taught, but it either comes naturally or it’s an acquired skill and kind of like riding a horse, it takes a lot of practice, some daring courage, and a serious willingness to keep getting back in the saddle until you have the knack of it. I know the dogs love my failed attempts.

Because of this, there is no real “secret” recipe. Secret recipes tend to come from cooks like me and are then altered again by cooks like me to meet their own criteria and so a secret recipe kind of becomes like a whispered secret being passed around a circle of friends, it is never the same thing by the time it gets to the end. You know, it’s how ‘There’s a black cat in the street’ becomes ‘there’s a bucket and it’s empty’ or how Baked Bean Dinner becomes Joe’s famous BBQ beans. LOL