I can still hear my father’s voice telling me that if I was ever going to be a good cook that I would have to learn a repertoire of recipes without the use of a cook book for reference. During my first 10 years learning to cook I refrained from using a book and found that hands on cooking with different chefs was the fastest way to learn popular recipes and pick up the appropriate tips. Very few relic chefs use a recipe to cook, but will read a cook book to polish up a favorite dish. As I gained a good collection of recipes mentally, I became more academic in finding new...
