Creativity is hard. Really. I put a lot of pressure on myself to do and be my best. It comes from my father. Growing up he would expect me to be the best, no exceptions. For example, I struggled with math when I was in school. I had to study very hard and diligently to understand even the most basic concepts. When I had a big exam coming I would study each night, training hard to remember how to solve each different type of equation. Usually I did well, but well was not enough. Let’s say I brought home a math test where I scored 95% (a very good score for me). My mother would be thrilled knowing how hard I worked. My father would ask me, “If you were in an airplane and it only made it 95% of the way to the destination, would you be satisfied?” When put into those terms it was hard to be happy with less than 100%. This mentality has followed me into adulthood. I want to be the best I can be in whatever field I am working in, and nothing short of my best is a major disappointment. You may wonder who is grading me? What standard am I looking to when measuring success? I am judged only by myself and my own ridiculously high standards. And they are ridiculous, just ask Mr. Shenanigans and he will be glad to tell you. So, when I say creativity is hard I look at it from a couple of perspectives. First, there is nothing new under the sun. It is hard to find new and exciting ways to prepare food because humanity has been preparing food since the dawn of our evolution. How many ways can one make a blueberry muffin unique? What makes my apple pie any better and more exciting that the other million or so recipes for apple pie out there? If I can’t find a way to make something really and truly unique, better, or more fun I won’t post it for the blog. Second, how can I make a recipe that will look and taste as good for you, my darling readers, as it does for me? Success for you is important to me. I want you to feel like you can make my recipes and have then turn out as well, if not better, than mine. I am often so focused on the perfect look that I discount taste because we eat first with our eyes, and on a blog you look at the photos. A pile of ugly brown food, even if it tasted amazing, isn’t likely to inspire many to make it. Well, today I tucked away part of my neurosis for perfection. This is a big step kids! The recipe I present to you almost made it into the rubbish bin. These cheesy grits cups didn’t look the exact way I wanted. In my mind I wanted smooth grits on the outside, and a […]
This post first appeared as Cheesy Grits Cups with Bacon and Eggs on Evil Shenanigans by Kelly Jaggers
