Alternate universe
Taking the time to riffle through the pages of a number of the newer cookbooks here, I have come to the profound belief that these meals are actually evidence of an alternate universe.
Think about it. From the menu boards in your favourite fast food restaurant, through the packaging in the supermarket, down to the cookbook. All of the food looks good. I have no idea about the taste factor, but on a cosmetic level, the presentation wins hands down. Better than Vogue.
No meal is ever, ever perfect, in our universe. The most skilled cook still deals with a phone that rings, or another load of potatoes that aren’t cooked as planned, or a piece of meat that came, well, from the supermarket (note the colour difference on each side of a steak).
In the cookbook, though, the colours all match, and the plate is always the right size, and there are no burn marks to be seen. (Even in the BBQ book, which is a technical impossibility. I’ve tried, for decades now, and I know.)
The gravy never runs, or is runny. The potatoes are lump-free. The ‘’haricots” are all equal in length, and the spotted beans have a colour pattern straight out of Matisse. Try that at home.
So, in conclusion, the cookbook is proof of the existence of an alternate universe.
