A Chef with One Knife

Being a new wife, I knew that there would be tons of adjustments as soon as I said "I DO," I knew that my life would never be the same.  I know that there are tons of you out there that may have started your marriage living with your parents or your in-laws, but try living with a mother-in-law that doesn't speak English, and going from big cities in California to small towns in Italy!  I don't think I could have prepared myself for this.

I have tried to do everything I can to help out and make it feel like home here.  As I mentioned in my profile, graduating from Le Cordon Bleu for management, I took some culinary classes, and also growing up, my family always LOVED to cook, so for me, I'm most at home when I'm cooking.  But because my mother-in-law did the majority of the cooking, it took me a couple weeks until I started helping out in the kitchen; I didn't want to step on anyone's toes.

As I learned my way around her Kitchen, besides the butter knives, l realized that she really only uses, and as far as I've seen, only has one knife, a bread knife.  She uses this ONE Knife for everything she needs to cut. I'm used to using different knives for different reasons; it has definitely been an experience.  It honestly takes some patience trying to butcher meat, chop onions or mince garlic with a bread knife.  As the days have gone by, now cooking most of our meals, I realized, having one knife isn't so bad.  One day while sitting, peeling and cutting potatoes with this knife, I thought to myself, what else in my life do I take for granted, or have in excess?

I've learned that, yes, being blessed with a plethora of options is great, and to have all these things isn't bad and I wouldn't complain, but also being content with the simplicity that life brings can be pretty cathartic and humbling.  At first, I didn't know how to prepare myself for this experience, but now I am prepared to step outside of my comfort zone and embrace being that "Chef with one knife."

I know my responsibilities, but it may be more valuable to learn to do things without the internal traffic and excess that sometimes consumes us.  I encourage you to take a moment, breath deep, relax, soak in the sun, take a walk or make time to cook a meal with one (bread) knife and one pan.  I know it may be easier said than done, but if your mindset is different, your experience will also be different, and hopefully gratifying.

-Rubi Anne Dijamco Agostini