This tale starts with a bored lady (that would be me) …
Unlike what history books might tell you – and against all common sense – boredom is the fuel behind any human celebrated triumph or mourned disaster. As hilarious as this idea may sound – boredom runs the world !!!
The year was 2013, my kids finished their metamorphose from needy babies to much needier but self-occupying, self-minded, self-centered beings … Working as a freelance from home – loyal to my decision not to make work the center of my life … I got bored – so very bored.
My shelves bowed under the load of countless cookbooks packed with mouthwatering recipes, books I would open daily to read, but never used for cooking.
I was cooking meat balls, schnitzel and pasta over and over and over … kids food, efficient food …
It was time to act – turn the dream of actually cooking those restaurant dishes into reality.
Boredom and Passion – a match made in heaven !!!
All recipes in those cookbooks shared a few characteristics: lengthy list of rare ingredients, lengthy list of dish components, lengthy list of instruction for each component, lengthy list of pots and pans to be used, long preparation time …
No wonder it took so long before I shouted Eureka …
I needed some extra hands (and an urgent pedicure as above picture discloses) – actually, many extra hands !!!
This was a classic social media “no worries” challenge …
Opened my Facebook and wrote my very first post :
“I would like to assemble a group of passionate cooks (real one – not virtual) .
Not every day cooking but rather cooking based on cookbooks published by the best world restaurants and chefs (who mentioned Thomas Keller ?) …
Cooking that involves an endless list of ingredients, multi layers, multi tasks, piles of dishes to wash.
I’m looking for people who want to join me – people that will rise to the challenge of sourcing weird ingredients like pea shoots … ”
I admit I did not see that one coming :
Those damn pea shoots scared everyone to death … or was it the piles of dishes …
Plan B – head hunting …
I prepared a well-organized list of every friend/colleague that I though might be interested to join. Educated by my first recruiting experience – I set the entry level criteria as low as the dead sea level. Even a short cafeteria conversion mentioning an omelette was considered as a valid entry ticket.
Then I started sending personal messages to the listed subjects …
You would not believe the range of excuses people will use to avoid washing dishes !!! Kids were the shield armor of most … others used humility and some wanted to “first see what you guys cook” before they take such a life changing commitment …
Luckily enough – I did get four Yes !!!
And honest to god – it was like winning a lottery ticket !!!
My four Musketeers were the best team members I could have asked for. Over the time TBD was active – they proved to be great cooks, great wine drinkers – and most importantly – the very best company !!!
The next step of the project was handling our group’s PR – there was no way we were going to work so hard without earning our friends admiration. What’s a cooking group without its fans ?
When opening our group’s Facebook page – I could not come up with any “catchy yet descriptive – short yet roles on your tongue – sophisticated yet self-explanatory – outsmart yet not annoying” name … so I did what every Hi-Tech warrior is trained to do … named it TBD.
TBD (to be defined) is our secret weapon – like a ninja sword it defeats any cross department dispute … sprinkle it like magic powder on your documents to save writing time … use it to bury tasks … use it to stop endless arguments … use it to avoid talking to people you dislike … use it to get into agreement with people you do like … use it to avoid the challenge of finding free time in your colleges calendars … just USE IT !!!
TBDs have only one iron-rule – they remain TBDs from “cradle to the grave” – no TBD will be actually defined … NOT EVER
Identity challenged sections\bullets\tasks occupy a large part of any organizational documentation portal – silent witnesses for generations of well trained personal fighting their way through the mouse race.
So, TBD we are – till this very day !!!
Challenged by our successful social media exposure – our spouses decided to create their own club – football and beer – featuring “Weihenstephaner Filled Eggs” as their signature dish.
Then we started cooking.
Dough started turning into Agnolotti …
Before each meetup we would go over our cookbooks (Ok – I admit – we focused on The French Laundry by Thomas Keller – and yes – I was responsible) – chose recipes for a full four course meal (canape – entry – main dish – dessert).
We broke up each recipe to its endless list of preparations – divided them between us to be prepared before the due date.
Meetups were hosted each time at another castle. We would cook the final stage of each dish together – set the table – serve – take countless photos – eat … and then get up to prepare the next dish.
My dream came true … Not only we managed to prepare those complex dishes – we actually managed to have a four-course meal of restaurant quality dishes.
Team work – never underestimate it !!!
We managed to transform those guys – into that … (swearing we will never ever do that again) …
Made canapes …
Main Dishes …
Sweet treats …
Food was great – wine was great – company was outstanding !!!
And then we stopped meeting …
It became hard to coordinate the dates … One Musketeer got relocated to a foreign country … Work pressure … Kids pressure …
Our WhatsApp group is still active – we keep sending photos of our latest masterpieces – and we keep trying to schedule and meet again. We will – I’m sure of it !!!
Looks amazing! And so much fun to read
Good luck Inbal, may this blog be as successfull as the TBD
looks great!
Your dishes look amazing and the story brings everything to life.
Thank you !!!
You have a way with the words. Very engaging read, improved my mood also 🙂 Good luck
Thanks !!! I’ll keep you updated when i write new stuff 🙂