The art of cooking is not easily learned. I bought lots of cook books, but they were complicated and hard to understand. Very often, having struggled for a whole day, not even one dish successfully reached the dining table. My husband showed understanding for my poor culinary talent, so we always ate out in restaurants. Even after we were initiated, we still had no worries because it was very convenient to get delicious vegetarian food in Formosa. Therefore, I had no problems in Formosa during my time as a housewife.
As arranged by God, we later migrated to Costa Rica, and for the first time, I had to take care of my two children myself. I was extremely frustrated whenever I went into the kitchen to cook. When the children asked for eggless vegetarian cakes, I had no idea how to make them. Actually, I had no idea about how to prepare any food, like everyday Chinese dishes, gourmet restaurant dishes, or anything. I was extremely ashamed because I realized the importance of a "good-cooking" wife in taking care of the mental and physical well-being of the whole family. I knew if I failed, there would be a lot of bad consequences. I was especially at my wits' end when friends came from afar to visit us. It was easy and classy when we always took them to restaurants in Formosa, but in Costa Rica my incompetence was totally exposed.
Then, Volume I of the "Supreme Kitchen" came out just in time, and gave me tremendous inspiration and help. When I first opened this book, I was so touched by the immaculate, loving consideration given to preparing the text. All the cooking steps are very simple and easy to understand, and the recipes include all kinds of dishes, from restaurant delicacies, homemade dishes, exotic meals, to desserts and drinks. It is really all inclusive. Even the arrangement of the cutlery is elegant and perfect. What surprised me most was the 100% success rate that I now had in cooking each dish (which was quite the opposite for the cookbooks that I had used previously). Even a special type of printing paper is used that doesn't get dirty or wet easily -- obviously in response to a housewife's working environment. I simply fell in love with this book because it gave new life to my family.
Once, when having their meal, my children finally opened up and said: "Previously, it was an adventure eating the food that mother cooked, but not anymore!" They also understood that the delicious food they were eating was due to the grace of the "Supreme Kitchen," so they were very grateful to Master for saving their stomachs. In a foreign country, it is not always easy to have delicious vegetarian dishes, but now we can enjoy sumptuous restaurant-style meals at home.
Deep inside, I am truly grateful to Master who takes care of us in every minute aspect. Her cookbook developed my cooking wisdom, and gave me the confidence to be a competent mother. Now I no longer have to worry about having friends visit us!