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| Ancestress by Dreamflower | 4 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| GamgeeFest | Reviewed Chapter: 54 on 8/9/2012 |
| Poor Adamanta! I've always maintained that there must be some hobbits out there who can't cook very well or at all, it's the law of averages, but it's got to be hard for those who lack this skill. She's learned a hard lesson: seeing and doing are not equivalent when it comes to cooking. Time for some lessons. ;) Author Reply: In my Shire, I take pretty literally JRRT's statement that they start learning to cook before they learn to read. But even so, skill levels vary. I've never shown a hobbit who could not cook at all, but I've implied that there are many who are very-- limited, shall we say?-- in their range of cooking. Among the hobbits I've written of most, Sam's the best (that's canon!), and Bilbo probably runs him a close second--even Sam doesn't think his honeycakes are as good as Mr. Bilbo's. Frodo's a good enough cook, but not up to Sam's standards, and he tends to have a few specialty dishes that he sticks to, such as noodles and cheese and stuffed mushrooms and mushroom soup. I established early on that Estella thinks Merry and Pippin are better cooks than she is (and she's not a bad cook at all). But the two of them were not terribly good at baking until they had a few lessons from Sam (or Pippin at least). Merry does make good currant scones though. Among my OCs, I think Trotter's the best cook-- his cooking, after all, was how he wormed his way into the Rangers! And Adamanta had become a very good cook, eventually! | |
| Virtuella | Reviewed Chapter: 54 on 8/8/2012 |
| Well, this is such an excellent point to make! A very hobbity skill, of course, and one that takes experience rather than magic prowess. So yes, there would surely be something lacking. As an aside, this reminds me of my father, who was a ship's mechanic and on one journey had to replace the cook, who had fallen ill. Ash cakes indeed! Author Reply: I think the love and care hobbits pour into their food could not be imitated by magic-- it would lack something special! Oh dear! I hope your father did all right with the cooking! | |
| demeter d | Reviewed Chapter: 54 on 8/7/2012 |
| Oh, the poor dear! I have a friend who is from Germany. She married a second generation Mexican-American serviceman, then came here with him to live. She knew how to cook German food, but the only places she could get ingredients for that, thirty years ago here, tended to be expensive delicatessens! Not on an enlisted man's salary, thank you. She threw herself on her immigrant Mother-in-Love's mercy, and begged cooking lessons. By the time I met her, half a dozen or so years of marriage later, Hilde could make the BEST pan of Enchiladas! I have a notion that the thing a Hobbit mother would like best next to cooking would be teaching her family to cook! Author Reply: *nods* I did learn to cook from my mother, but I learned far more tricks and new things from my mother-in-law! And I agree about Hobbits! Skill as a cook would be highly valued, and passing it down would be considered almost a sacred obligation. | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 54 on 8/7/2012 |
| What a disappointment for her! I'm glad she cheated but the once, though. Author Reply: So am I. I think she learned that the secrets of hobbit cooking could not be achieved with shortcuts, and also that her power was not there to be used lightly. | |