Although she didn’t develop an interest in cooking until after she had graduated from college, Dr. Linda Wilson has become a master of her own kitchen.
“My mother did all the cooking when I was growing up in Salem, Virginia. I had never cooked an egg until I left home,” Linda said. “She never allowed the four of us (two sisters and a brother) to cook. And those were the days when everything was cooked in a pressure cooker. My mother gave us one for a wedding present, but I never have used it except for melting wax.”
After college, Linda had a friend who “was such a fabulous cook. Every time I went to her home to dine I always brought back her recipes. Margaret introduced me to good cooking and I learned from her that I wanted to know how to cook.”
To start, Linda bought a Julia Child’s cookbook, “but after reading a few pages, I thought I can never do this.” Loving to learn, she persevered while teaching English and history, which she taught for six years. Later she received a master’s degree and then her doctorate in guidance and counseling. She worked as a counselor for 10 years and later taught the counseling course.
And she continued to study the kitchen as well. So proficient did Linda become that she says she won her husband Steve’s heart through his stomach. “It was my time to cook for our ski group. Since Steve had invited me out for dinner I suggested he have dinner with us, because I was committed to the cooking. He did, and that’s how we got together.”
Marrying a military man brought travels to Linda’s lifestyle. While Steve was stationed at the War College, she took French and Chinese cooking classes. “I love French cooking,” she said. While Steve was a professor at VMI, Linda earned her doctorate from the University of Virginia and began teaching counseling. Even after they purchased their home on East River in Mathews 20 years ago, she continued teaching by commuting for a while.
Linda’s cooking skills are so well developed that she rarely follows a recipe exactly as written. When the recipes are prepared and placed on her table the dishes from her collection have become originals. Whether she is preparing for five or 50, Linda does everything herself, without extra help. Her secret of success is by using do-ahead things and trying to keep dishes simple. She doesn’t mind trying new recipes, “Always hoping it’s going to be perfect. I just don’t want to be in the kitchen while my guests are here. I want to be visiting with them.” She keeps a bottle of sherry at hand, and says “that’s always a good additive. You know cooking is such a pleasure. A whole day of it is good therapy.”