Cooking for Geeks

Preface

Hackers, makers, programmers, engineers, nerds, techies—what we’ll call “geeks” for the rest of the book (deal with it)—we’re a creative lot who don’t like to be told what to do. We’d rather be handed a box full of toys or random electronic components, or yarn, or whatever, and let loose to play.

But something happens to some geeks when handed a box full of spatulas, whisks, and sugar. Lockup. Fear. Foreign feelings associated with public speaking, or worse, coulrophobia. If you’re this type, this book is for you.

Then there’s another type of geek: the über-nerd, who’s unafraid to try anything...maybe a bit too unafraid, but hasn’t had that Darwin Award moment (yet). The type of geek who is either “all on or all off,” who addresses every aspect of the perfect cup of coffee, down to measuring the pressure with which the grinds are tamped into the espresso machine’s portafilter. This kind of geek is always on the search for the next bit of knowledge. If you’re this type, this book will inspire you.

And then there’s everyone else: the everyday geek, normal, inquisitive, and looking to have more fun in the kitchen. Maybe you’re comfortable in the kitchen and would like new ideas, or perhaps you’re not quite sure where to start but are ready to give it a go. This book will show you easy ways of trying new things.

Regardless of which type of geek you are, as long as you have “the courage of your convictions” to pick up the spatula and try, you’ll do fine. The goal of this book is ...