The Year I learned to Embrace Food

This year I learned to embrace food. I learned to feed my body what it wants. Sometimes it wants healthy vegetables dishes and sometimes it wants gooey, gunky, buttery plates of food.
I started this blog a little while after I had decided that I want to learn how to cook.
I knew a bit about cooking but never thought that I could learn so much in one year.
I started my journey with random cooking classes until I realized that I was lacking techniques. I took two classes at the Art Institute and learned the fundamentals of cooking. Yes, it was extremely expensive but I learned that everything could be made from scratch.
Chef Paul Redman taught me all the basics and from then on, no yeast, no dough and no amount of work could stand in my way( he and his wife Helen have a really nice blog).
I learned to appreciate the allurement of seasonal produce, to relish at the sight of fresh herbs and to detect great meal components from a mile away.
I learned how to throw dinner parties without getting stressed out.
I took up yoga which taught me how to appreciate life, to meditate and most of all breathe which I can't believe that I didn't know how to do before.
I met some great chefs this year, went to fascinating food events and most of all learned to absorb any info that I could find about food. I got my appendix out this year which is not as bad as it sounds.
I also got engaged and married to the love of my life.
Thank you readers for your comments(yes, you Twinkies dad) and emails. I am grateful for all the support.
Whooo! What a year!

Ommmmmmmmm. I Mean Mmmmmm

I want to explain why I haven't been writing as much lately. I am taking an intensive yoga course with practices at 6:30 A.M. and lectures all day long. Instead of making mmmmmmm sounds I have been making ommmmm
sounds.
Yoga? A foodie who does yoga? Do they go together? I always get this question. Now I have a question. Does peanut butter go with carrots? Do scrambled eggs go with ketchup? In my world they do. Yoga gives me balance in life. Yoga has taught me how to enjoy my food more. It has taught me to sit down, breathe and then take a bite. It has taught me that every food that I eat is blessed. It has taught me that my body deserves more than pizza pockets. Yes I deserve huge market tomatoes and fresh basil. I deserve creamy risotto and Osso Bucco too. I enjoy my food more when I take the time to savor it. I especially enjoy my breakfast after two and a half hours of yoga. Yoga enhances my sense of taste.
My course is over in a few days and I will have more time to write. I will still be doing yoga and obsessing over food. Namaste.

The Amateur Gourmet - Book Review

Practically every food blogger is aware of the Amateur Gourmet. He is the one that puts ridiculous songs on his blog, never hesitates to post his mistakes and has become a blogger celebrity in the last few weeks. Oh and I am sure that his blog is nothing short of one the most popular food blogs around.
I have been looking for his book for a while and I finally got my hands on the little thing.
The book is a simple story of someone who teaches himself how to cook. A lot of the things will get you saying things like "oh, I did this" or hey "I never noticed this". When I went into a store to ask for it, the lady said " I don't need this, I already know how to cook". The truth is this is not a book to teach you how to cook, there aren't many recipes and all of them are borrowed from other books. This is going to remind you how much fun cooking is and how many mistakes we tend to make, how important it is to discover food and how blogging is the single best way to never forget these experiences. This is a blog that you can cuddle with in bed without feeling the heat of your laptop and imagining the damages it is doing to your body, perched on your stomach. A quick, easily read, antidote to an otherwise boring day!

To get the book

Amateur Gourmet Isn't an Amateur Anymore!

One day the thought crossed my mind about blogging? Will I have something to say?
Could I Write once a week? Then I found an article titled " How to start a food blog" in the Amateur Gourmet. That was it. I started my blog in the Seattle PI, promising to write twice or 3 times a week. HA! I write almost every day! Now I have my own savory blog because my food obsessed mind has way too much to say.
All this thanks to the Amateur Gourmet! Today I realized that the Amateur Gourmet
upgraded his site! If you read food blogs, then you probably know the Amateur Gourmet. So way to go! I am so proud to say that I am the third person to add comments to his post about upgrading his site. When you read this, there will probably be atleast 20 comments or maybe 200.
Good luck with your new look, Amateur Gourmet.

Rude Food by Vir Sanghvi

I grabbed a book from the library titled "Rude Food" by Vir Sanghvi. I expected to read about real stories in the kitchen, how hard it is to survive in the dirty culinary world, how chefs fight and spit in your food. O.K, I'll stop. I think I expected an Anthony Bourdain type book, one of those books that will scare you into ever even thinking of opening your own place
and might convince you that chefs are possessed with the worst job on earth.

Vir Sanghi is slightly negative about the culinary world but not in a depressing way. He paints a picture of the restaurant world as it really is, minus a constant nagging negativity. He knows how to give credit when needed and makes sure that every detail on every subject is thoroughly explained.

Although a lot of the stories are about Indian cuisine, he writes about every type of cuisine, gives you surprising facts and history and most of all motivation to try foods that may seem odd at first.

The book is compiled of short essays of only a few pages each on basically every trend in the culinary world from truffles which he compares to the smell of sex, to caviar to a whole section dedicated to explaining diet trends.

If you are obsessed with food, the history of food, the smell of food or just want to learn some culinary tips, this is the book for you.


And as far as the subject of wanting to be a chef or learning how to cook( been harassed a lot lately):
All I hear is how this world is so hard. I shouldn't bother because my legs will hurt all the time,
working in a hot kitchen is really bad for your pores. But hey, wake up and smell the coffee
culinary fools. Working is rarely fun and everyone gets sick of their job at one point.
I would rather have a smiling belly then even dream of doing something else.

Kirkland Uncorked 2007
July 13 - 15Th

Another food event close to Seattle. Wow, this summer is going to be a food fest. This time Kirkland's living it up! There will be food demonstrations, wine sampling, artist demonstrations, art for sale and of course all this next to the Kirkland waterfront. What a great way to enjoy the heat wave!
Admission is free! Tasting garden admission is 25 dollars in advance and 20 dollars at the door. Price includes a souvenir wine glass , 5 wine tastings or food sampling tickets.
For more info.......

So you think comics are innocent. Wrong! Kawaii not is not the kind you would want your kids to see. Actually they wouldn't understand. Hardcore comic for adults. There are so many too choose from so I chose a few that I thought were cute in a scary kind of way. I found this via Serious Eats. Their pick is the cookies with problems. I chose the cleanest options. It only gets worse. Great gift for that special someone.

Waffles

Cinnamon rolls

Pickles