Blogging on Food

I haven't contributed anything to this blog in a long time, but that doesn't mean I'm not cooking and creating. In fact, I would be willing to say that all of my spare time is spent creating menus or dishes in my mind, developing them in the kitchen, and feeding them to my husband and daughter, and the occasional friend, neighbor, or other family member.

I love food and everything to do with it. Yes. I'm a Food Network junky, but I don't really get into the recipe presentation programs as much as I love those that bring forth new ideas and concepts. Both types of shows teach me a lot and continue to encourage me.

I own a lot of cookbooks - maybe 25 or 30. Here's the thing: I don't like to follow recipes. So why have the cookbooks at all? That's where I get ideas on things that go together (like seasonings with meats or those special ingredients in soups, stews, and deserts). And it isn't like I don't follow a few recipes now and then. If it's not broke, don't fix it!

Every gift-giving (or, in this case, receiving) holiday, I ask for kitchen items. The awful part about having a birthday in March is that it's practically nine months before another gifting holiday comes around - until I got married in the month of May, so now I just have seven months of waiting.

For Christmas this last year I was still on oxygen after a second surgery for a crazy form of lung cancer. Compassion was paid to me in the form of a Le Crueset pot, a bread maker, and a variety of other smaller kitchen appliances, dishes, etc. I got to start using everything in February when I was feeling better, at which point several things happened to halt my cooking adventures. First, my oven began taking an hour to preheat to 325, my microwave had a mind of its own, and the refrigerator was no longer providing water just to our glasses, but also to the floor under it. Second, I had to get ready to start three months worth of chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

In March, I upgraded to a gas range, awesome microwave and refrigerator - all black to match our dishwasher. Love love love!! For my birthday, I requested four boxes of these little glass jars with suction lids from Target. I had already bought one box online with a gift card from Christmas and realized how many more I would need. There are 12 per box. They hold my large collection of spices and herbs in their various forms.

I bought a label maker for my kitchen things and labeled the bottom of each jar so you can't see the name without lifting up the jar. This has caused a bit of a problem for some people in my kitchen, but then again - it is MY kitchen and I know what almost every single herb and spice looks like without needing to lift the jar. Although, I do always check to make sure I'm not putting ground mustard in my ginger bread. Yuck.

Anyway, this is the deal. I'm going to start posting more often, and it won't always be recipes. There is so much more to talk about when it comes to food. I know there are a lot more food bloggers out there than you can shake a stick at, and that's okay with me. Maybe they'll read this some day.

I'll also post on Facebook, for those of you (if anyone is actually reading this) who are fans there. At least 75% of my posts on my own Facebook page are about food, so it only makes sense I talk a little bit more on a broader scale.

So, what was on the menu for tonight? Salmon scrambled eggs, sausages, herb roasted asparagu and tomatoes (fresh herbs from our garden), sliced baguette, and a fantastic red and cherry pepper butter spread. Breakfast dinner done right.