Tuesday, January 5, 2010

January 5, 2010

I've never really been much of a New Year's Resolution follower until now. I'll be turning 28 in February, although still young it's more important to me now to stick with things. It's funny how movies can inspire one to want to try the same thing they did. My inspiration? Julie Powell from the movie Julie & Julia. Her love towards Julia Child's was so genuine. She took on a very ambitious task I must say. 524 recipes in a year?? Wow.
Well, although this idea is almost the same thing it truly inspired me to learn more about cooking through my biggest inspiration. That would be Ina Garten. I fell in love with her show Barefoot Contessa a few years back when we first got satellite. She's so graceful and she makes you wish you could be invited over to her house. Although I have many favorite food network chef's she at the very top of that list. I attended Culinary school for a semester and a half. However, I must say that since than I have learned more about cooking from Food Network than when I was at Culinary School. Plus, it doesn't cost a fortune to learn from them. haha :) I am grateful for the tools I learned and can apply them now. I absolutely love cooking and baking. It is the greatest feeling in the world to make something and have it come out being successful. It gives you a feeling of satisfaction. Ever since I was 16 I've had a dream of running my own Bed and Breakfast. However, being 27 I wonder if that will ever happen. Being able to have the guests waking up to the smells of cinnamon rolls and freshly brewed coffee would be so wonderful. Although it would most likely be a 24 hour a day job with all the cleaning, cooking and preparing for guests, it would be totally worth it.
But for now, I will stick with on of my resolutions which is cooking my way through Ina Garten's Family Dinners Cookbook. I have other Food Network Chef's cookbooks and even others of Ina but I felt as though this was the most reasonable one and more fitting for this project. I unfortunately can't afford a recipe a day but I can certainly do a recipe a week if not maybe 2. I'm looking forward to it. My dad made her East Hampton Clam Chowder and let me tell you, it was the BEST Clam Chowder I've ever eaten. I'm not kidding you. It wasn't so heavy that you could only eat one both of it. It was hearty and delicious. I'm looking forward to hearing from others about their cooking experience as well, that's if anyone finds this blog and it intrigues them. You never know. Like Julie Powell I also love to write and at least this way, I have a way to express myself and to share my cooking experiences.
In conclusion I must say I made Ina's Coconut Cake recipe for a New Years Dinner party my family and I had and it was so scrumptious. It was a messy job putting the coconut all around it but the end result made it completely worth it. Back when I first saw the movie in the theaters I started a blog about Ithaca, NY and unfortunately never really stuck with it. But I'm determined that by the end of this year I'll have the majority of the recipes completed. I'm very excited about it and hope that friends of mine will follow it. :) Take care for now and I'll write again soon about my first recipe :)

--Lauren

6 comments:

  1. Sounds like fun. Its always fun to try new things and come up with new tasty treats! What do you think you are going to try first?

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  2. Well, this weekend I'm going to make her Baked Mac & Cheese and her lemon blueberry crumb cake. Yuuum! I've always been scared of making cheese sauces but I made it once recently and it isn't too bad. I love that particular book! Her Family Dinners Cookbook

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  3. Lauren, this is SOOO exciting. I thought I posted last night from my b-berry and I noticed it didn't post which make me sad because it took me forever to write it. But newho.......yay!!! I love Ina too and have been a BIG fan of hers since 2005. I got the same cookbook for Christmas a couple years ago and love it. Her show is one that I'll stop, drop what I'm doing, sit down and watch although Gia DeLau.... and Anne Burrell are also becoming some FAVS of mine. I watched Julie & Julia for the first time in my kitchen, during Christmas as I was cooking away some goodies. It was so much doing both at the same time. Anyway, I wish you "Bon Appetit" as you cook away and please, try hard not to say the "F" word too much but if you must, use Fantastic or Fantabulous ;) Oh and by the way, if Ina can leave her big job and start her dream job, I have a feeling, so can you. :) Bon appetit!! Ms. Bev

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  4. Let me know if you need taste testers ;)

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  5. Heather, I most definitely need taste testers... Maybe some night we'll have you and Brian over for dinner. :)

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  6. Hey Bev, thanks so much! I really appreciate the encouragement... I will try hard to use fantabulous :) and not the F word hahaa... I'm curious what the real Julie Powell looks like. I'll let you know how the baked Mac & cheese plus the lemon blueberry tart turns out this weekend :)

    Love, Lauren

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