Monday, July 29, 2013

happy summer!


It's been almost a year since I made this blog. I remember when I first started it, I totally thought that I was going to post every other day and get lots of views and everything. But it turns out running a blog is actually work... Creating recipes, taking and editing photos, writing the post, etc., all takes a lot more time than you might imagine. I kept at it for a few months, but let's be real, I am not a recipe blogger. I can reblog 100 pale vintage photos on Tumblr every day, but hell, this has proven to be too much work. Especially the "creating recipes" aspect. I am pretty good at throwing lots of ingredients together and having them taste good, but I'm way too lazy to actually make note of portions and directions. Besides, now that I'm gluten-free and that it's summer, basically all I eat is a grain plus a protein plus fresh veggies (aka zucchini...we have so much zucchini...), in a sauce of some sort, and that'd be awfully boring to post. See, I'm good at stir-fries and curries and the like, but I can't, for example, come up with dozens of unique and clever uses for zucchini. To me, zucchini is either grilled, in bread, or in a stir-fry — unless I find an interesting recipe in a cookbook that doesn't require me to be too creative. 



I've really enjoyed my experience cooking throughout the past year. When I started this blog in August, I really didn't know anything about cooking (see this "recipe" I posted where it's clear I don't know how to cook potatoes at all). I feel like I've learned a ton about cooking and a plant-based diet in just a year. I gained full-control of my health and went off medications for the first time in six years. I've gotten in touch with my body, learning how different foods cause me to feel (who would've guessed that my depression would nearly disappear at the removal of sugar from my diet!). I also have learned to take decent photos when I have the time and energy to do so. It's been a great learning experience.




In April I decided to cook my way through the book Veganomicon, and I'm not done with it, but I've sort of reached a standstill - I've completed nearly all of the recipes that are seasonally appropriate. While I think I was pretty good at cooking in March, I believe it was when I started using that cookbook diligently that my food-preparing abilities reached a new high. I mean, I was using ingredients I had never even heard of, making entrees I had never heard of (e.g. using corn husks [?] to make tamales [??] ). If it weren't for Isa and Terry, I think my eating habits would be a lot different! Thank god for unique, delicious, plant-based recipes.


My summer has gone surprisingly well. I got together with a friend who I hadn't seen in several years and we spontaneously flew on a last minute trip to Seattle to visit two of our friends who we hadn't see in six or seven years. I passed my driving test, on the second attempt. I've gone to some concerts. I've hung out with friends. I've read lots of books. I've thought about my future. You know, the usual. This week I'm meeting with a local vegan personal chef, to discuss the possibility of me being her apprentice (I'm like 99% sure it's going to happen, but I can't say so until Thursday), and I'm pretty excited for that. Not only does she cook dinners, she also prepares weekly meals for people, teaches cooking classes, and gives talks on nutrition. She's pretty much the only one of her kind in all of Southern Maine, and her business has been roaring lately, so she definitely needs help. She's really sweet and so knowledgable on plant-based nutrition and cooking that it was would be such an honor to learn from her. I'm very excited to start! I'm also hoping to work at a natural food store, but there aren't very many near me, so who knows if I'll actually get a job at one. I sure hope so, now that I realize how expensive it is to fill up a car with gas!


So anyway, what does this mean for my blog? Who knows! Maybe I'll turn this into a blog just for writing my thoughts. No one actually reads it, so I don't have to worry about being embarrassed. I suppose if I ever have a fantastic recipe, I'll still post it here. I don't have any idea. But I do know that it's almost 2:30am and I should have gone to bed hours ago.


here's the link for the photoset on Flickr for this Hawaiian themed dinner you see here! The photos have explanations in the descriptions.