From scratch


Miscellaneous / Wednesday, March 12th, 2008

Does the world need another food blog?

Today the LA Times ran an article classifying blogs by home cooks as “cyber-treacle,” with writers “nattering about what they fed their boyfriends last night, or fuzzily photographing their latest batch of heart-shaped cookies.”

Ouch.

The Times writer prefers blogs written by chefs, who tend “to focus on the story behind the food, on the thought process that original cooking entails.”

In the article, she eventually recognizes that chef-written blogs also can be extremely self-promotional, restaurant-promotional, product-promotional, and (most likely) not written by the chefs whose names are on the blogs. But she lets the insults about home cooks’ food blogs stand.

Really, there are so many good ones. Lovely, informative, helpful, funny. From the practical to the practically pornographic.

And I like to know what they fed their boyfriends last night.

So, what am I going to bring to the proverbial table?

I recently left my position as head pastry chef at a German bakery to get married, move, introduce Henry the dog (mine) to Henry the cat (his), unpack, write thank-you notes, lose my way around town, dance in the kitchen, figure out the TV remotes, unpack some more, commandeer some closet space, and watch “Lost.”

Now, it’s time to figure out what’s next. I’m thinking cake design.
In the meantime, I plan to reach out. Professional cooking can be a competitive sport, where recipes, ingredients, and techniques are guarded, always by understanding and sometimes by contract. Now that I’m a chef-turned-home-cook (a home chef?), I want to drop the competition and be part of a community. Sharing sounds good.

So, this is my space for trying new things and sharing the results. To bake from some of my long-ignored cookbooks. To pass along my favorite recipes. And to join the family of “nattering” food bloggers.

Heart-shaped cookies for everyone!

16 thoughts on “From scratch

  1. Hooray for the first post!

    I think your blog will be fab-o, even if you do post about what you fed the hubster last night (blackened tilapia sandwiches with cilantro-lime mayonnaise, what?)

    Reaching out and connecting with others who have great ideas and similar experiences under their belts is a wonderful way to get your creative batter stirring. I’m geeked.

    And yes… I’d love a heart-shaped cookie. :)

  2. I think sharing is great – am looking forward to reading your blog! And if the Times critic does not like food blogs, she could always opt not to read them!

  3. Welcome to TWD! Happy to share fuzzily photographed pictures of my food anytime (the picture of my cat’s b-day cake really is fuzzy, all I had at the time was the camera phone)

  4. Welcome to TWD! My opinion? My pictures are fuzzy because I’d rather be baking, and even if it’s fuzzy it still tastes wonderful! And I see nothing wrong with heart-shaped cookies, especially frosted ones with sprinkles :)

  5. I, for one, think critics are highly overrated and I love to read food blogs by home cooks, much more than cheffie blogs, in fact…I don’t think there are any chef blogs that I read at all, but I am addicted to the home cookery ones! Welcome to TWD!

  6. Welcome to TWD, and congrats on bucking the criticism and doing your own thing. Looking forward to having you in our community!

  7. Great post. :) I look forward to seeing your posts! I think what the Times writer wrote is kind of ridiculous. I guess maybe to the outside observer it might seem that way but to people who love food, love talking about food, sharing ideas, being inspired, etc – what’s better than food blogs?

  8. You had me at “Ezra Pound Cake” which is too clever by half, and I’ve enjoyed your posts today, which caused me to abuse company resources by reading them on company time. Pass the cookies!

  9. I just finished reading all of your blogs and printing WAY more recipes than I can possibly make this year, and probably next. Still, I just wanted to say I love your blog and will be stopping by more often, now that I’ve found you. You’re in my “Favorites”. Thanks!

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