Begin at the Very Beginning

Oh hi! Welcome to my blog. If you're reading this, you're probably my mother or my boyfriend, so hey there, Mom.

To introduce the blog, here's some background on why I've started it, and what I hope to accomplish with it. Last January I decided that I needed to get serious about losing weight, so I started working out regularly and started tracking what I ate on Livestrong.com. MG and I already loved to cook, so making a concerted effort to start cooking at home seemed like a fun and natural way to help me lose weight. Over the last 7 months I've successfully lost about 35 lbs, and have kept it off for about 4 months now. I'm really proud of how far I've come, but I know that I also have a lot to learn about nutrition and how I eat. The reason I decided to start a blog is to have a place to share my culinary adventures and discoveries, as well as my challenges and struggles. A new goal of mine is to try to be more sustainable and local in what MG and I cook, so to that end we're trying to buy as much locally sourced produce, meat and eggs as possible.

Here are some fun facts about me:

1. I love to bake (hence the cookies)

2. I love vegetables (hence the kale) but I also love a good hunk of cow (preferably with barbecue sauce)

3. I am a cereal addict

4. I am a recipe addict. I'm always thinking about what I want to cook next, and what new food or technique I want to try out.

And finally, my top four food goals of 2011:

1. Eat healthfully - not just low calorie, but quality calories, like fresh fruit, vegetables, and nuts

2. Eat locally - buy local and buy "happy" meat and eggs

3. Eat economically - trying to make sure we use everything we can

4. Eat homemade-ly (ok, not a word) - MG has already started pickling this summer and is working on baking bread; I want to try making jams!

So, I hope you enjoy, and maybe you'll take away some delicious ideas or leave me some inspiration!