Monday, June 18, 2012

Eat Write Retreat 2012: Connection


Last year I attended Eat Write Retreat and had a fabulous time making new connections, learning how to improve my writing and photography, and of course enjoying delicious meals. My plan for the summer was to put this new knowledge to work to improve Good Cook Doris, but a little something else distracted me from putting the plan in action. We had just found out that a new addition was going to be joining the Good Cook Doris family and the summer sped by as we prepared for our new little one.

When the Eat Write Retreat 2012 twitter chatter started popping up, it was right around the time that we priced out daycare for the little guy. One fabulous weekend in DC versus a month of daycare made it clear that I would have to start saving my pennies for 2013. When I saw that Lindsay Olives was holding a scholarship contest I knew that I had to enter! I put on my recipe creating hat (a cook’s thinking cap) and came up with an entry that I thought could have a chance at winning the prize. My creation was an olive-centered main dish of black olive crusted salmon served with green olive cous cous. I had a ridiculously good time getting back into the (newly renovated) kitchen and coming up with a dish featuring one of my all-time favorite foods.




Incredibly, my dish was the winner of the Lindsay Olives scholarship for the Eat Write Retreat Conference! Thanks to Lindsay Olives I enjoyed a weekend of learning, eating, networking and fun with fellow bloggers, sponsors, and experts. They covered the conference registration fee and I found a reasonable enough flight that the hubby and the little guy came down for the fun!

The goody bag came with a baby!

There are a lot of great recaps that take you through the weekend session by session. I’ll link to them at the end of the post. You can see that for every person that attended, the takeaways were each a little different. For my post I want to focus on a few of my big takeaways from the conference. What they really boil down to is that you are in charge of where you want your blog to take you!

Takeaway #1:You have to define “Success” for yourself
There is money to be made, "fame" to be had, and plenty of free stuff to go around. There is also skill development. For me, I've decided that my blog is a place for me to grow as a writer, cook, photographer, and to explore my love for all things food related. Good Cook Doris started out as a way to document our daily dinners and share them with family and friends. Then it expanded to include reviews of meals, markets, and products. It led me to graduate school for a degree in Gastronomy. Now it is a place to continue to share my love of food from a variety of perspectives - cooking, eating, food culture, and the business of food.

Photo by James Bardin

Takeaway #2: Time...It all takes Time (with a capital T)
Once you know what success means to you then its time to sit down and create a plan. Researching, recipe planning, shopping, cooking, photographing - it all takes time. It is important to decide what matters to you and how much time you are willing to devote to doing it. For me, that means fewer posts on more relevant topics. It isn't feasible for me to post every meal that I cook. But as you'll read in my last takeaway I'll be posting with a more focused approach. And soon it will include posting homemade food for the littlest member of the Good Cook Doris team - although it might be a while before we can get him to give a full review!

Takeaway #3: Surprises and Adventures can be found everywhere!
This is my favorite part of blogging! I love the discovery of new ingredients, new recipes, new techniques, new restaurants, and most importantly new friends. Even in the most unlikely of places there are adventures to be had! Think you're going to a blogger conference to Eat, Write, and Retreat? You might find yourself square dancing across a ballroom!

Photo by Daphne Domingo


Takeaway #4: It’s all about Connection
In our Saturday writing workshop, Monica Bhide challenged each attendee to come up with one word that described ourselves - that drove our blog - our activities. Just one word. I kept tossing around words and the one word that kept reappearing was connection. I could not articulate the reasons why and left the session with a blank slate. After reflecting over the past month (yikes - where did the time go!) this is the word I have committed to paper.

For me the connections happen in many ways. My blog is a way to connect with friends and family. It is a way to connect tradition with today through old recipes with new twists. Some posts are connections with local food producers and markets. When I look back at my favorite posts that I’ve created they always focus on connection.

As I move forward into the next phase of Good Cook Doris I'll keep these lessons posted on my bulletin board to guide me along the delicious path of food blogging.

Thank you again to Lindsey Olives for sending me for a weekend of reflection, relaxation, and recharging. I am excited to return with a more clearly defined focus and a wealth of new ideas!

Tell me, what word would you use to describe my blog? If you are a blogger, what would your word be?

Eat Write Retreat Recaps
Everyone took away a little something different!
Sarafina’s Kitchen
Food Musings
The Experimental Gourmand
52 Kitchen Adventures
(a)Musing Foodie
Comet Photo
Cooking By Design
Canadian Coupon Mom
Cupcakes for Breakfast
EF Stewart Communications
Em-i-lis
Fifth Floor Kitchen
I’ll Have What She’s Having
Lisa Cherasky
Maroc Mama
My Halal Kitchen
Penny Pinching Epicure
Sarafina’s Kitchen
The Wicked Noodle

Sunday, April 22, 2012

On the Menu

Let's face it, everyone wishes they had a few more hours in the day to get things accomplished. While a lot of cooking has been going on in the Good Cook Doris Kitchen not much of it has made it from the plate to the blog in the last month. I've been cooking through some new cookbooks, blogger recipes, along with old favorites. With a short window of cooking time on weeknights my cooking routine has changed over the last few months. I try to prepare and cook as much as I can on Sundays. Everything from washing and chopping vegetables to cooking dishes ahead. For weeknight dinners all we have to do is reheat or combine prepared ingredients into a quick and satisfying dinner.

Here's a look at what we've been enjoying lately!

Hearty vegetarian fare from the cookbook Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker. This book has 200 recipes for everything from appetizers to desserts. The main dishes are creative and filling. Our absolute favorite so far (no picture yet!) is the mushroom and green bean stroganoff. You don't miss the meat! We've also made the vegetable lasagna and no-hurry vegetable curry. I did snap a picture of a fun weeknight meal.

Vegetarian Paella
This hearty dish includes vegetarian sausage, creamy rice, kidney beans, peas, green beans and peppers. With saffron and a squeeze of fresh lemon it is bright and fresh.



Spicy Peanut Butter Noodles with Ground Beef
One of the lovely bloggers I met at Eat Write Retreat, Isabelle Boucher, is part of Peanut Butter & Company's All-Star Recipe team. When I saw this title I knew I had to try it out! The combination of creamy peanut butter, spicy flavors, vegetables and a crunchy topping led to licking the bowl at the end of dinner. The recipe can be found over at the blog. I used half "The Heat is On" (spicy PB) and half "Smooth Operator" to tame the heat. 


Matzo Ball Soup
Nothing is better than a warm bowl of chicken soup with matzoh balls when you are feeling a little run-down. This is a combination of techniques from mom and grandma, with my spin too. I made this over two nights. The first night - browning the carrots, onions, and chicken breast and cooking the noodles. The second night while the vegetables and chicken were simmering I made the matzo balls. After 2 hours of simmering our soup with the works was ready to be savored. 


On the menu this week
Today was filled with cooking for the upcoming week. On our menu this week: 

*Skillet Cheesy Beef and Macaroni (http://themom100.com), served with steamed green beans
*Sandwiches with chicken salad with red grapes and celery
*Spinach, egg and cheese breakfast sandwiches
*Yogurt & granola afternoon snacks
*Gala apples
*Carrot and celery sticks

How do you prepare for the week? What are you cooking in your kitchen?

Friday, March 23, 2012

Staying Sharp



Staying sharp is essential to many things. Maintaining relationships, keeping the house clean, blogging, cooking, working, the list goes on. When the little guy arrived, sleep became a luxury and I found myself becoming less sharp. So as I adjusted to the new routine and new responsibilities I looked for new ways to keep myself sharp. I took out my NY Times crossword puzzle books, did the daily Sudoku, and tried to take on blogging challenges. I won’t say that my brain was totally sharp upon my return to work, but I’m getting better! Just don’t judge me when I ask, “What day is it again?”

Like keeping your mind sharp to be more effective, keeping your kitchen knives sharp can boost your efficiency in the kitchen. I love to chop vegetables. Give me a huge pile and a sharp knife and I will happy chop, dice, and mince my way through. After a few years of enthusiastic chopping, however, my knives were starting to lose their edge (literally). Knife sharpening is one of those things you know you should do, but never get around to doing.



Enter Patti Small and On the Edge Knife Sharpening. With Patti around there is no excuse for having dull knives in your kitchen. Since 2008 she has been sharpening kitchen knives (along with other equipment as well). From her home base in Bolton, Massachusetts, Patti travels to farmers markets, specialty stores, and other locations to sharpen on the spot. Her specialty is hand sharpening kitchen knives. Prices are very reasonable - a little maintenance goes a long way in extending the lives of your cutlery. Her sharpening skills are in high demand – make sure you get to the market early in the day to drop off your knives!


Credit: ontheedgeknifesharpening.com

Patti was at Russell’s Garden Center in Wayland, MA for the Winter Farmers Market this season. One Saturday I packed up my knives and the little guy and headed out to the market. Don’t worry, the hubby carried the knives and I carried the baby. Those things don’t mix! We arrived at the market and headed straight to see Patti and drop off our knives. After a quick assessment, Patti added our knives to the queue and gave us an estimate of 45 minutes. She put her headphones back in and got to work. We ventured off to make the usual rounds and treated ourselves to an early lunch from our favorite vendors. When we returned laden with bags of bagels, brisket, Doves & Figs jam, and eggs our knives were packed in individual sleeves and ready to go.

When we got home, I took out all the vegetables I could find and started chopping. Wow! What a difference! The knives were like new – perfectly sharpened making chopping, mincing, and dicing a breeze. Just make sure to pay attention! What might have been just a little scratch with your old knives can be a three band-aid cut with your sharpened knives.





So the next time you end up with sore arms from tackling a chopped vegetable dish, check the On the Edge Knife Sharpening website, wrap up your knives, and go find Patti. You’ll be so thankfull that you did!



Disclaimer: I paid a discounted rate for my knife sharpening in exchange for posting about my experience. As usual, all opinions are my own. Patti also gave me permission to use photos and information from her website, ontheedgeknifesharpening.com. Photos not marked were taken by me.


And if you find any typos, please excuse me. The brain sharpening is still a work in progress. 

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