Tuesday, April 26, 2011

A year or two in the making...

I have been wanting to write a blog for the past year or two. Every time I took a picture of something I cooked, I was thinking of you future blog readers. Family, friends, foodies, home brewers, fellow gluttons. You were all on my mind. So how about we get down to it and review some of the food I've saved for you.

In no way do I claim to be an amazing professional chef or food expert. But I do a) love to cook, b) love to talk about food and drink, and c) LOVE TO EAT!

I also challenge myself to recreate recipes so they look as close to the picture as possible. Since I'm new to blogging and not sure of pasting rules I'll try to include some links to the actual published images of the original recipes.

Here are some of the original pictures I saved for you.

A very tasty, colorful salad that I took to a 4th of July Party...in 2009. (See I really have been thinking of my future readers for a long time.) I love that Deb's recipe at smittenkitchen.com has you pickle the red onion in the vinegar before you mix the rest of the salad together. I can't usually eat fresh onion without tasting it for days so this really helps take the edge off.

Mediterranean Pepper Salad from Smitten Kitchen
http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/06/mediterranean-pepper-salad/















This article came across my Google Reader from The New York Times blog Bitten. It is from June 2009 and it inspired my very first attempt to copy a beautiful food creation. Unfortunately I didn't look at the picture close enough and put the egg on top of the colorful sauce and didn't break it. I promise I've remade it since and just forgot to take another picture. Ha!

http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/05/enter-asparagus-and-homemade-chili-oil/


Two summers ago, Jason and I joined a CSA and ended up with more veggies than we could possibly eat. This plate ensemble has fresh green beans, freshly caught Alaskan halibut, and Smitten Kitchen's Horseradish Potato Salad using multi-colored potatoes. I had been waiting to make this potato salad but could not find purple potatoes in Kirksville. I finally picked up a multi-color pack visiting friends in Des Moines one weekend and had to try this recipe. Also, mayonnaise is quite possibly my least favorite food and I love that this potato salad uses sour cream or sour cream and yogurt instead.

http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/06/horseradish-potato-salad/



Another treat from the Bitten blog, even my mother who is no fan of peas, might ever like these peas disguised by parmesan and pine nuts. A fun alternative to humus or another party dip. I apologize for the storage container photo...not as beautiful as it could have been.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/08/dining/081mrex.html


Finally, an homage to my best friend Cara's (http://www.caracorey.com/) vegetarian creations...though technically her husband made this one I think. I made this with pre-made crust and sauce and fresh CSA eggplant.

Eggplant Parmesan Pizza



Please check out the awesome blogs these recipes came from. They have even better pictures and the full recipes. If you find the links don't work just let me know and I'd be glad to post the full recipes.

Savor or Savour - (n.) or (v.)

When brainstorming the name of this blog, I debated which spelling to use. In the end, the aesthetics of the word "savoring" won over "savouring." What a great word to represent so many future different topics! You might see these definitions again later:

n
1. the quality in a substance that is perceived by the sense of taste or smell
2. a specific taste or smell the savour of lime
3. a slight but distinctive quality or trace
4. the power to excite interest the savour of wit has been lost
5. Archaic reputation
vb
1. (intr; often foll by of) to possess the taste or smell (of)
2. (intr; often foll by of) to have a suggestion (of)
3. (Cookery) (tr) to give a taste to; season
4. (tr) to taste or smell, esp appreciatively
5. (tr) to relish or enjoy

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

It's Official...

Blogosphere here I am! I have been following friends' blogs for years and tonight I finally decided to stake my own claim on the web.

I picked the name "Savoring the Outcome" because I wanted a blog title that would encompass all that I savor including spending time with my husband, friends and family; food; homebrew; wine; travel; races and multisport events; and our new house. Each of these things have "outcomes" but I also wanted to include my forays into my research methods coursework and my continual journey toward earning my Ph.D. (When I finally finish this degree it will be the outcome of all outcomes that I hope to savor while still writing this blog).

Stay tuned for the recipes, pictures, raves (and some rants), thoughts, and adventures that make up my life both in and out of my kitchen.