every story has a first chapter

I did not grow up with a passion for food. When I was younger I didn't think much about it. I wished for McDonalds and Pizza Hut when my family went out for dim sum or when my dad made these beautiful home cooked meals. As I got older parties were catered by Pizza Pizza and the most I did was open a box in order to bake a cake. Even now I wouldn't call myself a foodie. I don't go out to the hottest restaurants or try the latest in food trends. So you must be thinking what am I doing here writing about food? Well I love to cook and would much rather make it at home. I guess you could call me a "cookie." Which is a suitable name because baking was what led me to love food.

It officially started with one book How to be a Domestic Goddess by Nigella Lawson. Actually it was her lava cakes. Simple, delicious and a huge crowd pleaser. This began my official love affair with baking and cookbooks. I have always collected cookbooks for the photos and when one book turned into 10 turned into 20 I realized I had a problem. I made a promise that if I didn't make at least one recipe from a book I had to get rid of it. It wasn't easy at first. I was a beginner at baking and the only meal I could make was spaghetti and tomato sauce from a bottle. But I slowly began to crack the spines and splatter the pages and would now be what would pass for decent home cook. It only took about 5 years!

I have never had a monogamous relationship with a cookbook, I make a recipe once maybe twice and move onto the next one. But when I realized a couple months ago that I had 6 books which I had yet to make a recipe from I decided that I would try commitment for at least for a month. So I'm making at least 5 recipes from a book and will document it all on this blog. A bit of a poor man's version of Julia and Julia. So begins my first chapter. I've started with Gluten Free Girl and the Chef by Shauna James Ahern and Daniel Ahern.