Testing/Picture taking day…what a mess!
Wow, all I can say is that I cannot believe I’ve been writing the Stirring It Up cooking and entertaining column in City Social Magazine for 10 whole years. Where does the time go? I know, it went into some vacuum called life. In those 10 years I’ve done a lot of cooking and a lot of learning. My style of cooking has certainly evolved from a packed pantry to a packed fridge. My kitchen gadgets have dwindled and my camera equipment has doubled, er, tripled. In short, I cook more like my grandmothers did 50 or 60 years ago, before cake mixes and pop tarts. (I’m not picking on anyone here, carry on.) On occasion, I get to preserve what I made in the form of a naturally lit photograph that I hope shows the beauty in food.
Here’s a brief rundown of the last 10 years writing Stirring It Up:
- At least 360 recipes tested.
(I’m not counting the botched ones – I’m a home cook, not a chef, thank you.) - 120 deadlines…100 of which have been narrowly missed.
(Sorry editors, one day I’ll learn) - A minimum of 90,000 words from 3 computers.
(Viruses are the devil) - 7 neighbors who have seen me on one of my 3 front porches taking pictures of food in my pajamas.
(Doesn’t everyone?) - 2 point-and-shoot cameras. 1 digital SLR camera. 2 lenses. 1 external flash.
(Bye old friend Kodak, hello Pentax) - Roughly 7,200 pictures taken.
(Still wish I really knew what I was doing) - 1 pie safe full of mismatched dishes from antique and thrift shops
(I’m sure my grandchildren will wonder what the heck those were for one day) - 3 guinea pigs: Brenton, Emily and Anna
(without whom, I’d have nothing)
I’d like to offer a special “thank you” to Janell O’Halloran for giving me the opportunity to combine my two loves of cooking and writing into a creative outlet that has flourished over this decade. Much thanks to you and the City Social staff for putting up with me for all these years. I hope spend many more as a contributor to this beautiful publication.
I’ve done this little gig, quietly plugging away, for half my time as a Baton Rouge citizen. I know there is more to come. I hope there have been a lot of you out there reading, trying recipes and making them your own, just as I have. Oh right, recipes! Tune in tomorrow for the top 10 recipes from the past 10 years!
Enough rambling….I’m off to see what’s left of July’s test dishes in the fridge.
All the best,
T
