Nowhere Near a Chef

When I first came up with the concept of this blog, I knew I wanted to have a space to document my journey in learning to cook and intentionally create community. I also wanted some sort of cute, catchy name to sign off posts with but had a hard time coming up with one.

I decided to go with "An almost chef" because while I'm nowhere near the level of an actual chef, "An almost cook" just sounds weird. So, yeah...basically it was a matter of linguistics over reality. I feel somewhat like a fraud, since I have no culinary training whatsoever beyond hours of watching Top Chef or Food Network.

Really, I'm like five steps beyond knowing how to boil water and make toast, but I'm constantly learning and am pretty good about reading and following a recipe. However, I also have a horrible penchant of doing my own thing...which sometimes results in fabulous new recipes, but can also end up more towards the inedible. It's a good thing I'm stubborn, and not easily deterred.

My passion for simple, accessible, and as close to home grown food as you can get continues to fuel me in one day attaining the "almost chef" status.

So...what did this almost-but no where near really-chef make for dinner last night? A simple tuna-noodle dish made with <gasp> canned tuna and tomatoes from our garden and a side of peas.

Despite some chilly nights, our heirlooms are still doing surprisingly well

I followed it up with a couple whole-wheat chocolate chip cookies I made earlier in the day. While you'll probably never see this meal on any five star menu, it's just the way we roll here...simple, easy and if you're lucky...mostly homemade.