i wish everything we made turned out as it is supposed to, or at very least good enough to eat. I really hate wasting food and even more so I really hate throwing away food that did not turn out. Nothing like seeing your hard earned dollars just dumped into the trash can. Tonight was one of those nights. Thankfully we still had some soup leftover so we did not end up going hungry.

It all started yesterday when I prepped some pizza dough. I am pretty sure that is where I started to screw up but I do not recall. I planed on a slow rise overnight in the fridge and then some rest today at room temp. The dough itself did not rise much at all which should of been the first sign I suppose. It did however roll out pretty well and even in a near perfect circle, surprise. So I added on some tomato sauce, some fresh sliced mozzarella, a sprinkle of oregano, and some – OK the whole bag of pepperoni. Then everything really started to go downhill.

The oven was already cranked to as high as it can go, the huge (clean) paving stone sat it our oven as hot as the fire just begging for the pizza. Well we got ready to slide it in and what do you know, the dang pizza now will not budge. It was sliding just seconds before of course. So part of it flips over and a small amount plops onto the stone, pure cheese-sauce-and pepperoni begin to sizzle. Well at least the stone is fire hot. We flick that off and try again a few more times. After a few failed attempts our once round pizza had a more artistic look yet was finally on the stone. Success?

No not yet. The timer went off and the wife said it looked done. I said to go ahead and take it out then and let the cheese rest a tiny bit before cutting. I am really wanting pizza now and I do not normally go for pizza that often, primarily due to issues with local parlors I think. Well she serves up the pizza and what do you know, the crust is just all wrong. It is gummy and just tastes odd. It also did not cook nearly long enough. I had failed and failed hard. Oh well at least the leftover soup was still good.

Blog is just about done. Been coming up with a game plan on how, what, and when to share. Like many of you I would assume, I just can not make every meal worthy of a post readable by the world. Lets face it, even I give into temptation and fall for convenience. My pantry has perhaps some of the same guilty cheats as many of you may have. Perhaps a few cans of ravioli to relive a small part of your childhood, sit on one of those shelves. Maybe you too can not help but get an odd craving for macaroni and cheese, yet not that wonderful, silken, oozing four cheese, with a crisp crust type- No you want, nae need that box of Kraft dinner (mac and cheese) in all of its day glow orange glory.

I at this point plan on making at least one meal a week that should include an entry. I have pulled out some of my photo gear that shall live in the kitchen. Also a notepad with a pen ready, so that any notes can be made. At this point many of my recipes and adaptations are in my head. I often did not measure out things that often, and even when I did start doing this recently- I never bothered to take pictures of the finished product. This naturally will need to change and that is where I will start.

Culinary speaking I am all over the map. I wish I had a niche area that I could focus on, I just do not. I like to try many different foods. Playing with each item until I have that one version that I love. There are however a few cuisines I have yet to really try, or at least try much and or not make on my own- not sure if what I am eating is even authentic or not.  Either way, there is no certainty what you may find here. I just assure you that I will not be using you as test subjects, that what I do post or write about is indeed something I do eat or do.

Well I finally bit the bullet after several online and offline friends and associates have encouraged me to build a site around my food, tips, ideas, and all things “home ec” I suppose. I am doing my best to whip this blog out without much help, which is actually highly humorous as an inside joke – I am a webmaster by trade so this should be very simple, though I can not even count the “issues” I have ran into. From weird glitches to boring technical stuff that would put you to sleep. Lets just say it has been a trying period to get this far and I have not even changed the basic template (design) yet which I know is a more difficult task if I do not wish to use an existing theme.

What is really scary is that I have not even begun to gather up my content yet. You know that stuff that is interesting to read and look at. I have played so many recipes by ear and so many tips or as some call them tricks are just ingrained into me. Not to say I do not make the same things twice, I do. Just to say I have not written down much over my years cooking, gardening, or other random tidbits around the house. I only recently have really started sharing stuff with others online in non associated forums when the topics have come up. Putting it all to print is a daunting task. At least I am looking forward to this.

I have struggled with a few other “issues” as well. I am not a professional writer. I never did well in English which is another story for another day as to why. I also was not sure to be myself or be a better more civil me. When push came to shove I just could not allow myself to make a weaker carbon copy of whom I am. I am human, I make mistakes, and I occasionally will use colorful language to boot. I will do my best to not let it get the best of me. Just be warned if you are easily offended by a choice word here or there on occasion, this blog may not be for you. I do assure you that everything should remain well in the realm of PG-13 at worst.

Well back to creation of this beast.