Tag: cooking journey

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Fabulous living

New Year’s Resolution Check-In

Hi everyone and Happy July!

Can you believe that we are already seven months into the year? I feel like we were just celebrating the holidays and hunkering down for winter and now we are in full summer mode. This has been such a good summer so far, and in good news, we still have a lot more to enjoy. These past few weeks have been filled with walks, reading by the pool, grilling and family time.

Outdoor walks by the water have been a favorite of mine recently

Plus, tomorrow is the Fourth of July-one of my favorite summer traditions. 

Since we are just passed the halfway point of the year, I figured it would be a good time to do a New Year’s Resolution check in to see how I’ve been doing so far with my goals for 2024.

Here’s a look at my post from the start of the year.

My top resolutions that I set for this year were:

-Donate Blood

-Do 8K or 10K

-Re-Learn Piano

-Learn How to Braid Hair

-Cook a New Recipe a Week

We are half way through and I’ve tackled a handful of these already.

Let’s get into it:

–Donate Blood– I donated blood for the first-time last month, although it took until June to do it, I accomplished it, and it was not as scary as I thought it would be. My boyfriend is an avid blood donor and has been encouraging me to do it for years. We made a date out of it, and it felt good to give back and save lives. I was most concerned about the pain and passing out afterwards, but thankfully, all went smoothly, no pain during or after and no passing out. Success!  I will definitely be donating again when I am eligible. If you are ever on the fence about doing something out of your comfort zone, don’t like fear cause you to back out.

–Do an 8K or 10K- I will be accomplishing this tomorrow! Most races happen on the weekends when I work, but I found one that was happening on one of my days off. I will be running a 10K tomorrow for the Fourth of July. I have been upping my mileage over the past few months and I’m looking forward to seeing how I do timewise tomorrow. I have been focusing more on distance rather than speed, so I’m anxious to see how it goes. I’ll be back here on Friday to let you know the final results.

–Re-Learn Piano-This has been a hobby that I started at the beginning of the year and have been consistent about it over the past seven months. I aim to practice for ten minutes a day at least five times a week. Sometimes, I practice all seven days, other days, I only practice for five days. There are even some days when I do practices on my phone on the go, it just varies week to week. I have been using Simply Piano to teach myself. This hobby has been one of the more challenging hobbies I have attempted. Some days, I really love learning new music and playing well-known songs, other days, I get frustrated and want to throw in the towel, but I take a deep breath and keep practicing (even though it does annoy my dog and I’m sure my family at times.) This has been a learning experience unlike other hobbies I have attempted but I have been proud of the progress I have made so far.

-Learn How to Braid Hair– I have not attempted this yet and that’s due to the fact that I got a haircut and got layers which makes it harder to braid. I do have many how-to braid ideas saved on Pinterest and that has been giving me inspiration. I just need some longer hair to get there haha! However, this does give me something to work towards for the second half of the year.

– Cook a New Recipe A Week– This has been something I have been really proud of. I have been doing lots of cooking this year and once again have been consistent by cooking one new meal a week. I have been getting recipes from blogs, cookbooks and Pinterest. I have been loving getting more comfortable in the kitchen and trying new recipes and gadgets. These will be great skills to have when I am on my own soon. I have to give a huge shout out to my family for indulging me in all my new recipes. Some have been hits and others misses. I need to get better about making sure I make enough food for everyone. I’ve done super creative dishes and simple, one pot meals too. This has been such a fun passion and skill to improve on and I’m looking forward to trying even more recipes as the seasons change through the rest of the year. 

Big meals
Soups
Salads

There you have it. My New Year’s Resolution Check-In! I’m proud with how many things I have accomplished so far and behind the scenes, I’m proud of the personal growth I have seen in myself over the past several months. Although, I have made a lot of strides in my New Year’s Resolutions, we still have five more months left in the year, plenty of time for more improvement and consistency.

Tell me: how are your new year’s resolutions coming so far? 

Have a happy and safe Fourth of July!

I’ll see you back here on Friday!

Categories
Let's Get Cooking

What I’ve Learned About Cooking

Hi everyone! 

Happy Wednesday! I hope you are having a great week as we make our way through April. This month has been flying by in the blink of an eye. Easter being at the beginning of the month has certainly made this month go by faster. 

Finally starting to feel like spring

One of the things I have gotten back into the habit of doing this year is trying new recipes once a week. I started this practice a few years ago, but fell off the wagon, due to life getting busy. At the start of 2024, I wanted to get back in the habit of cooking a new meal once a week again. I know how to cook and bake and I would say I’m pretty decent at both, but I really wanted to expand my skills in the kitchen.

I’ve been trying new recipes regularly since January and wanted to share an update of what I have learned over the past four months. I keep track of the meals I have made and tested, you can find them on my Instagram stories and I have them saved too!

Here’s some of the biggest things I’ve learned over the past four months:

Lots of soup recipes were found on Pinterest

-Always be looking for recipes-There are some days when I know what meals I want to try and other weeks, I am looking for ideas. I am constantly scouring Pinterest, blogs, cookbooks, and even asking family and friends what meals or recipes they would be interested in trying. I’m always open to trying new dishes and sides and mixing and matching different flavors too. You never know what will stick, so I always try to keep an open mind. 

–Build in extra time when trying a new recipe- I always try to budget extra time when I am making a complicated recipe. I like to take my time to make sure I am following the directions to a tee and I’m giving everything enough time to properly cook. There’s nothing worse than having your taste testers wait on food or have things not be cooked fully. I also want to build in time for errors or mess-ups.

Crab cakes were a recipe that took some extra work and prepping.

–Be open to feedback and criticism- This is easier said than done, but I always ask my family or judges about what they think of the meal. Sometimes, the meals are successes and everyone’s happy, other times, I get recommendations to try other sides or flavors. I try to be open to feedback because I know that’s the only way I will get better.

Baked Chicken Tacos!

-Portions- This is more of a technical side of things, but I still haven’t mastered portions for servings. I try to make enough for six people, I have been making just enough for six, but there’s not always enough for leftovers or seconds. I need to do a better job of cooking bigger portions so there’s more than enough food for seconds or leftovers. 

Salmon bowls that were such a hit, there was no leftovers.

-Not Getting Intimated by Complicated Recipes- A lot of the meals I have made can be made in under an hour and are fairly easy to cook. They include using kitchen gadgets like the Air Fryer, are made in one dish or a crock pot. There are a few bigger recipes I want to try but they take a lot more planning and time in the kitchen, I want to work on trying recipes that may scare or intimidate me to build my confidence in the kitchen. 

My first pot pie was a success!

-Getting Better at Familiar Recipes-While I am all about trying new recipes each week, I also want to make sure I am getting better at recipes I have tried before. It can be great to try new things, but I also want to get more reps in making some of my favorite family recipes like roasted chicken, spaghetti, homemade soups. I also want to have a few recipes that I can call my own and that will only come with more practice in the kitchen.

Working on my chicken skills

–Have fun and be creative-One of my favorite parts about cooking is getting creative and trying new foods. I am a huge foodie and making different dishes brings me joy and confidence. I also love to serve my family and friends something that I know I put time and effort into researching, buying ingredients and preparing. Not only is cooking and eating something that you need to do to survive, but I love that I have come to truly enjoy it.

Getting creative with stir frys!

My cooking and baking journey is just beginning. I tend to make my meals on days off when I have more time to cook and prepare a meal, I know that won’t always be the case. Some nights,  a quick dinner of salad will have to do, but other nights when I have more flexibility for a more detailed meal, I know I will be taking advantage of it. 

Sunday spread done right

Tell me: what advice do you have for a novice in the kitchen looking to expand her knowledge? Let me know in the comments below!