Hello everyone, and thanks for the resources you share here. After a month or so of lurking, it's time to stick my head up and say hi.
I am a home chef gently working my way out of some deep and comfy cooking ruts, and learning to cook food more like what I enjoy in restaurants. My first love was baking, from the time I was a girl and my sister and I tried to fake our way through a first loaf with only Joy of Cooking for a guide. Alas, we were in Santa Fe, and read the high altitude directions too late...
Anyway, for years I was the bread, cake, cookie, and long-simmered soup lady. Fall and winter homey comfort food was my thing. Still love it sometimes.
About ten years ago I woke up and started paying more attention to the sources of my food, and joined a CSA. Suddenly there were strange vegetables that needed to be prepared new ways. Roast cabbage wedges? Who knew? But for most of the time since then, I had little free time to cook.
Last fall I moved from Pennsylvania to Cape Cod, and to a job that gives me more free time. There's a new (and slightly less wonderful) CSA in my life, and since this is Cape Cod there seems to be a lot of fresh fish around. Good thing, since I can't find a good local source of kindly raised meat.
Anyway, at last I have time to cook, access to good fresh ingredients, and a kitchen full of proper tools all at once. Thank heavens above for cooking - after moving to a strange new place where I knew no one, playing with my food has been a large part of what's keeping me sane and grounded. Well, moderately sane and grounded, anyway.
I have not abandoned baking, either. I have the last few crispy, buttery, little coffee-cardomam cookies to prove it.