Let's Get Cookin'

Wanna hear a secret? There are cookbooks all over my house. I've a stack by my nightstand, under the guest bed, next to the loo. There's a horizontal string of them on a shelf in the pantry, and a vertical stack of them in an armoire upstairs. The weird thing is, I never use them. I positively love reading about food. But, I love even more mulling over the flavors and textures in cookbooks, then heading to the kitchen to conjure my own recipes for clever dinners and delightful desserts. I happen to think food is quite rad. If you follow me over at Cheeky Kitchen, you might already know that I have a teensy weensy passion for food. I believe in it. I believe it should be ridiculously joyful and over-the-top fun. I sort of have a big thing for it. Food rocks. The end.

Wanna hear another secret? Three weeks ago I was standing in my daughters elementary school classroom with a slew of PTA moms. These chicks are postively top notch. They are the "with it" crowd. They volunteer in every class, never miss a teacher's birthday, sell the most tubs of cookie dough for every school fundraiser. The entire lot of them are class acts. They and their slickly-planned mothering make me look like a silly little girl playing house. That wasn't the secret. This is: while I was standing in that group of fantastico women, one of them said (while rolling her eyes) "Ugh! I haaaate cooking dinner." The other three chimed in, "Me, too! It's the worst!," and "Two snaps up, Sister." (Okay, maybe she didn't say that phrase exactly, but I do so hope you're getting the idea.) The totally awesome women shared their secret admission...they hate cooking. And, you know what? As much as I love food, I get that. Our schedules today, with our hyper-connected lives, our intensely paced schedules, our driven commitments to being the best in every aspect of our lives can suck up a lot of time. Who has time to make dinner (let alone enjoy it) when there is a pile of laundry screaming, a handful of kids to bathe, work to attend to, and a sink full of dishes to scrub once dinner is done?

Allright. One more secret. The answer to that question: who has time? is you do. I fervently believe we all have time. I believe food can and should be fun. It should be blissfully delicious, fresh, and delightsome. And, it should fit into our schedules. That's one of the reasons I'm so excited to work with Smithfield. The company has a clear aim. They are dedicated to offer tips, techniques, and recipes for those of us real people who are trying to find time to make real food while maintaining a really hectic schedule. Well, good golly! I love such a concept, and I'm excited to share with you a lot of my favorite food finds.

As a food blogger, food writer, recipe developer, cooking show host, and cookbook keeper, I know it's possible to make homemade fit into our busy lives. As a mom to four uber-adorable kids and wife to one cool cat of a hubby, I believe it's VITAL that we make room for homemade in our busy lives. There are few other times in the day that offer an opportunity to pull our loved ones around us, slow down, stir, and connect. There are few other scheduled tasks in the week that give us the chance to laugh over a plate of warm food, ask questions, share stories, toast to another day done well. Food--especially the sort cooked at home with your own hands--makes such moments possible. It is over family dinner that I wink at my cute husband, wipe spaghetti from the round cheeks of my precious children, ask the question "how was your day," and take time to really listen to the answer. These are the moments when everything we do becomes entirely worth it. It's not hard to make these moments happen, but it does take a few good recipes, a couple of great tips, and a good stack of napkins.

If you've got the napkins, I've got the rest ready to go. I can't wait to share my best recipe, tips, and tricks right here on Smithfield.com!

From my family, my home, my kitchen to yours. We're going to have a grand time. Let's get cookin'!