Welcome to Cook Grow Live!
I’m so glad you’re here.
I’m Aubrey….
Writing this I find that I am a bit out of my comfort zone. Talking about myself makes me a little nervous and am finding that writing this post is presenting an interesting challenge. But I know that growth happens outside of comfort zones, so here it goes….
This is Me
I’m a wife, a Pilates teacher, a home cook, and hobby gardener. I’m also a bit of a geek. I like sci-fi, video games and superhero movies. I like to be creative and I find inspiration in the kitchen, using food as an outlet and a satisfying way to work with my hands.
I’ve had many jobs and careers over the years spanning from retail clerk to hairstylist to interior designer. Across these many paths one thing stayed consistent, my passion for food. I’m starting this blog because I love food and I show my love for people by cooking them delicious food. Maybe you do too. If so, you’ve come to the right place. One of my great joys in life is to cook for my friends and family and with their encouragement I’ve found my way to blogging.
Early Experiments
Early on in my marriage I would be busy in the kitchen and my husband would ask what’s for dinner. I would say I don’t know yet, it’s an experiment. He would say “Ok, I like your experiments.” And, for the most part, that was true. There were some things that didn’t turn out so great, in my opinion, but I learned what to do and not to do and the next time around things were better.
What I was discovering, though, is there are some basic principles about cooking that are always true and if you know that you can create a meal that will almost always be successful.
The Push I Never Knew I Needed
A good amount of my family lives in a different state. When I visited my aunt and her family, they liked that I cooked for them. My aunt would observe what I was doing and write down some of the things I did. Some years ago, she began asking for my recipes, but I was just making it up as I went along, I never thought to write it down and when I tried, I found it really challenging as I am someone who typically operates on instinct when I cook. But this got me to thinking that maybe I should start keeping track of what I was creating and eventually, I did.
I started sharing my recipes with my aunt, and a few others. At one point she talked to me about writing a cookbook. I quickly laughed this off, but she was serious and encouraging. This idea rattled around in my head for a while and eventually, I gathered together my scattered notes, scribbled on pieces of paper, and printed recipes that I’d altered beyond recognition.
I was surprised to discover just how many things I’d created. This was inspiring and motivating to me so, I compiled my notes and created files and organized them on my computer. I tested recipes and began clarifying my scribbled notes to generate actual measurements and cohesive instructions. I wasn’t sure in the end if it would become a cookbook, but I was greatly enjoying the process.
A Troubling Time
A handful of years ago, it came to a stop. We went through a few years of great difficulty and loss on many levels. I found myself completely overwhelmed and in survival mode. My fun, creative process was forced to take a backseat and my focus was shifted to other things that were more important at the time.
It’s quite a long and complex story that I’m not ready to share in detail, but I learned a lot and hope to pass on some wisdom that I came away with. Most of which is that the seasons in our lives ebb and flow and are ever changing, we just have to stay strong, rely on one another, and take action when needed. We have, for the most part, recovered from our struggles, albeit with some battle scars on our hearts.
Finding Inspiration…Again
As life normalized again, I found my mind wandering back to previous cooking experiences and remembered having a feeling of great joy in that creative process. So, I chose to spend more quality time in the kitchen. Once more, I began writing down what I was creating, editing previous recipes, and adding to my database. I was forced to ask myself what the point of all this was. Yes, I was having fun, but why was I doing all of this.
I then realized that any time I had pinned a recipe on Pinterest or visited a blog about food or watched a home cook on Youtube these folks had been in my shoes and had probably gone through a similar creative process. So, I started researching, bookmarking blogs and watching videos, then finally decided I wanted to put my voice out there and share my recipes and stories with other people. And so, this blog began.
Something that struck me when I began writing my recipes is I found that there are certain skill sets I rely on when cooking, basic knowledge that I regularly pull from in order to accomplish tasks and in the end, create a dish or meal. Many of these skills I learned from cooking shows and following recipes in cookbooks. I would then experiment with what I was learning to find what worked and what didn’t. My confidence was building by learning and testing these skill sets. Some worked well for me, and some didn’t.
One of the first things that I would tell any novice home cook is, even when things don’t work it’s not a failure it’s a learning opportunity. I’ve been overly critical of some dishes that I’ve made but my family gobbles them up. In the end you can always smother things in ketchup or order a pizza!
My Hopes
I want this blog to empower you by building a foundation of basic skills, help you to trust your instincts and be confident in the kitchen. Within my recipes I hope to impart some knowledge about the basic building blocks of cooking, tips and practices that have worked for me and made me feel confident in my cooking.
A Logical Next Step
In the last couple of years my love of food has extended out of the kitchen and into the garden. I began gardening by growing herbs in pots in the backyard. Last year I added a vegetable garden and loved it so much I began nerding out about growing food. I combed social media, started watching videos and reading books about urban gardening, small and not so small homesteads. And while I’m not ready to homestead in the traditional sense, I love the concept of growing and preserving my own food.
Needless to say, my garden was much larger this year and I want to continue growing and learning more, potentially growing food that can be preserved to feed my family and reduce our reliance on groceries. I’m excited to share my gardening journey with you on this blog as well.
I want to share not only my successes but things that didn’t work the way I thought they would and what I learned from the process. Keep an eye out for future posts about yearly garden planning, preserving food, and what I’m learning from my garden.
I am looking forward to sharing my love of food, gardening, and life. I sincerely hope that this blog will inspire you to Cook, Grow, and Live!
