About me.

I should have done this along time ago,  people asking me how I do my cooking and where I get my passion from. Who and where do I get my ideas from?  Where does this knowledge come from? I didn't learn this from school thats for sure and certainly didn't go to college to be taught how to cook.  Cooking to me was just enjoyable, like a hobby tried and tested sometimes i failed miserably. My children used to look at me in a way only children do " what is that"? Hiding vegetables in other foods to try and get them to eat their greens. Concealing sprouts and leeks in with a cabbage I knew they liked and enjoyed.  This did work for a while.  I even had to call sausages 'Batman Bangers' just so that my son would eat a sausage! Crazy I know.

I spent a lot of time in the kitchen when I was younger.  I was an accident prone kid and whilst I was off school for one reason or another I used to be watching my mum cook in the kitchen.  Bugging her with questions of why?  I watched her bake pies and crumbles,  make trifles and provide for us, her children.

I watched programmes on television about how to do simple meals thinking to myself I can do better.  And to be honest the ingredients I cook with and the herbs mixed in with foods I find actually work.  I use items that you can buy from any major supermarket. Just because it says on the packet 'sheppards pie mix', doesn't necessarily mean you can only use it in a sheppards pie.   I suppose I'm a self taught cook I play around with other peoples recipes, adding and taking away certain ingredients and it works, and that's the way most chefs do it.

I keep a few things in mind when I cook, or mess with a recipe.  That's if its ok for coeliacs and is low in fat. I hardly ever fry food. Every ingredient I use is as fresh as I can get it for the meal I preparing. I try and use short cuts like pre prepared pastries or jars of pastes rather than ready to use sauces in the jar.

So what do I hope this blog achieves?  That's a tricky one because I am often told that I can cook, I think my issue is a self believing issue. I have cooked for friends and relatives who in turn have been very impressed. However to me, its not rocket science, it isn't difficult to cook.  I truly believe the days of microwaves are numbered and more and more people will be hitting the kitchens to cook for themselves.  This is where food blogs and sharing knowledge the exchanging of recipes are going to be useful. I want to be able to reach those people.