The Slapdash Cook

I like to cook for a few reasons: People gotta eat; cooking is creative; and doing it yourself allows you to know exactly what’s in your food. It’s that third reason that drives my slapdash approach to cooking. As I learned to cook seriously, I began looking critically at recipes that called for large amounts of sugar or fat, thinking “Do I really need that much?” Other times, I wanted to adapt a recipe because I didn’t have some ingredient on hand, or to make it vegan or avoid washing extra dishes. I started experimenting and discovered that even in baking, you can usually get away with a few changes without ruining the end product. On the stovetop, the sky’s the limit as long as you respect basics like rice-to-water ratios. This approach horrifies my live-in boyfriend, J., who is much more detail-oriented than I am. While I have come up with a few massive failures and routinely burn the onions I’m supposed to be sauteeing, I’d say the stuff I cook is usually quite edible and even delicious. Sometimes I even accidentally improve things.

I am a vegetarian focused on reasonably healthy eating and on using seasonal produce, which is easy and pleasant here in Southern California. That means you’re not likely to see any pork loin recipes on here, although J., who is not a vegetarian and is a fine cook in his own right, may bring in the occasional seafood or prosciutto. In general, I’m inspired by visits to the farmers’ market and by cookbook authors I enjoy. (I’m currently working through <I>Indian Vegetarian and Grain Cooking</i> by Julie Sahni, using about a quarter of the amount of oil she calls for.) I’m not much for fancy restaurants or bars, but I might mention a good one if I find it.

I am a freelance writer and editor for a living. (It’s no coincidence that my work site features a strawberry!) I specialize in writing about the law and have handled countless websites and blogs (with SEO), as well as newsletters, magazine articles, scripts and even a ghostwritten book. I started this blog as an outlet to write about food on my own time. I’d be delighted to write about food professionally, but I haven’t been able to find my niche — it’s really competitive, plus being a vegetarian limits the market for what I come up with. So I thought I’d try doing it for fun, with (hopefully) no pressure. If you need to contact me, you can do it here.