Here we go....

Hello, my name is Jen and this is my culinary story.  (That sounded like the beginning of every bad reality show).   I have recently taken the plunge on a Home Bakery business.  I love to cook, and I  love to bake even more.  The only things I love more than being in my kitchen are my hubby and kids, and they definitely benefit from my second love.  I decided to start a blog to chronicle my new adventure, for myself, and for anyone who loves their family and kitchen as much as I do.  I have spent alot of free time on other bloggers' sites, and have learned more than I ever dreamed I could,  and laughed til it hurt.  I hope I can do as much for someone as those blogs have done for me.

It's funny how things happen...  I grew up, never really cooking, and with no special love for the kitchen.  My earliest memories of cooking in the kitchen are watching my mom or grandmothers cook, and occasionally making cookies with them.  But then I got married and moved into a house of my own.  No mom or Nana or Nannie to back me up, and somebody's gotta do it, right? So, scared to death, I ventured into the kitchen. I told myself, "I'm an adventurous gal, and I've never feared new experiences, this will be a piece of cake, right?"  My pep talk was not working at all.   Visions of burnt biscuits, rubbery chicken, and dry cakes danced in my head.   Then out of nowhere, somehow, after ALOT of trial and error,  I realized I  love this room.  This kitchen.  And I'm good in it.  New recipes.  New ingredients.  Making something wonderful tasting out of nothing...   I'm freaking Julia Childs in this room.  Well, at least my loving husband and kids say I am.  So then I started to cook for family, for friends, really anyone I could get my hands on.  And I conquered the savory, cooking-at-home world.  But I was still scared to death of baking.

So fast forward 5, 10, ok alot of years later and aside from the occasional set of box cupcakes or pre-made cookies, I was still a baking newbie.  I can't really say what it was, exactly, that made me decide to venture into the sweet side of cooking.  But if you held a gun to my head, (or took away my chocolate until I did say what it was), I think I would have to say it was the fact that my hubby was bringing home way too many frozen apple pies from Braum's, all the while going on, and on, about how fantastic they were, and my food ego just couldn't take it.

And of course, since his absolute favorite is apple pie, pie crusts were one of the things I was most afraid of.  All the talk you hear from your grandmothers, aunts, and other fantastic bakers about how to get the crust flaky and light, and how unbelievably hard it is to accomplish, would scare the bejeezus out of anyone.  But my irritation over my hubby loving a food made outside of my kitchen that much was bigger than my dread.  So I attacked it, guns ablazing, like I attack everything new to me--- I googled it. You would be shocked (or maybe you wouldn't) by how many different pie crust recipes there are on the Internet. I mean, it's pie crust.  It's not even the star of the pie.  It's just there to hold the good stuff.  But I digress...  So after dozens, hundreds of different hints, tips, tricks, and recipes, I came across Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman's take on pie crust, which was sent to her by a reader.  What really got me hooked on trying this recipe, besides the fact that I absolutely adore Ree and all of her fantastic food, is that pie crust has always stumped her too.  It made me feel like she and I were kindred spirits, so of course trying her pie crust was a must.  And it worked.  Before you knew it I was not only making pies, but making every flavor of pie filling I could make and lattice top crusts and all.

And so began my love affair with baking.  Which led me to cupcakes and cakes, which led me to cookies, which led me to cut out sugar decorated cookies, and with some more direction from Ree's website, I found Bridget of Bake at 350.  As I read her tutorial on Ree's website, I thought it couldn't get any better.  Then I went to Bridget's website!  Her cookies are amazing!   And her website led to Callye at Sweet Sugar Belle, who is one of the most creative people I have ever seen, especially with the misuse of a cookie cutter shape.   She has saved me a ton of money on cookie cutters.  These women and their blogs have made me laugh, made me cry, and inspired me to find something that I love and go for it. And they've also made me an addict to blogs :)

I've made pies, cookies, cupcakes, and cakes.  Played with buttercream, royal icing, fondant, and fillers.  Burned some caramel sauce.  Overcooked some cookies.   But I'm getting the hang of it and loving every single second of it!!!

So here we are.  I know it was a long story, I tend to do that sometimes, like all the time.  But I promise I'll be entertaining and this will not be one of those blogs where everything is always perfect, my house and children always look like they stepped out of a magazine, and I only tell you about my accomplishments.  If I only showed you those moments I would hardly ever post on here.  Like ever :)

Jen