So good, I wrote to Esquire

Wanted to share my letter to the editor of Esquire Magazine after using a recipe from their "Eat like a Man" section. It was one of the best meals I've ever had, plus it brought Jason and I both into the kitchen to cook together. We'll see if they publish it!

Dear editors,

I am currently sitting on the couch in a blissful food coma. At the urging of my fiancee, we made the Baked Ditalini recipe from Michael Shlow for dinner tonight (published in the March issue). I told him I'd make it on one condition: He had to cook with me. We succeeded in making this dish correctly, and had a ton of fun. It was conversation-halting, chow down inspiring, ridiculous goodness. The best part? Even after cutting the recipe in half, we could still feed 10 people, so we'll have leftovers for at least two days. This one's filed in the recipe pile, and we plan to make it again, and again, and again. Readers: If you try this one, skip the wine and pour a big glass of milk. It's perfection. I'll "eat like a man" any day. 

Is it all about synergy?

Last night while dining at a low-key favorite, Pete's Brewhouse in midtown, Jason told me about how a few of his friends had done a group blog in the past. Each person took a turn to post, and it was pretty successful.

I have to say I love the idea. As a solo blogger, I find it hard to generate posts because a lot of what goes through my mind may be interesting to me, but is it really interesting to everyone else?

Many of the most-loved pop culture icons come in duos or groups: Mickey and Minnie, the Saved by the Bell cast, the Three Stooges, Ricky and Lucy...you get the idea.

They're all on to something. It's all about synergy and harnessing the power of many. There's debate, conversation, multiple points of view. What are some of the good "buddy blogs" out there where more than one person contributes? What do they bring to the table for the readers and the bloggers themselves?

Food for thought...

His and Hers

As the three-month mark before our wedding fast approaches, I am starting to get that giddy bride-to-be feeling whenever we do something wedding related. Besides work, it's most of what I think about. Even most of my daily activities have become relative to the wedding. The gym? Yes, I probably should go if I want to look decent in a wedding dress. A trip to Ulta? I have to check out makeup that might be good for wedding day. Hanging out with friends or meeting new ones? Hmm...are they on our guest list?

One of our engagement shots in downtown Sac.

The past couple weeks were full of prenuptial activities, specifically engagement photos and wedding ring shopping. Jason and I are a little Type A about some things (okay, sometimes a lot Type A), but I was proud to learn that we are pretty laid back with some of these planning details. For our engagement photos, courtesy of Doubleshot Photography, we just asked that they have an urban vibe and then we followed the guys' expert advice.

Wedding ring shopping was even easier. I think we spent all of a half hour at Jared's. I had my heart set on a simple platinum band that wouldn't detract from my engagement ring, and Jason wanted something simple, too. He's not used to the ring thing, but we found a perfect one that looks great. What struck me about our wedding bands is how cute they look side-by-side (my ring size is 3.5).

His and hers wedding rings. I heart them.

It's just a fun time in wedding planning. The fact that Jason will soon be my husband has become very real, in the very best way. As we get into crunch time, I have a few takeaways to remember:

• If you don't have a strong opinion about something, just go with the flow and take advice from the experts. That's why you hired them.
• Savor those moments. Picking out wedding rings and just realizing the magnitude of the situation brought such a smile to my face. 
• Keep moving! There are so many small details, I feel like we should check our list of "to-do's" every day because I don't want to stress at the last minute.

Thanks, food bloggers

Full disclosure: I do not consider the photos in this post to be well-done food photography, but "real" examples from a real person.

I absolutely adore reading fancy food blogs. They are a new found pleasure of mine, especially since I started working on an account with Lindsay Olives through my work at AugustineIdeas. Part of our PR strategy is to reach out to food bloggers and try to establish a good working relationship. Thus, I have spent quite a few hours researching the really great food blogs out there. Tough job, huh? Anyway, I digress.

Braised tri-tip roast: A happy accident when we bought the
wrong cut of meat

Food blogs inspire me to write posts about some of my culinary attempts (as do shows on the Food Network), but the vast difference between these bloggers and me is that they are phenomenal cooks who spend hours analyzing recipes and trying out ingredients. I am more of a wife-in-training, novice cook trying to build my skills in the kitchen. In fact, I have a hard time even following a recipe.

Impromptu chicken parmesan

But I love food and I value healthy eating, so it makes sense to cook. I also enjoy entertaining and being able to provide people, especially my husband-to-be, a delicious meal. This is not a blog laced with gourmet recipes and gorgeous food photography, but I still like to share my love for good food. Thanks some of my favorite, talented food bloggers like The Wednesday Chef, Gluten Free Girl and What's Gaby Cooking who make the average, every day cook feel inspired.