My New Adventure- Getting Back to Basics

My name is Tina; I'm a self professed foodie. I've been called a "food snob", culinary pretentious and picky! I just consider myself to have standards and hate to see short cuts taken in the kitchen! My love of cooking comes from my Grandmother who was never too busy to "make you a plate". I have always admired food, the joy it brings people, the satisfaction a good slice of cake will bring to a person’s face or the way a perfectly cooked steak will make a person forget everything for a moment!


I made the decision in 2001 to attend culinary school  years ago, I contemplated my decision for a few years and the decided to take the plunge and enroll with Le Cordon Bleu located in Minneapolis/St. Paul. I attended for two years and found a whole new meaning of food!! When I graduated from culinary school nearly four years ago I imagined a life that was surrounded by fabulously fresh food, delicious cheeses, savory sauces and amazing and vibrant vegetables.

Before I graduated, I completed a twelve week internship with one of the most influential restaurants in Minneapolis. D'Amico Cucina was such an amazing restaurant, I will forever be grateful to the amazing years I was there. Once the internship was complete, I was offered a job and immersed myself in the cook’s life! I absorbed anything and everything my Chef would offer. I suffered from the all too common cuts, burns and common kitchen fatigue. I have numerous notebooks filled with recipes, food pairings, quick kitchen tips and names of cheeses that I immediately fell in love with. While working in the kitchen with one of the Chefs I will always admire, I learned basic kitchen etiquette and the hard work that is found behind the kitchen doors. The kitchen is a totally different world on the other side of those double swinging doors. Diners rarely see, the orchestrated dance the goes on between the stations and cooks. It’s the amazing sound of sizzling pans being deglazed with savory liquids, the smell that permeates from simmering stocks and roasting meats cooked to perfection that continues to call me to the kitchen. These simple things have enticed me to forever love the hectic life of the kitchen!

It's been almost two years since I've retired my kitchen clogs, apron and chef coat. I decided to head back to school and finish my education. When I left the kitchen I made a promise to myself that I would find my way back to the stove again.  I've decided to start blogging about my food fascination and share some of the recipes I’ve learned while working in restaurants and those that have been passed down from my grandmother, mother and other influential people in my life. My hopes are to encourage people to get into the kitchen! Sharpen your knives because this is going to be a wild ride!!

Just do me this favor-NEVER USE THE TERM “I don’t know how to cook”; let’s replace it with, “I’m still learning how to cook”.