Ready, Set, Blog! [PFB Challenge #1]

 Today marks the beginning of my participation in Project Food Blog!  Maybe you've been reading Oven Love since the first post (Hi, Mom!) or maybe you just started reading today.  Whether you're an old friend or a new face, I just know we could be pals, and I want you to get to know me a little better.  So here are a few of my favorite things.

making scratch versions of store-bought favorites.
One of the most valuable lessons I've learned in the kitchen is that you CAN recreate store-bought favorites and restaurant guilty pleasures at home.  Discovering that was so freeing for me!  Now, when I have a grocery store craving for something I know is full of preservatives and just awful for me (Oreos, I'm talking to you), I just work on my own version.

 homemade spaghetti-os

taking you back to basics with a gourmet flare.
I think things in the kitchen should stay pretty basic.  It's amazing how simple, fresh foods can make you look like a rockstar chef.  Some of my favorite and most impressive dishes are the ones that showcase seasonal ingredients with simplicity.  When you have good ingredients, they speak for themselves.

zucchini and herbed ricotta galette

making creative and fun food on the fly.
Everyone is busy.  It's just a fact.  But I learned recently that mommies are especially busy, so being able to create a meal out of what's on hand is a skill I've been using often.  It's like all the excitement of a quickfire challenge in my own kitchen, except without the time limit, or the prize money, or Padma.

quick corn and goat cheese grits with bacon


sharing my favorite borrowed recipes.
I think this is a big part of being a blogger.  When you're making and posting yummy food, you're going to stumble upon some other people making and posting yummy food, and you'll want to try it yourself.  I love sharing recipes with you that I know will be great because my blogger pals have already given them the thumbs up.  The food blogging community is just the best.  I've also been known to sneak in a magazine recipe or two (look out for exciting Food&Wine news soon).

snickerdoodle blondies

getting people excited about cooking at home.
The economy bites, duh.  Lots of people are cooking from home now, but not everyone enjoys it.  I think cooking at home is twelve billion times healthier and more rewarding for families than fast food and tv dinners.  I love to show you simple recipes that can make you look like you have a gourmet chef living in your spare bedroom.  (Think about it, Jamie Oliver?)

simple watermelon limeade

so that's kind of my philosophy on blogging, in a few nutshells.

other favorite blogging things, just for fun:

i like to use exclamation points!  sometimes too much, but i like to be enthusiastic.

i often make lists in my posts (see above).

i write like i talk.  call me sometime, you'll see.

i like vegetables, but also cake, and BLTs, and oatmeal and avocados. and crumb topping.

Food blogging here at Oven Love has been a great experience for me and I wouldn't change a thing. There are over 1,700 other fabulous bloggers in this competition, and I don't want to brag, so I'm not going to.  I'll just say that I think we've got a pretty good thing going here at Oven Love, and I hope you agree.

Voting for this challenge starts on September 20.  I pinkie promise to remind you later, since now we're besties and all.  Wish me luck!