And so it begins...

I've wanted to begin a cooking blog for some time now; however, my lack of kitchen tools forced me to wait a bit.  Lucky for me, this Christmas I found a few goodies under the tree which will definitely help me out in the kitchen.  My beautiful mother gave me an also beautiful KitchenAid stand mixer in gorgeous metallic chrome.  Also under the tree (from my fabulous sister) was the newest edition of the Joy of Cooking.  Much more than just a book of recipes, the Joy of Cooking is an instructional manual for the kitchen.  Need to know how long you can store a specific cake?  Check out page 702.  Want to know how to shape a Danish pinwheel? 626.  How do you form a baguette? Page 601. 

I also had the opportunity to browse through the an original copy of the 1962 Joy.  David's mother received a copy of the cookbook as a wedding present in 1969.  As an english teacher, I thought the book was beautiful.  I almost 'accidently' walked out of the house with it, but I had a feeling she would have noticed.  As an aspiring cook, I am glad I own the updated version.  The newest version includes slow cooker recipes, has lots of new 30 minute recipes, and has many new illustrations to help one conquer the kitchen.

Amazon.com has a few Joy trivia tidbits that I found interesting...

• For the 75th anniversary edition, 4,500 recipes were tested that used a total of 400 pounds of butter, 300 quarts of milk, 485 pounds of red meat, and 275 pounds of fish and shellfish.

• The average age of a recipe tester working on the 75th anniversary edition was 46.7 years.

• Recipe testers spend 8,798 hours testing recipes and techniques for the latest edition.

• Some of the most requested recipes from past Joy of Cooking editions include Chicken Marengo, Chocolate Cake (also known as the "Rombauer Special"), and Golden Glow Gelatin Salad.

• Popsicles, baby back ribs, smoothies, and power bars are just a few of the recipes making their debut in the 2006 anniversary edition.

• The 2006 Joy of Cooking has instructions on using natural ingredients to color Easter eggs: beets for pink; chopped red cabbage for blue; tumeric for yellow; and the skins of 12 red onions for orange to burnt orange.

• Slow cooker recipes are included in the 2006 Joy for the first time.

Right now, I'm making sure my cupboard has all of the basic ingredients necessary for becoming a fabulous cook. 

We're heading to a cabin in the North Georgia mountians thiss weekend, so I'm looking at some items that will travel well.  I've got four recipes on my list for this week--

• Chocolate Chip Orange Scones
• White Cake with Mocha Buttercream Frosting
• Beer, Cheese and Scallion Bread
• French Baguettes

Check back later in the week to see pictures and comments on my (hopefully) beautiful disasters.

Happy cooking!