Things You Should Know...

Hello and welcome to The Alphabet Eatery. I thought I might start with a few insights into how I cook, where this all started, and how you can best navigate this site for your needs. I hope you enjoy yourself while you're here!

Culinary Skills
Okay. First things first. My culinary skills are, let’s just say, minimal. Perhaps average to above-average is more fair. I have never considered myself a cook, though I do love food, but I have made an effort in the last 10 years or so to become more comfortable in the kitchen. I’ve always admired women who seem to have that innate ability to scan a recipe, make a few tweaks, and then magically throw something together without ever lifting a measuring spoon or googling substitution tables – with results that make the taster’s eyes roll back in their heads.

With a bit of practice, confidence, and (probably most importantly) the avoidance of my inner critic when cooking… I now have joined the ranks of non-measurers. I read recipes or see something new on TV and immediately think about how I might want to adapt it to fit with my family’s lifestyle, eating habits, and budget.

This does not mean I make people swoon… but I do have a few really good things I’ve settled on and added to my repertoire. This project, in part, not only is about sharing past successes, but also adding a few more gems to the stockpile.

Because I do not measure, I have tried to approximate amounts for many of the recipes here. Cooking is much more a feeling vs. thinking process for me (for any of you Myers-Briggs fans out there), and so I tend to gut-instinct my way through certain culinary experiments. I also am a firm believer in adapting food to fit your tastes and also how your body wants to eat. So please feel free to use anything in here as a jumping off point from which you can shape a dish perfectly befitting your needs. Goodness knows I do.

Ingredients
About four years ago, my husband and I decided to change the way we were eating. We had both grown up in families for whom meat was usually the centerpiece of each meal, and we’d consumed (and indeed nostalgically loved) a plethora of pre-packaged and sugar-laden items.

We were the generation of Kool-Aid and Kraft Mac-n-Cheese… of Hostess Twinkies and Jolt Cola. We ate, and subsequently cooked with, nothing other than processed flour and refined, white sugar. But as we made the decision to create and raise a child, we simultaneously decided we wanted to provide a different experience of food and eating for her. And we wanted to improve our relationship to food in order to live healthier and longer lives.

As Michael Pollan began talking about sustainable, local eating and the virtues of real food, I discovered Heidi Swanson and Terry Walters… both of whom inspired me to rethink my buying, cooking, and eating habits in favor of more natural, whole food, and organic options. Then along came Jamie Oliver and his Food Revolution – and I am now inspired to tackle this ongoing process of change in a way that will connect me to others who face the same issues and share the same goals.

What this all means, where the recipes are concerned, is that the very basics of most cooking (flour, sugar, salt) actually can be translated – each time – as whole wheat flour, raw turbinado sugar, and sea salt. Olive oil is always extra virgin olive oil.

If I stray from those basics, I will be sure to be more specific. And if you wish to use regular flour, white sugar, and iodized salt as you try something out – by all means, feel free. Just remember the taste will be slightly different, because each of those items brings a somewhat altered flavor to the dish.

Local and Organic
Eating organic food has been a slow and steady transition for us. We do not always buy organic, and I am still learning the difference between foods for which buying organic is tantamount, versus the ones for which is it less important. This is important when you’re cooking on a budget.

Lately, I’ve made it a goal to go organic as much as possible, including items that may be canned or jarred. Which is another important point to make: I still, on occasion, use packaged, pre-prepped, canned, or jarred items. Given our schedules and the quick turnaround required for most meals, it’s what makes the most sense for us. If you’re able to go wholly natural or wholly organic/wholly local… that’s fantastic! It’s a goal for us… but one that is not always met.

As we become more familiar with buying locally (sometimes a challenge in more northern climates!), CSAs, and utilizing our local Farmer’s Market, I will pass along any useful information I can. We are still learning! And if you have tips or nuggets of wisdom to share… please, please do.

The more we approach healthy eating as a community effort and shared responsibility, the better off we'll all be.

The Alphabet
Ah… last, but not least, a word or two about the central concept of this blog and how content is arranged. This project was originally borne of a desire to help my daughter learn her letter names and sounds in a tangible, tactile, and fun way. Meanwhile, I wanted to expand her palette (and ours) – particularly in the realm of fruits and vegetables. And so it seemed a simple and effective marriage: Hunt down foods that begin with various letters of the alphabet and find ways to tie our meal into her learning process.

I started with foods with which my husband and I were familiar, but that she may not have yet tried. And I also tried to incorporate foods with the star ingredient I knew she already liked. The intended learning aspect of each meal was to involve something that would help her learn and practice her letter sounds. For example, asking her what letters we ate on a given night or making a little craft or art project centered around the featured letter and its companion food(s).

I am sad to admit this aspect of the project has been the least successfully realized, as I tend to be in such a rush to cook dinner, make dinner, and then do all our after-dinner tasks that our letter-focus tends to fall by the wayside. It's still my intention to tie letters back into the meal in some form... particularly because I want our daughter to appreciate and understand the stunning variety of vegetables available to her. And if she becomes more confident with her letter names and sounds as a result, then it's a double-win!

Although the alphabet is my muse and catalyst for each meal, I do not post recipes in letter order, as not everything is available at the same time, nor is it very feasible for us to eat based along alphabetic direction. However, I have tagged every meal with any letters that are represented, and you can search recipes by food item or letter, depending on your needs and interests.