Meet the Cook
I have been cooking for my family for over 25 years. I haven’t had any formal training or culinary experience. All my learning has been through trial and error, and through the years I have learned to read recipes that I know will work for me.
A few years ago, I decided to enter a recipe contest. I thought “I have to cook dinner anyway, why not make something up? ” I had heard of the Pillsbury Bake-Off, so I decided to look into it. Well, it turns out that they only have it every other year, and I had just missed the deadline. So I started searching for other recipe contests and found the ‘Campbell’s Soup 20 minute Recipe Challenge.’ I had never cooked with soup before, but I thought I would give it a try. To my and my family’s surprise, I was notified that I had won First Place for my ‘New Orleans Shrimp Toss.‘ It was crazy! Not only did they pay me for making dinner one night for my family, they sent a crew out to my home to take pictures to publish in their cook books.
I was hooked, I started entering all sorts of recipe contests and won several prizes for my original recipes made with a wide variety of contest products, from Pimentos to Orange juice. I was even selected as a finalist for the National Chicken Cooking Contest which aired on the Food Network Chanel. When the next Pillsbury Bake-Off contest rolled around I was ready to enter, it’s considered by contesters to be the ‘Olympics’ of cooking contests. I sent in my original recipe entry along with the other several thousand cooks, and was thrilled and honored to be notified that I was one of the 100 finalists chosen to go to the Bake-Off in Hollywood California, for my entry ‘Chicken Fettuccine a la Fuente.’ It was a wonderful experience, and I met many other people with a passion for food and cooking. I even met a few celebrities, including the Pillsbury Dough Boy *woo hoo!*
Soon after returning from the Bake-Off, my family and I made a major move across state. With settling in to a new home, and keeping up with my children’s busy schedules, I haven’t found the time to enter contests, but I have never lost interest in cooking and finding a great recipe. That is why I’ve decided to start this blog, to share the recipes my family and I like. Most of the recipes are simple, I like to save time, but occasionally you will find me posting a recipe with a few more ingredients, or steps, that I think are worth the little bit of extra effort. And yes, I will post all my winning recipes as well. I am a newbie to blogging, but if you see something you like, are looking for something specific, or have a question about cooking, just let me know, I’m always happy to talk to another food enthusiast.
Your Simple Cook,
Kathleen