Like our first Pimm's Cup (now a favorite summer beverage!):
My first totally failed attempt at making a paleo fruit tart. Don't let the pic fool you. GAG.
My first pitas. DELISH.
My first (and last) bout with appendix cancer. Had appendicitis. Apparently had appendix cancer, too...
I had my first cupcake ATM experience at Sprinkles in Chicago. The frosting was good...
I learned to take my husband to T.J. Maxx. I walked out with all the kitchen gadgets I've always wanted but was too cheap to buy myself--like a mandoline. Here are my first potato chips:
I learned to grow a pair and make spice blends in the coffee grinder (the grinder is washable):
Michael had his first taste of Maryland blue crabs and decided...he didn't like the mess for all the work. He's a man after my own heart (we did not smear seasoning on our faces. I'm not sure why the phone did that...):
Chef Reiton and I did our first kitchen tiling job:
I made my first pan pizza from Bon Appétit's September 2014 issue. Holy crapola...
I made tater tots. Mashed, not hashed. Again, from B.A. Yummy.
And GOOSE!!! My dear friend Heinz had the lonely Reiton women over for a Christmas dinner that was worthy of a Dickensian novel. Oh, delightful goose! What an ending to a wild year!
Although most of this year was obsessed—and I mean OBSESSED—with our kitchen remodel, we managed to financially and gastronomically survive. We learned a lot, suffered a bit, but loved a lot. We had Life show us of what matters. Our family and friends showed us what matters. Our food showed us what matters. What matters is US.
That's why Chef Reiton and I do this kitchen thing. It affects us on so many levels: our chemistry. Our stress level. Our memories. Our family. Our health.
I don't think I am the same person I was 10 years ago. And the kitchen has a lot to do with that. I hope my transformation continues. With another year of firsts, it's got to, right? And, boy, is it going to be a big year of firsts in 2015!
