project 52: launch

This past year I discovered cooking.  I’ve always known how to cook, at least the basics.  And I could follow a recipe no problem, with most times having the end result being quite edible.  But I never really got into it or fully enjoyed it.  It was always a means to an end for me.  Typically I found myself in the kitchen with a lack of ingredients, energy and/or time.  And with any of those things missing, well you aren’t going to have a very enjoyable time or make anything particularly remarkable.

In 2009, I dove head-first into Turkish and Italian cooking (separately, that is).  I started with typical Turkish mezze and soups, then eventually graduated to the toughies like hunkar begendi (lamb over smoked eggplant puree) and etli yaprak dolmasi (meat and rice-filled stuffed grape leaves).  In Italy, I took a week and traveled with two foodie friends and we cooked our way through Umbria, Tuscany and Florence, cooking in the kitchens of Italian mothers and cooking schools.  Homemade pasta, lasagna, Tuscan roasted pepper soup and bell pepper crostinis, among other Italian ‘musts’ made it into our repertoire.

So as I go further down the cooking path, I thought it would be nice to document some of the dishes as I go along.  Therefore I am launching Project 52.  This is my commitment to prepare in real life, and document on my blog, 52 recipes in 52 weeks.   Comments are welcomed and appreciated.

Afiyet Olsun!

Buon Appetito!