So, I know this is a it late, but Abby and I went to the International Food Blogger’s Conference a few weeks ago.

I’m not going to lie, I came in with more than a handful of preconceptions. To this point I hadn’t really considered myself a blogger, and I viewed this space as primarily Abby’s. To be fair, it has far and away been her drive and effort that has given it the polish and quality thus far. My main contribution has been to have a beer with dinner, then rant for a few paragraphs. I was an engineer, that happened to contribute occasionally.

However, when we arrived at the Westin, and started to check in, I realized that most of the people there we very much like us. There were a fair share of “Industry folks” that earned their primary income from corporations in the food industry, but the bulk were folks that had “real jobs” and just enjoyed food and writing.

I certainly found a few of the people that lived up to my expectations.

-The guy that twittered, twitted, and #hastagged every. damn. thing. It was actually really distracting to have his keystrokes and nose-huff-snorting as the soundtrack to a presentation on how to self publish.

-The girl with a weird little bowler hat pinned to the side of her head. It looked like a little pink hamburger. I didn’t talk to her, but I don’t think we would have gotten along. I made up a backstory for her that has no relationship with reality. Her name was Chrysanthemum Smith-Aloe. She sells decorative teacups for a living, they’re very pretty, but you can’t actually use them. They’re painted with a toxic chromium paint. Her blog is about eating a high keratin diet, to improve hair strength.

-The Networker: There was a weird cultural exchange of business cards that would preface any conversation. It was a warped version of the high school reunion speech. “I’m Doug.This is Dianne. We write a blog about Gluten Free Eating while foraging in our neighborhood’s dog park. Who are you?” Then, they wouldn’t listen. But you got that card, and like Pokemon, you’ve gotta catch ’em all.

I also met a lot of really interesting people, with interesting things to say. I also learned a lot of things. We saw presentation from Thierry Rautureau, to make an incredibly simple and delightfully fresh tomato soup. he quoted Julia Childs (“If you can’t have dairy, just use butter.”) , made plenty of smoke in a hotel conference room, and has me salivating even now.

The real turning point, when I started to realize that I’m a actually a blogger, was in the middle of a presentation on Amazon’s self-publishing system. I realized that I like writing. I realized that people seem to like what I write, at least occasionally. I want to put my thoughts inside other peoples heads, where they can mature, then burst forth like a big gooey thought butterfly.

 

I love food.

I love College and Pro Football.

I love eating crappy food at football events and tailgates.

I do not love farts that smell like blue cheese and fried pickles, and come out hotter than the devil’s morning breath.

I know full well what a buffalo chicken popper does to my insides, but still my resolve wavers. I am a weak child before the might of the delights of the Hidden Valley. I battle to perhaps stick with the quinoa salad, and a caprese salad, but too soon, the bacon wrapped water chestnuts appear. They sizzle, whispering sweet nothings as their brown sugar glaze pops and oozes. Pizza Dip uses it’s siren song to lure you to drown in the pools of molten pepperoni oil.

Then, I spend four hours grazing. I feel terrible, and that night the dutch ovens I give my wife are somewhere at the nexus of awesome and awful.

So, we’ve been trying to increase the options for “good grazing”. My mother has an amazing avocado celery relish, that is lighter than full on guacamole, and goes well on anything. I don’t think we’ve ever captured it, but we should. We try to keep the veggie tray stocked. The crockpot chili tends to be homemade, which is almost universally better tasting and better for you.

However, there is a time and a place for everything. For Beer and Bacon, that time and place are both at football parties, but we just have to enjoy both responsibly.

Every Monday will now be “Meal Plan Monday”. It will be the day that I post our dinner plan for the week and a little preview of recipes to come. As each recipe is posted, it will include a price estimation, per serving, for each recipe. The prices of individual ingredients will also vary depending on location, but our information should give you a general idea of how much a recipe will cost to make.

So, here it goes:

Monday: Roasted Vegetables with Brown Rice

Tuesday: Butternut Squash Soup

Wednesday: Zucchini Pasta with Bacon and Carmelized Leeks

Thursday: Hoison Pork with Egg Noodles

Friday: Roasted Cauliflower, Red Pepper, and Sausage Soup

Saturday: Cook Your Own Adventure Meal (see this post for more)

Sunday: Basil Tomato Soup with Cheddar and Goat Cheese Grilled Sandwich

 

There it is. Our plan for the week!