Where have you been?!

Ah yes…the dreaded blog.
So I don’t actually know how many people check up on this blog…or how often you think about it but if you’ve happened across it in the last, oh…6 months or so you’ll probably notice that there’s NOTHING going on. And I apologize for this. Starting out my senior project I had intended this to be like my WOW factor filled with exciting posts and pictures…but things didn’t work out that way.

“So if you haven’t been spending time on your blog…what HAVE you been doing?”

Good question. I’ve been doing an assortment of things.
1. I have been catching up on credits. Yes, believe it or not Aryin has been a little behind on her credits and after reading poetry for six hours I wasn’t really in the mood to write about my good eats.
2. I have been doing boring stuff like research for my project. Granted I have ate out at three restaurants (and I do have pictures that I’m planning on putting up here sooner or later) but research isn’t really something that a lot of people are interested in.
3. I have been attempting at having a social life. This one is a fail because no social life has been acquired. But don’t worry I’ve given up and am now back in homework mode.
4. I’m not going to lie…I’ve been intimidated on writing in this blog. In my hours of research I’ve been looking at tons of food blogs and mine is…well rather lame. I didn’t know how I should write in it but then I realized that no one has been reading my blog in the first place so I’m just going to write in it like normal.

Things I HAVE been doing:
1. I HAVE switched up my project a little…so I should be updating my project proposal here soon. GO GO MOTIVATION!
2. I HAVE updated my time line so I’ll hopefully be putting out more product instead of just being a waste basket of research and notes.
3. I HAVE interviewed a restaurant in which I need to get my butt in gear and write a review.
4. I HAVE written a little in my book…don’t get excited though…it’s not much.
5. I HAVE baked my first baguette 
6. I HAVE made a snazzy little banner for my blog (that looks terribly homemade so if anyone has any skillz in the way of decorating a blog I’d SO much appreciate it.
7. I HAVE been trying to get my stuff done so please bare with me.

“You mentioned changing up your project what do you mean?”

Well, after working on my project for awhile I noticed that my topic was a little broad so I decided that I’ll be focusing on bread! Now don’t get all frazzled. I will still be trying to find authentic ethnic restaurants around the twin cities but I won’t be focusing SO much on that. As a non-native to many of these countries it’s hard for me to distinguish what is authentic and what is not…so based off of my research I will be trying to find tasty restaurants that fit what my research says. Now are these going to be 100% non-Americanized restaurants? Probably not…but I’m going to try my hardest to find one that hasn't been Americanized! I also ran into the problem of when I was trying to interview people they didn’t speak English….so you may not be getting as many interviews as I had previously said. Sorry!

Anyways back on the topic of bread!

So! I’ll be going to restaurants around the city and ordering an entrée/dessert/side/whatever that’s made with bread. I will then be teaching you how to make that bread/meal! Exciting I know! Don’t worry though…I will still be including information on the country as well as doing my restaurant reviews.

“Have you decided on your countries?”

Why yes I have!

1. Korean
2. Greek
3. Ethiopian
4. Russian
5. Vietnamese
6. Indian

Now I don’t promise that I’ll get to all of these but I’m certainly going to try! (If you have one that you REALLY want me to do…just let me know! Also don’t be afraid to leave a comment recommending me some good restaurants.)

“Will we have pictures up here SOON?”

Yes 

“What can we look forward to in the next month or so?”

More blog activity?

I honestly don’t know…as the time ticks down to my finalization I’ll be doing more work on my senior project trying to finish everything up, so I’ll most likely have more work to show, which means more for you to see!!


Well as fun as this reunion has been its now 1:43AM and I’ve been up since 6 AM. I be sleeeeeeepy! So I will keep y’all informed about what’s going on. I’ll post some pictures, and hopefully SOMEONE will make me a better banner.


Ps. Also I found a blog site that I like a little better so I might switch. Bad idea? Good idea? Let me know…

CHOW! <3

Whats the point of this blog?

So as people start trickling in to my blog I figured a lot of them might wonder why a 17 year old teenager was spending her free time writing a blog and interviewing chefs...shouldn't I be at the mall reading interviews about the hottest celeb?? I've always wanted to have a blog but I've always lacked a topic and the motivation...but coming to Avalon high school has provided me with both. At my high school all seniors are required to complete a 300 hour project before we graduate. This project can be about almost anything so                        

over the summer I spent a lot of my time trying to come up with a project that I would enjoy doing for three hundred hours. I sifted through ideas ranging from taking a trip to china, to studying something medical; yet with all the ideas I never got that spark of excitement. My aunt, sensing my frustration, told me to pick 5 things that I loved or enjoyed doing and from there I could form a project that would combine my interests. My response was along the lines of Facebook, cooking, reading, eating, and traveling. And thus my project was born.

                I chose this project for significant study for a variety of reasons. The first reason was that I wanted a project that would keep me excited. I figure that if I have a project that will keep me interested I will be more eager to put more time into it, thus I’ll have a better product. The second reason I chose to do this project was so that I could express myself through writing. I have always enjoyed writing about my different experiences and I wanted a project that would help me prepare of college. I included two deliverables that have a good majority of writing so that my writing skills can improve. The last reason I chose to do this project was so that I could have an opportunity to expand my knowledge of the Twin Cities, and let me feel like I was travelling without the price tag.  

So what exactly are you going to be doing Erin?

In my project I intend to explore different countries and their cuisine, through exposure to foods and interviews with native people living here in Minnesota.  The first part of my project will be research on different countries. I plan on picking a variety of countries and studying their cuisine, from the spices they use, ingredients, cooking methods, and much more. The countries I choose to study will be based on my personal interest/curiosity and whether or not I can find an authentic restaurant here in the twin cities. Some of the countries I plan on studying are Greece, Turkey, Thailand, Cambodia, Russia, and possibly some Latin American countries (Argentina, Chile, Brazil, and Peru).

The second part of my senior project will be visiting restaurants. I plan on going to smaller restaurants around the cities that model the original cuisine of that specific country. I want the restaurants to be ones people normally wouldn’t find in order to help the community, and get a more original cuisine instead of cuisine that has been Americanized.

Throughout my project I plan on having two deliverables, a book and a blog. My blog will be a way for people to follow me through my project process and allow them to comment on some of the restaurants I go to. I chose to do a blog because then it will allow me to gather feedback throughout my project process and will also allow me to post videos and post more pictures. My blog will also be a way for people who read my book to gather more information on particular restaurants that they may be interested in, for example I will have links to the restaurants web site (if they have one).

My book will be my final deliverable. For each country I choose I will have a page or pages dedicated to the history of their cuisine. My hope is that these pages will inform the reader and perhaps spike some interest in a countries food that they otherwise wouldn’t try. My book will also contain some pictures, interviews, and my overall rating of the experience.