To my fellow 9 to 5'ers,
If you find yourself staring at a computer screen all day at a less than engaging job, wondering how to pass the time until happy hour starts, I feel your pain. You might be surprised to know that I love my job. I really do. But for a few weeks (ok months) of the year I find myself twiddling my thumbs given the cyclical and often unpredictable nature of my job. Hence the inspiration to start this blog. When I am not busy writing on the blog or planning my dinner menu I spend most of my day reading about what other, more experienced bloggers are up to. I am constantly hungry.
I figured you may not have taken the time to look at all of the links I've put up and I am periodically updating my list when I find a new website I like. I'd like to highlight some that I find particularly entertaining and enlightening.
I spend countless hours on Serious Eats. I don't know what I did before I discovered it. It was just nominated for a James Beard Award for Best Food Blog. There are new entries posted so often that I can keep refreshing the page to keep myself occupied. I've tried several recipes but more often than not find informative food related articles and news. What I also love is the active "Talk" section in which members ask questions and comment on everything food related. As with any open forum you get some oddballs but for the most part contributors are remarkably well informed and diverse.
Next on my list of favorite websites is 101 Cookbooks by Heidi Swanson. This one's also an award winner with legions of enthusiastic followers. It features all vegetarian recipes with plenty of commentary thrown in. Heidi is highly regarded in the food community and has written several cookbooks. Next time I have some money to burn or there's a gift getting opportunity her books are at the top of my list. She's the best for stunning photography as well. I've used her for inspiration, but to be honest I've found that she's repetitive. She's very health concious so I feel like she tends to do variations on the same theme. Still, I check in every day to see what she's up to.
I am a loyal follower of several other Philly based vegetarian food bloggers (and I mean actual vegetarian). I have gotten several great recommendations for veg friendly restaurants, and in fact most of the restaurants I've featured I've found on these blogs. I've found out about local food news as well. My favorites are: Living on the Vedge, Veggicurious, Straight from the Farm, Messy and Picky, and Mac and Cheese. A while ago I randomly met Messy (or maybe it was Picky) at Reading Terminal.
Another local site I've discovered is Table Matters. It's a well put together site full of local events, restaurant reviews, and social commentary. While it's fairly similar to some other local food sites like City Paper's Meal Ticket, I think Table Matters is a bit more sophisicated than most. I think it could quickly become one of my new favorites.
I've included links to some informative sites highlighting local food sources. If you don't know anything about the Food Trust or the Fair Food Farmstand you should browse through their websites to learn more about local farmer's markets, projects and events. You can sign up for email newsletters as well.
A few others I keep on the list for sentimental reasons or because they are entertaining. If you share my views on Paula Deen and Sandra Lee, you'll get a kick out of Food Network Humor.
Through these different sites I've been introduced to a lot of other sites. You notice the same blogs being mentioned repeatedly and some have huge cult followings. The Pioneer Woman is a favorite of many. She has a really beautiful sight, but it's definitely not vegetarian. Same goes for The Kitchn. Lots of people mention Bitten, probably because Mark Bittman is such an authority on food, but I don't think this is really geared towards the home cook with limited resources. Here's a pretty comprehensive list of other reader favorites.
I'm always looking for something new to read, but I seem to be loyal to the relatively small list on my blog. They are reliable and I owe them a debt of gratitude. Without them I'm not sure how I would keep myself occupied until 5 each day.
How do you pass the time at work?
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