Believe it or not I was not always a foodie. I actually used to kind of hate food. Growing up my mom was an amazing cook (she still is) but I did not appreciate this until way later in life. As a child I was an extremely picky eater. I pretty much only liked butter noodles and cheese. I did not really care for meat of any kind (and thought everything was chicken) and like most children, I hated vegetables. I was naturally very skinny and since I did not eat a whole lot I maintained a thin frame throughout my high school and college years. College was when I started to break some of my eating habits. I would see my friends and roommates eating different things in the cafeteria and I would want to try them. My options would also be limited sometimes and I would have to try something new if I wanted to eat.

Toward the end of college I began interning in Philadelphia where I was introduced to some amazing restaurants and I started trying everything at least once. I finally began to love food and truly enjoy eating. Once I graduated and moved to Philadelphia it was time for me to start living and cooking on my own. For a while I fell into some bad habits of eating out a lot or cooking everything with bacon (I still love bacon in some recipes) and tons of butter. I ended up gaining 30lbs! This was a wake up call for me and I realized I needed to make some changes. I needed to find a way to still cook and enjoy food but do it in a healthier way and limit my take out nights.

Because my mom had been such a great cook I already knew a ton of great techniques, I just hadn’t been putting them to use. Even when I was a child who hated food I always liked being my mom’s assistant in the kitchen. I starting refining some of the skills she taught me and started obsessively watching The Food Network to get ideas. This is when Singleinthecitykitchen was born. Am I still struggling to lose some weight? Of course but what 20 something woman isn’t? Do I still like to treat myself and go to one of Philly’s finest restaurants from time to time? Absolutely! I have come a long way from the kid who never ate to an adult who loves food and finds cooking therapeutic. It is all about balance.

xo,

LC