The Green Girl

Welcome to Green Girl's Gourmet! This little project actually began as a New Year's resolution in 2010. I was looking for a way to share recipes with friends and family far away. At that time I was still in a fairly new place (NY) and was thousands of miles away from anyone I truly knew. Instead of sending massive emails (which inevitably would have been marked as "spam" and ended up in Junk boxes all across America), I opted for the blogging route.

But, you might ask, where did it start? You see, I moved to NY to attend culinary school. I had always loved food. As a little girl, my honest to goodness favorite game was "Restaurant." I had this pad of paper that sort of worked like a receipt book and an imagination like a Disney Pixar movie. I was always inventing recipes and imaginary menus for my restaurant. Even if I was just serving Grilled Cheese with Tomato Soup (at that point it was still out of a can that my mother may or may not have had to open for me), my parent’s obliged and dined at Chez Abbey. Eventually, I was selling random baked goods out of a clubhouse in our driveway. (I should tell you that the "clubhouse" was actually a gigantic cardboard box that I got for Christmas one year. Granted, it had a door and window and I colored all over it with marker, but it still served its purpose.)

Thanksgiving became my favorite holiday early on. It started with just making Green Bean Casserole, but escalated ultimately into Mashed Potatoes, Stuffing, and Pumpkin Cheesecake. Never did my version of Thanksgiving dinner include a turkey as I was a vegetarian from just about the beginning. I loved vegetables (and of course sweets) and rarely strayed. As I had always preferred veggie panini over a turkey sandwich, my parents were very open to my vegetarian lifestyle. Their one mantra was, “If you don’t want what we cook, learn to make something else.” It was because of this that I became a cook.

Further down the road, I wrestled with the question that a person is asked countless times throughout his/her life: What do you want to be when you grow up? As a kid I would reply “a dancer” or “a zoologist.” While I enjoyed dancing and loved cute baby animals (really though, who doesn’t?), I knew that those professions were a little far off for me. Later, in high school, the question began to bear a little more weight. What college will you go to? What will your major be? What do you see for your future? Ah! These questions are terrifying to a high school junior. I still tied my shoes with bunny ears; I wasn’t ready to decide the rest of my life! After making a brief failed effort to be a marine biologist (I hate salt water), I decided that there was really only one thing that I could be: A chef.

From there, as they say, “the rest is history.” I went on to study Restaurant Management at the University of Central Florida, graduating Valedictorian of my class. In addition to working as a Resident Assistant in the campus dorms, I worked as a cook for Marriott (plus a gazillion other jobs to make ends meet). That job was pretty influential in deciding the course of my future. It was there that I solidified my determination to attend culinary school.

Which is how I ended up in NY. I decided up studying at the Natural Gourmet Institute. It was an obvious choice due to its focus on organic, local, seasonal, and sustainable vegetarian living. I was already a little bit of a tree-hugger before I started (who am I kidding, I was even hugging bushes at that point), and quickly became even more interested in a “green” lifestyle. While there, I revamped my habits and culinary style in an effort to be a more conscious cook. I thank that school for helping me to be a healthier and more sustainable chef. Most importantly, I thank that school for helping me to find out that I had a gluten allergy. For a large portion of my not so long life, I had been plagued with chronic tummy problems. When I was in my early teens, I was diagnosed as having Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease and Irritable Bowel Syndrome. After years of medication, I was seeing no improvement. As a great portion of the culinary program was devoted to food allergies, I became curious as to the cause of my condition. After some careful elimination, and ultimately tests with my doctor, I discovered that I had been misdiagnosed for years. It was not acid foods that was giving me discomfort as well as recurring sinus infections, it was soy and gluten.

So now, I am a gluten-free soy-free pescatarian (though primarily vegetarian) cook. I know it sounds a little restricting, but I promise it is not. That is why this blog has become more important than ever. What began as a place to document culinary school successes and failures is now a living testament that a allergen-free vegetarian lifestyle can be diverse and bountiful. I don’t feel like I am living “without;” I feel like I am just living. And most importantly, I am loving it. Green Girl’s Gourmet has come to be a resource for others with similar problems, or just a culinary curiosity. So stay tuned for more allergen-free recipes, embarrassing stories, and random adventures. Happy cooking!