Happy Bloga-versary

   Two years ago today I began an adventure in both cooking and writing.    I began with a stack of recipes and a desire to carve out something of my own.  On that journey I have had a lot of fun, many messes, and a sense of accomplishment.

    I have had a ball cooking up many dishes.  Although some attempts were not successful, they all taught me something.  I overcame my fear of photography and learned some technical aspects too.   Having followers around the world surprised and delighted me.  I was thrilled to be re-pinned on Pinterest.

     The goal of trying new recipes was met, yet I found my cooking style to be not following any recipe at all!   I learned to cook from what I had on hand instead of cooking by a new recipe.  This was a great way to waste less food.  One of the things I really enjoyed was learning to batch cook.  I also liked transforming leftovers into a new meal (that didn't look like leftovers) .  This brought out my creative side and gave me a frugal fix.  I made A LOT of soup.

    Thank you for joining me on my quest in the kitchen.   To celebrate my writing anniversary, I will be giving away cookbooks this month.  To participate in the cookbook giveaway: comment on any "Outside the Box" blogpost (including any past post); re-pin a post to Pinterest, or shamelessly promote me on facebook or Twitter.

     It is time to retire my little black recipe book, but not my laptop.  I look forward to bringing you my life "Outside the Box." Thank you for reading, eating and sharing.