Cooking Up A Storm

I love to cook and learned most of it from my dad.  He's a great cook, dreams of opening a restaurant and, since retiring, gets it out of his system by volunteering everyday at a local soup kitchen.  Since I've been moving so much recently and didn't want to restock the pantry every 3 months, cooking got put on the back burner (get it?).  Now that I'm getting a little more settled, I've been cooking again and looking for new recipes.  Here are some of my favorite cooking sites.

French Feast - A great resource for hard to find French food.  Since I lived there for a while, I get cravings sometimes.

AllRecipes - All sorts of possibilities, just search to your heart's content.  Plus people can rate the recipes and write comments or changes they made so you can find the best, 5-star rated lasagna.

Smitten Kitchen - I just found this site and everything looks so good but not at all what I need to be eating, Dulce de Leche Ice Cream, Rich Mac and Cheese, Oatmeal Cookies. OK the green bean and tomato salad seems fairly healthy and perfect for summer.

101 Cookbooks - Another beautiful site.  This one is usually healthier and I think it's also vegetarian.

Epicurious - Search for recipes from Bon Appetite and Gourmet magazines.

Cook's Illustrated - Looking for the "Best" of something?  This is the place.  They test and retest till they find the perfect way to make something.  They also rate kitchen equipment.  Some of the features require a subscription but lots are free.

Chocolate & Zucchini - Not just recipes but fun posts on food.

Local Harvest - A great resource to find locally grown food in your area.  farmer's markets, restaurants who use local  ingredients, and community supported agriculture.

Chow - Recipes and so much more, tips on etiquette, new food items, tips and Q&A

Lizzy Dishes Portland - Reviews of restaurants in Portland, such a great town for food.  And lots of links to other food sites.  And best of all, I know her and occasionally get to go eat with her.