Introduction

Everyone eats. I eat, Oprah eats, Obama eats, Bill Nye eats, and you eat. You eat a lot. We all do. Without exception, we eat every day, three or four times a day. More than 3.3 Billion meals are consumed every day in the US alone. On average, more than an hour of each day is spent eating and drinking, not counting time shopping and preparing meals.⁺ Even amid plunging consumer confidence and rising food prices, Americans continue to spend an average of 10% of their income on food. ⁺ Sure, we need food to survive - but beyond the obvious necessity of sustenance for life, we are lucky enough - in this country - to eat almost solely for pleasure.
As a freshman, my food came from the college all-you-care-to-eat commons. I took food for granted, and the process through which the ingredients went through before landing on my plate - from farming to transport to preparation - remained hidden behind a fog of apathy.
This year, in an attempt to be fiscally independent, I chose to forgo the meal plan, and cook my all of my own meals. At the same time, I was introduced to several students and organizations who helped me cultivate a stronger appreciation for food.

I hope to use this blog as a forum by which I (and other students) can share daily adventures cooking between classes in college.