Tis the Season for Julie and Julia

Merry Christmas everyone, a little late. I did not forget you but cooking, baking, and all the insanity that comes with Christmas does not leave much time for blogging. Have no fear, I have TONS to share with you including: Chef Santa, Buckeyes, Figgy Cranberry Pudding, and product reviews!

Santa, my husband, family and friends were so good to me this year. This is one of the best christmases I've ever had. We even still had snow on the ground so it was truly my first white christmas! There was a magic in the air and it all happened so fast! I tried extending it last night through midnight.

We came home from my parents (the most darling little farm house in the foothills of NC with snow everywhere that is what people Imagine is like when you hear "off to grandma's house we go") and made (decaf) coffee with the new Keurig coffee pot, put in the movie that showed up in my stocking and dove headfirst into a new cookbook. a>

I am inspired. The critics on this movie varied greatly but most people claimed the Julia Child part was fabulous and the Julie part was a snooze fest. I beg to differ. I've often thought of working my way through a cookbook and even follow blogroll projects that do the same (such as the Daring Bakers club that bake with Dorian Greenspan). Blogging is like a job sometimes. You WANT readers. You want comments. You also want to keep it fresh and entertaining and see how much you have accomplished. I love my blog, even if I'm the only one who ever reads it, I feel satisfied and accomplished. In this, I can totally relate to Julie. She may be a bit neurotic and overly obsessive, but I admire her commitment and choice of connecting to food and her idol. I would probably act like a 12yo school girl too if Paula Deen/Martha Stewart didn't like me or I had the chance to meet her!

The movie was a tad slow in parts but it had some comedy, a rich history, and raw emotion mixed with kitchen triumph's and failures. You can't go wrong. The true test: I wanted to go in the kitchen and start trying my new recipe cookbooks out...at midnight. I rushed off to find the original blog that started it all. It is still there but not in full. I shed a little tear at the last post ever written: The day Julia Child passed away. While I can see that particular blog had to end, it saddens me to think that this one will. So my dear readers, I hope in the coming years, this blog grows and morphs and it may take on some new faces and directions, for now, I'm enjoying simply being The Garden Gourmet: experimenting with traditional cooking, canning and gardening to keep the Southern Farming roots alive.

After I get back from shopping with my sister (after Christmas sales ya'll, you HAVE to go.)you will find me in my kitchen, playing with my new gagdets and trying new recipes. I promise in the downtime to post. Have no fear, I have the whole week off work, this blog will be hopping! Merry Christmas and if you haven't yet, go watch Julie and Julia. Be inspired and Bon Appetit!