Qu'est-ce qui se passe?

There comes a time in almost every woman's life when she looks in the mirror and nearly breaks down in tears. It's the time that she finally realizes that something is no longer working, that an eating pattern changed or a habit faded away and somehow, those few temporary pounds are simply not disappearing.

As a foodie, this moment is extremely hard to face. I've always been a proponent of eating what you want, and an absolute opponent of dieting. But at the same time, I've been an advocate of responsible consumption. My food heroes are Alice Waters, Michael Pollan, Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson, and Mireille Guiliano. Food should be about pleasure, not about gourging yourself.

Somewhere in the last few months, amidst the moving and the adjusting and the snowstorms of the century, I lost my way. I've been eating heavy on the meat, relying on frozen pizzas, and endulging in a multitude of baked goods. So now it's time to return to "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." It's about cooking rather than opening a package. About eating with people. About hitting up the market.

It's going to be tough. Currently I leave the house at 5:30am and don't return until 5pm. I walk at least three miles a day to get back and forth from the east side to South Lake Union. It's winter, so seasonal eating is automatically more difficult. Working and walking exhausts me. But I figure, if I can do it--if I can eat healthily, both for me and for the planet, then anyone can.

That's what The GracefullyPunk Kitchen will be about. Recipes. Tricks. Tips. What's in season. What's growing. What's new. How to keeping being GracefullyPunk even when all you want to do upon returning home is eat french bread and nutella while watching Anthony Bourdain.