The Naked Cookbook: about

Hello, welcome to my official food blog!

My name is Jenn. I'm a 28 year old student living in the Greater St. Louis area.

I'm usually preoccupied with my studies, but I do find the time to cook for myself. This blog will serve as a platform for me to share my favorite recipes with you all. It will also be a place where I can easily store and organize my recipes without cluttering up my bookshelf.

I wanted to start this blog, because I'm asked about my diet all the time. Many people, including myself, have equated my body type to a fast metabolism or to Asian genetics, but I'm not sure that explains it entirely. I do have a naturally small stature, but that doesn't mean I'm not capable of gaining weight.

Case in point, my freshman year in college will always be remembered as a deeply bipolar year, and as a result, I became the epitome of an emotional eater. My roommate, Kim, and I lived off of chicken nuggets, cheese brats, jalapeño poppers, and Hamburger Helper. Totally good and totally good for you, right?!

We also spent many hours wallowed up on the futon together with Taylor Swift playing in the background...as if she was going to rescue us from the hole we dug ourselves in. Yeah, we were pretty cool.

me and kim as freshman (2006)

sophmores but still carrying the 'freshman 15' (2007)

Needless to say, I surpassed the meager 'freshman 15' and gained a solid 20-25 pounds. I hadn't noticed a major shift in my weight until I went home for the summer and my grandmother commented on my exceptionally healthy appearance. (In the Asian culture, looking a little heavier than your normal self is a sign of health, wealth, and prosperity. I mean, why do you think Buddha looks the way he does?)

Anyways, that was the first time I have ever considered how the quality of food I ate factored into how my body was shaped. It was never something I had to keep in check, but I knew I needed to adopt better eating habits in order to shed the excess weight.

My pre-college body was a result of being fortunate enough to eat well at home. The majority of my meals were healthy and home-cooked, so I was able to stay thin without even trying. All along I thought I had some magical Asian genes that made me naturally skinny, but truth of the matter is, I'm not magical and I definitely learned that the hard way.

Now that I have my booty back on track, I'm a firm believer of the idea that the body is 'made in the kitchen and sculpted in the gym'. I say this because the weight loss approach I took relied on getting back to the basics in all regards. I didn't want to throw myself into fad dieting, restrictive eating, or a strict workout plan, because it doesn't suit who I am and what I believe.

My goal was to maintain a good relationship with myself and with the food I eat, and I think I achieved that by simply cooking for myself more and making a conscious effort to get in some physical activity everyday. I understand that what works for me may not work for someone else, so I don't want to discredit the other weight loss strategies or lifestyle changes out there. I just chose to simply listen to my body instead and to nourish it accordingly.

It took us a couple years, but we got our groove back (2009)

I suppose my 'skinny secret' is to eat everything in moderation and to eat as natural as possible. I don't buy too many processed foods. I don't mess with the "diet, light, low-fat, fat-free" mumbo jumbo, because the alternatives never seem to satiate me. They are loaded with fillers and flavorings in order to compensate for what was taken out of them, and they don't even come close to tasting as good as the real thing. I'm a girl that wants a little butter made from real cream from a real cow....is that too much to ask? (Note that I said a little butter. Portion control is very important.)

This is a bit unrelated, but I do want to add that I love visiting the farmer's market every Saturday. As long as my time and wallet allow it, I will continue to buy as much locally grown and organic produce as I can. I know it's better for me and better for the environment, so I try to keep that up.

Frankly, what I've said so far is neither here nor there. If you want a chiseled six pack and a gun show, then I'm probably not the girl for you. But, if you enjoy eating nutritious food, learning more about Asian food culture, and are interested in adding some more recipes to your own collection, then you and I will get along great! Also, if you share the same sentiments as I do regarding lemons, then be prepared for ALL the lemon recipes.

As I always say, "you gotta know how to eat - to know how to cook", so let's get to it, shall we!

mànmàn chī,
jenn