The California Table

California Cuisine with a Coastal Vibe

My 5-year Blogiversary & a Giveaway!

WhiskandCleaver

My blog is five years old today! Blogging has been exciting and educational in so many ways. When I started blogging, my goal was to learn how to use social media, so that when my Gigi is a teen I wouldn’t be staring at her like a deer in the headlights, trying to figure out the difference between Twitter and Facebook, Instagram and Tumblr

Today, five years later, I’ve learned so much. Today I can spatchcock a chicken, although I still can’t grill. I have mastered the art of homemade ice cream, just not the custard-based kind. I still have to look at recipes, but I can combine several recipes into a creation of my own. I can bake bread, flip pizza dough with expertise, craft my own pretzels and even bake popovers. Chicken stock now comes from my freezer, not a box (but there’s nothing wrong with that, either). I know when to take short-cuts and when a recipe is worth the effort.

But most of all, I can cook. I can bake, boil, brew, melt, broil, brown, fry, simmer, slow cook, poach, seer, stew, toast and reheat.

Through the years I’ve also learned that blogging is so much more than learning to cook, write, photograph or style food. It’s really about the community. I’m lucky to count so many great San Diego bloggers – and even some national and international folks – as my friends. Friends who enjoy food and bring so much to the table with technical knowledge and support in so many ways. Thank you.

The Whisk & Cleaver community includes so many great readers, too – mostly my mom, sure, but also some amazing bloggers and home cooks (and even a few critics) who enjoy food as much as I do. Thanks to you all, too!

And so to really thank everyone who has supported me through the years, through comments and lunches, through writing groups and blogging conferences, through thick and thin, thank you.

I’m giving away a $50 Amazon gift card this week. This giveaway is open to U.S. residents. The Amazon giftcard will be sent via email. Good luck, everyone!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

xoxolisa

Reader Interactions

Comments

  3. I love tons of your awesome recipes, but my favorite is GLUTEN-FREE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE BITES! They are the best cookies that I have ever eaten!

    Reply

  5. Happy blogiversary! Isn’t it amazing the things we learn with “the blog” in mind? I’ve enjoyed getting to know you and following along on your adventures. Cheers to five more years!

    Reply

  11. I feel like even though I have had my blog for nearly as long, that I’m just starting to really give it the effort I’ve always dreamed of and that means I’ve also done things I hadn’t before in the name of my blog and am better for it! It is quite surprising how this blogging thing can motivate us to learn new things that perhaps we had no interest in before. I’m going to go look at the gluten free chocolate chip cookie bites now!

    Reply

    • I agree with you, and for me, I’ve definitely had times when I blog more often than at other times. Blogging has definitely opened new doors for me!

      Reply

  18. Happy 5th birthday!!! I am a new fan and so glad to have found you. Where have I been the last 5 years ? Hah! Can’t wait to see what’s to come . 🙂

    Reply

  19. So many yummy ones to choose from, but my favorite would have to be the “not your childhood chicken pot pie”.

    Reply

  24. Congratulations on five years of amazing recipes and beautiful photography. I always love visiting your site. Can’t wait to see more from you!

    Reply

  35. I think it was your blog where I first ran across the idea of cooking quinoa in a rice cooker. Now I do it all the time!

    Reply

  37. I love discovering new recipes. however, one of my favorite Whisk and Cleaver recipes is the Penne alla Vodka recipe 🙂

    Reply

  38. I got lost in the vegetable section. I am always looking for new ways to make vegetables since i eat them multiple times a day and don’t want them to be boring. I like the butternut squash soup recipe, that is a fall fave of mine that i will definitely try. And the ‘not your childhood chicken pot pie’ bookmarked!! Will be the first i make!

    Reply

  39. I love new recipes. Food can get boring if you are making the same stuff week after week, month after month so I always am looking for new or different ways to make recipes. My favorite Whisk and Cleaver recipe is the Not Your Childhood Chicken Potpie. I love pot pie and this sounds so good. I can’t wait to try it.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *