I must say that this little excursion into the past depressed me a tiddly bit as I am far from being proud of everything that you can find on "Rosa's Yummy Yums", especially when it comes to the approximative English with which I wrote at the time I started composing articles (in August 2005) and the terrifyingly ugly pictures I took then (and sometimes even now, in my opinion).
It has to be said that, years ago, I was relatively a young, naive, and unexperienced foodblogger who was still looking for her own identity, who had a lot to learn and who had no clue about the art of photography (digital cameras were not as well-spead as now - at least, among non-professionals) or journalism. For my defense, I must say that I was also in a different frame of mind and far less confident that I am now - the result of years of tyranny and psychological terror exercised by my parents (times of turmoil that have bruised my ego and soul and which I'd prefer to forget).
Although I should not reject my yesteryears and rather stand behind my previous work, I somehow despise and resent my earlier achievements which I find shameful, basic and uninteresting. If I could change things, I'd probably take another path and would probably built better foundations.
Ok, maybe I am being so critical because I have reached a bit of a crisis, at the moment. Lately, I find that my limited talent, capacities and materialistic means (I need a better camera, some real lens & not those kit lenses you get when buying a camera, a tripod and a light) hinder my efforts and that unnerve me and discourage me to the highest point. It is as if I'm turning in circles. It seems I'm suffering from burnout syndrome...
Anyway, I'm better off accepting the "good old days", see what I've accomplished here, feel comfortable with what I've done and not be too hard on myself as I have nonetheless achieved a lot. For example, I have perfected my baking/cooking, writing and photography skills, developped my individualism, cultivated my uniqueness, found my way (even if I'm only standing at the entrance) and fed my site without interruption for the last 72 months.
As I am a very visual person who enjoys glorious photography, I was tempted to opt for one of my post containing pictures I am quite happy with, instead I decided that my most beautiful post has to be "Tartine Bakery Pumpkin Pie - RIP Nana", because it is a poignant ode to my very much missed English grandmother who passed away in March 2011 at the age of 84. In it, I lovingly bid her goodbye and make peace with my regrets, resentments and unfulfilled dreams.
Depending on how you look at it, my two most popular posts by far are "Basic Pizza Dough - The Daring Bakers" and "Chinese Lemon Chicken". The first one has had the most comments (187 all in all) and the second one has had the most visits (more than 16,426). The "Basic Pizza Dough - The Daring Bakers" post was very successful as many Daring Bakers visited my blog since I hosted the October 2008 challenge under very sad circumstances. My lovely co-host Sher at the wonderful "What Did You Eat?" died of a massive heart-attack just a few weeks earlier and so, as a result, her friend Glenna at "A Fridge Full Of Food" decided to drop out as she was intensely heartbroken by the tragic event. When it comes to the "Chinese Lemon Chicken" post, don't ask me why it is so trendy. It seems that there's a Chinese food craze going on in the world!!! Of course, the Chinese cuisine is amazing and this recipe is divine, but I still wonder why it attracts such a traffic. In any case, this dish seems to be particularly good as I've received a few extremely positive feedbacks. The following comments are a testimony of its notoriety: "Rosa ,what can I say , your lemon chicken was fantastic, will be making it again and again and again." - Liz from Glasgow, "Cooked lemon chicken yesterday, it is the best lemon chicken I have ever had." - Anonymous.
I love speaking my mind, about subject that others are afraid of approaching or which are controversial. My aim is definitely not to hurt people's feelings and to dictate a behavior pattern, but rather to make them think as well as reconsider their lifestyle and to raise questions. In my post "Chocolate & Vanilla Whoopie Pies - Trend Aversion", I tried to depict my visceral hate for (food) trends and how we blindingly follow them, thus not being capable of showing individuality and discernement.
I don't really offer tutorials on my blog, although all my recipes are informative and well-detailed. On the contrary, the daily international food chronicle and online newspaper "The Rambling Epicure" contains a few of my essays that can be labelled as "useful" since they give practical tips. The post "Eating On A Budget - The Rambling Epicure" links you directly to my piece of writing about feeding well and healthily when your income is limited.
I always try to publish articles that are going to trigger the attention of people and educate them, so each of them are well-thought and the dishes are chosen according to their innovativeness or exoticicity. I try to post recipes that have not been seen on every blog and which are not in vogue. By differentiating myself from the mass, my goal is to create a one-of-a-kind plateform where one can find material that is authentic and quirky. And it seems to work for me! Yet even if this blog is designed to reach a big amount of readers (my dream), I am regularly stunned by the fame of certain posts. "Baked Apricots Stuffed With Almond Paste - Monthly Mingle" is one of them. I would have never though that such a humble dessert would have been so acclaimed. As the adage goes "Simplicity is beauty", not?
It is very difficult to know if one post didn't really get the attention it deserved... Nonetheless, when judging on the number of comments left, I come to the conclusion that certain of my recipes could have gotten more consideration as they are scrumptious and significantly original. For example, my "Felafels", "Curry And Onion Chapatis" and "Vietnamese Chicken & Grapefruit Salad" recipes which were, in my opinion, not rightfully acknowledged.
I must say that my latest posts are the ones that make me the most proud as lately my creational flair has expanded and I'm starting to put together features that are considerably deep, artistic and which demarcate themselves from those of other bloggers. Those are the seven write-ups I find quite impressive and memorable both photographically and composition-wise: "Borlotti Bean & Lamb Stew With Cheesy Eggplant Puree", "Cold Soba Noodle Salad - The Art Of Zen", "Kalbura Basti - Riddled Cookies", "Eggnog Mousse", "Turkish Cheese, Suçuk and Olive Pide Pies", "Cassata Cupcakes - Reflecting on Holidays" & "Swiss Sausage Salad".
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I have nominated five following foodbloggers to share their seven links:Ben at "What's Cooking?"
Redmenace at "A Chow In Life"
Soma at "E-Curry"
Christina "New Kitchen On The Blog"
Aparna at "My Diverse Kitchen"
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