Chicago is a city that is rich with diversity and cuisine and I definitely want to take advantage of it. ... as I'm sure many others do too. Even those who aren't in Chicago often get inspired to discover what tasty treasures await in their corner of the world. So if you like cooking, baking and learning about the culinary experiences I have with friends and food, you've come to the right place. Here are some frequently asked questions which I hope will help you understand more about me and my culinary point of view, as reflected in this blog.
So who's Joelen and what are you all about? (updated 02/2012)
I grew up in the kitchen where my parents were most of their time. The kitchen was the heart of our home growing up so being surrounded by food was a natural environment for me. As I got older, cooking/baking/entertaining was a wonderful outlet for me to be creative with. Now as a single mom, I can only hope my son Joel will follow in my foodie footsteps and embrace the world around him through food and culture. I'm not sure how I manage but even with child, I continue to remain very active in the Chicago culinary circles. I'm an all around avid foodie who loves cooking, baking and entertaining... and with the amount that I do every week, it often feels like my culinary life is another full time job on it's own. However, I have a genuine passion for anything food related that I continue to do it without hesitation.
When and why did you start blogging?
I started blogging in January 2007. Blogging first started out as a hobby, but now after a couple of years, it's become a major part of my life. Some folks scrapbook, make home videos or keep photo albums to capture special moments in their life, while I blog to not only have memories documented but to also share them and impart knowledge with others. Food is my focus on my blog simply because everyone must eat and everyone has some kind of relationship with food. I love learning about those relationships and food is one thing that can bring people together. I've come a long way, as seen in my early blog posts. This blog will continue to grow and evolve, just as my cooking/baking skills do along with the experiences I have with food.
Do you work professionally in the food industry?
I grew up in the kitchen at a very young age, thanks to my parents who were caterers. They've since retired, but through them I picked up the passion for cooking, baking, and entertaining. After years of helping and working my way around the kitchen throughout childhood and adolescence, cooking became second nature. Now as an adult, I'm intrigued by all things food related and I love sharing my "culinary adventures" both locally and virtually. I did take formal culinary classes (fall 2010) and at that same time, I was offered a position as head chef for a local ethnic restaurant, specializing in Filipino cuisine. When I'm not in the kitchen cooking for the restaurant, I teach culinary classes in commercial catering and pastry kitchens just outside Chicago's loop district.
What is your culinary point of view?
I don't know how to really categorize it... but I'd like to think it's global or at least it's an open viewpoint when it comes to food and culture. Growing up I ate strictly ethnic Filipino and Asian foods. My mom cooked a majority of the time and only made dishes using whole foods - fresh meats, vegetables, rice, Asian ingredients. It wasn't until high school when I really ate other foods outside of Filipino and Asian cuisine. When I realized there were so many different kinds of foods from other cultures out there for me to try, I was hooked. It allowed me to get a taste of other cultures and it was a way for me to learn about them through food. Now I love learning, teaching and sharing how food and culture are intertwined, and challenging others to cook ethnic cuisines they may not have otherwise.
UPDATE as of 9/2011: I recently have found out I have a gluten sensitivity so going forward, my recipes will mostly be gluten free friendly. I'll include some gluten laden recipes every now and then, since I continually entertain friends and family. It's an exciting culinary journey to now be gluten free and I'm embracing this opportunity not only for my health but to tackle the culinary obstacles that come with gluten free cooking and baking.
When and how did What's Cookin, Chicago start?
What's Cookin, Chicago is a social group I created through a social networking site called, Meetup.com. I created this group back in March of 2007 because oddly, there wasn't any similar active groups in Chicago at the time. There were foodie groups, but events were random and not consistent. Aside from that, cooking and baking classes in the area didn't allow much time and/or hands-on interaction at an affordable price. As a result, I wanted a culinary interest group that would consistently foster learning in and out of the kitchen, coupled with the opportunity to improve my own cooking and baking skills with other everyday folks like me.
In addition to What's Cookin, Chicago, I also have the sister group, What's Pouring, Chicago, focused on wine. This social group highlights BYOB events and wine education. It doesn't have quite as many monthly events as our cooking group, however it does boast more members.
What's Cookin, Chicago and What's Pouring, Chicago are groups I'm very proud of because in just over three years, we have done so many things and come so far. Did you know...
- What's Cookin Chicago currently ranks as the #4th largest out of 669 Culinary Cooking & Recipes meetup groups worldwide with nearly 1,900 members?
- What's Cookin Chicago currently ranks as the #1 most active Cooking & Recipes meetup groups worldwide?
- What's Pouring Chicago current has over 1,900 members?
UPDATE: As of January 2012, I closed my culinary groups through Meetup because I wasn't able to devote the time and effort to make the group worthwhile to all the members. However, I still continue to host culinary events and teach classes on a much smaller scale for private clients.
Speaking of numbers, what are your blog stats and social media reach? (as of 01/2012)
- Blogger Monthly Page Views: average of 454,000+.
- Twitter: 1,875+ followers.
- Facebook: 960+ friends and 2150+ fans.
- Feedburner and Google Reader: 3,175+ subscribers.
- Klout Influence Score: 49, True Reach 1K
- Alexa Ranking: 17,796 US; 119,131 Worldwide with 726 site links & 38.2% bounce
- Compete Ranking: 53,360 unique visitors
- Technorati Rankings by Topic: 104 Overall Authority/29311 Rank;
168 Food Authority/ 356 Rank;
162 Living Authority/1556 Rank.
What kind of culinary events does your group, What's Cookin, Chicago participate in? Can I read about them here in your blog?
You can find descriptions of our various monthly events HERE. Many of the events are here in my blog, especially those that are consistently done each month. I have a page of monthly Culinary Adventures which includes links to events I've hosted in the past. When it comes to offering culinary events, I realize everyone looks at food differently and has varying needs that food satisfies. I strive to offer culinary events that reach out to everyone in some way, shape or form. Events I offer also have an emphasis on teaching and learning from others. There's always something to learn and it's even better when food is involved.
What kinds of recipes do you have in your blog and are they geared to a specific skill level?
When creating culinary events for What's Cookin, Chicago, I take into consideration that not everyone has the same skill level or even the same interest in the kitchen. I like to offer events that challenge those who want to be challenged, regardless of skill level. The same applies to my blog, where you will find recipes that run the gamut from kid-friendly recipes, to recipes using convenience items to recipes that involve more exotic and hard to find ingredients as well as recipes that are complex and require some technical skill... including everything in between. To make finding recipes easier, I have a Recipe Index with links to dishes based on different categories... or you can use the search function in my blog.
What kind of camera do you use for your photos?
I've come a long, long way with my photos which is pretty obvious if you compare my photos from the beginning to where they are now. My first digital camera I ever had and purchased for my blog was a Sony Cybershot DSCW50 6MP, back in January 2007. Unfortunately, it was dropped and broken while on vacation in December 2008. As a result, I ended up buying a Sony Cybershot DSCW120 7MP as a replacement, which I used up until August 2009. My husband treated me with a long awaited digital SLR camera, a Nikon D60 10.2MP DSLR, which I started using in September 2009. I have a few friends who are professional photographers that are hardcore Nikon fans who have taken the time to school me on how to use the camera, along with a Nikon SB-600 Speedlight I purchased to get decent lighting if natural light wasn't possible. Occasionally, I'll also use a tripod to capture shots and 2 Lowel EGO Tabletop Light Units to help with lighting... but I prefer handling the camera and taking shots wherever it feels comfortable and looks good. I'm still learning how to take better digital photos and hopefully my photos will continue to improve over time.
Last question - How do you juggle everything you do?
I get asked this question a lot! It may seem like I probably don't have enough time to sleep between caring for my infant son, family & social time, hosting culinary events, private catering, and teaching culinary classes but when you have a genuine passion and truly love what you do, you will find a way to achieve your goals. It took quite a bit of practice to balance my schooling, culinary happenings, social and family life... but now I've got my groove where I can comfortably dedicate time to all the things important to me. I'm happy to be able to enjoy my life to the fullest and hope it continues!
Thanks again for visiting my blog and I hope you visit again soon to see what culinary adventures I'm having in my corner of the world! Should you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me via email - itsjoelen@gmail.com.
Got a suggestion for future culinary events? Are there some Chicago foodie finds you'd like me to highlight? Contact me & share what ideas you have! I'd love to hear from you & I'm always looking for various ways to incorporate food & friends in fun, educational & tasty ways.
Better yet, if you're in Chicago, come join us!
GMAIL - itsjoelen@gmail.com
GOOGLE TALK - itsjoelen
MY TWITTER PROFILE
MY FACEBOOK PAGE
MY YELP! REVIEWS(I still have many more review to write up)...
MY COOKBOOK SHELF(I still have many more books to add)...
MY FOODBUZZ PAGE
Some Legal Information to Note:
Recipes, photographs and text on ItsJoelen.com by Joelen's Culinary Adventures and What's Cookin, Chicago is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Attribution: You must attribute the work in the manner specified by me (author/licensor), but not in any way suggests that I endorse you or your use of my work.
Non-Commercial: You’re prohibited from using my work (photographs, text, and recipes) for commercial purposes.
No Derivative Works: You may not alter, transform my work.
- For any reuse or distribution, you must make clear to others the license terms of my work. The best way to do this is with a link back to this web page.
- Any of the above conditions can be waived if you get permission from me (the copyright holder).
