My BFF's of 2010

Some new friends came into my life last year.  A couple of them visited temporarily, but then I liked them so much that I invited them to move in permanently.  The other new friends were introduced to me by someone else.  You know how it is, you have two friends that you think would hit it off, so you introduce them to each other. 

I seek their advice and wisdom regularly and they provide me with such great ideas.  I've never been big on having one best friend; to me, the more the merrier.  But I have to admit, there are a few that I do hold in higher regard.  Some friends are great for certain occasions, but then there are others that you go to over and over again and they never, ever let you down.

Who are these friends that I speak of?  Who are these friends that I've spent so many wonderful, warm, scent-filled hours in my kitchen? 



The latest occupants in my kitchen.



My cookbook collection is near and dear to my heart and began when I was just about my daughter's age.  I went to a club meeting of some sort with my Grandma one night and there were door prizes.  One of the prizes was an empty recipe binder with sheets of yellow, lined paper.  The hostess that night had served zucchini bread and I couldn't get enough of it and so she kindly offered me her recipe.  It was the start of something that's become a bit OCD over the years.  I have this habit of collecting recipes and cookbooks and it gets a bit out of hand sometimes.

When my maternal grandmother passed away, I was 23 years old and recently graduated from college.  I was old enough to appreciate the wonderful gift she had left me by handing down her extended cookbook collection.  My collection was already a bit substantial for someone who had spent the last 4 1/2 years in college and ate a lot of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese during those years.  Still, I had enjoyed baking birthday cakes for my roommates and helping my Mom with holiday baking whenever I was home on break.

The friends or cookbooks you see pictured here were either purchases on my own or gifts that were given to me.  I have a few cookbook authors that I am fond of.  I also read reviews for new cookbooks and reserve them at the library.  I find out about new cookbooks mostly from magazine articles and the food section of The Columbus Dispatch, but I also consult another source from Border's.  If I like a book enough to own it, then I either purchase it for myself or ask for it as a gift.

I sit down and read through a new cookbook like some women pore over the latest Janet Evanovich thriller.  Reading each recipe, I consider the occasion when the food would be appropriate, my skill level in the kitchen and of course, what menu would this dish best be served.

Yes, these are my friends. 

They expand my horizons.
They help me have fun.
They make me feel confident.  
They teach me new things.
And they make me feel good about myself.

What more could you ask for in a friend?!