What exactly is a nom?

According to Urban Dictionary the definition of "nom" is as follows:

         The sound made when eating something (or someone).  Can be referred to as "nomming" as verb, and is often pronounced in the sentence "om nom nom".

         Origin: Sesame Street, when Cookie Monster would devour cookies

         If one sees a person eating a giant sandwich, this can be described as an epic nom.

Just nomming on some breakfast for dinner.

So what does that have to do with this blog?  ..Well, a lot!  If you asked me in December, 2011 what a nom was I would have described it as Ben & Jerry's Strawberry Cheesecake Ice-cream and a Burger King Whopper Value Meal.  Add some ramen noodles in there too and you understand what my diet was like.  As my mother said, "Abby, a vegetable to you was french fries."  Today, I would answer that same question with Balsamic Quinoa Salad or Curry Tofu.  Ask anyone who knows me and they can tell you I've come a long way to discover that healthy, natural foods are simply DELICIOUS.

I graduated college in May 2011 after living in the dorm as an RA for 4 years.  This meant I never learned how to cook and relied only on the food I could get either through my meal plan or at the local restaurants around campus.  Needless to say, this wrecked both my waistline and my wallet.  I never had to learn how to cook for myself, and I couldn't even imagine beginning to try!  Fast forward 6 months after graduation and I decided it was time to change things up.

I found out I was going to be an Aunt for the first time to a little boy and I had a revelation.  Little boys like to run around like crazy monsters... Now, my nephew lives across the country so I'll barely get to see him as is.  Topping the scale at 223 (I'm only 5'7" mind you), I realized that the few times a year I do get to see him I want to be the Aunt that can keep up with the energy levels.  This was really just the spark (it being January and the whole New Years Resolutions probably didn't hurt either).  I got really into the gym and while I was eating healthier, I still wasn't cooking myself.   That didn't stop me from discovering Pinterest though and finding recipe after recipe that was both delicious looking and *shock* healthy.  What really deterred me from making those dishes?  Well, it's the mess associated with cooking.   Lucky for me, I have the best boyfriend who has agreed to clean as long as I cook.  Yes, that means I can make the biggest mess I want and as long as he gets to be my guinea pig I get to have fun in the kitchen.

Recently, I've decided that for both my bank account and health I'd start making those recipes I had been ogling for months.  It turns out that after years of me refusing to be domestic, I actually love it.  I can totally see myself making family dinners every night and you know what - I'm ok with that.

That brings me to the point of this blog... As I experiment with the healthy recipes I find across the blogosphere I will post them here with my notes.  That may include adjustments, additions, or just plain silly stories (remember, I am a novice so I'm still learning).  It's my goal to try a new recipe every week, so let the cooking begin!