I took a chance this year. I submitted my blog to Saveur’s Best Food Blog Awards competition in March. I knew it was a long shot—there are SO MANY amazing blogs out there and competition is steep. Yet as much as I already knew I probably wouldn’t place among the finalists, I was still a bit bummed when I didn’t see Brooklyn Locavore on the lists. It’s a bit like my current job hunt. I’ve interviewed so many places, and sometimes just walking into the door, I know it’s not the right fit. But still, not getting the job, knowing it would be an awful combination because of either the culture or job description, still hurts a bit.

Yet somehow the blogosphere sensed my gloominess, even though I told no one about the submission except my husband. Only days after the disappointing reality hit that I didn’t make Saveur’s cut (this year…) I was nominated by Salted Plates and Serif and Spice for the Liebster Award and a slew of others. As cool as it might be to be recognized by a large publication and get to put a fancy badge on my site, it’s as good, if not better to be nominated by my peers, people and blogs that I interact with on an almost daily basis. And for that I am incredibly honored and grateful.

Michaela, over at Serif and Spice nominated me for a whole bunch of awards, no strings attached, including the Liebster Award, Versatile Blogger Award, Very Inspiring Blogger Award and Irresistibly Sweet Blog Award.

Casey over at Salted Plates also nominated me for the Liebster Award, but with a few conditions. I decided to combine both blog award nominations, because I believe nothing comes free in life and a few conditions are good for you. I also like blog awards with conditions because it gives you the opportunity to not only add to your blogger community but really learn about the person behind the posts.

The Liebster Award is a traveling award that is awarded to new bloggers with less than 200 followers. Sometimes it’s a bit difficult to determine the exact number of followers a blog has, but the point is to give credit to deserving smaller overlooked bloggers and hopefully get them a bit more exposure. The conditions attached are pretty simple:

Along with the nomination, there are a few rules I have to follow within this post:

• Post eleven facts about yourself.
• Answer the questions the tagger has set for you and create eleven questions for people you’ve nominated.
• Choose eleven people (with fewer than 200 followers) to give this award to and link them in your post.
• Visit the blogs you nominated and tell them personally (tag backs alone don’t count!)

So here we go!

11 Facts about Me

1. I’ve been known to cook a fairly elaborate meal to treat myself when home alone.
2. My biggest challenge in writing a recipe focused blog was actually learning to measure ingredients—no more a little of this, a little of that.
3. I sometimes make a cake just to eat the cake batter.
4. I sometimes wish I could live on a farm, with a private train station right outside my door (so I can still survive without a car).
5. I could walk right into a famous actor or actress and not have a clue how s/he is but if you put me in the same room as a favored chef I might squeal like a school girl.
6. I hate being the center of attention.
7. According to my husband, I’m probably the only person out there still watching Smash.
8. As much as I push the locavore thing, I can’t live without avocados.
9. I hate the cold almost as much as I hate the heat. Keep the weather sunny, between 60-80 degrees please.
10. I thought I was going to travel the world, hop cities and move every few years then unfortunately (fortunately) I feel in love with Brooklyn and don’t think I’ll ever leave.
11. I’m a 30 year old who still has no idea what I want to be when I grow up.

Questions for Me From Salted Plate

• Why did you start blogging?
  • It gave me an outlet to express my love for food and (selfishly) serves as my digital recipe book.
• What is the best book you have read in the last year?
  • Cooking for Mr. Latte by Amanda Hesser. Her life seems like a fantasy to me—dinner parties, good friends, dining out, a life centered around food. I’ve already read it 4 times.
• What color are the majority of your clothes?
  • Black or dark colors. Partially because I feel I look best in darker shades, but also because I know if owned thing white or light-colored it would be stained with food or red wine.
• What is your favorite food?
  • That’s a hard question. It depends what kind of mood I’m in. But probably anything with cheese is a pretty safe answer.
• Where do you want to travel to most?
  • Australia. I can’t tell you why, but I’ve been fascinated with the country ever since I can remember.
• What is your favorite drink?
  • A glass of Long Island Cabernet Franc
• What is your favorite blog post you have written?
  • My birthday post. It gave me the opportunity to really look at how food has woven itself into my most vivid memories.
• Who would play you in a movie?
  • Those fun online photo identity tests say I look like Kristin Stewart. I don’t see the resemblance but the awkwardness is pretty spot on.
• What is your favorite season?
  • Fall—harvest, changing leaves and brisk weather perfect for a light jacket.
• Do you prefer pen or pencil?
  • Pen, though my handwriting so awful, computers are probably best.
• What is your dream job?
  • Haha, see fact #11. Something tied to food. Marketing, writing, policy…not really sure.

11 Nominations

• Locavore Girl in the City
• A Pug in the Kitchen
• Fig & Quince
• Keene on Hoboken
• Serif and Spice
• Hello Homebody
• Eat and Sip in the City
• Rock Salt
• The Melody of Cooking
• Boozed + Infused
• A Little Thought for Food

11 Questions for Nominated Bloggers

1. Why did you start blogging?
2. How do you deal with writer’s block or lack of inspiration?
3. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
4. What kitchen gadget could you not live without?
5. What’s the strangest thing you’ve ever eaten (and enjoyed!)?
6. If you could go back in time to any moment, what would it be?
7. What inspires you to cook?
8. If you were banished to a desert island, what three things would you bring?
9. What’s the best meal you’ve ever had?
10. What are you reading right now?
11. List 3 things you want to accomplish in your lifetime.

And there you have it. Now you know my deepest, darkest secrets and favorite blogs. Thanks again to Casey and Michaela for nominating me! I’m excited to see how my nominees respond to the questions above. Happy blogging!

Related articles

• A New Look at Local Food: Urban Foraging (bklynlocavore.com)
• Forcing Spring’s Hand (bklynlocavore.com)
• Carrot Cake with Gooey Cream Cheese Icing (bklynlocavore.com)