I love food. I love food probably more than the average person. I love eating food, cooking food, shopping for food, playing with food, reading about food, all of the above! But, I am slightly perplexed regarding food. Not that food itself is the confounding element, but rather it's what I like to call the "sexification" of food in (dramatic music), food blogs.
Apparently in the last ten years food got really trendy. I think it has something to do with the surge in the green movement, but instead of living in a culture where food is demonized as the cause of all our health problems, we are bombarded with messages of how cool food is. And now that food is really sexy, everyone wants a piece of the pie, so to speak, with the easiest method of indulgence being the now ubiquitous food blog.
Now I'll drink the kool-aid any day and say that I love a good food blog, especially when I'm feeling extra creative (or not) in the kitchen. Many times a quality food blog will have thesaurus whomping adjectives and pictures that kick your salivary glands into high gear, but then there's the food blogs that are just, well, lacking. I freely admit that much of my skepticism and critical attitude towards food blogs comes from the fact that I hate the term "foodie" but that's a completely different topic.
What irks me the most about the cornucopia of food blogs is that it seems like everyone has a food blog these days. Just because you can list off several types of ethnic cuisine and consider yourself to be a gourmand doesn't mean you can write about food. Food is incredibly hard to write about. I know a guy is incredibly intelligent and articulate, who has just graduated with an MBA, and has a food blog about taco trucks. This was probably the last person I ever have pinned for this, yet there it was staring out at me from my computer screen. Unbelievable.
Think about the best meal you've personally ever eaten and all the emotions that came with that moment. In reality, it just sits there on a plate and it's difficult to convey with words exactly what a good meal is doing to you. If you've ever watched one of those shows where someone is describing their favorite meal, their descriptions are almost always accompanied by footage of the describer closing their eyes and scrunching their face while simultaneously rubbing their fingers with their thumbs. That expression and action is the epitome of what you are trying to bring across in food writing.
While many food blogs are honestly trying, they just can't quite get there. I don't knock people for having a passion for eating well or loving their food to the point of obsession, but can we cool it with the food blogs?
That is at least until I figure out what the deal with pomegranate is...Seriously.
