My fascination with cooking started as I watched my mother cook dinner every night, beginning in middle school and continuing through high school. Actually, I was not watching as much as it was observing—how she dressed meats and vegetables with different herbs, spices and sauces to extremely different but always delicious effect. She insisted on teaching me through repetition: first sauteing, stirring and boiling, eventually graduating to the creation of sauces and marinades. Over and over again. When I think about it, I don't recall my mother ever using a cookbook—all her recipes were from memory and taste. It's through her that I learned the most important ingredient to all dishes: confidence. After all, if you don't have confidence in your technique, ingredients or flavors, how can you expect it to taste good at the table?

Over the years, I've continued cooking, first through Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone and now through the recipes I've discovered on the Food Network and Epicurous. I love trying new recipes and hosting dinners with family and friends to share the food (and love). This year, I've decided to document my culinary and cooking journey, starting with a meal that I cooked last Christmas Eve.

Inspired by a recent viewing of Julie and Julia, I decided to make Boeuf Bourguignon for my family. I will admit that, prior to the film, didn't know much about Julia Child except for what I heard from critics and friends. However, watching a wonderfully jolly Meryl Streep bring her gregarious nature and love of food to life leaves me wanting to know more. I chose the Boeuf Bourguignon recipe because it looked so tasty simmering in the pot on Julie's (Amy Adams) stove. And, I wanted an excuse to use the Le Creuset dutch oven that my parents gave me last year.

View the Boeuf Bourguignon recipe > >

I created a shopping list and went to Whole Foods to purchase the ingredients, which called for 3.5 pounds of lean stewing beef. I got the exact amount the recipe called for, but after I trimmed the meat, it was down to a little over three pounds, so I'll likely buy 3.75 to 4 pounds next time. I found a really inexpensive French Burgundy red wine to use with the recipe (it was $8 for the bottle) and decided to present the stew on top of a bed of polenta in place of fresh paprdelle noodles (a decision which my mother was skeptical about at the time). I allowed the beef simmer for a little over three hours, during which time it absorbed the richness of the stock and wine. The beef was incredibly tender, which was a nice counterpoint to the crunchiness of the sauteed carrots and pearl onions, while the polenta served as a starchy compliment to the heartiness of the stew. A natural savoriness arose from the cooking process—I didn't need to season the stew at all prior to serving (I let my family season to taste, as required).

All in all, the stew came out well. I can't wait to prepare again for friends as well as try a few more of Julia's recipes.