About

Introducing my young daughter to
Mango, one of our two cats!

Welcome to Cooking in the Capitol! I'm Julia, a self-professed foodie with a life-long love of eating, cooking, and health. I'm also a political junkie and an entrepreneur with my own start-up in the sustainable farming world, FOCUS Foods Inc (www.focusfoodsinc.com). I'm also a new mother of a beautiful little girl, born April 2016. All of these facets of my life play an important piece here at Cooking in the Capitol.

As long-time readers, or new followers combing through the archives, may know, this blog has been through many iterations. It started when I was living in DC, walking past the Capitol on the way to work every day. I had moved there following 1.5 years on the 2007-2008 Obama presidential campaign. I had been living in supporter housing and working 120+ hours per week, which meant I hadn't cooked or even really eaten homemade, healthy food in ages. With a 50 hour a week job I also suddenly felt like I had abundant free time, so the blog began as a way to get creative in the kitchen once again and document my fun. I made little effort to share it beyond immediate family and friends. The recipes represent my excitement at having free time and my own kitchen once again. They are in-depth and long. I love making things from scratch, tackling new challenges, and hosting dinner parties. If you want to roll up your sleeves and spend two days cooking a feast for 12, or a date night meal to impress, the recipes from that era are for you.

Four years ago, I moved to Philadelphia for grad school. I pursued two degrees at two schools in two cities so I was continually flying back and forth between Boston and Philly. I also founded my own start-up. The posts lessened as I continued to cook but skipped writing it up, but I missed it.

I graduated last year with the blog all but forgotten. But then a funny thing happened... I had a baby, a little girl, Shira, in April 2016. Suddenly eating healthy was just as important but making dinner now meant 30 minutes, perhaps 45 on a good night. As I fielded requests for healthy, fast, homemade meals I realized there are a lot of parents and busy professionals wanting just what I am tackling, so the blog is redesigned and back - and while I;m not sure how, I do hope it gains a slightly wider audience. New recipes still focus on health and nutrition but now also speed. Whereas I used to shun any shortcuts you'll now find them. I try to sort through the decision making process so you don't have to, putting in the short cuts that are needed while telling you when something is really worth the time and effort. Look for these changes in new posts, 2016 forward, but don't neglect older ones, They have all been re-tagged so you can sort out the short ones!

A quick note: I'm a huge fan of Wegmans, Whole Foods, and Cooking Light. You'll find a lot of references to them and even links to products and such. This is solely to help you. This blog is a passion project and I am in no way connected to any of those companies. I simply hope the links, where relevant, assist you in getting healthy meals on the table faster!