Oh please, not another food blog?
Yeah, I know. I was researching some books on search-engine optimization recently and I stumbled across a book about blogging entitled “No-one cares what you had for your lunch!”. I instantly thought of my own little blog and the countless others I read on a daily basis. I had to smile to myself.
My blog, started life as an on-line diary of my exploits in the kitchen. I was sick of getting home from work every evening and finding myself short of culinary inspiration. A fridge full of food and nothing to cook for dinner! So I hit upon the idea of a food diary where I could record my favourite recipes and save myself anxiety after a day’s work.
I originally set up the blog without submitting to any search engines, intending it to be a private catalogue. It was around about this time that I started getting interested in “real” food blogs (see some amazing example in my Blogroll). I thought “why not?” and moved my blog to “toastedspecial.com” and the rest, as they say, is history.
Why “toastedspecial”?
A toasted special is toasted sandwich and is served in almost every pub in Ireland. Up and down the country a “Toasted Special” means one thing: a toasted sandwich with ham, cheese, onion and tomato. It’s almost as if a committee sat down to define the term. There may even be legislation in place, preventing errant pub owners from deviating from the recipe!
What do you write about?
Pretty much anything food related. A day never goes by where I’m not leafing through a cookery book, researching a restaurant or cooking in my own kitchen. I particularly love weekends as I can experiment with some slow-cooking. I find being “stove-side” very relaxing as I can switch off and lose myself in the the process. Add some great tunes and you have a fantastically relaxing weekend. Rock & Metal, Nick Cave, Tom Waits and 60’s compilations get a regular spin on my iPod, particularly when I’m cooking.
I love Irish food. I was lucky to grow up surrounded by great food; roasts, stews, casseroles, freshly baked bread, all fantastic. I hope to have Irish food well-represented on this blog, I hope you enjoy.
Who developed your site?
I did. toastedspecial.com is powered by the fantastic WordPress and the theme used is a modified theme based on K2.
How often do you blog?
I’ve set myself an easy target of once a week. Anything more than that is a bonus. I’m aiming for quality not quantity. 
Can I contact you?
Why that would be lovely. I can be contacted on: toastedspecial {at} gmail {dot} com
