Jill's Kitchen, Episode 1 "The Pilot"

The Cookin' Cajun, Justin Wilson

When I was a little girl I used to sit on our top bunk bed, feet kicked over the edge leaning on the rail, w a click pen attached to the collar of my shirt and would pretend to be a TV host. Sometimes I would be an anchorwoman, other times a game show host. But my favorite thing to pretend was to be like the "Cooking Cajun" Justin Wilson. I adored watching him on public television. He was funny, charming and always a little drunk. "Wooooo-boy, I guarantee" he was fun to watch ;)

 When I was in elementary school (go ROCKETS!!!), I would check out cookbooks from our school library and beg my mother to let me loose in her beloved kitchen. She would always be willing to help me out. One time I tried to make buttermilk buscuits from one of those kid's recipe books. My Father was the first to try one, he almost cracked a tooth. If there is a written word for the sound a cast iron skillet makes at it hits the floor insert it here: _____ . Dude, they were so hard my older sister Juli and I took them out to the alley and started chucking them to see whose would go farther. It took me 20 years to make a good biscuit after that. Thank goodness I got it down now.

The key to good gravy is starting with a good roux

When I was in high school I tried to learn all I could from my grandmothers about cooking. I spent 8 hours w my Grandma Meier one time while she taught me how to make the perfect gravy. "Nope, that's wrong, go wash the pan and do it again." , she'd tell me after each disappointing batch. And so I did. Again and again for hours. But guess what? I can now make ridiculously amazing gravy, not a lump in sight... CAN I GET A WITNESS????

When I was in my twenties, I had a brief gap in between jobs since my Bugle Boy store had closed and my Van Heusen store hadn't open yet. I was super bored so I decided to try my hand at catering. I had worked in the restaurant business for several years and I thought I knew what I was doing. I made some business cards and went all over town handing them out to people and offering to make whatever they needed, whenever they needed it. It went over pretty well. I had several really satisfied customers. But then the store was ready for me to open it and I had to yet again, put aside my dream to work for the man.

My hero and mentor, Rachael Ray

By the time I turned 30 I had begun taking a very serious approach to cooking. Reading, researching, watching, doing, copying, experimenting, you name it. Thanks to having cable for the first time, I was highly addicted to the Food Network and it was the culinary school I never had the opportunity to go to. I obsessed over roast chickens and fluffy omelets. I would literally cry if my husband didn't eat everything on his plate for fear that he didn't really like as much as he would always say he did. Food was it for me. It was all I really cared about. It was all I really wanted to do. But alas, I was a very unhappy retail manager making really good money w excellent benefits... and seriously who gives that up to cook? Eventually I did, to work as a server at family owned Mexican restaurant down the street from my house.  Five years later, I no longer serve, but I bartend for the best customers ever and get to do a ton of caterings. Working there has only nurtured my passion for food and has made me want to be a serious cook even more.

This pretty much brings us up to date. Here is it 2012 and I have made it, albeit a little surprisingly, to this point. And this is it. This is where I take my life back and start working on making my dreams come true. I have been to hell and back so many times I have an easy pass, but I am still standing strong, resilient, apron on and knife in hand. After 4 months of hard work with the amazing Shawn Gormley Films, I could not be prouder to announce:

This Friday night, April 27th at 9:00 pm I will be releasing my first ONLINE COOKING SHOW to the world via YouTube.

'Jill's Kitchen, the Online Series'

will begin with the pilot episode and will be followed by 5 more exciting and inspiring episodes to be released weekly.

My dream is to make you wanna get up and cook! Even if you have never cooked before. My concept is easy, accessible and super-duper delicious meals. Whether you are cooking for yourself or 20 of your best friends, Jill's Kitchen can hook you up w ideas and instructions that will simplify meal time. I want people to get out of the drive-thru and back to the dinner table!!!

Please consider this a personal invitation to help make my dream come true. Watch the pilot episode on YouTube, see what you think, give me some feedback, please!!! Worst case scenario you hate me and you don't watch again, you have nothing to lose ;)

Thank you for all of your support! I promise to keep on doing my best to inspire you to do something different for dinner tonight!!!!