Welcome to My New Home on WordPress!

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Welcome everyone! I’m finally here and settling into my new home on the web. I’ll have lunch for you in a minute but first I want to tell you about my journey here.

I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time, migrating my Blogger blog over to WordPress, but I never had the nerve, I heard horror stories in the past, pictures, posts, links being lost, etc. Not being a techie person at all this scared the heck out of me!

Even though Blogger was good to me in the beginning, as time went on many issues came up that weren’t getting fixed, things disappearing, problems with commenting and a ton of spam on a daily basis, and something that really bothered me was that you never really own your blog on Blogger, it’s free, they could delete it at any time.

I loved all the new features I was seeing on WordPress blogs, updated, modern, user friendly, I needed a new look, after 5 years I felt stale and old!

In comes my web designer, Jeni, The Blog Maven, who came highly recommended by Cathy of Wives with Knives, so I emailed her a couple of months ago and from the first time I spoke with her I knew I had the right person. I had a list of questions that she patiently answered one by one no matter how ridiculous some of them were, she even skyped me several times!  Jeni is very detailed and thorough, she considers all of your needs and finds the best way to incorporate them for you. The whole process went so smooth with no major glitches at all, I didn’t even stress once! I would highly recommend her for migration of your Blogger blog, design issues or any technical questions you might have.

I have to learn some new things to get around on the back end of my blog so I will most definitely be out of my comfort zone for a while so please bare with me, but honestly it’s already starting to feel like home here. Take a look around and let me know what you think so far, I’m loving my new visual recipe index!

Now, how about that lunch? I’m serving, Spaghetti Squash Stuffed Peppers!

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Spaghetti squash, think of it as vegetable spaghetti, I know it’s not the real thing but when you roast it and rake up the strands with a fork it magically becomes a great substitute for the “white” stuff, and it tastes really good too! If you’re trying to lay off the carbs for a while replace this with any spaghetti dish you might be craving. I recently served it with mussels in a red sauce and it was delicious, the strands soaked up all the sauce, it was so good I’ll be making it again real soon.

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This time I decided to stuff some peppers with it, making an all veggie meal. I roasted crimini mushrooms along with garlic and green onions and pre-roasted the peppers as well.

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Then into a bowl I tossed the spaghetti squash, mushroom mixture, grated romano cheese, shredded asiago, parsley, basil, ( you could also add chopped fresh spinach or kale) a healthy drizzle of olive oil and a few tablespoons of roasted red pepper spread, courtesy of Trader Joe’s, but marinara sauce would work just as well.

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Stuff your peppers, put them back in the oven until the cheese melts inside and they are warmed through.

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Serve along side a green salad and you’ll have the perfect lunch or dinner. Thanks for stopping by my new digs!

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Comments

  1. CORRECTED POST:
    I googled your new site and was SO happy to find you again – it wasn’t loading from your old one on my RSS feeds – so was relieved to locate you again. I’ve followed you now for some time and made several recipes to rave reviews (die hard vegetarian so many of your veggie entrees are well suited for my frequent entertaining). I’m delighted the transition was so seamless for you – always a scary undertaking to know it is out of your hands but sounds like you got fantastic support before and during!! (Oh, and just a quick and VERY friendly VERY gentle note from a place of kindness: you wrote “please bare with me” – it should be “bear”.) You always write so beautifully and are so professional I am guessing you’d rather know about the edit….thanks again for sharing your beautiful cooking and CREATIVE recipes!!

  2. Congrats on making the switch to WordPress. Love the new site.

  3. Hi Marie,
    I recently found your blog and congratulate you on the beautiful dishes and photography which allow you to easily walk through the cooking process feeling confident that you are “doing it right”. I served the spaghetti squash stuffed peppers at a small dinner for friends Saturday night and they were the hit of the meal. They were absolutley a grand slam! One of the beautiful advantages of this dish was that I took a chance and cooked all the ingredients and stuffed the peppers hours before serving and reheated them in the oven just prior to serving dinner. I cannot imagine that the peppers would be better if baked immediately because they were awesome when warmed up. The “prepare ahead” made them perfect for pulling the meal together. Your blog is awesome and I thank you for sharing your creative skills and your obvious love for food.
    Lindsay from NC

  4. Yum that looks good!
    Hope the new home works out well for you. I have been tempted to transfer to WordPress also!

  5. I wondered why I wasn’t receiving the updates on my RSS feeds. I will have to re-subscribe. Love your blog!

  6. Looking good Marie.

  7. AnnMarie Birster says

    Marie, the new blog is awesome!!! Thanks for the roasted pepper/ spaghetti squash recipe !! I made it tonight and it was amazing!!! So flavorful and gorgeous presentation! I look forward to your blog and I also love that you use a lot of vegetables!!! Keep up the great work!!!

    AnnMarie

  8. BEAUTFUL!!!! Congratulations on your new home, Marie. I am writing from my car just north of Galesburg, Illinois because I remembered that your move was this week. I am looking forward to what Jeni does to my blog in February. Thank you for one of the kindest Facebook comments about my dad . . . one of the best foodie influences in my life. I can’t wait for more of your mouthwatering recipes!
    xoxo,
    Roz

  9. Love the new site! Very clean and pretty.
    Welcome to 2013.
    Now what are we going to about me??
    xo

  10. YAY Marie! It ROCKS!
    Great dish to kick off the new site too, so colorful, so YOU!
    Congrats My Friend!
    LL

  11. I’m such a big bag of lazybones – would love to do what you did. But you know – it’s your eye, taste, experience and talent with the blog that makes it so. Wherever you go, I will follow. (And make those recipes.) I am in awe of what you just did with vegetables.

  12. Ciaochowlinda says

    Marie. – It’s hard to imagine how Pround Italian Cook could get any better, but you managed it , and how. I love, love, love the new logo with the fork and look forward to perusing the index. You’ve given me inspiration many times for recipes, and now for a new blog overhaul. Xox and much more success to an already awesome blogger and blog.

  13. Love, love, love your new blog!!! Deliciously beautiful, as always. Kudo to you and Jeni, The Blog Maven.

  14. Beautiful new site Marie! I like the clean fresh look! Love your recipes and adventures here in Virginia! 🙂

  15. Complimenti! The site looks fab, and this recipe looks wonderful. I love spaghetti squash, and am always on the lookout for new ways to use it. Thanks for this one. All the best to you and yours in 2013!

  16. Congratulations, and I love your new digs. I’ve seen your website designer’s work, and love it. The next re-design that I do, will be to move to Word Press. Maybe. I dunno. (Call me chicken.) No matter what, I look forward to more new recipes from your new kitchen.

    • Debbie, Take it from me, I was chicken, scared and stressed even thinking about doing it, but it went as smooth as silk with Jeni, it was painless!

  17. Love your new blog!!! And this recipe looks wonderfully delicious!!

  18. Mariano Barbin says

    good job

  19. Auguri!!! I wish you all the best. Looks great and just know that even when you don’t hear from all of us EACH time you post, we are SO appreciative of all that you do, Marie! p.s. I am SO thankful for each and every item of Italian food I make and of each and every item you post, too!!!!

  20. Bello !

  21. A great recipe to warm your new home. I’ve been tempted to make a move myself. Maybe your courage will inspire me, as much as your cooking does!

  22. Loving your new home Marie. It is the best way to start a new year. As for the spaghetti squash stuffed peppers, I’m in..twice.

  23. Congratulation on the successful move. You’re going to love WordPress. I’ve never been on blogger, but I do know one thing, blogs I read on WordPress look better and are more user friendly. I’ve used and talked with Jeni, she’s great. I’m getting ready to have her tweak some things for me. Your blog looks fantastic! You must be thrilled.

  24. Woo-Hoo…hurrah for you, Marie! Your blog looks absolutely fantastic! I agree with you, Jeni is so creative and great to work with. And she will always be there to help with any problems. Your photographs look gorgeous and I love your new header. I can imagine how happy you are with your new look. What a fantastic way to start the new year. I wish I could stick a fork right into that stuffed pepper.

  25. Contratulations, looks very nice, great pictures. Cannot wait to try the stuffed peppers – I love spaghetti squash!

  26. Congrats on your new blog, I’ve bookmarked straight away. I’ll be looking forward to some lovely & tasty recipes.

  27. Hi Marie
    Im looking at your new web site through my phone as I’m not hooked up to the internet yet in my new home, but it still looks gorgeous! Best of luck with it and much continued success!
    I love the look of your spaghetti squash stuffed peppers … So healthy and delicious!

  28. The blog looks great and so does the meal! I get emails to let me know when you post, will that continue? Thanks!

  29. Marie: I just love your new web site! Especially all of the gorgeous pictures you take of your food! I don’t know how you come up with so many fantastic recipes. But PLLLEEEEEEZZE keep those recipes coming!

  30. Love the new blog. Been thinking of switching for so long, even took on line courses just so busy. But this looks great so it is back on my to do list. Thanks for the nudge!

  31. Hey Marie congratulations! I am afraid to move my blog unless I had no choice. I tried clicking on recipes on your side bar but when they finally came up,it was words only no photos? Maybe it is me? I use Google Chrome, my laptop is just 5 months old, I don’t know. 🙁 I’ll try again later. xo

    • Don’t worry Barbara, my designer says this happens for a few days as it’s transitioning, all should be good by Monday!

  32. Megan Sanders says

    Congrats on your new blog! We (my husband and I) discovered your blog last spring and have enjoyed your photos and many recipes. We traveled to Italy in May with our daughter and truly fell in love with the climate, terrain, history, people and food and your recipes take us right back there. We live in a city with a rich Italian heritage but restaurants tend to stick with stereotypical fare. One thing we particularly love is that so many of your recipes feature vegetables because we don’t eat meat. Thank you!

  33. love the new website! the pics are amazing. as always, thank you for sharing!!

  34. Mary Alice Bier says

    Marie, your new blog is amazing…..beautiful photos, fantastic recipes, easy to navigate. It is hard to pick only one section to be a favorite but if I have to it is the recipe index. What a brilliant idea to show the photo of the recipe….makes you want to grab the dish right off the page and start eating. Your photos are beautiful; you have a way with that camera thats for sure. Best of luck with your new blog; your creativity and attention to detail is truly a gift.

  35. Glad the move was painless. The index looks really good. I am looking forward to what you offer in the upcoming year.

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