About Me

Hi, and thanks for stopping by at Stephencooks.com. I'm Stephen Smith and I do all the cooking, photography and writing for Stephencooks.

I've been passionate about food and cooking since I was in college. I cook daily for my family and friends and people often ask me what I've been cooking lately. I started Stephencooks in 2005 so they could see for themselves.

Stephencooks now includes hundreds of recipes from my kitchen. I range widely in my food interests, from favorite family recipes to the cuisines of Italy, France, Japan, China and India. I like traditional methods and rarely use anything but whole, unprocessed ingredients. I particularly like to take advantage of locally-sourced food and wild-caught ingredients, which keeps my cooking tuned to the seasons.

Eating Well While on a Diabetes Regimen

In August 2008 I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. When I got that news I assumed it was the end of my joyful relationship with good food, but happily that didn't turn out to be true.

I lost weight, learned to control my blood glucose levels and became more attentive to my exercise schedule -- and I started to adapt my cooking to the realities of my new life as a person with diabetes.

At first it was hard, particularly since I knew that -- unlike a diet, which is over when the goal is achieved -- I will be on restrictions for the rest of my life.

Real Food
Real Cooking
Healthy Recipes

But good food didn't end for me. In fact, even though there have been a lot of changes in my kitchen over the last year, my passionate enjoyment of food and cooking is just as high as it ever was, and the people who come to my table say they've noticed virtually no difference at all.

So the new 2010 model of Stephencooks (coming soon) will still be a journal of my cooking adventures and explorations, but – after a summer of tune-up and revision of nearly 400 recipes – it will include nutrition estimates for the recipes and resources and links for anyone who is learning to eat (or cook for someone) on a diabetic regimen.

Thank you for asking...

One year on, my glucose levels, cholesterol and blood pressure are all well-controlled and I feel great...better, really, than I did during my pre-diabetes period. I'm looking forward to sharing my food and my journey to health with you.

NOTES

Where am I?

I live with my wife Elise and our cats Jack, Betty and Cyrus in an 1865 townhouse in Portland, Maine. We love it here.

My Kitchen Helper

I pretty much just cook, so I'm lucky enough to have a willing and energetic partner who does most of the cleanup. Cooking the way I do -- daily, with traditional methods (read: lots of pots, pans and bowls) and then photographing the food and blogging about it -- would not be possible without this help. Click HERE for more information about my wife Elise Smith.

Comments

I love receiving comments on posts and I frequently respond via email because I've found that communicating with people all over the world about similar interests really has added a new dimension to my world. Please confine comments to topics related to the associated post. Comments are moderated and may not appear if for any reason they aren't appropriate.

Food Source Issues

While I'm vitally concerned about the quality and sustainability of our food supply, the health impacts of food choices, ethical treatment of livestock and the environmental risks due to industrial food production operations, this site is limited in its scope to discussion of preparation of food in the kitchen, due to my limited time and expertise, and to related topics about diabetes. I certainly recommend that all my readers seek out the information they need to make decisions about food choices consistent with their concerns.

Disclaimers and Other Housekeeping Items

All recipes published on Stephencooks.com are original, unless credited to others, so usually I can't blame anyone else!

I'm a self-taught cook and cookbooks have been my teachers, but these days they pretty much stay on the shelf. If I've adapted my version from an identifiable source I will credit the source.

I'm not a doctor, nurse, nutritionist or Certified Diabetes Educator. Comments and unattributed information here about diabetes, weight loss and other health topics are based on my experience as a diabetes patient and are not initended to be viewed as professional advice.

References to Weight Watchers and Weight Watchers Points are informational only. Stephencooks.com has no relationship with Weight Watchers.

No paid placements are accepted at Stephencooks. If I mention or recommend an ingredient or product it's because I use it and like it.

All text and images Copyright © Stephen Smith/Donnersmith Studios 2005 - 2009.