Twenty Questions with Just Making Noise
Just Making Noise has been one of our favorite blogs the moment we received their first submission. Mare, the creator behind it all, is one of those rare people whose warmth can be felt even through the impersonal world of the internet, and we’re thrilled that she let us feature her. She’s talented, intelligent and inspiring! Pay her gorgeous blog a visit and you’ll see just what we mean.
How long have you had a food blog (or other foodie type site)?
Since March 2009… I can’t believe it! It will be a year this coming March!
How would you describe your site to new readers?
On the personal side, it is a place where I can share my life as a missionary in Central America, a wife to a wonderful man, a mama to 2 precious girls and a cook who is passionate about real, wholesome & slow food. Mix all that in a pot with a dose of being deaf since birth creates a crazy, noisy & beautiful life.
On the food side, my blog is an outlet for me to share all that I’ve learned and changed in our diet. You will find that it goes against the flow of the average American current. After my first daughter was born we abandoned the SAD (Standard American Diet) and choose to follow the traditional ways of eating and enjoying food. We love butter, coconut oil, coconut flour, eggs (cooked & raw), raw milk, raw cheese, kefir, grass-fed meat & organs, cod liver oil, soaked grains & lacto-fermented veggies. All of them are nourishing God-made foods that you will find often in my recipes.
What made you decide to start your site?
I needed an outlet and place where I could be open about our alternative lifestyle surrounding food and health. Since we first started to change our way of thinking and eating it became a passion. I wanted to tell everybody about it. Some have seen the change in our lives and took steps to change while others were resistant. We have experience all sorts of reactions from people, some good & some bad. On my blog, people can choose to come & go and respect what I have put on there. I also created some of my own recipes that I wanted a way to document and share them with others.
Is there any personal meaning behind the name?
Yes, very much. The name came to me one afternoon after we were leaving the farmer’s market. I was sitting in the back with my youngest daughter, Tabitha, who was about 5 or 6 months at the time and she was getting really fussy. My husband asked me if Tabitha was okay and I just told him she was just making noise… and that’s when it hit me… that would be a perfect title! I had been trying to come up with a name that fit who I was and how I live my life. I am a noisy, deaf person plus living the alternative lifestyle can make me somewhat noisy about my opinions sometimes. Thus, the name was born into a blog about my life as a deaf wife, mama & cook.
What advice do you have for new bloggers?
I think I am still under the category of a “new blogger”, but here’s my 2 cents… having a blog can be time consuming, but it depends if you want it to be your job or a hobby. Just make sure you have fun with it!
What’s the best thing about being a food blogger?
Finding and meeting other bloggers who are like-minded and share the same goals in life with food, family & God. I also love it when gals contact me and share with me their stories of how changing their diet has changed their lives. It is very encouraging to know that I can help them continue on that path.
On the food side of it, I love how my blog challenges me to try new things and recreate recipes to make it nourishing and totally guilt-free. I have noticed that my photography has improved a lot since I started my blog. I never thought I would actually enjoy food photography! I studied photography for 2 years and did everything, but didn’t like food or sports photography. Now, here I am doing food photography and loving it!
What’s the worst?
So time consuming.
What food blog inspires you the most?
Well, I actually have several but the three that I enjoyed the most before starting mine were The Nourished Kitchen, Passionate Homemaking & The Nourishing Gourmet.
What camera do you use?
Nikon N70
Do you have any formal training in the field of cooking?
Nope.
Do you watch a lot of cooking on TV?
No, only when I am in the United States visiting (we don’t own a television). I mostly love looking through cookbooks. If we are at someone’s house… you will find me looking through their cookbooks. Always.
Do you have a favorite chef, celebrity or otherwise?
Honestly, not really. Maybe someday I will.
How challenging has it been to find a loyal reader base?
Not too bad, but it does take time. It has been successful by visiting other sites, leaving comments and building relationship with other bloggers. Again, time consuming.
What types of food do you enjoy preparing most?
Oh man, I love preparing almost anything sweet & wholesome… smoothies, baked goods & ice cream. Throwing in a mango would be my “cherry on top”. I’ve also grown to enjoy the art of making lacto-fermented veggies and would love to experiment more with fruits. You will often see several jars of veggies sitting around my kitchen fermenting… sometimes we will experience an eruption or two when the pressure gets too much. It is so fun!
Do you have a signature dish or two?
I have so many! I think my signature dishes are the Cortido (Latin American Sauerkraut), Strawberry Coconut Muffins w/ Strawberry Cream Cheese, Brushetta Stuffed Potatoes, Quesadillas & Daddio’s Cinnamon Raisin Pancakes.
Favorite kitchen gadget?
I don’t have just one, I have many! I can’t live without the Vita-Mix, cast-iron pans, ceramic peeler, dehydrator and food processor.
If you could choose to be any food, what would it be?
Savory: Something Italian… I heart traditional, authentic Italian food.
Sweet: A big bowl of homemade ice cream topped with fresh strawberries, pecans & chocolate!
If you could banish just one food from the earth, what would it be?
Actually, I have several “foods” that I would just love to see banished… all refined processed foods, artificial sweeteners & flavors, HFCS (high fructose corn syrup), hydrogenated oils and many more that claim to be “food” when they are really man-made chemicals and poisons.
What’s the one super power you wish you had?
Well, I already have one right now… I make milk!
Okay, sorry… let’s see, the ability to make a clone of myself so I can do two things at the same time. Like play with the girls and work in the kitchen… or … hang out with my hubby and go run errands, but that will be kinda creepy and weird. Nevermind.
What’s your favorite thing about “Refrigerator Soup”?
Love the people who run it… they are so cool! The site totally reflects them.
I also love the idea surrounding the site. Throwing together a soup of all the best food pictures from all over the world. Creating a mixture of delicious pictures, fun people & a good dose of love.
To see more of Marillyn’s fabulous food photography, delicious recipes and to subscribe to her blog, please visit her at Just Making Noise.
To learn about how you can get Featured, please email us at twentyquestions [at] refrigeratorsoup [dot] com. Note: Priority is given to those bloggers who consistently submit photographs, so please keep that in mind before inquiring. We are not adding to the schedule at this time as we are currently booked through mid-March, 2010, but welcome inquiries from those interested in being featured.
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