A note about this blog and my recipe rating system.

I've been thinking about starting a blog for a long time now, but I never seem to have the time.  Plus, I've never been exactly sure what a blog even IS.  At first I thought I wanted to do a blog devoted entirely to cooking, but then again, I really wanted to to something to keep my friends and family up to date on what we are doing, share some ideas, get some feedback, et cetera.  In short, this blog is an experiment and may change course over time. 

When we post a recipe, we use a three-category scoring system.  The three categories are as follows:

• Taste (10 possible points)
• Effort vs. Payoff (5 possible points)
• Kid-friendliness (3 possible points)

     First and foremost, Taste.  Quite simply, we will rate the recipe on how good it tastes.  This being the most important category, has the highest possible point value of 10 points.
     Effort vs. Payoff is not quite as simple to explain.  Let's say you have a very simple recipe; quick and easy to prepare, common and inexpensive ingredients.  If this recipe has decent taste then it would score high in this category.  My taste expectations aren't very high when we're talking about a quick and easy, low-cost recipe.  However, let's say you have a recipe that has a lot of prep work, more expensive, less common ingredients, long cooking time, et cetera.  The complex recipe would need to have great taste in order to score high on the scale.  Most simply stated; if this recipe was a hassle to prepare, it had better taste pretty darn good!  This category has a maximum 5-point value.
     Kid-Friendliness will earn the recipe a maximum of three points;  I don't set a whole lot of value on the taste opinions of these little people who appreciate the subtle tastes of boogers and lint, but I do want to preprare foods that the kids like.  Can kids play an active role in preparing this meal?  Did the kids enjoy eating it?
     I also reserve the right to toss in up to three bonus points for health value.  If a recipe doesn't taste awesome, but is healthy, nutrient-loaded, or is low in sodium or fat, then I may throw in up to three bonus points. 

1-4 points: 1 Star
5-9 points: 2 Stars
10-14 points:  3 Stars
15-18 points:  4 Stars


     Now doesn't this sound fun?