My name is Trista Crossley. After almost 15 years in the publishing industry, I decided to change careers and go to  culinary school. I enrolled in the new Baking and Patisserie program at Western Culinary Institute in Portland, Ore., and dived in. I loved everything about the experience. And I got to expand my baking horizons in ways I hadn’t even considered.

At first, I was mostly interested in the chocolate and confections part of the program, but I quickly fell in love with breads instead. I had grand plans to eventually open the perfect bakery in a picturesquely perfect town and live happily ever after. Uh, yeah. Life intervened in a big way.

Now I’m back to freelance graphic design and baking at home. I also collect cookbooks; I have a lot of cookbooks. Like nearly 200 of them. I know the exact number because I keep track of them on a spreadsheet so I don’t accidentally buy the same one twice (not that I’ve ever done that, cough cough).

A few years ago, my husband challenged me to stop buying new cookbooks and start using the ones I already have. Unable to resist a challenge, I decided to give it a go. Except for the part about not buying any new cookbooks, that is.

That’s where this blog comes in. I wanted a way to keep track of the recipes I’ve tried, what worked and what didn’t. My good intentions start with picking one book and trying 10 to 15 recipes out of it. Since I’m a baker at heart, my cookbook collection leans heavily toward the sweet and/or yeasty side.

Trista