About

Photo by Jay Rasmussen Photography

Hi, I'm Rebekah, the Kitchen Gidget!

Thanks for reading and I hope you experience some of the joy that comes from creating and sharing!

How did you start cooking and blogging?

I grew up in a family with good cooks and I ate ravenously. Relatives joked both legs must be hollow because there is no way my stomach could be large enough to store everything I ate. When I was about 7 years old, my father brought home the Teddy Bear's Picnic Cookbook. I made the Vegetable and Cheese Pitas (modified by adding poached chicken!) and that's the first time I can remember cooking on my own.

In 2013 I was furloughed from my job. With the extra time on my hands, I began documenting my from-scratch Real Food diet on Instagram. I received so much positive feedback and people asking for recipes, I began thinking: I should start a food blog. The rest is history, as they say. I'm just a home cook with a passion for food. I've had no training and am mostly self-taught (thank you homeschooling).

What kind of recipes do you make?

I'm a Midwestern born-and-raised girl who has also lived in Hawaii, Japan, Virginia, Arizona and Texas. 😀 This blog reflects that diversity and features my most-loved, tried-and-true family favorite recipes, lots of desserts for my sweet tooth and flavorful Puerto Rican dishes!

Why Puerto Rican food?

Growing up I was always surrounded by Puerto Rican friends and family. Naturally I assumed this was my identity which led to the famous quote: "I'm Puerto Rican!" You can read more about that here. This blog also highlights recipes from my Mexican and Polish heritage.

Where did the name "Gidget" come from?

Gidget is a classic beach movie from 1959. It's about a fun loving girl who learns how to surf and is bestowed the nickname Gidget by the surfer dudes.  {Girl + Midget = Gidget.} Standing at just over 5 feet, I'm definitely a petite person, which led to my coworkers bestowing me with the nickname Gidget. <3 I haven't got a surf board, but I know a thing or two about cutting boards!

Gidget LOVES the beach! The photo below is one of my wedding pictures.

I get asked about blogging a lot and here are some of the tools I used to get started or currently use. These are my essentials and worth every penny! The links are my affiliates, which means I may earn a commission:

There's much, much more that goes into it, but I'm happy to answer any questions you have!