Noble Pig, established in 2007, is a place for me to write about food, develop recipes and share them with you.
Welcome to my site and my life!
About Cathy Pollak
Hi, I’m Cathy Pollak.
I didn’t always love to cook. In fact, as a teen I paid little attention to anything going on in the family kitchen. It wasn’t until my early twenties that I suddenly took a real interest in creating food from scratch. I learned to cook by following recipes. Once I mastered certain techniques, I felt comfortable putting my own spin on things and creating meals specifically to my tastes. I think my first cookbook was 365 Ways to Cook Chicken, remember that one?
About the same time I was learning to cook, I also caught the wine bug after taking many trips to the Napa Valley in Northern California. Needless to say I became fascinated with the science of winemaking. I was learning so much about wine on these trips and it’s all I thought about while back at home in Southern California. At that point in my life, winemaking seemed like an impossible dream, but one I thought about often.
Fast forward many years and two kids later, an opportunity arose for me to return to the classroom, this time studying Viticulture & Enology at the University of California, Davis. I honestly could not believe I was going to attend this program and delve into the art and science of making wine and growing grapes.
At the same time I was planting my vineyard in the Pacific Northwest, I was also discovering food recipes on the internet (this was way before social media existed in the sense we know it today).
I decided I also wanted a food website where I could share my creativity in the kitchen to get me through the long period of time it takes to grow grapes and make wine. What I never imagined was that this website would take off and grow to the epic proportions it has today. It has been a dream.
The fact Noble Pig has become its own self-supporting business still amazes and humbles me. It was only supposed to be a hobby. I have been blessed with how it has all turned out.
This irresistible outlet of writing about food balances my creative side of thinking. For me, it’s the best of both worlds. With my extensive sensory training from my days in enology school, I have a unique sense of what flavors come together well. This helps so much in the kitchen when creating something innovative and new is on the line.
I have enjoyed seeing my writing and recipes featured in the Chicago Sun-Times, the Huffington Post and all kinds of other wonderful publications. Working with brands, writing on their sites and developing recipes for their products has also been especially rewarding.
So many of you have been here and stuck around on this journey since 2008 and you have no idea how much I appreciate that.
My Favorites!
Don’t leave before checking out my 10 favorite recipes!
- Air Fryer Salmon
- Dill Pickle Soup
- Cosmo Recipe
- Cinnamon Roll Casserole
- Bailey’s Irish Cream Cake
- Air Fryer Bang Bang Shrimp
- Pineapple Coleslaw
- Agave Margarita
- Blackberry Crumble
- Flank Steak Tacos
Contact – Let’s Chat!
If you have a question about a recipe, or if you’d like to get in touch regarding a potential partnership with Noble Pig, please email Cathy at [email protected] You can also check out Noble Pig on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram.
Thanks again,
Cathy Pollak