welcome!
Hi! I'm Joanie.
Welcome to my virtual kitchen, the home base for all my best recipes. I live in Phoenix, Arizona with my husband, our two boys and an Australian Shepherd named Bruce.
Origin of The Dinner Bell
The name "The Dinner Bell" came from my Grandma Joanie (for whom I'm named!) She loved a party and her house was the go-to for all holidays and special occasions. As grandkids, we knew it was time to eat when she rang the bell just outside the kitchen door.
The Dinner Bell symbolizes a love for feeding others and gathering around the table together. From weeknight dinners to Sunday brunch and special occasions you'll find all of our family's favorites on this site.
All Eaters Welcome!
You'll also find allergen-friendly and refined sugar-free recipes here. I have friends and family members with allergies and intolerances including celiac and type 2 diabetes. I never want my guests to feel left out when we share a meal together, so I celebrate the opportunity to make things that everyone can enjoy.
I also want to provide myself, my husband and my kids with nutritious food that gives us the energy to do our best every day.
My Blood Sugar Journey
2024 was an important year in my own journey toward better health. I had noticed a decline in energy, major brain fog, issues with sleep, struggled with some undesired extra weight, and started experiencing symptoms of what seemed to be perimenopause starting in 2022.
Things came to a head in 2024 when I was experiencing debilitating pain during my monthly cycle. I wanted solutions, but didn't want to just throw medications at the problems either. After reading some helpful books like Good Energy, Glucose Revolution and The New Menopause, among others, I decided that the first step toward feeling better was to reduce stress on my body through what I was eating and lifestyle choices like sleep and exercise.
I signed up for the app Levels and started wearing a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) to monitor my blood glucose levels. This device is typically prescribed for people with diabetes for monitoring blood sugar. I'm not personally diabetic or pre-diabetic. However, as research continues to suggest, the relationship between blood glucose, inflammation in the body, overall metabolic health and hormones is undeniable.
I embarked on a quest to balance my blood sugar and to reduce inflammation. I stopped counting calories, I ignored the scale, I let go of my high intensity cardio workouts and swapped them for low impact daily walks. And as for food, I went for low-glycemic options, focusing on protein, fat and fiber, and ultimately choices that wouldn't spike my blood sugar.
Having the real time data in the Levels app was fascinating. Seeing how different foods (and quantities of food) uniquely affected my body was empowering, and inspired me to make choices based purely on how the food would make me feel.
In just three months, I lost 20 pounds, cleared the brain fog, and started sleeping better. I felt healthier both mentally and physically. I had finally stepped off the blood sugar spike roller coaster I hadn’t even realized I was on. Good health no longer felt out of reach. I wasn’t depriving myself. I was nourishing my body, and it thanked me for it.
However, I was still experiencing excruciating pain with my monthly cycle. Through testing my gynecologist discovered I had adenomyosis. Reducing inflammation in my body was helpful for treating it, but wasn't going to fully solve the problem so I'm currently utilizing hormone therapy to support this diagnosis.
That said, I'm so grateful my physical challenges sent me down this path and I continue to do good by my body. The majority of the time I'm enjoying foods that keep my blood sugar in balance and have that magical combination of protein, fat and fiber.
But I also indulge in ice cream pie for birthdays and french fries on vacation and cinnamon rolls at Christmas. I still enjoy all foods, because this isn't a diet, it's not a short term fix. It's a sustainable way to live life and enjoy food to its fullest!
Where I Fell in Love with Cooking
I have been food obsessed since childhood. I blame it on 90's PBS cooking shows.
My first culinary exploits started when I was ten years old, attempting things like homemade pasta and Tandoori Chicken. I didn't grow up in a "foodie" household, but my mom was always supportive of my fascination with the culinary arts.
In high school I would read cookbooks in my spare time (that certainly hasn't changed).
When my husband and I moved to New York City as newlyweds, we didn't have a lot of money. Any extra funds that we did have went toward dining out and exploring all the amazing food that NYC had to offer.
Then when we moved back to our hometown of Phoenix, Arizona I worked in the restaurant industry and soaked up all the insights I could from local chefs and purveyors. I even had the opportunity to show off my skills in an episode of Guy's Grocery Games on Food Network.
The Best Culinary Training
Since 2015 I've worked professionally as a food photographer which has afforded me the opportunity to not only capture lots of beautiful food, but to experience it and learn from top professionals in the food world. The best culinary training comes from hands-on experience, and it's this first-hand knowledge that informs all of the recipes I share with you.
The recipes you'll find here are all:
- Well tested! I do not want to give you a recipe that won't work in your kitchen.
- Well tasted! In addition to friends and neighbors, my toughest critics are my kids. Every recipe I share has officially received two thumbs up from them.
- Made for your average American household. I do love fancy ingredients, but I don't want to send you on any wild goose chases through the grocery store.
- I have modified some of the old family favorites that have been handed down to me to omit some of the processed food items.
When I'm not dreaming up recipes for this site or capturing cookbooks for clients, I also teach food photography and video through my YouTube channel and website, The Bite Shot.
Thanks so much for stopping by. Interested in sponsoring content on this site or need food photos for your business? E-mail me at joanie@joaniesimonmedia.com.