chef doodle

Hello! I’m Natalie

physician, Baker, photographer, mom

Name: Natalie Uy Chef Uy (now Chef Uy, MD!)

About me:
I’m a premed / medical student / internal medicine resident/ hematology-oncology fellow / hematology-oncology attending physician (finally!) I study. I doodle. I cook, bake, and eat!

Email: obsessivecooking@gmail.com

Obsessive Cooking Disorder (lovingly known as OCD) was originally a random collection of recipes. I started this food blog as a Stanford undergraduate who needed to cook during my summer research months. I would constantly experiment with recipes, but kept forgetting which recipe I used or what changes I made, so I started OCD to record my “culinary endeavors”. 

My foodblog grew in medical school since there was no more cafeteria / dorm food!. I’ve always loved baking, but couldn’t live on cookies and brownies, and thus expanded the range of recipes.

I love inventing recipes, taking food photography, finding the history/science/random facts about food, and documenting stories. I’ve food blogged through medical school, residency, fellowship, being an attending, and I plan to continue as long as I’m eating!

“B” is my fiance / now husband and ever diligent food taster (he prefers to remain mysterious, and thus goes by his first initial). We both love to eat! Our family has grown by a freckled fox and two little girls through the years.

FAQ

I’m just a premed / medical student / resident / doctor who likes to eat. “Chef Uy” is just a nickname my family gave me.
Disclaimer: This is a personal blog with my thoughts / musing on life. I do not claim to give professional medical advice on this blog and any patient identifiers are removed / altered for privacy. 

Yes, that’s my day job. I did Internal Medicine residency at Yale New Haven Hospital / Yale University, and did hematology-oncology fellowship at University of Washington/Fred Hutch Cancer Center, and now I work as a hematology-oncology physician in my dream job.

My journey as a doctor is labeled “medical” for those interested.

For my photography, I’ve used a variety of camera gear over the years.

From 2008 I used a Nikon D5100 DSLR with the kit lens. In Dec 2016, I upgraded to two prime lenses, Nikon 50mm f/1.8 and 85mm f/1.8. In Spring 2017, I added the Nikon 35mm f/1.8. In Nov 2018 I upgraded to a full frame Nikon D750 body. Sadly all my Nikon camera gear was stolen on a trip in June 2019. Since then I now use a Sony a7iii mirrorless with the 35mm f/1.8 and 85mm f/1.8 for this blog (and added a Tamron 70-180mm f/2.8 in April 2023)

I started editing the photos using Apple’s Photos program. Then I started learning Photoshop in 2012. Now since 2018, I use Lightroom and Photoshop.

Food styling is all practice, and I take usually 30+ pictures for every recipe shoot for 3-6 good photos. I take my pictures with natural light (occasionally a lightbox setup or Ikea lamp)

My artwork/doodles were drawn by hand and colored in Photoshop with a tablet. I used to draw for every recipe for a year in medical school, but I no longer keep them up due to time constraints.

I stated with Google’s blogspot/blogger since it was free. It wasn’t great, and but it functioned and WordPress would have a steep learning curve.

In April 2023, I lost all my photos on my blog due to a blogspot glitch, which was devastating, so I bit the bullet and moved my foodblog to WordPress for better function, backup, and more control over the design/aesthetics. It took hundreds of hours, but by August 2024, I managed to finish rebuilding the blog – while I lost so many photos, most of the blog was saved.

This blog is purely a fun hobby and a personal space, so I don’t do guest posts. I love watching it grow, and I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with some amazing companies that I genuinely love.

For collaborations, read more here (Work with Me) and email me at obsessivecooking@gmail.com.

If you love something (and I do LOVE eating) you find the time for it. Life’s a marathon, not a sprint!

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