1, 2, 3 – Food Talk

Growing up, food was the one thing that made me smile. I love reading cookbooks and could not wait to get my hands on a new Rachel Ray cookbook. Those books were simple, and creative. The recipes allowed room for readers to understand the cooking process.

I was young and easily took note of every sauce, and pasta recipe that were featured. Cooking soon became one of my favorite things to do. And still is Today!

Here is a pasta recipe made by my personal favorite chef, Emeril Lagasse for you all to enjoy: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/pot-roast-pasta-bolognese-recipe/index.html

Have a great week, and until next time, take a new recipe and get lost cooking in the kitchen.

Blissful Foods: Dessert of the Week

 It is mid winter season, despite the unusual weather here in NYC, and I have been looking forward to baking a few new recipes. Primarily, in hopes to turn my weekend into a joyful, work free time with my family. It is easy to daydream of a weekend with just the TV, a batch of something fresh, chocolate covered (of course), and delicious. I usually turn to Tollhouse, for their timeless chocolate chip cookies, but not this time. This week, I have been captivated by the smooth, creamy and divine taste of a slice of Tres leches cake.

Cake of all kinds are worthwhile, but with a few bites of a tres leches cake, I know that you will find that time has stopped and all of your daily worries will be melting away. 

Check out a this great recipe here: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/09/tres-leches-cake/

Until Next time, make sure to give cake recipes a try this week, you won’t regret it! For a plate of dessert can make a girl’s day shine a whole lot brighter. Honestly, it is my absolute instant cheer-up method, for any day of the week!

Always,

Ashley

2012 Food Trends & Desserts

Every Year, I am beyond excited to hear about what food trends will surface. It’s officially 2012, and I know there is bound to be something fantastic to try, including a few great restaurants to visit. I have been looking forward to trying some of the local shops and food spots in Brooklyn. It’s still early, so I am going to take a tip from the expert, James Oseland, who is the editor-in-chief of Saveur magazine, America’s most critically acclaimed food magazine!

I truly like his insight and understanding of which items to indulge in and which desserts to put at the top of the list. For your enjoyment, here is the video clip of NBC’s feature of the upcoming food trends of 2012. http://bites.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/29/9796260-cakes-pickles-and-the-next-great-grub-city-top-food-trends-for-2012

Until next time, have a wonderful day!

Always,

Ashley

Food Quote of the Week!

Insightful & Inspiring:

“When I walk into a market I may see a different cut of meat or an unusual vegetable and think, ‘I wonder how it would be if I took the recipe for that sauce I had in Provence and put the two together?’ So I go home and try it out. Sometimes my idea is a success and sometimes it is a flop, but that is how recipes are born. There really are not recipes, only millions of variations sparked by someone’s imagination and desire to be a little creative and different. American cooking is built, after all, on variations of old recipes from around the world.”

— James Beard (Epicurean Delight)

Dessert Quest: Lemon Central

                                        Lemon Bars are one of my favorite treats!  

Many would say that lemon – flavored bars or squares are simple and light desserts. Lately, I have been on the look-out for bakeries with lemon bars featured on the menu. I have not found a bakery that can win first prize for having the best, lemon bar ever, but I will keep trying to find one. Ladies and Gentlemen, lemon bars are magnificent and truly deserves to be treasured!!!

Until then, I have settled in with a few apple desserts that come equipped with taste and flavor. Honestly, when you make anything with apple, butter and brown sugar, it will turn out to be out of this world and jaw-dropping delicious!! Here are three great bakery treats prepared with apples, in NYC!  Enjoy!

•  1) Apple Almond Cake
•  2) Classic Apple Pie
•  3) Crisp Apple Danish

Always,
Ashley

Happy New Years

Hey Everyone, here is to wishing you all a full and blessed New Years! May you have a long list of food adventures this year. Including a never – ending plate full of delicious treats to enjoy throughout the year!

Always,

Ashley

Problems No More, Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays Everyone, I hope that you all had a wonderful time with your friends and families. I apologize for the delay in posts, I found errors with the settings on WordPress and struggled to locate a solution to fixing the problems. The posts I had created were accidentally deleted and it took some time to find out the reasons for the setting problems.

Thankfully, I was able to obtain help and finally fixed the stressful problems. I am thrilled that I will be able to post again!

Thank You for your patience. I will be posting more, fund food posts for all of you to read in the New Year!

Best Wishes,

Ashley

Falling for Comfort: Pancakes

Every winter, pancakes is one main resource that I can always turn to keep me warm and happy. I enjoy getting up early to have a plate of pancakes for breakfast. Whether it is a recipe from a cookbook or an instruction manual on the side of a pancake – mix box, making pancakes will continually supply you with a simple and fun activity on the weekend.

Folks, my weekday breakfast routine suffers constantly due to sad excuse of an alarm clock. Truly, the 5 more minutes of sleep that I recieve, will often knock away any thoughts I had of making pancakes during the week. The weekends are my favorite; I can’t wait to stay indoors and relax on the couch with a marathon of the tv show,  NCIS and my very own batch of fluffly pancakes.

Try out this great pancake recipe from Epicurious, it is bound to be a great day. Picture it: You, warm, maple syrup, a massive pile of pancakes and your favorite TV show marathon! This is one terrific activity you are going to love!

Always,

Ashley

Food Quote of the Week! The Remarkable Julia Childs

Julia Childs is legendary for her passion for food and the full, inspiring life she lived. What I loved about her is that she always expressed her bright spirit, love for cooking, drive to succeed, enthusiasm for conquering baking recipes, willingness to try new things, ambition to teach other aspiring women to cook, boldness to say what’s on her mind and confidence to forget about fear and use more of her heart in every adventure she went on. Thank You Julia! Here are a few of my favorite Julia Child Quotes below:

                                                                    

This week, I present a challenge to myself, to visit a bookstore and discover new French -inspired recipes. Starting with dessert dishes like Chocolate eclairs and truffles.

Fresh Fruit Fixings: Weekday Snacks

Fruit is an essential item that is provided at local green markets and produce section of the supermarket. Often, when were craving salt-based junk foods, it would be a better option to try a great, healthy and tasty fruit-inspired snack.

Finally, here are two excellent snacks perfect for Breakfast or eating in the Mid-afternoon.

1) The Blueberry Pomegranate Smoothie  and   2) Sliced Gala Apples with honey, peanut-butter dip.

Fruit can get tired and over-used, but it never hurts to try a new smoothie recipe!

Always,

                                                                                             Ashley