Cookies

"A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand" –Unknown.

Chocolate, white chocolate, macadamia, peanut butter, sugar, oatmeal, M&M, cranberry, walnut, toffee, heath bit, marshmallow, butter, coconut, raisin, almond, cappuccino…hungry yet? There are so many different kinds of cookies and cookie recipes out there. From biscotti’s and cookie bars to plain old fashion chocolate chips here are some greatest places to find the best cookie recipes.

One of the best books I have found for cookie recipes is “The Cookie Bible.” It contains so many recipes for all types of cookies: drop cookies, no-bake cookies, bars and brownies, holiday and so much more. I love the recipes that add different ingredients to old traditions, such as adding toffee to oatmeal cookies and coconut to chocolate chip cookies.

There are also some great cookie ideas from our favorite chefs on food network. Paula Dean always has the best sweets on her show and her cookies are no exception.( Pictured on the left is her White Chocolate Coconut Cookies and on the lower right is a selection from Sandra Lee, her “Macadamia Coconut Cookie”). Sandra Lee also has a great selection of sweet recipes. Not only do many of her recipe books include sweet recipes but she even has a book based on sweets.

I love cookies and its fun to experiment with different ingredients.

Egg Rolls Across Cultures

When you think of egg rolls, you may think of Chinese egg rolls. However, egg rolls are not only part of the Chinese culture. Egg rolls have various names since it is a food eaten by individuals from various cultures. In the Philippine culture eggrolls are known as lumpia. However, there are different types of lumpia; one type made by some Filipinos is ‘Lumpia Shanghai’. Each lumpia is unique as is each egg roll.



Guy Fieri has a ‘Pulled Pork Egg Roll’ recipe (on left). These egg rolls are different in that they contain cole slaw. Barbecued pork with cole slaw sounds like an interesting combination! These egg rolls are sealed with an egg mixture. Filipino egg rolls are simply sealed with water.



If you want an egg roll, but also want dessert there are various recipes you can cook! You could simply put bananas in the egg roll wrapper and fry them. Then you could dip them in sugar. If you want something richer in flavor, you could follow Caprial Pence’s ‘Caramel-Apple Egg Rolls’ recipe (on right). It sounds amazing, especially if you add some vanilla ice cream on top!

CINCO DE MAYO!!!!!!!!

Ready for the fiestas? Get out your red, white, and green gear. Lets get ready to celebrate Mexican Independence Day. Let me give you a bit of background information before I demonstrate some absoulutely, mouth watering recipes.

The 5th of May is not Mexican Independence Day, but it should be! And Cinco de Mayo is not an American holiday, but it should be. Mexico declared its independence from mother Spain on midnight, the 15th of September, 1810. And it took 11 years before the first Spanish soldiers were told and forced to leave Mexico.

So, why Cinco de Mayo? And why should Americans savor this day as well? Because 4,000 Mexican soldiers smashed the French and traitor Mexican army of 8,000 at Puebla, Mexico, 100 miles east of Mexico City on the morning of May 5, 1862.

I have informed you of why it is called Cinco de Mayo and why we should celebrate it, now lets get down to recipes.

First you will want to start off with some appetizers before your main course meal. Here are some couple of ideas. One of the recipes I am going to mention is really delicious and you would want to keep eating more and more of it. These nachos are really tasty.
In this recipe, you can either choose to have onions or not. The onions usually give the nachos more flavor. These nachos include chorizo, beans, and cheese. The one good thing about it, is that you can substitute the chorizo for either small chunks of meat, chkn, or ground beef.

Another appetizer you may want to try for your fiesta is chimichangas. They are absolutely tasteful. They would be great as an appetizer or a snack or even a meal. If you do decide to serve it as a meal you may want to have rice and beans on the side. Make sure to also have sour cream and salsa on the side in case someone at your fiesta may want a little more flavor or spice.

Last but not least the best, dessert!!!!

Dessert is the best part of the entire meal................no im only kidding but desserts are lusious....

Here is a scrumptious dessert that I am more than positive you are going to love. It is called Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream

Here is a picture of it.

Don't you want some of that, of course you do.
I have provided some ideas for your HAPPY PAPPY FIESTA, ENJOY!!!!!

Asian Inspiration

Besides Mexican food one of the popular food choices is Chinese food. These two types of food are typically eaten in restaurants. If you are not Chinese or Mexican you most likely do not cook Chinese or Mexican food.

I love cooking different recipes, that aren’t the “normal” meals. Have you ever heard of Asian Slaw? Well, Chef Guy Fieri, has a few recipes for 'Asian Slaw' (on right). It is basically a salad. However it isn’t just any salad. It has many vegetables, some of which are used often in Asian meals, like snap peas and bok choy.








If you are craving barbeque chicken and Asian food, what will you do? Well, you can make Emeril Lagasse’s ‘Asian Spicy Barbeque Chicken’(above). It is deliciously flavored with sesame oil, peanut oil and soy sauce.

With summer right around the corner, we have the perfect dish you can prepare! Robin Miller has a recipe called ‘Grilled Asian Kebabs over Rice’(on left). This dish is a complete meal with vegetables, meat and rice! The unsuspecting, but delicious ingredient is black bean sauce. Enjoy this dish anytime of the day.

These recipes are different, yet they still have a hint of Asian in them. Be inspired and learn some new recipes!

Going South!!!!

In the mood for trying something different? Out of the ordinary? Something you would think you would never try before? How about going South? They have delicious recipes nothing out of the ordinary. Something you can probably make in your own home.

To give a bit of a background on the history of Southern food. Southern Louisiana developed significant culinary traditions, Louisiana Creole cuisine in southeastern Louisiana centered on New Orleans, Louisiana. Cajun cuisine in central to Acadiana in southwestern Louisiana.

I have given you a bit of background information about the food history,now lets talk some recipes. Here are a couple of recipes that I found are delicious.

Here are some homemade buscuits that you would love to have for a special dinner, the holidays, or any other ocassion you might have. You can put jelly on them, jam, or butter. They are very good and fulfilling and will do great in any dinner.


Another great recipe that can be served as either a snack or an appetizer is Pita Chips. This chips are homemade and are might delicious. They can be followed by an dip of your choice.


I have showed you some great snacks that can go along with a great entree. This recipe is magnificent, it includes delicious pasta with chicken.

These recipes are made by the famous and well known chefs such as Paula Deen, Emeril, and many more.

Mexican Recipes

Mexican recipes are delicious to have. Most people love eating mexican cuisine, most people eat it because of the great taste, the spices, the salsas, and other authentic foods. I personally do not like spicy food but I tend to try it at times but usually I need a huge glass of water next to me. I cannot handle the hotness!

One of my favorite mexican foods is las enchiladas. They are really delicious. These mexican enchiladas can either have beans inside, cheese, chicken, or even meat. Of course you will need to cook the chicken and make sure to shred it into piece not to small and you will also need to fry the tortilla in oil for a little bit. The tortilla is either dipped into a red sauce or a green sauce. It is up to you, in which, salsa you can handle. Then you put either the chicken or the meat, fold the tortilla and you can either put them in the oven for a bit of more time with cheese on time, to make the cheese melt or you can also use mexican fresh cheese.


I will be providing you some of the recipes that are my personal favorites and will soon become yours too. You can find these recipes on

Like I mentioned before mexican cuisine is mmmmmmmmm good.
Ok so you like fondue right? well guess what there is a mexican fondue. Surprise!!! I bet. It is very good and you could eat it with chips or bread. You pick which one is best for you. This mexican fondue can be served at party, gathering, or a bar-b-que.


We talked about the main dish, so what about that hot summer day when you just feel like eating something fresh and fullfilling. I have the perfect recipe. It is called "Fajita" Torta It includes tomatoes and avocadoes....making your mouth watery huh. You could eat with french fries mexican chips or doritos or cheetos.


Mexican Cuisine is the way to go!

California meets France

Wolfgang Puck is one famous chef who has his own restaurant with multiple locations. He uses fresh California ingredients in his French style cooking. He is commended by Hollywood stars and world leaders. You can even purchase frozen pizzas, pastas and canned soups made by him! His company sells cookware and appliances and has catering services. In 1998 Puck won the Outstanding Chef Award from the James Beard Foundation.



One of his easier recipes is ‘Straw and Hay Pasta' (on right). It only takes 15 minutes for preparation and 15 minutes for cooking. If you are a dairy lover, then this is a healthy recipe for you! It has heavy cream, butter and Parmesan cheese in it. Another easy recipe is ‘Couscous Salad' (below). The interesting ingredient in this recipe is cinammon. There are quite a few vegetables in this recipe from cucumbers to bell peppers.



Check out his website for recipes, restaurant locations, plus much more! http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/index.php