Keep Calm and Carry On: The Diary of Foodie and Gourmet

I've never really made roasted potatoes before. I don't know why. Perhaps I thought they were hard? or I just couldn't be bothered to make them? I'm not sure. Well, I was recently struck with a desire to try my hand at these delectable golden nuggets. First though, I needed to figure out a recipe and method of roasting potatoes. What did I do? Consult Gordon Ramsay of course! Gordon's recipe is pretty straightforward. There was only one thing that stuck out to me and made me think, "what?"...SEMOLINA FLOUR. I bought this ingredient slightly skeptical, but let me say, Gordon was right! Semolina flour is key. It helps to make the potatoes extra crispy when you roast them. Totally delicious! Gordon Ramsay's Roasted Potatoes: - about 3.5 lb yukon gold potatoes - 6 tbsp goose fat, if you have it.  You can also use olive oil - 3 tbsp semolina flour - salt and pepper, to taste  Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 350F. Peel and quarter the p...

While I was staying at E's house, post Hurricane Sandy, as a thank you, I made us both "Challah French Toast." My parents make this all of the time, and since I brought some challah bread to E's house, it seemed like the natural thing to make. Not to mention, it's really easy and super delicious! Challah French Toast (this serves 2 people) - 1/2 challah loaf, cut into 1/2 slices - 2-3 eggs - about 1/3 cup milk - dash of sugar - PAM or butter (for the pan) Directions: 1. Prepare the challah bread, eggs, sugar, and milk. First beat the eggs, then add the remaining ingredients.  2. Dip each piece of challah bread into the egg mixture. 3. Heat butter or PAM in a pan. Preferably nonstick (it will be easier to clean). 4. On medium-low heat, cook the french toast.   Cook until both sides are brown.  5. Once your french toast is nicely browned on both sides, remove from heat and serve. Voila! Delicious challah french toast ser...

Hi All! So, you may have noticed that I have gone silent recently. Well, yet again, I was slammed with two midterms, so every moment was spent preparing for those two exams. I am now happy to announce, that those exams are complete and I can returns to a semi-state of normalcy. Right now, I am trying to play catch up and do all the work I neglected, because of my exams. I am also trying to get a jump start on future work. (Mostly because I don't want to have too much homework over thanksgiving break!) Once things settle down, I will be a blogging beast! I already have about 6 blog entries saved as drafts, so keep your eyes peeled! Cheers! My study break Shwarma from Mamoun's "M" and I got peckish. It was delicious! 

When I was a kid, Halloween was one of the greatest holidays. It was the one-day a year that I could literally be ANYTHING I wanted and people gave out candy for free. For a kid, what could be better? Well, as I got older, the allure of Halloween started to fade. I didn't really dress up and then of course the candy was no longer flowing freely. For whatever, my heart was no longer in Halloween. That’s until I got to college. Then, we had the Halloween party and I was with friends, but overall, Halloween never got me super excited. I think one reason why I also am so apathetic towards Halloween is because I never had trick or treaters come to my house. My house is sort of hidden from the street and we have a really long driveway, so we rarely get trick or treaters, if any. For this reason, I never got to give out candy to eager children, like myself. This sounds silly, but I feel like I have been missing out. With my displacement to Brooklyn, I got to experience...

So, if you haven’t heard already, Hurricane Sandy struck Manhattan and certainly left her mark. Whilst most of mid-uptown has been left unharmed, lower Manhattan and part of the boroughs have incurred substantial damage. Down trees, flooding, loss of power….it’s a disaster. Literally. I unfortunately am not one of the fortunate ones and found myself within the area affected by Sandy’s wrath…but first, let’s travel back in time as I tell you of the events leading up to Sandy. This past weekend, I was home in New Jersey. Despite the warnings of the impending “Frankenstorm,” my family rather foolishly did not pay heed to Gov. Chris Christie’s warnings. Whereas other people were stocking up on foods/supplies and protecting their homes, my family and I ate, carved pumpkins, and just relaxed. We played the complacent card. (To be fair, we still had lots of water from Irene, plenty of food, and flashlights/batteries). Why did we not prepare like others? Because my father was con...

When I was home a few weekends ago, I ended up attending a Halloween party at the last minute. Our very close family friends, “the S Family” are mega Halloween enthusiasts and they host a Halloween party every year. My parents had RSVPed that they would be attending, but I had planned to stay at home to play with Jiji and do homework. A little family history. My family has been friends with the S Family for 20 years or so? I have been close friends with their eldest son, “B” since we were 3 years old, so yes, 20 years! Wowza! They also have a younger daughter, “R”, that I am very close to. In fact, we are like family at this point. They are my siblings and I am their “other sister.” Since it was just going to be adults, that was one of the main reasons that I decided not to attend the Halloween party. I began to cook my dinner, when the phone rang. It was my dad. Turns out at “B”, who currently resides and works in Washington DC was at the party! It had been ages sinc...

The weekend before Hurricane Sandy hit, I was home in NJ. Of course, I love going home to see my parents and being in the comfort of my own home, but secretly, one of my main reasons for going home is that I miss my cat to bits! (I guess it’s not a secret anymore…) Yes, when I am home, it’s all about my cat, Jiji (or “The Jijipuss”, as I call her). We have had Jiji for about two years now, although it’s unclear as to who adopted who. At the beginning of summer 2010, this scrawny little black kitten suddenly appeared on our deck, hungry and miserable. Mom and I took pity upon this creature and started to leave food and water out for her. As the summer progressed, this black kitten became courageous and curious. Rather than run away at the sight of me or mom, she would linger, and even rub up against us. Since we thought it odd to just call her “the black cat,” my mom named her “Jiji” after the black cat in one of my favorite childhood films, “Kiki’s Delivery Service...