We All Scream For …

Posted on September 6, 2016 by briannavasquez

There’s a new dessert trend that has been making waves for a while for the ice cream world. It is the Thai rolled ice cream which is also known as stir-fried ice cream. This famous Asian dessert is uniquely made by way of being rolled tightly to be serve with the addition of optional toppings. Being that I am a huge fan of ice cream, I wanted to share this concept that has become so loved by all ice cream lovers.

The trend debuted in New York last summer and while many have thought of it as a fad it has continued to flourish as many still find this particular type of ice cream to be fascinating. More ice cream shops that specialize in this Thais creation are opening and more people are learning about this trend, they want to try this treat that has been so widely discussed and raved about. I had the pleasure of trying this specific ice cream and it is absolutely delicious, the concept of being rolled changes the way the ice cream is consumed which enhances the eating experience. I went to Blossom Ice Cream which is located relatively close to the college, it was a great experience and the place is so quaint that you can almost miss it if you do not keep your eyes peeled for it.

The ice cream is mostly known for the way that it is created as it is a truly intricate process. In order to make the rolled ice cream, they use a frozen slab of metal called a teppan. Then, a mixture of milk and either fruit, nuts, or other ingredients are added together before being poured onto the slab. The mixture is chopped, stirred, and spread out as it slowly crystallizes so it can have a creamy texture. As it becomes frozen enough, it is then slowly rolled with the help of a utensil then it is stuffed in rows in a serving cup when toppings can be added. But the ice cream must be rolled at the correct time or it will become too frozen and will not be able to be rolled correctly.

Comment below on some great desserts that you have had the chance to try over this past summer.

The Reality of Chocolate

Posted on August 30, 2016 by briannavasquez

Image by: CherryBanana

Unfortunately, many foods in America are questioned for their authenticity as there are simply are a variation of an authentic ingredient that is remade at a lower quality. Many readily used ingredients in America are not of the utmost quality which can effect the outcome of a recipe as well as the overall appearance and flavor of that particular dish. One of America’s favorite sweet tooth fix is … chocolate. While some label themselves as connoisseurs, others view themselves as chocoholics who are just strictly addicted to chocolate. But chocolate is one of the most famous treats in America while the quality is differing by way of the brand and the origin.

Chocolate should traditionally be made from the cacao bean which is then processed numerous times before becoming the molten creation that is chocolate. But America has found a way to somewhat cheat the process of chocolate making by only using cocoa butter solids which are a byproduct of chocolate that lowers the quality and flavor of the chocolate. Commercial brands like Nestle or Hershey are packed with sugar and the butter solids whereas those brands like Ghirardelli or Valrhona use the more extensive process that is necessary in making the best quality of chocolate. But the better brands are more expensive which leads many Americans to purchase a budget friendly chocolate despite it’s quality and flavor, it constitutes as a treat that will satisfy their craving. Yet, I feel that Americans are wasting their money if you pay less for low quality as well as a lower quantity of actual chocolate then it becomes a debate on whether it is worth the cost.

Essentially, it is important to read labels as it will help to guide you on the reality of the chocolate that you are planning to consume before wasting the money to purchase it. So the next time that you have a craving for chocolate, I encourage you to indulge but for the best chocolate tasting experience, I suggest that you check the labels and spend a little more for a better quality of chocolate. Good Luck and Happy Eating!

The Start of Fall Semester

Posted on August 23, 2016 by briannavasquez

Image by: Matt Cooper

As the summer vacation comes to a close, we are unfortunately faced with going back to school later this week. While only brave souls have decided to also partake in summer classes over the break, many of us are completely unprepared or reluctant to return to the stress of college and what that entails. It’s time for the late night studying, early morning classes, and the textbook shopping on Amazon. However, in the end, we will be grateful in our decision to further our education as it helps to inspire others, educate yourself and to become more sociable with those around you.

I am so appreciative of each and every one of my readers as I try to reach and connect with new readers by way of my writing of food-themed topics. I can definitely promise that with this upcoming semester that I will try new methods of writing in terms of the possibility of adding comedy as I have always been thoroughly entertained by the work of FoodSpin. I want to constantly evolve my writing to the trends or to what would appeal to my readers. I want to thank everyone who takes out time in their busy days to read my blog posts and comments, I genuinely love reading what others think of my writing or my opinion overall.

Being that I am about to start my senior year, I want to offer some advice to everyone who are anxious to begin the fall semester. Despite the stress of school, homework, work, and life struggles; it can be extremely difficult to stay focused and balance it all. But I have a solution, one of the most important things that I have done every semester was find a hobby. Although, it can sound almost impossible with the stress of everything else going on, it can ultimately lead to your success. I have found baking to be a passion of mine that I want to make a career out of but it is also extremely soothing to me. One baking practice that truly calms me is piping frosting whether it be buttercream, Italian meringue etc. I love how focused you have to be in order to get the piping work to be correct, beautiful, and intricate.

So, I wish you luck not only for the upcoming semester but for all of your endeavors whatever that may be. College is the ultimate learning experience that allows you to not only gain a better knowledge on a specific topic but to meet new people, network, and create memories of a lifetime.

National Lemonade Day

Posted on August 16, 2016 by briannavasquez

Image by: Brook Ferry

To all you lemonade fans out there, National Lemonade Day is this Saturday, August 20th. One of the most grueling beverages to make in terms of squeezing each lemon till its last drop of juice escape from the rind. But the outcome is deliciously rewarding after doing all that work unless, of course, you decide to purchase a cup of lemonade. While many do not get too obsessed with the importance of food themed days such as National Ice Cream Day etc., others have made these days so important in changing the lives of everyone around them. National Lemonade Day has become somewhat of a national holiday for some who have continued to acknowledge this day to pursue the dreams of a four year old, Alexandra “Alex” Scott. Her vision was to raise money by selling lemonade from a lemonade stand that she would hold in front of her home to help children suffering from pediatric cancer of all sorts with the funds she received.

Image by: pompomflipflop

Alex, herself, was diagnosed with neuroblastoma just before her first birthday and although doctors were doubtful that she would ever be able to walk due to the tedious treatment that would be necessary for her remission, Alex was determined and began to walk with the help of leg braces. She was regaining some of her strength and was defying the odds but was faced with unfortunate news, after two years when her tumors began to grow again. When she was only four years old she received a stem cell transplant and while recovering she constantly told her mother how much she wanted to run a lemonade stand to help other children. Despite struggling to brave the fight of her own cancer, Alex ran her first lemonade stand later that year with her family’s help which raised $2,000. It sparked a chain reaction when news broke about this cause and many began to sell lemonade while giving the proceeds directly to Alex to help her with her mission to benefit childhood cancer research. Alex became the founder of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation and helped raised over a million dollars for cancer research. Yet, her cancer had progressed and Alex passed away in August of 2004 at only eight years old. Though many are still holding lemonade stands and donating to help further Alex’s vision.

In her memory, many use National Lemonade Day to help donate with a beverage that meant so much to Alex and so many other children that were helped by her mission. Restaurants all over the country are selling lemonade to donate to Alex’s foundation be sure to look out for them but Red Robin and Auntie Anne’s are just a few that will be offering lemonade and will be taking donations as well..

Comment below with your thoughts of National Lemonade Day or make a comment with a shout-out to someone you know who is struggling with a life-threatening disease/illness.

The Power of the Avocado

Posted on August 9, 2016 by briannavasquez

Image by: fina1908

This summer has been an extra special one with the help of Summer Olympics. I have always been greatly fond of the summer games that are played during the Olympics. As a child, I struggled a lot with many issues that were caused by the chaos that consumed my childhood. My mother was a single parent, my father had left when I was only two years old so I only have a few memories of him most of which were not positive ones. I was the middle child and I never really felt that I had a place in my family, I was never noticed. I just lived in the shadow of my older sister and in some ways I feel the same way. My mother never really showed much affection, she was never one to say ” I love you” or “I’m proud of you”. She mostly favored my older sister so I never felt significant to this world or to my family, I just blended in.

During my adolescence, my mother had decided that we, my sisters and I, needed to find a hobby or a sport to utilize our free time with and somehow we decided on swimming. Words cannot even begin to describe how much swimming has made an impact on my life, it gave me a reason to live. For a certain extent of my life, it gave me purpose as I had never felt that I had such a calling for something. It defined me and I constantly wanted to be better in every single stroke.

Now as I watch the Olympics and I am reminded of how swimming honestly saved my life. I do not know where I would be without having the ability to swim. Since the Olympics is taking place in Brazil this year. I have been inspired by Brazilian cuisine which is widely influenced by the use of avocados. Brazil uses avocados in both traditional meals and desserts because of its rich texture and delicious flavor.

Below is a recipe for an Avocado Creme Brulee:

Creme Brulee de Abacate

Image by: Ana Helena Campbell

*Serves 4*
Ingredients:
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
2 avocados, peeled, pitted and sliced
Fresh Lemon Juice to taste
1/2 cup sugar for topping
Kitchen Torch
Directions:
1) Place the condensed milk and avocados into a food processor and process until the mixture is a smooth and even consistency.
2) Slowly add the lemon juice to taste.
3) Using a spatula, scrape the mixture into four ramekins, making sure it is nice and flat inside the ramekin. Let them chill for 3-4 hours in the refrigerator.
4) Right before serving, spread a thin layer of sugar evenly over the tops of each one.
5) Ignite your kitchen torch and melt the sugar slowly and evenly. Do this until the layer of sugar browns and begins melting and bubbling.
6) Allow to cool for 2 before serving.
7) Serve and enjoy!

Adapted from Easy Brazilian Recipes

Comment on a moment that changed your life and made your life have purpose. And if you haven’t had that moment yet I want you to understand that life itself has purpose and that you were given this life to live for a reason.

The Purpose of Social Monitoring

Posted on August 3, 2016 by briannavasquez

a series of logos for social media platforms

Image by: Sean MacEntee

Depending on the blogger, one of the easiest and most difficult things about blogging is creating your blog. Unfortunately, this is a contradicting choice because it can be difficult to have the courage to start a blog and be comfortable with sharing your thoughts for the internet world to view at their own leisure. For those of you who are struggling with this dilemma, I want to encourage you to follow your dreams, blogging in its many forms is the most enjoyable experience I have ever had in my life. It has allowed me to have a greater acceptance of myself and I have learned a lot about who I am. Whether if you are choosing to start blogging through written posts, photographs, or videos; each and every form of blogging can captivate an audience to relate to your life experiences. So if you have been wondering and wanting to blog for a long time, I would suggest that you give it a chance and take a leap of faith. Blogging is extremely fulfilling in that it shares moments in life that were either positive or negative to benefit every reader, watcher, or listener.

But for those of you that have already chosen to start blogging, it begs the question of “what comes next?” while starting the blog could’ve been the easiest part the upkeep can be the most difficult as you have to make sure that your blog stays relevant for readers to continue reading. However, there is a very important detail that I have left out … how do you attract readers in the first place. The answer is simple, aside from utilizing your social media to constantly alert your readers of when you upload a new post, social monitoring enables you to understand what readers are interested in. Social monitoring helps you as a blogger gain the knowledge of seeing what are the trending topics as well as the insights of your possible readers by zeroing in on their interests. There are many free or low-cost options to be able to do social monitoring effectively. It allows to listen in to what others are posting about in social media, various blog posts, or public forums. You can easily see what others are conversating about on the internet to guide you in what to talk about in future posts or to just gain a perspective on the audience’s interests.

So with the use of this information, I hope it helps to encourage you to post in the future and will help you be successful. Good Luck and Happy Blogging!

Tips for the Successful Blogger

Posted on July 26, 2016 by briannavasquez

Image by: martin.canchola

When building a blog, there are numerous aspects to consider when writing each post. In my last post, I shared tips for audience engagement but this week’s post, I want to discuss the writing aspect a tad more and how to be a successful blogger. Ultimately, it takes time to become a successful writer but these tips are designed to help you achieve your goals not only as a writer but as a blogger.

You must begin building relationships with fellow bloggers, this will enable you to have an open-mind to how others write and what they choose to write about to appeal their readers. This can be more explicitly used with the use of social media by sharing blogging posts and not only understanding how others write in the respected theme that they have chosen to write about but others who write about an array of other topics as it can help you become a better writer by having a broader perspective in blogging.

Formatting is especially important when writing a blog post as it can easily attract more readers if done correctly. This can consist of bullet points when naming an unofficial list or numbering as well as putting certain text in bold font in your post so it shows the significance of it in the post’s entirety. Add images to your post to better enhance the theme of the post. The use of appropriate images allows for your written words to be better supported by way of an image that helps to break up long texts by photographs to encourage readers to read the entire post instead of only skimming through or reading half of it because it became monotonous or too lengthy.

Finally, as a fellow blogger, I suggest that you have fun with every post that you write no matter how serious or funny, each post reaches someone in a way you may have never expected so just be yourself, be original, and don’t forget to enjoy yourself.

The Importance of Audience Engagement

Posted on July 19, 2016 by briannavasquez

a series of words that describe what blogging is

Image by: Kristina B

When I think of the array of topics that I have talked about in my blog posts, I am faced with the question of “why was it relevant?”. I have many reasons for each of the concepts of my posts as well as why I have chosen to write about such topics that I feel would appeal to each of my readers. Obviously, I hope that each of my posts are relatable as each of my posts are about food themed topics, I encourage all to read my posts whether if you enjoy baking, are learning how to bake, or simply interested in baking topics. But there is more to blogging than just wanting to be relatable because being relatable is more than just an incorporation of this concept but almost a science of putting yourself in the minds of your readers. By becoming the reader, you must be a number of readers, in my case, it would mostly be two very different types of readers ……. the bakers and the non-bakers as well as everyone in between that measurement of readers. But the truth is no matter how relatable your blog is it will not appeal to everyone because each person simply has their own basis of what they are willing to read and what is not as important for them to gain interest from.

First, you must create a target audience, this will enable you to fully understand what you are trying to share information about and who you are trying to reach with your posts so that you will be able to evoke that in your writing. These posts may even motivate your audience of readers to want to learn more about that specific topic or it may help them with personal events in their life. And, there is always room for your target audience to expand depending on the topic, it can be of interest for many while others may not be but that is purely up for the writer to decide what their readers want to hear based on past posts and the number of views/comments for the most popular ones.

Second, the topics that are discussed should entail newsworthy subjects that will either impact the reader to want to continue reading to gain more knowledge on this topic and also have the possibility of liking your way of writing, in terms of the way you evoke ideas which creates opportunities for them to be interested in your other posts.

Image by: Daryl Lau

Third, headlines can purely influence a reader’s decision to read the entire post or to just keep scrolling through. Ultimately, the choice of words that are selected to be used in the headline of a post may be a determining factor for readers to decide whether or not they will continue to read the post. The headline should set the tone for the entire post but should add some excitement that will persuade and encourage readers to want to read the post.

Fourth, topic tagging is an important part of blogging because it helps the readers know what the topic of the post is about because they choose to read it in its entirety. This only gives the key words that are used in the post or to describe the topic of the post. It not only helps the readers to have a common knowledge of the subject being described but helps the writer to stay on topic to reach their target audience.

And finally, ask questions in your post to encourage comments. With the addition of comments, it allows for the conversation to further continue by understanding the readers’ opinions. Comments are hard to obtain, some may not read your post all the way to the end which eliminates the option of commenting while others may not feel obligated to comment on your post. But comments are helpful, it lets writers know that readers are listening and opens doors that show that the post is not one-sided because even the readers get a chance to share their thoughts.

Comment below with your thoughts on audience engagement and what else is needed to make a blog post interesting to readers.

Rice Pudding For All

Posted on July 12, 2016 by briannavasquez