Needless to say I have not posted here in a while. After my family vacation things just got crazy! I attended the Pampered Chef National Conference in Chicago. That was fun! They really go all out for conference. I arrive home totally pumped up and started go all out with Pampered Chef. At the same time, my client base for culinary Creations was increasing. So, between cooking and trying to book PC shows, I've been a bit distracted. My husband also decided to finally fulfill his promise to fix my washing machine (after it had been broken for 3 months!!). So, I have been washing anything I can get my hands on. That also sparked a cleaning spree. So, when I'm not working I'm cleaning!

And now I find myself trying to expand Culinary Creations. I was told about an opportunity to purchase an existing business and started exploring that. Not that I can afford to buy a business, but you never know what comes of something unless you start asking questions. I'm still slowing looking into that, but doing so got me looking into renting a kitchen. Where I live, I can't advertise unless I am working in a professional kitchen, and I'm at the point where I need to advertise. So, Rock meets Hard Place!

Yesterday as I was driving into town to do my grocery shopping for this weeks meals. I thought of a place in town that is called The Smokehouse. This is a meat market. They recently closed half of the business which was a bakery. So, for three months the bakery side has been sitting empty. Immediately something told me to pull in there and talk to them about renting their kitchen. So, I did. Turns out, they are planning on doing prepared meals themselves. After about 20 mins of talking with one of the owners, at the very least it looks light I might be able to rent the kitchen 1 day per week and "piggyback" on their food supply orders. That would allow me to save a little money on the food and start advertising. But, he seemed interested in a few other things and I could see his mind just going crazy as he and I were talking. Though he did not vocalize much about what he was thinking, I have a feeling I could be an answer to something for him. I told him that I was very open to what ever he may be thinking. They have a great set up, they are very known in the community and any kind of "partnership" with them could be very good for me.

So, I am very excited and I will be going back in at the end of the week to check with him again. He is very busy and his wife is ill. He said that if he didn't call in a day or two I should drop back in to see him. He's a very nice and honest guy. This could be great!

This is their site: http://www.countrysmokehouse.net/

I spoke to the gentleman in the more cone shaped hat. And yes, they wear their hats at work! :-) They used to be The Butcher, The Baker and The Candy Maker. His brother's wife handled the bakery and she was part of the little cartoon logo. It was very cute!!

I'd have cheaper access to all of the great meats. And he is working on a relationship with a guy that has a farm where he is raising cattle free range, hormone and chemical free. Right up my alley! :-)

So, all of you keep your fingers crossed! This could be my big break! hahahaha :-)

Off to cook.

Ok, so I know I've been slacking on the posts, sorry. :-) I will post more pics of vacations along with a recipe or two soon. Right now I have to start working on a new set of menus for the nest two weeks. I have my Pampered Chef Conference next weekend and I will have to do the 2 weeks of meals again. I gained 2 more clients (thank you!) while I was on vacation, so my challenges keep coming!

But, what inspired me to write this post was a conversation I was just having with my brother who is visiting me for a few days. I was researching some recipes and ideas online and I was reading a recipe when I noticed "onion powder" as an ingredient. While I have nothing against onion powder, I had to wonder, "why the powder"? Why not an actual onion?? The recipe was for a Chicken Noodle Casserole. So, I am thinking, Chicken Noodle Soup without the soup, basically...right? As I scan the recipe for some kind of veggie I notice none. There is only onion powder. I was totally offended!! hahaha So, I'll add carrots, celery and onion for a healthier and much better tasting recipe.

That also brought to mind a recipe I viewed before the Chicken Noodle Casserole, a Summer Squash Casserole. They wanted me to saute the onion, garlic and yellow squash. Then they wanted me to bake the casserole for 45 min in the oven. By the time the casserole is fully baked the veggies will be mush and all of the nutrients will have leeched out leaving nothing, really, but fat and dairy.

Then I realized something. I make a broccoli casserole with broccoli, celery and onion as the veggies. I do NOT cook them before I bake the casserole. I simply combine all ingredients and bake. I did this because I was tired of mushy broccoli in my casseroles! Everyone who has ever had my broccoli casserole has raved about it. Now I know why! The real flavor is in the crisp celery, onion and broccoli! Not the cheese and cream of chicken soup! With every bite you get a fresh, crunchy burst of celery, onion and broccoli. Mmmm.....I wonder if I have any in the fridge?

Anyway, to all of my fellow cooks, try making your next casserole by skipping the saute step. Just combine your veg and wet ingredients and bake according to the instructions. You will see an improvement in the flavor, texture and nutritional value. If you are going to eat your veggies, you might as well get all of the benefits they offer, right??

Vacation Arrival

I made it to Baton Rouge last night. My flight was great. I did not wait in security for even one second. The flight was great. When I got off my plane I walked down to baggage claim and walk right up to my bag, grabbed it and was on my way! :-)

Pics of Uncle's House:

The Beautiful Infinity Pool and Pond

Last night we ate at a local Cajun place. The food was pretty decent. Most everyone had boiled crawfish ( a Louisiana favorite) and mom and I split an Oyster Po Boy and a Seafood Au Gratin. They Po Boy was ok but I've had better. And the Au Gratin was decent but was covered in melted cheddar cheese, not my idea of Au Gratin. I was looking for more of a cheesy sauce. But it was ok.

We did find the very rare two headed crawfish, though!!!!!! In fact we found two!!!!! What a night!!! :-)

Today was spent shopping for tonight's dinner. Once we got home we ate lunch and went outside to have fun in the sun!

Then mom (my sous chef) and I cooked dinner for all 15 family members. We had Italian Meatloaf, Green Beans, Mashed Caulitatoes and a salad my mother recently had in Italy. Well, not the actual salad, but our version of it. :-)

Then we had a dessert prepared by mom and my brother, Garrett. Symphony Brownies. (made with Hershey's Symphony Bars and brownie mix) Talk about a rich piece of chocolaty heaven!!!!!

Well, I'm sleepy, so I'll head to bed. I have some more pics and will upload a slide show of them tomorrow. I think we are heading into New Orleans tomorrow, so i should have some good pics of what we get into. :-)

My Weekend

I had a pretty good weekend. Saturday I had to finish my food shopping for the meals I am now preparing. I went to my local produce stand. This place rocks!! I love the produce they carry and the people remember each person that shops there. They let you know how much they appreciate your business and I just love shopping there. I usually walk away with 5-10 bags of fresh produce for my meals and I do this weekly. Here's a peek:

I love this place!! Have I said that yet?? :-)

Then after that I went to a Woman of the World party and had a lot of fun! Here is the Host, Christal, playing with one of the toys. I cropped out the end of the toy to avoid posting "bad" things! hahaha

And last night Randy and I were playing with the puppies (Jake and one we have left that needs a home) and he decided he wanted to keep both of them!! For those of you who know me, it was RANDY who wanted to keep them both!!!!!! So, we are going to find homes for the two "strays" that are living in our yard and build a fenced in area in our yard for Jake and Jada.

I really have to go now, I have a deadline to meet and meals to prepare! I will be catching up on my posts while on vacation. And if I have time tonight, I will try to post more.

Have a great day!!!!!!

Saturday Morning

I love Saturday morning! Sleeping in, drinking coffee at a casual pace, watching ABC's morning kid shows, ya know. Yes, I still watch all of the kids Saturday morning shows on ABC. Raven, Hannah Montana, etc. :-)

I'm about to head out to the local produce stand to finish my shopping for my personal meal service. I am preparing 2 weeks worth of food for 10 clients and their families for delivery Monday. Since I will be on vacation, I have to do 2 weeks so they don't miss out.

I'll do some cooking today, then head to a Girls Only type party tonight. You know, the kind with the "toys and lotions". So...that will be fun. I'll get some great pics! Don't worry, I'll post with caution! hahaha

(The pic is our new baby, Jake. He is one of the 6 puppies I have been raising for the last 7 weeks.)

Have a good Saturday!!!!

My new Home (Hopefully)

Hello again!!!

I have canceled my other blog account and will be trying this one. So far, so good. :-)

I missed blogging while having trouble with my previous blog tool. I'm happy to be back online. You know, I was not sure if i would like blogging or even remember to post, but I found that I missed doing it.

So, before I ran into problems I wanted to show you guys some pics of the lunch that I catered for a local Chamber of Commerce. So, here:

Menu: Grilled Chicken Caesar Wraps, Italian Pasta Salad, Tuscan Style Tuna Pita's, Black Bean & Corn Salsa, Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies.

They ate almost all of the food!!!! Yay!!

So, I am getting ready to go on a family vacation. We are all meeting at my Uncle's house in Baton Rouge, LA. They have a great place with a beautiful pool/outside kitchen area and I can't wait to relax by the pool! Maybe they'll let me cook in their outside kitchen!!!!! :-)

Due to the vacation I am preparing 2 weeks of meals for my clients. So, I'll be quite busy this weekend. I have to remember to pack, too!

Time to work!! :-)