Blog
Food Trucks Galore (2 of 4) | September 10 2010
Nanna Queens Truck is all about Banana Puddin and Chicken Wings. Once again the lineup for this truck was pretty crazy and most peeps seemed to be hittin the Wings as they were saving the dessert for the Cooking Channel Ice Cream Truck, hehehehee. This is one I actually tried as the owners actually were cool to feed the "talent." Chipotle wings hit the spot right after the cooking demo and some interviews. Thanks y'all.
Food Trucks Galore (1 of 4) | September 9 2010
I told you the food truck situation was out of control at the LA Times event. The next 4 blogs will be about some of the trucks at the event this Labour Day weekend past.
Numero Uno - Dim Sum Truck
Dim Sum is one of my favourite things on Earth. This truck had Har Gow, Sui Mai, and Char Sui Bao.
My grandfather was not big on excess in any direction so when I once told him that I LOVE Char Sui Bao he said ok. Once when I was visiting him at his restaurant in the Caribbean he mentioned to the Chef about my love for Bao. Well the chef made about 600 Bao and put them in the freezer (seriously). So at my whim I could have Bao. Well not only at my whim but he would not feed me anything else until the Bao was done. Needless to say I got sick of Bao quickly on that trip but I did finish them. Just before I left he asked me how I liked Bao now. Very reluctantly I admitted that I no longer LOVED it but still liked it - in moderation. His point was well taken although I LOVE it all over again.
This truck made a delicious Char Sui Bao.
Soul Food Spotlight - Aarti Sequeira | September 8 2010
Soul Food Spotlight is all about featuring people. We have a very special Food Network guest.
Who are you?
Ha! Who are YOU? Just kidding. My name is Aarti Sequeira and I am the winner of this year's Next Food Network Star. I competed against 11 other contestants, and won my own show on Food Network, called Aarti Party. It airs every Sunday on Food Network (America) at 12p (ET). I was born in India, grew up in Dubai, and I went to a British school until I came here to the States for uni. That's why my accent is all over the place. I married the man that I met on the second day of university, about 14 years ago, and we live in a tiny apartment in Los Angeles.
The Next Food Network Star looks painful but you manage to look so calm under all that pressure. What is your secret?
The pressure WAS intense! In fact, so intense that every morning, my tummy was so uneasy that all I could stomach was some yogurt and honey. That's so unusual for me because I love having a big breakfast! Every day was a series of anxiety attacks, adrenaline rushes, then crashes. Rinse and repeat. It was intensely difficult and I really couldn't have gotten through without prayer. I tried to set some time aside every morning to pray. Prayer gives me perspective, helps me remember how little control I really have over my future; all I can do is stride forward in a way that makes God proud of me, and see where He takes me! I also credit the other peeps I competed against -- we really banded together, lifting each other up after the long days. Before I left, I asked my husband and my family to write me little letters of encouragement that I could read on the hard days. They helped me remember that even if I failed, the family I would return to would love me no matter what.
Tell me about your new show, Aarti Party.
Aarti Party is an extension of "aarti paarti", the online cooking-variety show that I've been doing for about a year (you can find it at youtube.com/aartipaarti ). While I love authentic Indian food, I've had to find quicker, lighter ways to get those flavours into my every day cooking. So that's what you'll find on the show -- Indian flavours woven into American classics. For example, on my first episode, I made Sloppy Joes with ground turkey and a classic tikka masala sauce. Another favourite is my bread pudding which I make using coconut milk, ginger and cashews. You'll also find some traditional Indian dishes like my every day "dal", red lentils tempered with a mustard and cumin-seed oil.
What made you decide to try out for The Next Food Network Star and what were you doing at the time?
I'll tell you the truth -- I didn't want to do it. I had watched a couple of episodes of Food Star, and it scared the lights out of me. To see these accomplished chefs competing under such tight time restrictions, meeting such hard challenges... well, I just didn't think I could do it. See, cooking is a relatively new career for me. I'm trained as a journalist, and I was doing very well as a CNN producer. My proudest moment was co-producing the HBO documentary, "Sand and Sorrow", with a Peabody award winning director, Paul Freedman. The film is about the horrific crisis in Darfur, and doing that film has left an indelible mark on me. I have a huge passion for shedding light on the conflicts in Darfur and the Congo. What's happening in those countries is nothing short of a travesty.
Anyway, one day, I realised that my passion for journalism had turned to a slow simmer. Meanwhile, my passion for cooking was at a rolling boil. I started shooting this cooking show, aarti paarti, in my little kitchen -- my husband shot and directed it, I edited it, and we invited our wide array of actor/performer friends to add their pizzazz to it. It gave birth to this cooking-variety show format that I just love. Following the prodding of a number of friends, I finally decided to try out for the show because I knew that if I wanted to be a cooking show host, I needed to do it at Food Network; it really is the leading name in food tv in the States. I sent in my video thinking, well I have nothing to lose. But I never once thought that I would actually win this thing!! I was just hoping that I wouldn't make a gigantic fool of myself.
Do you read blogs on yourself?
Oh gosh. Overall, I have been so very blessed by a positive response -- I get so many encouraging, enthusiastic comments on my blog, on my facebook fan page, on twitter. It's unbelievable that so many people are cheering for me. I was never popular in school, had very few friends, and to be at a point where I have 11,000 "friends" on facebook -- well, all I can say is, God is good. :)
On the other hand, my journalistic side needs to balance the positive with the negative -- it just seems like a more realistic picture. So I do check out the more negative blogs and comments. I take the constructive criticism under consideration of course, because I only want to get better at this job and viewers do bring up valid points! But it's hard not to let the more personal attacks get to me. I'm getting better. It's a weird thing about our nature that just *one* negative comment can poison the bottomless well of positive comments you've received. So, these days I don't read that stuff as much anymore. If you have something constructive to say, then I'm listening. But I'm not into sites that appeal to people's baser natures, that feed the vitriol and the darkness in our hearts. I don't understand how people can spend their days pouring negative energy into something like attacking a cooking show host. I mean, aren't there more important, vital things to be attacking?! I always sign off my emails with a quote from Robert Louis Stevenson, who as a young boy growing up in Scotland, watched a man lighting the lanterns on his street and yelled excitedly, "He's punching holes in the darkness!". I love that quote. That's what each of us is meant to be doing!!
New Everyday Exotic Episodes tonight on Food Network Canada!!! | September 7 2010
Its been a long time coming but finally new episodes of Everyday Exotic start tonight in Canada exclusively on Food Network Canada, as usual.
What is different this season from the previous episodes you have seen in the past? Aside from some very subtle but effective things that only the true EE nerds will catch; we have shifted some of the lighting so that it feels brighter and more vibrant. Hopefully, you will find the more seasoned host equally as bright and vibrant this year; thats me.
Well, over the last few years I have logged a fair amount of travel hours and have brought all of these experiences to the new episodes. Stuff from Malaysia, Korea, Singapore, Mexico, New York and the Caribbean have made the cut. The recipes continue along the same theme with a renewed conscious effort to start some more stuff from scratch and show some goodies like making Pizza dough from scratch, or Pasta from scratch, or how to really hook up some Chicken Wings with a Malaysian inspiration.
There are lots of goodies but I cant give it all away so you will have to watch out for more as the episodes unfold.
• Click HERE to visit the Food Network Canada site for more info.
California Love | September 6 2010
The LA Times Celebration of Food and Wine was crazy. Thousands of peeps came through, more food trucks than parking spots, loads of vendors, so many flavors, styles and types of food and wine. The highlight was the cooking demonstration stage, it was on some Lollapalooza type ish. This pic was taken before the demo. The Cooking Channel Ice Cream Truck was just off the the right of the stage. Lineups were crazy this weekend. And later on in the night a band played, ummm...who do I talk to next year about playing this show with my band. Hmmm...
Food Trucks Galore (1 of 4) | September 9 2010
Numero Uno - Dim Sum Truck
Dim Sum is one of my favourite things on Earth. This truck had Har Gow, Sui Mai, and Char Sui Bao.
My grandfather was not big on excess in any direction so when I once told him that I LOVE Char Sui Bao he said ok. Once when I was visiting him at his restaurant in the Caribbean he mentioned to the Chef about my love for Bao. Well the chef made about 600 Bao and put them in the freezer (seriously). So at my whim I could have Bao. Well not only at my whim but he would not feed me anything else until the Bao was done. Needless to say I got sick of Bao quickly on that trip but I did finish them. Just before I left he asked me how I liked Bao now. Very reluctantly I admitted that I no longer LOVED it but still liked it - in moderation. His point was well taken although I LOVE it all over again.
This truck made a delicious Char Sui Bao.
Soul Food Spotlight - Aarti Sequeira | September 8 2010
Who are you?
Ha! Who are YOU? Just kidding. My name is Aarti Sequeira and I am the winner of this year's Next Food Network Star. I competed against 11 other contestants, and won my own show on Food Network, called Aarti Party. It airs every Sunday on Food Network (America) at 12p (ET). I was born in India, grew up in Dubai, and I went to a British school until I came here to the States for uni. That's why my accent is all over the place. I married the man that I met on the second day of university, about 14 years ago, and we live in a tiny apartment in Los Angeles.
The Next Food Network Star looks painful but you manage to look so calm under all that pressure. What is your secret?
The pressure WAS intense! In fact, so intense that every morning, my tummy was so uneasy that all I could stomach was some yogurt and honey. That's so unusual for me because I love having a big breakfast! Every day was a series of anxiety attacks, adrenaline rushes, then crashes. Rinse and repeat. It was intensely difficult and I really couldn't have gotten through without prayer. I tried to set some time aside every morning to pray. Prayer gives me perspective, helps me remember how little control I really have over my future; all I can do is stride forward in a way that makes God proud of me, and see where He takes me! I also credit the other peeps I competed against -- we really banded together, lifting each other up after the long days. Before I left, I asked my husband and my family to write me little letters of encouragement that I could read on the hard days. They helped me remember that even if I failed, the family I would return to would love me no matter what.
Tell me about your new show, Aarti Party.
Aarti Party is an extension of "aarti paarti", the online cooking-variety show that I've been doing for about a year (you can find it at youtube.com/aartipaarti
What made you decide to try out for The Next Food Network Star and what were you doing at the time?
I'll tell you the truth -- I didn't want to do it. I had watched a couple of episodes of Food Star, and it scared the lights out of me. To see these accomplished chefs competing under such tight time restrictions, meeting such hard challenges... well, I just didn't think I could do it. See, cooking is a relatively new career for me. I'm trained as a journalist, and I was doing very well as a CNN producer. My proudest moment was co-producing the HBO documentary, "Sand and Sorrow", with a Peabody award winning director, Paul Freedman. The film is about the horrific crisis in Darfur, and doing that film has left an indelible mark on me. I have a huge passion for shedding light on the conflicts in Darfur and the Congo. What's happening in those countries is nothing short of a travesty.
Anyway, one day, I realised that my passion for journalism had turned to a slow simmer. Meanwhile, my passion for cooking was at a rolling boil. I started shooting this cooking show, aarti paarti, in my little kitchen -- my husband shot and directed it, I edited it, and we invited our wide array of actor/performer friends to add their pizzazz to it. It gave birth to this cooking-variety show format that I just love. Following the prodding of a number of friends, I finally decided to try out for the show because I knew that if I wanted to be a cooking show host, I needed to do it at Food Network; it really is the leading name in food tv in the States. I sent in my video thinking, well I have nothing to lose. But I never once thought that I would actually win this thing!! I was just hoping that I wouldn't make a gigantic fool of myself.
Do you read blogs on yourself?
Oh gosh. Overall, I have been so very blessed by a positive response -- I get so many encouraging, enthusiastic comments on my blog, on my facebook fan page, on twitter. It's unbelievable that so many people are cheering for me. I was never popular in school, had very few friends, and to be at a point where I have 11,000 "friends" on facebook -- well, all I can say is, God is good. :)
On the other hand, my journalistic side needs to balance the positive with the negative -- it just seems like a more realistic picture. So I do check out the more negative blogs and comments. I take the constructive criticism under consideration of course, because I only want to get better at this job and viewers do bring up valid points! But it's hard not to let the more personal attacks get to me. I'm getting better. It's a weird thing about our nature that just *one* negative comment can poison the bottomless well of positive comments you've received. So, these days I don't read that stuff as much anymore. If you have something constructive to say, then I'm listening. But I'm not into sites that appeal to people's baser natures, that feed the vitriol and the darkness in our hearts. I don't understand how people can spend their days pouring negative energy into something like attacking a cooking show host. I mean, aren't there more important, vital things to be attacking?! I always sign off my emails with a quote from Robert Louis Stevenson, who as a young boy growing up in Scotland, watched a man lighting the lanterns on his street and yelled excitedly, "He's punching holes in the darkness!". I love that quote. That's what each of us is meant to be doing!!
New Everyday Exotic Episodes tonight on Food Network Canada!!! | September 7 2010
What is different this season from the previous episodes you have seen in the past? Aside from some very subtle but effective things that only the true EE nerds will catch; we have shifted some of the lighting so that it feels brighter and more vibrant. Hopefully, you will find the more seasoned host equally as bright and vibrant this year; thats me.
Well, over the last few years I have logged a fair amount of travel hours and have brought all of these experiences to the new episodes. Stuff from Malaysia, Korea, Singapore, Mexico, New York and the Caribbean have made the cut. The recipes continue along the same theme with a renewed conscious effort to start some more stuff from scratch and show some goodies like making Pizza dough from scratch, or Pasta from scratch, or how to really hook up some Chicken Wings with a Malaysian inspiration.
There are lots of goodies but I cant give it all away so you will have to watch out for more as the episodes unfold.
• Click HERE to visit the Food Network Canada site for more info.
California Love | September 6 2010
