Category: Uncategorized

My personal and favorite type of cooking is family-style, shared-plates or large portion cooking. I come from a family of 5 and there were just certain foods that we made in bulk.

Our entire family is huge so we always had to make sure they’re was enough for everyone. From then on, my portions have been large and in charge. When cooking for my family, there’s always plenty to take home; from my mac n cheese to lasagna, salads and such, I’ve not ever been able to make anything “small” or limit myself to small scale meals.

Besides, my food gets great reviews so you’ll want the extras anyway. 😉

Hey ya’ll! Just wishing everyone here a nice and lovely Tuesday! Love ya!

Ya Girl DeShelle

Thai food is somewhere between magic and intrigue for me.

My first exposure to Thai cuisine was in high school. My boyfriend at the time was from Thailand. His mom, just about my height, greeted me with a warm smile and open heart. When entering their home in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, I could smell the freshness of her ingredients. She prepared traditional Thai dishes with fresh veggies grown in their backyard gardens. The most memorable thing at that time was the black egg, thousand year egg.

In addition to nostalgia, I like Thai food because the ingredients taste the freshest and the marinades are perfectly savory. Entrées like steamed whole fish aka Pla Nueng Manao, Basil fried rice to Pad Thai even Tom Kha soup are the most delicious and notable Thai must haves. “Khop Khun” ❤

It’s a fabulous Sunday! Family, I hope everyone is doing great today! Keep tuning back in as I give you the sugar you need (and want 😉 )

Okay family, I’m starting to get a little bit more comfortable with this whole blog thing, so I’m willing to open up a little bit about some secret stuff I got going on.  I’ll give you a sneak peak of the goods JUST this once (and maybe some more in the future 😉 ).

This one is about lemonade.  I treasure lemonade.  I love lemonade.  

I consider good, if not great, lemonade to be traditional~freshly made, with natural sweeteners like raw cane sugar or honey, as close to organic as possible with tasty lemony bits. Now, GREAT lemonade is all that and then some flavored with notes of lavender, hibiscus or my personal favorites passionate or vanilla.  THAT’S ALL I’m going to share for now.  Don’t be lazy with the lemonade just throwing water and some cheap stuff from the grocery store.  Treat lemonade like the lady she truly is 😍

Getting away (or over a toxic relationship is different and difficult for everyone. I remember having to first identify there was something wrong. Then I had to figure out for myself what about what was wrong that was actually bothering me. There were definitely triggers, red flags and boundaries breached. When you look through rose colored glasses, the red flags don’t look red. I had to compartmentalize. Meaning, I had to separate a part of me from the part of me that accepted and also overlooked unacceptable behaviors, but not just for me and my role. I had to look at it all. From my childhood to my professional life. There was definitely a pattern. 

I was told “things happen for us, not to us”. Uhhh what? 

I had to work through becoming the survivor, not the “victim”. I took accountability and accepted my role and my role only, in all scenarios. I made the decision within myself after a coming to Jesus moment, that I had to leave but I didn’t know how. I let God work out the details.

[I’ll elaborate more on this in a later blog post 😉 ]

Spice it up y’all! Spices give everything life! When I started collecting spices from all over the world, I discovered an entirely new level of flavor. Spices are like the stars in the night sky, just bland without them-nothing to see, in this case taste. Don’t get me wrong, fresh fruits and veggies have their own unique taste. You can always awaken and enhance how a food tastes with spices! Got spice? Yes please!

Hello Family!

Hope all is well, in this post I want to discuss the wonders of using wine when cooking; quite the delight if one knows what they’re doing.

I have been using wine in my cooking for some years now.  So, to keep it short and sweet: if its seafood I like to stick to Sauvignon Blanc or Riesling, if beef I use either Carmenere or a basic red blend, and if lamb…well, that’s a secret unfortunately my friend 😉

Just a reminder to be and stay beautiful!

Just because the world is crazy – doesn’t mean you have to be.

Just because the world can be ugly – doesn’t mean you have to be.

Be Beautiful. Stay Beautiful. Peace.

Your Girl

DeShelle

Let’s face it: LIFE can be difficult at times. Nowadays people are hard to deal with and edgy. There is a negativity and darkness out there in the world but there is something so resilient about smiling. Many people told me how at ease I made them feel to see me smile. There are several songs written about smiles and yet, its still so underrated. A simple ability that the universe gave us can impact an individual in a profound way. A smile says, “I see you” We shouldn’t take it lightly. In fact: we should embrace it. There’s scientific evidence out there that references how smiles can alter your mood in seconds. 

If you’re ever traveling down I-95 south, somewhere around the Girard street exit, there’s a billboard that says, “Smile and the world smiles back at you”. Great advice.