I haven't neglected you, promise!

At the beginning of the year I made a resolution to update the blog at least once a month. I was doing well too. About June though...

Last year I disappeared for a bit because of exam prep and University applications, and last month I received all the decisions. After weighing all my options I have decided to accept an offer to do my degree at a University in New England.

Yeah, what a drastic change, right? From the Caribbean to New England...

I'm not looking forward to the weather so much, but I am happy with my decision.

With all that said, it's been a whirlwind of activity. I haven't had time to cook much, much less write any posts. I tweeted a while back about these amazing make-ahead oatmeal shakes that I have for breakfast on crazy mornings and promised to share the method with you guys. Since then I've seen half a dozen posts about the same idea on other blogs (I still have a secret little surprise kick to mine though, so I'm not discouraged)

I'm saying goodbye to the tiny apartment I've called home for the past year and a half, and moving back to my parents' house to get ready for school. I guess I'm going to miss my kitchen a bit, but it's mainly the freedom I have in it. My mother has an amazing kitchen, but it's not MINE... if you get what I mean. (She reads my blog, I can't say that she's controlling... Hi Mommy!)

I'll (hopefully) have a few weeks of peace after I'm back home and not running off to work every day, so I will definitely take the opporunity to write some posts and share some really great recipes I've discovered or made over the two months.

*Spoiler Alert! These recipes include a jerk sausage and herb goat cheese pizza! Sooooo good!!*

Until then, read my Avateur Lasagna recipe from last year this time. The pictures were terrible (my phone again) but that scallion pesto in place of the ricotta was a stroke of genius.. if I do say so myself :)

Thanks for stopping by!!

-The Avateur Chef

Five Things I'm Scared To Make

Over the weekend, Julie at The Little Kitchen posted a list of five things she's scared to make. She ended the post by calling the rest of us out asking for our feedback on the topic and the list :)

Julie: "Now that I have aired my dirty laundry and told you what I’m scared of trying…is there anything you’re afraid of trying to make at home in your kitchen? Tell me your five things. And if you have ever made any of the five from the above, tell me about it…I want to know all about it."

I'm not going to share her whole list (go read her post!), BUT a few of her items are things I've been dying to try and just too scared to. Let's just say, I give Mario Batali dirty looks through my TV on a regular basis. He makes it look SO.EASY.

Without even thinking twice about it, I commented on her post with my own 'five things I'm scared to make' list. And just in case I didn't bring enough shame to myself there, I'm going to share my list with you guys here.

Note that these were the first five things that came to mind. And they are things that I actually WANT to try making and just haven't had the guts to yet. I am, after all, just an avateur.


1. Bread. Sounds simple enough, and I’ve found some awesome no knead recipes.. But I’m terrified that I’ll make a dense, doughy mess. And I love bread too much to do that to myself.

2. Soufflé. As cliche as that is, I’ve been hearing about how finicky it is before I even started cooking. So.. No.

3. Yogurt/Cheese. Whether I’m scared or just lazy is debatable.

4. Sausages/Anything requiring me to grind my own meat. Have you read/watched Sweeney Todd??

5. Nut Butter. My boyfriend makes fun of my peanut butter obsession. It's a little disturbing how fast I go through jars of the stuff. I would love to start making my own (my wallet wouldn't mind either), but I don’t like chunky/crunchy nut butters.. and I’m yet to find a food processor (that’s not industrial grade) that gets homemade butter as smooth and creamy as the store bought ones.

I will add one that I hadn't thought of when I was writing my reply: I love pastries and long to make fresh ones at home.. flaky crust is very tricky (seems that way to me, anyway) and, like bread, I really don't want to subject myself to a heavy, dense crust. Luckily, one of my close friends did a pastry course in France so I have a ready supply of éclairs and croissants. *happy dance*

Your turn! What are you scared to make?? Don't be shy!

I also welcome any tips/tricks/recipes to help me get over my own fears.

While we're on the subject, let me show you what happened the first time I used a piping bag *covers face* 

So I made these key lime tarts a few years back when I just started to get over my fear of baking. Went out and bought a piping bag to start decorating my desserts... and when I was done it looked like a 5 year old made them -_-