A Source of Inspiration and Perspiration

Because this is my first food blog (and being the studious worker and meticulous architecture student that I am), I have been researching precedents and journeying through different food blogs on the internet for examples and potential models. The web of connections eventually led me to Kitchenscraps. 

I was immediately captivated by the colorful and adorable illustrations, drawn with a “sketchy” hand that illustrates so much character and personality. Each post is like reading a story, narratives filled with humor, history, culture, and facts. His style of writing is not filled with technical terms or lengthy vocab words, which is perfect for everyone to read! 

The recipes (one per post) are preceded by comical introductions. And then the storyteller moves to a more serious tone, sprinkling with amusing words here and there when presenting the directions. Although fairly random, the posts are linked by a common theme of delicious recipes and fun illustrations.

As I was reading his blog, I thought I might share this particular post with you. I had to look up a lot of words (like "Babushka" and "borscht") from this post because this is a soup recipe combined with ingredients from many cultures I am unfamiliar with. I think I am probably one those Americans screaming for sour cream too.

Here's another entertaining one. Don't you like how he personifies the asparagus? That is something this blogger likes to do often. I think this makes his posts seem more like a children's story. The blogger also likes to include facts. It is enlightening to learn facts about the food you are eating. Let me tell you a fact:

Only some people produce the sulfurous smelling urine after consuming asparagus but, to complicate things, not every one who produces the odour is able to smell it.

Resulting in 4 categories

Those who produce the odour but cannot smell it

Those who do not produce the odour and cannot smell it

Those who produce the odour and can smell it

Those who do not produce the odour but can smell it in other peoples’ urine

Although he posts several times a month, unfortunately, he hasn't updated his blog in awhile; must be busy with his book. I forgot to tell you more about the author of Kitchenscraps! His name is Pierre Lamielle, an award-winning illustrator in the process of publishing (or has published) his own cook book. Mister or Monsieur Lamielle completed a graphic design and illustration program from a college in Vancouver and began his career as a designer for the Vancouver Sun. Monsieur Lamielle later moved to Calgary, where he wrote food articles for the Calgary Herald’s Swerve magazine. His column has been described by some as

offbeat writing [with] irreverent illustrations-and great recipes.

After some ups and downs, Monsieur Lamielle furthered his education in the culinary world by enrolling in the French Culinary Institute in The Big Apple. And now, Monsieur Lamielle has probably published his first cookbook! Congratulations! 

I really enjoy the fun attitude Mr. Lamielle brings to his blog posts. I am going to strive for the same approach; hopefully I can make you laugh too. Similar to this blog, I will be introducing less known recipes, all from my Cantonese culture. Don’t worry, I won’t bore you with the orange chicken, fried rice, or chow mein recipes. In addition, I will occasionally be slipping in Chinese proverbs and traditional stories so you can learn about other aspects of Cantonese culture too. Please look forward to the next episode of Food Adventures!