Ideas and Inspiration

Where do I turn to for ideas and inspiration? Like every other foodie I read a lot of food blogs. I get ideas from cupcake bloggers and also smoothie/ice cream bloggers. Any combination they come up with - I think - I could do that, too.

I recently came across this site: kblog in which it lists a whole bunch of herb combos for juicing. And I think to myself - those are some interesting combinations... could possibly work for a sweet roll, too. 

Just check out this list of herb combos:

-basil and lime

-thyme and lemon

-grapefruit and tarragon

-fig and black pepper

-pear and mint

-cucumber and rosemary

-spinach and chive

-strawberry and chili pepper

-peach and cayenne

Okay, some of those don't really sound so good for sweet rolls - like cucumber and rosemary... i don't think so. But it is a very big trend right now to use unusual ingredients in baked goods and in cooking in general. We foodies want to experiment with everything new we come across. Many of us visit farmers' markets and other places to find that unique ingredient and then we want to try something fun with it.

I recently found a can of jackfruit at my local Xenos (I'm trying to think of what store to compare that to in the U.S. hmm... it's like similar to a Pier 1 or something) Anyways, I was thinking - I'll buy that and turn it into some kind of sweet roll. I haven't used it yet, but I've learned all about jackfruit - in my google searches - and I find that kind of thing interesting. Has anyone else cooked with jackfruit before? I've read that it tastes best fresh... we'll see how it is from a can... another day.

Of course, I don't just look to other bloggers for inspiration and ideas... I use my head, too. I just sit down with a paper and pen and write out all my ideas for anything that sounds yummy. Here is a few items from my list:

-salty sweet

-pina colada

-marshmallow fun

-pink passion (grapefruit, raspberries, passion fruit)

-watermelon, strawberries and vanilla

-creamy orange-creamsicle

-mango lassi

-hazelnut choco-cinnamon

-wheat free + coconut, white chocolate and mango (for a friend that loves this combo)

-with Lebanese twist: fig, rosewater, pistachio

-rooibos vanilla

-20 kruiden thee

and my list goes on... but that is just a sample of what I've thought of.

Also from the kblog - here is a list of trendy ingredients: Acai, Aloe, Apricots, Basil, Blackberries, Blood Oranges, Cacao Nibs, Cherimoya, Chia Seeds, Exotic salts: pink, grey, smoked; Goji berries, Hemp products, Jalapeno, Papaya, Wheatgrass, Yacon Powder, Yuzu... to name a few.

You know, I never even knew that salt could come in pink. Does it taste the same? Does anyone know?

And then with fall right around the corner, I'm craving all those wonderful fall things - cooler weather, red, orange and golden leaves, Halloween, Thanksgiving... pumpkins!!!  And even though I see before me a list of trendy ingredients... I lean toward pumpkins, cinnamon, nutmeg, butternut squash, apple cider, maple syrup and so forth.

Today I am 39 weeks and 5 days pregnant... and I'm really hoping that this little baby comes quickly... because I'm experiencing all those things that come with being almost full term, like muscle cramps and just an enormously huge belly that is hard to walk around with... and a huge desire to hold this little baby and kiss it a thousand times....

And I think that by October, I will be recovered and ready for baking sweet rolls... and I betcha that I will be leaning toward those wonderful autumn smells in my kitchen... I'm certainly looking forward to it!