On & Beyond Culinary Delights

College years may be one of the most entertaining and the most challenging times of anyone’s life. In this never-ending cycle of lectures, dates, and quizzes, it can be challenging to maintain a healthy diet. 

Every country and every culture has its own set of meals that represent the staples and the core of the cuisine of that particular country. Like burgers for the US, pizza for Italy and escargots for France, Australia has its own delicacies that, even though they might sound strange to someone who grew up in a different culture, are absolutely delicious and actually quite simple to prepare at home.

Looking for ideas on what to cook and serve at your upcoming dinner party? Well, if you happen to be a fan of Pakistani cuisine, why not treat your guests to scrumptious Pakistani dishes? 

I don’t know about you but I have never encountered anyone who doesn’t like Italian food. And I found that, more often than not, even those who follow a strict healthy diet wouldn’t be able to resist the occasional platter of deep-fried food.

For those who celebrate it, the 4th of July, The United States of America’s Independence day, is one of the most anticipated holidays of the year. It is a day often spent with family and friends in the great outdoors and of course, one that usually involves an abundance of fireworks and food!

With the opening of each new semester, as you hit the books, do not forget to make food your priority. You need a lot of energy as a student. This energy should take you through the long lectures, study group discussions, and maybe even a part-time job. 

Cooking as a passion or cooking for fun? Most people would say both, but for Sinead, the chef in charge of Wilde Kitchen, it is more of a lifestyle. Irish-born, multitalented and loaded with enthusiasm, she managed to combine sunny beaches and French home cooking with a pinch of history.

Are you looking forward to the rocking summer ahead? What’s your idea of pleasing your taste buds during summer parties with your near and dear ones?

Summer has finally arrived, and along with it, all the things that I’ve missed so much in my diet! Fresh fruit, such as cherries and strawberries, and yummy veggies, like asparagus and green onions and many more. 

Mother’s Day is fast approaching and if you have yet to get your mom and/or the mother of your children a gift, you’re in for a treat because we have delicious ideas to share with you! 

When we think of a good meal, we all have our own personal preferences, but pastries are commonly found on our dinner tables. The 21st century didn’t just bring a technological boom; it also brought some medical conditions that keep many people away from their favorite activities or foods.

If you are enjoying the health benefits of eating clean and you’re also ready to try something new, you’ve come to the right place! Every day, people like you are discovering fresh and exciting new ways to enjoy Matcha green tea, all thanks to its versatility and ease of use as a healthy ingredient. 

There truly is nothing more refreshing than the spring season. Flowers are blooming, hibernated animals are waking up, and above all else, the temperature is just right! Some people, including me, would even consider this season a new beginning for them. 

Let’s face it, most of us have had mornings where we find ourselves running against time and can only manage to grab a handful of cereal as we rush our way out of the door. When you have a full plate of tasks & responsibilities, truth be told, this can easily be something that you face every (working) day. 

Carrot is one of the healthiest foods that is almost available in groceries worldwide and making a carrot juice can be very easy in the comfort of your own home. This healthy beverage can be a great source of nutritional benefits that will boost your body’s immune system and improve your wellbeing. 

Despite what some people may assume, one does not have to use coffee only in desserts such as Tiramisu cakes and ice-cream. It is also high time to look beyond the staple combo of chocolate and coffee in Mocha. So, did you know you can put some coffee in gravy to get a rich flavor or pour a cup of espresso over cobbled beans for some cowboy vibe?  

For those of us who love the outdoors, starting a campfire each time we go camping is a must. Besides bringing people together and helping you stay warm, a campfire is also a perfect opportunity to try some interesting new recipes. After all, there’s nothing quite as savory as a meal cooked over the fire.

When it comes to adding a South African twist to your next dinner party, you may be thinking of adding plenty of wild game meat and Cape wines in order to make it a unique experience; in which case you will be on the right track. However, there are many other varieties of South African twists that you can add to the table in order to create a unique dinner party experience as well as a night to remember with tantalizing tastes and flavourful dishes!

Summer is harvest time for many fruits and vegetables which means that we can get fresh ingredients in larger quantities. You may notice that in the spring, it already starts with the strawberries. Rhubarb, apricots, cherries, a variety of berries, and plums usually follow. Knowing this, we can make the most out of these seasonal ingredients by using them to make mouthwatering ice cream, popsicles, sorbets or fresh creamy cakes!

There is an old saying “eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper”, which we should all live by in order to stay healthy. As we all know, breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and it’s also a crucial part of a healthy diet and comes in handy when it comes to improving our metabolism and to help us lose weight!

It can be hard figuring out what to eat when you’re backpacking. You never know what food is available or what the hostel kitchen will be like (if it has one) until you get there. Add that to not wanting to carry a ton of food around, plus it may be your first time without parents cooking for you, not to mention you’re most likely to be on a tight budget! With all of this put together, you can easily end up with a poor diet. 

In Texas, where brisket is king, burnt ends are made when they smoke a whole brisket. Many people think they are the best part of a brisket smoke. Well, I have great news, you don’t have to go to Texas to get great burnt ends and you don’t have to buy a whole brisket, you can make it with a pork shoulder or pork parts and prepare a delicious roast! 

Given current society’s love for instant food, it’s not surprising why most of the population is living unhealthy lifestyles. Eating healthy can be a huge challenge especially if you experience food cravings. But if snacks are the problem, there’s a quick solution – change the way you snack. 

Summer is here and it is essential to keep yourself healthy and hydrated in the sweltering heat. The great news is that eating healthy is not as complicated as you think. There are endless dishes that are meant to be enjoyed in the summer and are actually healthy! 

Ah, summer! With this ‘hot’ season just around the corner, many of us are on the hunt for cool desserts recipes – from ice creams to frozen yogurt to popsicles –  to whip up right in our own kitchen. Why should you make it yourself – you asked? Because making it at home offers control over the ingredients (and quantities) making for healthy versions of our favorite summer treats!

The ruling opinion is that only overweight people are turning to vegetarianism under the pretext to lose weight. Perhaps some part of it is true, but the fact is that there are many reasons why someone would give up meat and/or products from animals. Perhaps it comes to health reasons, perhaps ideological, maybe material, but most often it is a great love for animals.

Turns out that this winter is proving to be quite feisty, hitting European countries with days on end of below-freezing temps during the day. It’s certainly not a pleasure to have to go out.  

Have you got something special planned for Valentine’s Day? If your answer is something like “yes - dinner and a movie” or “yes – we’ll order pizza and watch a marathon of our favorite show”, then this article may just come in handy.  

While almonds have a high content of antioxidants and a lot of nutritional benefits, you might not want to supplement your diet or healthcare program with handful after handful of raw nuts. Fortunately, almonds are highly versatile. They can be used in a huge number of dishes, from western chickens to eastern style stir fries and curries.

Having a bad day? Whatever it is that ails you, sometimes, there’s nothing that will soothe your soul quite like comfort foods.

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” ―Hippocrates

Did you know that the immune system’s army is in the stomach? And to keep the army healthy, you need to feed it good nourishment.

If you are hosting a New Year’s Eve party, you will want to have some easy cocktail recipes handy to entertain your guests.  

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. The lights adorn the cities, the Christmas markets are in full swing, and the search for easy to make Christmas cookies and sweets is on the way.

Fall is a colorful and exciting season. With the onset of the first signs of fall foliage in Umbria, you can hear the echo of the hunters’ calling from hill to hill. That marks the start of the high season for typical fall dishes.

Need inspiration for some easy yet delectable Halloween treats that you can whip up yourself? Looking for recipes to make you the star of the neighborhood?

Admittedly, we at BookCulinaryVacations.com would salivate over the mere thought of Thai food! We adore the myriad of exciting flavors harmonized within each Thai dish. Afterall, who could ever say “no” to the experience of having sweet, salty, spicy, and sour flavors all on a single plate?

As an enthusiastic vegan and traveler, Maricel Lukkanit​, from Vegan Crush, created an extraordinary event where scrumptious food, good company, and comfortable ambiance come together in one memorable dinner. At the Supper Club events, the menu is never the same, but you can expect a tasty surprise on every dinner. Even vegan versions of international dishes that would conventionally include meat as part of the ingredients. 

Earth Day is a special day where we celebrate and thank our planet for providing us with all life’s necessities – and this certainly includes food! This day also acts as a reminder of a call to action for all of us to be kinder and gentler to this beautiful planet we call home. 

At first glance, Easter may appears to be a holiday exclusively to be celebrated by Christians, but similar to Christmas, it can be a holiday that everyone - regardless of beliefs - can embrace and partake in. Easter festivities present a great opportunity for your family and friends to gather, enjoy each other’s company and indulge in plenty of delicious food!

Two years ago I had a very rude awakening. The first time I measured my glucose levels, I found out I was pre-diabetic. I was age 45, had been a nutritionist for 5 years and was eating what I thought was the healthiest diet on the planet: all organic, local, home cooked and Paleo foods. But something was not right. I was gaining weight. I was always hungry. I also had joint and lower back pain.

With the myriad of cuisines around the world, hands down, Italian food has been a favorite to many. Hence, it’s no surprise that you probably can find Italian dishes being served on the dining table in nearly every household.

A kitchen is a magical place where all the amazing and delicious food we love were created. It is also a place where all great chefs got their start. It is where they first discovered their gift and passion for cooking which changed their lives forever.

Several years ago, I quit my job, sold everything I owned and since then, traveled around the world to over 70 countries and territories. I have flown hundreds of thousands of miles and slept in all sorts of places. The experience has turned my life upside down and made me who I am today.

As big time foodies, my hubby & I love to try different vegetarian cuisines. With that passion, I loved and enjoyed cooking. The main reason for starting my food blog is to primarily keep a record of all sorts of the recipes that I’ve tried. Instead of writing everything that I have learnt down in a notebook, the perks of publishing it on the internet would help not only me, but to others who are looking for new and interesting recipes.

With Halloween came and gone, the holiday season is now officially in high gear and here at BookCulinaryVacations.com, we are simply riddled with excitement. 

Next up, it’s time to celebrate [American] Thanksgiving, a holiday which traditionally represents a significant meaning in giving thanks for the year’s blessings. It’s a cherished day where those who celebrate it would gather with their family and friends to express their gratitude with a joyful heart, and of course, with an abundance of scrumptious food!

Though many people still perceive veganism as a type of diet, those who had chosen to become a vegan insist that it is far beyond that – it is a way of life. The reasons for people to adopt the vegan lifestyle greatly vary – from an effort to improve their health and wellness, to contributing to the end of exploitation of animals, to helping to protect the environment and many more.

I had a rather clumsy entrance into the world of gluten-free diets. For a while, it would be apt to say I full on rebelled against it. You see, I found out that gluten was the enemy right after I discovered my true calling in life. As luck would have it, I had landed my dream career in a charming little cake boutique as head pastry chef, and all of a sudden, my life started to fall apart.

The Vegan way of life has surged in popularity in the past few years thanks to A list celebrities - the likes of Brad Pitt, Ellen de Generes, and Anne Hathaway, as well as respected public figures such as Bill Clinton, who have been very much vocal about their commitment to a lifestyle of zero consumption of animal products.

Started in 2001 by writer, Marty Martindale, as “Food Site of the Day”, Foodsite Magazine aims to share its comprehensive food knowledge to the cooking challenged. Unlike many of today's food blogs and websites which often focus upon gourmet cooking and "making fine cooks finer", Marty and her site opt to empower those who feel less than confident of their skills in the kitchen by providing useful food related information including nutrition, cooking methods, serving ideas, and even links to other food sites that offer delicious recipes for readers to give a go.

Because we believe that sharing is caring, we'd like to share our list of partners who love food, wine, travel, and simply living life to the fullest as much as we do!

Before the turkey, poultry was imported in Greece. Each region of Greece had its own food for Christmas time. Some dishes with pork, and others with duck, goose, wild boar, or rooster. In the Cretan Christmas table, pork was mainly used and this was due to the Choirosfagia (sacrificial pork). The butchering of faltered pig, brought up with particular care from households of Cretan and Greek rural areas, was certainly the most generalized custom in Greek cooking, with roots from the antiquity.

Schiacciata is a classic Tuscan bread that is made with simple ingredients. Historically, women in Italy bake this bread for the miners to bring as their meals. It is a good source of energy and easy to preserve.