tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-374224062024-09-11T00:20:23.090-05:00Food is my muse.Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.comBlogger181125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-42588629406191098692016-08-11T17:03:00.000-05:002016-08-11T17:03:38.455-05:00

(I'm not DEVO...I didn't have the patience to whip it REAL good) I've got a good one here kids!  Chocolate Coconut Cream Mousse. Some things on Pinterest can be a total fail.  But not this little gem of a dessert.  Well... it was a total failure the first time I tried it.  Because I bought the wrong ingredient.  But here goes.  Go to your grocery store and get

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-6691771889664741902016-06-16T14:02:00.001-05:002016-06-16T14:02:32.182-05:00

Summertime has arrived.  And with it comes the desire to look good in a bathing suit.  Me?  I am starting to realize that I love food and I'm never going to look like a supermodel with my 5'1" frame.  I'm always going to have a pot belly.  But I do like to eat healthy.  Sure I won't pass up a piece of fried chicken or some biscuits and gravy, but I do try to

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-4750041086757236762016-06-08T14:50:00.001-05:002016-06-08T14:50:06.047-05:00

So let me tell you a little bit about my balls.  This little sack right here full of balls saves me in many ways.  It saves me when I have nothing made for breakfast and I have 10 minutes until I have to leave for work.  It saves me when I just worked out and I have a million errands to run and don't have time for lunch.  It saves me when I'm dying to make 100 cookies and

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-13437436965892856372016-05-12T11:43:00.002-05:002017-06-15T19:05:14.474-05:00

This is my friend Natalie.  Natalie has been through more shit in her life than you'd ever know just by looking at her.  When I first met her, we were in our early 20s, listening to music in a bar.  This was before I lived in Memphis.  I didn't realize at the time she would become one of my best friends.  I didn't even know that I'd soon be living in Memphis.  I

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-18500158053511826562016-04-29T08:05:00.003-05:002016-04-29T08:05:50.383-05:00

Image from Google Images Kids get attached to things.  A stuffed animal.  A toy.  Whatever.   My sister had a blanket as a kid that she LOVED.  It was (as I recall) a light yellow blanket, soft as can be, with a silk edge.  She called it her "Spotty blanket".  And it was the only thing that she wanted when she was sleepy or sad or sick or just needed a

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-38806192558939578872016-04-21T13:18:00.000-05:002016-04-21T13:18:23.652-05:00

Me as Axl, Halloween 2009 with one of my favorite partners in crime. I've always been a fan of music.  You might think it's odd to say that, because who doesn't love music?  But there are actually people out there who don't.  My parents named me Jessica after the Allman Brothers' song. My sister and I used to hang out with our babysitter's older daughter and stand around a

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-49564276917314079092016-04-12T18:17:00.002-05:002016-04-12T21:13:42.430-05:00

Smoked Salmon Everything Bagel with Scallion Cream Cheese from Best Bagel & Coffee,  225 W. 35th St. I'm actually surprised that it took me 39 years to get to the Big Apple. So when my mom wanted to do a girls' trip to NYC, I was ecstatic. I am so lucky to have experienced it all with my mom, sister and niece.  And I must say, it was built up in my mind to be this big,

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-71823086860947612312016-03-15T10:06:00.000-05:002016-03-15T10:06:45.971-05:00

It's been kind of a joke in our house that when any of our friends went to the bathroom we'd say, "Don't pee on the carpet!" We decided after 3 years of people peeing on our carpet (yes, there was carpet in the downstairs bathroom- why oh why people think that's a good idea, I'll never know) that it was time to rip out the old and lay down the new.  So we bought up a bunch of laminate

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-61710371707133627832016-03-04T09:53:00.002-06:002016-03-04T09:53:24.430-06:00

Apparently, I like lists.  Here's one for ya. A few of my favorite food things: 1.  Sitting on an ocean dock somewhere with a box full of blue crab and some icy cold Corona. 2.  Getting to the choke of an artichoke.  Letting it bathe in some melted butter and then eating it up.  Not sharing a morsel. (By the way, have you ever seen an artichoke flower? Holy gorgeous

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-30466654806929298432016-02-24T10:21:00.001-06:002016-02-24T10:21:29.772-06:00

(Hamachi Kama at Sakura - Memphis) This, my friends, is hamachi kama.  Hamachi kama is the collar of the yellowtail fish, aka Japanese Amberjack. It is my favorite thing to order at sushi or Japanese restaurants. It's usually listed on the menu as Hamachi Kama or Yellowtail Cheek.  If I see it on a menu, I order it. And so should you. In Memphis, I have seen it on the menus of

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-73549468264931739972016-02-12T09:25:00.001-06:002016-02-12T09:31:37.202-06:00

I love tuna, guys.  For me, it's just one of those foods that does it all.  It can be comfort food, it can be refreshing, it can be spicy, it can be easy, and it can be fancy.  This is a fancy jar of tuna: It's not cheap. It will cost you about $8/jar (and you may have to get it at a specialty store, because the grocery store that must not be named doesn't carry it.)

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-53618025076009024262016-02-02T20:50:00.000-06:002016-02-03T07:38:50.172-06:00

I remember in high school or college watching MTV while they were in New Orleans for Mardi Gras and thinking to myself, God, that is the last place on Earth I would want to be during that time. What I saw was a bunch of drunk, half-naked people acting like complete idiots, doing things they probably regret and wouldn't want their mothers to find out about, all to get on tv. I decided back

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-36530987227468988492016-01-26T10:23:00.000-06:002016-01-26T10:23:29.071-06:00

Here's something that might blow your mind.  I moved to Memphis.  On purpose.  I wasn't forced.  I wasn't paid to live here.  I actually moved AWAY from the beach to live in Memphis. Not because I'm crazy. Not because I was running from the law. Because when I came to visit Memphis in 2002, I fell in love with Memphis. It's the people mostly. Everyone is so friendly and

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-78097318112739934962016-01-20T14:25:00.000-06:002016-01-20T14:25:26.935-06:00

It's freaking cold! The heat is on. I hate turning the heat on. Normally, I don't turn on the heat until I can see my breath in my house. I hate heaters. They suck the life out of me and out of my skin. But when it starts to get cold enough to wear a cardigan (and if you know me, a cardigan is what I consider a Winter coat), that's when I start craving my favorite winter foods.  Chicken

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-22927227986183513872016-01-13T15:03:00.001-06:002016-01-13T15:03:35.676-06:00

Usually when I go grocery shopping without a plan, I come back with things I don't need.  A block of cheese I've never had.  Chocolate. Chips. A weird fruit or vegetable I've never tried. But the other day I came back with some shit I would never in a million years buy.  I'm not sure what the grocery Gods were trying to tell me, but they took over my body and forced me to buy

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-23354615161365137432016-01-04T14:51:00.000-06:002016-01-04T14:51:51.388-06:00

So look, the reality of it is, I knew I wasn't going to be making myself an authentic Bibimbap today.  But I had a bunch of shit in my fridge that I had to cook.  I am trying to not be as wasteful in the New Year, so here's what I came up with. And look, don't email me freaking out that this isn't an authentic recipe!  I know all too well you crazy people who get your panties

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-59809419538375726592014-05-21T11:29:00.000-05:002014-05-21T11:29:23.940-05:00

This is my Go To meal.  On any given night I usually have some type of green in my fridge.  I ALWAYS have garlic, shallot and Parmesan.  And I USUALLY have some type of fish or chicken. I love fish.  But have been kind of discouraged lately by all the farmed fish I see in the grocery store.  I don't want farmed fish.  I realize that farmed fish may be the future

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-1648270188630359182014-04-15T10:46:00.002-05:002014-04-15T10:46:53.098-05:00

I have a confession to make.  I am a food waster.  It kills me.  It gives me guilt.  It makes me hate myself.  But I do it a LOT!  I have really tried to be more conscious about my food planning so that I DON'T waste, but sometimes I just mess up and have to throw away food that I've let go bad. I have done a few things to stop this terrible habit.  One

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-48673019815693538102014-03-19T10:27:00.001-05:002014-03-19T10:27:21.499-05:00

Raw tuna is probably one of my top 5 favorite foods.  It's just so freaking delicious.  Take me to a sushi restaurant and try to make me order a sushi roll.  I don't need all that filler crap.  Just serve me up a filet of raw tuna and set me free!  (Here's another tuna recipe I made awhile back) I first discovered tuna poke (prounced Po-Kay) on an episode of Diners,

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-14404873217920294992014-03-07T09:59:00.003-06:002014-03-07T09:59:57.023-06:00

This, my friends, is probably my favorite comfort food of all times.  Tuna Noodle Casserole.  You either love it, or you hate it.  But for me, it's poor man's food at its finest.  It's noodly, creamy, cheesy, mushroomy.  My mom used to make it at least once a week when we were kids, and we looked forward to it.  We'd beg for her to make tuna nooner.  That's

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-15981564013106732362014-03-03T12:49:00.000-06:002014-03-03T12:49:33.064-06:00

I think I'm in love with chicken thighs.  And I am a total freak when it comes to chicken.  Before I make anything with chicken, I do minor surgery on my piece of meat.  I cut off weird tendons, skin, veins.  I throw away the majority of the piece of chicken before I cook it because it grosses me out.  I know, it's gross.  Chicken scares me.  But I'm not

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-1571041854334714342014-02-25T10:05:00.001-06:002014-02-25T10:05:53.485-06:00

(Believe me, this is an amazing dish...as in dinner party, impress your friends, dish) Coq Au Vin.  Translation?  Cockerel (Chicken) in wine.  Pronunciation?  Coke o van.  There's your French lesson for the day. My step-mother, Sue, is an amazing cook.  We are actually a lot alike in the kitchen.  We both like simple foods with great ingredients.  We

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-41828611508069334982014-02-18T12:24:00.001-06:002014-02-18T12:24:21.062-06:00

So...A dear friend of mine turned me on to something GOOD!  Something REAL GOOD.  And I'm here to tell you about it.  It's called Bountiful Baskets.  It's a food Co-op that offers produce baskets, organic produce baskets, artisan bread, sandwich bread and tortillas every other week.  The goal is to offer more produce to families for less money.  And who doesn't

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-47472141092218331962014-02-12T10:13:00.001-06:002014-02-12T10:13:22.807-06:00

I know it's not the prettiest picture...but this is meat people.  Channel your inner caveman Well hello there!  I hope everyone is having an excellent day.  Shoveling themselves out of snow storms, trying out the newest in rain gear.  It's been one hell of a cold year.  We haven't gotten much snow in Memphis.  But it's been cold.  And when it's cold I want

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37422406.post-44056515160128496272014-02-10T14:52:00.001-06:002014-02-10T14:52:56.247-06:00

I love you guys.  It's so flattering when people ask where I've been, tell me I need to write something, or encourage me to keep blogging.  I wish my blog was my job and I could devote all my energy into it.  But alas...real life calls.  So here's where I have been...for all of you who wondered.  And hey...thanks for wondering.  Makes a girl feel real special. &

Jesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07660183444735858536noreply@blogger.com0