About Me

spaghetti and meatballs

My name is Guiseppe-Mario.  As you can tell from my name I am of Italian descent.  I could eat pasta every day, seven days a week.  It is in my blood.  My favorite pasta plate is spaghetti and meatballs and that explains why I have the picture of spaghetti and meatballs.  

I am currently enrolled in the Culinary Management Program at George Brown College.  Why did I choose to become a chef?  There are many reasons why.  The men in my family are the ones that cook.  From a young age, I remember sitting on the kitchen counter watching my dad cook dinner.  My dad's one and only cookbook is "The New World Encyclopedia of Cooking".  It was published in 1972 and has very little pictures but the foods my dad has cooked from this cookbook were almost always good.  I was always in the kitchen helping my dad, so when I got into high school and they gave cooking classes, I thought why not.  The cooking classes where fun and it grew my interest in cooking.  When you come over to my house, almost guaranteed the Cooking Channel will be on.  

At the moment I am not working in the industry, but I hope to one day work in the industry and grow my passion for food. 

My Nonno's zucchini (2018)

My personal philosophy of cooking was drilled into me by my grandparents.  Fresh from the garden, fresh homemade pasta and fresh homemade bread are always the best.  My grandparents grew all their own vegetables and they had fruit trees in the backyard also.  A cucumber from the garden always tasted better than a cucumber from the store.  Even today, my father works in the produce industry, so we get fruits and vegetables directly from the suppliers. 

Blogging is new to me.  I personally do not follow blogs.  What I hope to gain from blogging is up in the air.  As I continue to blog for school I hope to learn to appreciate and understand the mass following of people who blog or read blogs.

Julia Child was quoted as saying "You don't have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces - just good food from fresh ingredients."  I picked this quote because like my grandparents, Julia Child said good food comes from fresh ingredients and you can't get any fresher than the backyard garden.

A Great Culinary Blog that I checked out was "The Pioneer Woman".  Ree Drummond has a show on the Food Channel that my family watches and when thinking of picking a blog to look at, her name popped into my head.  I like the look of her blog, it is very organized with tabs for different categories and drop-downs for more options.  From the couple of blogs that I read, she writes her blogs as if she was just talking to a friend.  Ree Drummond's blogs are personal and tell stories.  They are not stuffy and technical.  They are interesting because you learn about the blogger while learning recipes.  I cannot think of anything that she could do to make her blogs better.  When something is working fine, don't fix it. 

References

Images are from www.pexels.com

"Julia Child Quotes", www.goodreads.com

"The New World Encyclopedia of Cooking", Edited by the Staff of Culinary Arts Institute.  Delair Publishing Company Inc., 1972.

"The Pioneer Woman" Blog, https://thepioneerwoman.com

My Nutrition Interests

 

A topic in nutrition that interests me is diabetes.  Diabetes runs in my family.  My nonna, my uncle and my mother all have diabetes.  They all have Type 2 Diabetes.  Type 2 Diabetes is when your body can't properly use the insulin that is released.  You can control Type 2 Diabetes with physical activity and meal planning.  The doctor may also prescribe medication to control your blood sugar levels.



Another topic in nutrition that interests me and I would like to learn more about is organic foods.  The benefits of organic foods versus non-organic foods.  Does organic food actually taste better than non-organic foods?

Nutrition has been playing a big role in the culinary industry for a number of years.  Consumers have been more knowledgeable and aware of their health and what they should be putting in their bodies.  Restaurants and chefs have been changing their menus to serve their customers what they have been asking for.  People who are diabetic will lean towards healthier lifestyles that include a healthy diet.  Diabetics should eat three regular meals a day and limit the carbohydrates, sugars and fiber, and salt intake when planning meals and portion size.  I think nutrition will continue to influence the culinary industry for years to come. 

For this blog, I checked out two websites.  The first website was Diabetes Canada and the second website was My Heart Matters.  A question you may ask is "How do you know if a website is credible or not?".  Well there are some simple hints to see if a website is credible and trustworthy.  The first hint would be who wrote the website.  Diabetes Canada was written by The Canadian Diabetes Association along with doctors.  My Heart Matters is written by two of Canada's pharmaceutical research based companies.  Another hint if the website is credible is what are the qualifications of the author(s).  The people who write or wrote information on Diabetes Canada are doctors and researchers.  When I looked at My Heart Matters, it does not really say who the writers are or at least I couldn't find it.  This website says that it is written by pharmaceutical research companies.  So I could assume that the writers are researchers.  Diabetes Canada's website is very well organized and written.  It provides links to definitions, support groups and programs in various cities.  My Heart Matters provided information on what diabetes is, how to control diabetes through food and exercise and then it gave a link to some caregivers that could help.  This website did not look as credible as Diabetes Canada. 

References

"Diabetes Canada."  Canadian Diabetes Association, www.diabetes.ca

Images are from www.pexels.com

"My Heart Matters - Diabetes and Heart Disease Resources."  My Heart Matters - Diabetes and Heart Disease Resources, www.myheartmatters.ca

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