Syd's Fried Rice

About Syd: Syd started cooking out of necessity when he moved to college. He did grow up around cooking though. He said his mother often made fried rice with whatever was left over in the house and his grandmother makes "the best fried rice."

For a little fried rice history visit here. It turns out this dish originated from leftovers, yum!

For a recipe & directions from the Food Network for fried rice visit here.

Syd followed his mother's lead and made this fried rice with whatever he could find in the kitchen (also great for college students). Here is what he used:

1/4 large onion

4 cloves garlic

1/2 cup corn

1/2 cup peas

1/2 cup soy beans

2 links of chinese sausage

1/2 cup ham

6 cups of white rice (already made)

3 eggs

1 tbsp sesame oil

dash of salt

dash of pepper

2 tbsp soy sauce

Michael's Breakfast with Special Potatoes

About Michael: This is his second time cooking for me. Last time he made a delicious pasta dish! He said he always enjoyed cooking with his mother from the time he was about 15. His mother taught him how to cook early on and the skill never wore off. His interest in cooking grew when he began to watch No Reservations on the Travel Channel. Here he is now, cooking up some good eats!

Michael didn't use a recipe for his potatoes but this is what he used in them:

2 tbsp olive oil

tsp of salt

a few grinds of pepper

tsp of garlic powder

His tips? Use water while cooking the potatoes in the skillet to help speed up the process of cooking. Adding rosemary gives the potatoes a more earthy taste.

You can click here for an actual recipe. This is a blog that has great home-cooked dishes. However, I recommend trying Michael's; they are delicious!

Also, if you want some interesting information on potatoes, other than what the Irish say, you can click here. No, really, it's cool. Did you know that scientists have found potato remains that date back to 500 B.C? It's true! Read away.

Ian's Tortillas

So, I got a lot of wonderful feedback about the photos on Nicole's King Cake, so I think I'm going to rotate between photos and video. There seems to be something, I don't know what, special about both of them; in their own, little unique way.

For this week, I photographed Ian making tortillas. I've often seen him making them in a friends dorm and decided they would be a good, homemade recipe to add to the blog. It turns out, they are extremely easy to make. Really, it's almost impossible to mess these up! They turn out a little think though, almost like a flat bread (perfect for breakfast burritos).

For a little history on tortillas click here.

The ingredients and directions are here, as well, there is a video tutorial!

Ian Suggests: Use 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil instead of 2. The tortillas will be softer then! Also, don't wear dark colors, you WILL get flour on you.