For someone who cooks a lot like myself, the most simplest of meals often satisfy me the most. To me there is no better meal than a bowl of homemade soup, crusty bread and a glass of wine. That being said sometimes I don't have any soup around or I'm just too lazy to make any. Especially on a cold snowy day like today when I'm trying to come up with spring recipes for an April class I am working on! So to satisfy the chill in my bones and rumbling in my tummy I thought I would open up a can of soup and wolf it down while I tried to get inspired over spring time fare.

Not it's not often that I wax poetic about ready to go pre-packaged food so I wasn't expecting much when I went to taste my soup de jour from the pantry! Boy was I surprised! Knorr's Broccoli Soup with Boursin Cheese is a winner. You get that fresh taste of broccoli but then it zings you with that beautiful distinct taste of Boursin cheese. Now those of you who know me, know that I LOVE Boursin Cheese. Especially the herbs and garlic variety. This little cheese gem is often the secret ingredient in my risottos, white sauces and good old macaroni and cheese. In fact when I think about it, swap the home made soup with a good swipe of Boursin on a french stick and I'm in seventh heaven!

So now I'm happy for three reasons - my stomach is full (always a good thing for me), my taste buds are satisfied and I have a new spring recipe inspired by Boursin. Want to know what it is? Well, you'll just have to sign up for one of my spring classes.

Purge, purge, purge. No I haven't been struck with an eating disorder, I've just finished my New Year's kitchen purge. Most people purge their closets on a seasonal or at the very least a yearly basis. I however prefer to keep my '80s legwarmers and turn instead to my kitchen! During each year I seem to accumulate more and more kitchen "stuff". Gift gagets that my friends think I shouldn't do without like that rubber jar opener, synthetic fat skimmer, the mini chopper and the 18,000 garlic presses I have received. Now I'm a sharp knife and chopping board kind of gal so most of these gagets get stuck in a drawer forgotten about until I can no longer open that said drawer.

So it was with great satisfaction that I actually just got down to the task the other day and emptied every drawer and cupboard in my kitchen, looked with a critical eye and purged everything I haven't used within the last few months. Now I have a nice clean organized kitchen and the local Good Will shop has a new selection of garlic presses. That is until my mother comes over, asks me why I don't have a garlic press and rushes out to buy me one of the latest and greatest!

Happy New Year to you all! The start of a new year often forces us to look at the year behind us and see what we’ve learned and experienced as well as looking to the year ahead to see what might come our way. Looking back at 2006 I can think of some great food and entertaining moments such as enjoying my champagne with Wild Hibiscus Flowers in Syrup, White Truffles in Tuscany and a Chipotle Pepper Summer to name a few.
Although my cooking style has always been influenced by my upbringing and where I have lived, I can’t help but look at the so called upcoming food trends for 2007. Some of them I am looking forward to and others, well let’s just say blue eye shadow and safari suits were trends once too and we managed to survive those! Here’s just a few trends for 2007 according to various sources such as Epicurious.com, Food & Wine and Bon Appetite.

· Consumers will care more about the quality of the food they are buying/eating rather than the quantity. No quarrels here!

· Local food movements instead of just organic focus. Always happy to eat a locally grown heirloom tomato!

· Southern spicy food—good bye to tapas/small plates but hello to true Spanish food.

· Spicy drinks and cocktails in bars and restaurants—hurray!

· A focus on regional cuisine instead of just cuisine by country—you’ll know where that pig came from in Italy versus just knowing it was Italy!

· A ban on foie gras—my heart says yes but my stomach says no.

· Interest in all things Greek—my Greek Australian mom will be happy!

· The steak is back in a big way—the boys are happy!

· My prediction—Let your own taste buds lead you and you can’t go wrong!