In the kitchen with What's Cooking? | #FoodnFlix

Well, it's officially November - my favorite month. It's my birthday month. And it's Thanksgiving for us here in the states, and that just happens to be my favorite meal of the entire year. Our family Thanksgiving meals are the stuff of legends (seriously, people tell stories of all the amazing food we make and serve that day). We, and especially me, spend weeks dreaming, planning, and preparing.

So, this month I'm combining that passion with my other passion - creating food based on movies (or tv or books or music). I'm hosting the November edition of our "food and a movie" club Food 'n Flix with a Thanksgiving-centric film called What's Cooking?!

In the kitchen with This Beautiful Fantastic | #FoodnFlix!

I can hardly believe I'm about to say this, but...happy June! Somehow 6 months have passed since I've shared a new post (or even opened a computer for that matter). In that time frame (back in February), All Roads Lead to the Kitchen turned 10 years old! Life changes a lot in 10 years. Like anything does over time, this blog has gone through some peaks and some lulls. I'm extremely grateful for all of those times, and to everybody who has checked on me while the blog has been quiet. One of those people is an old blogging buddy, Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla who has been holding down the fort over at my other blog space, Food 'n Flix (which celebrates 9 years this coming September!).

The #FoodnFlix Club is Clueless in the kitchen this month!

Once again it's December, and once again I am hosting the current edition of the Food 'n Flix club right here on All Roads Lead to the Kitchen with my movie pick and challenge for those who wish to participate, the 1995 "teen comedy", Clueless!

Join the #FoodnFlix club in the kitchen with Tampopo!

The little club that I started over 5 1/2 years ago to explore and celebrate food in movies has come home this month. I'm hosting the April edition of Food 'n Flix with a movie that I'm almost ashamed to admit that I've never seen (but have meant to watch for years)—Tampopo!

Tampopo is a food-centric 1985 Japanese comedy whose publicity dubbed it the first "Ramen Western" as a play on the popular Spaghetti Western. Apparently there are now a bunch of ramen restaurants around the world that bear the name Tampopo (which means dandelion seed).

HEY YOU GUUUUUYS! All Goonies join us in the kitchen for #FoodnFlix!

Raise your hand if you grew up in the 80's. Remember the movies you loved? The Karate Kid, E.T., Girls Just Want to Have Fun, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, The Breakfast Club, Stand By Me, Sixteen Candles, Pretty in Pink, Back to the Future, Heathers, Say Anything, License to Drive, The Lost Boys, and of course THE GOONIES! Our generation really brought cursing to another level. We could have a swear-down with the best of them. I wonder what our parents thought of the language coming out of the mouths of the kids in these movies we watched so often that the video tapes were worn thin. But man, they were the shit.

I've seen all of those movies I listed about countless times, but The Goonies was, and still is, one of my favorite movies (don't tell River, Ralph, or Christian). I used to stare at posters of Sean Astin ripped from BOP or Teen Beat and taped neatly to my wall. If only I'd realized how hot Brand was going to grow up to be. But hey, he was too old for me at the time. I still have a soft spot for Sean. So when my husband met him...like, sat and talked for an entire hour with him...and casually mentioned it after the fact, I had a mini freak-out session. How rude. I expect covert texting to alert me to such occurrences. It's not like I introduced him to Samwise Gamgee or anything. Anyway, I digress. Don't worry, I'll get over it. One day. When I'm dead.

Event Announcement: A Christmas Story for #FoodnFlix

I am hosting this month's edition of Food 'n Flix, and seeing how it's already a snowy December outside of my Indiana window, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to get lost in 90 minutes of Red Ryder bb guns, triple-dog-dares, and the soft glow of electric sex gleaming in the window via A Christmas Story!

A Christmas Story is a classic (I think) holiday movie that conjures up memories of tongues stuck to frozen metal poles, huge red bars of soap to wash out a "dirty" mouth, and snowsuits so puffy you can barely move, but does it make you think food?

I know I can think of a few obvious scenes—mommy's little piggy, a turkey being carried off by the dogs, and the Chop Suey Palace are what immediately come to mind. But there's all sorts of inspiration to be offered up, such as the setting and the season. And for the more adventurous and inventive, some of the "key" movie scenes are just ripe for the taking.

Bacon Month 2014!

It's August, and that means it's BACON MONTH!

I know what you're thinking (because when I mentioned Bacon Month on social media a couple of weeks ago, I received all sorts of replies of the sort) - Isn't every month Bacon Month!? That's a sentiment that I can't argue with. But let's just call this a "more prominent month of bacon", mkay?

I mean, it's not every month that can you see almost 20 bloggers unite to share 2...3...even 4 bacon-centered posts each during a week. Right!? And that is exactly what will be happening during the month of August. Hence, BACON MONTH!

So yes, my goal is to share at least 2 baconrific posts each week, all month long. Each post will contain a "linky" at the bottom, so that you can see, progressively, all of the bacon recipes coming together throughout the month.  Plus, each week we'll be holding a new giveaway in which a cookbook centered around bacon will be up for grabs! If you're doing the math, that means we're giving away 4 Baconlicious cookbooks. Each giveaway will be open for only 1 week. The giveaway widgets are located at the bottom of this post, with the first one open at the top, and so forth. Be sure to come back each week to enter (don't worry, I'll give a reminder and the link to this post in each of my weekly bacon posts). A huge thanks goes out to our host, Julie from White Lights on Wednesday for bringing us all together and taking care of the nitty-gritty.

In the kitchen with Kung Fu Panda for Food 'n Flix

Hey guys! I'm hosting this month's edition of Food 'n Flix! This month I'm challenging you to watch Kung Fu Panda (either or both), and then head into the kitchen to make a dish inspired by the film(s). I can't wait to spend some time with one of my favorite foodies, Poe! I adore both versions of Kung Fu Panda, and they just so happen to be very foodie-friendly.

Why I'm sitting at the #CaptainsTable this holiday season...

Over the next 3 months, I will be joining 14 other bloggers in the #CaptainsTable Challenge.  We will be creating and sharing some delicious holiday food and drink recipes featuring Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum and/or Captain Morgan Black Spiced Rum.  The challenge consists of three parts: Thanksgiving, The Holidays, and Super Bowl.  I will be creating one drink recipe and one food recipe for each of the three challenges.

Chef Hugh Acheson will be reviewing the recipes and photos submitted by each blogger, and he will choose a winner each round to receive a $500 gift card to the retail store of their choice.  At the end of the challenge, an overall winner will also be awarded a trip to a Captain's Table US event in the spring where they will meet Hugh.

But wait, here's the really cool part - each time the #CaptainsTable hashtag is used across social media channels from now through the beginning of February, Captain Morgan will donate $1 to WhyHunger!  So, if you see a post labeled with the #CaptainsTable hashtag, please share it; we want to raise as much money as we can for a great cause.