Bloggasm

Sweetnicks: For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to own a restaurant. And for even longer than that, I’ve wanted to be a journalist. This blog was a way for me to combine some of my passions and basically “keep at it.” I have a three-year-old son, who my site is named after, who loves to cook almost as much as I do and “helps” me in the kitchen daily. As soon as he sees me anywhere near the stove, he pulls over the stepstool and asks if he can help me. Recently he told me, “Mommy, you’re just like Rachael Ray, but you’re not.” He loves Rachael Ray, so I guess I’m in good company. Between him, The Husband, The Neighbors and my family, I have plenty of people to try out new recipes on … and who continue to inspire me.

Simon Owens: Animal blogging (both cat and dog) has become a huge fad with bloggers. Why do you think this is? Is it the cute nature of the animals or is there something else that adds to the appeal of posting pictures of animals on blogs?

Sweetnicks: Clare from Eat Stuff first tuned me into the whole animal blogging thing with her regular Weekend Cat Blogging event, which I frequently join in on. I thought our dog, Eli, might be feeling a tad jealous, so I asked Clare if she minded if I did a spin off, and so Weekend Dog Blogging was born. Food bloggers obviously think about other things besides food (some of the time, anyway!), and cute dogs and cats are a nice diversion … and it gives us a little glimpse into everyone’s “other” life, the life they have outside of the food realm. The WCB/WDB has also spawned Weekend Herb Blogging, which is hosted by Kalyn from Kalyn’s Kitchen.

Simon Owens: Whenever you post a recipe on your blog, do you every try to change the recipe at all to make it healthier? Do you think that food bloggers have any kind of civic responsibility in giving healthy food tips to their readers?

Sweetnicks: I don’t necessarily try to change a recipe to make it more healthier. If I tinker with it, it’s more to tune it in to our particular tastebuds and likes or dislikes, or to just play with my own creativity, or simply saving a trip to the grocery store. I think we eat fairly healthily in the base case, so I don’t worry about the occasional Creme Brulee every now and then. All things in moderation. But for both my readers and my own family, this week I kicked off a new weekly event, ARF/5-A-Day Tuesdays, where food bloggers who make a recipe that features an ARF (Antioxidant Rich Food) or a fruit or veggie, or any combination of these things, are featured in a round-up. New year, new outlook as usual, but I wanted to focus on getting more ARFs, fruits and veggies into our own diet, especially with a three-year-old son, and I knew if I made it a weekly event and got fellow food bloggers involved, a) it would keep me on track and doing it regularly and b) I get lots more inspiration that I might if I was just doing it on my own.

Simon Owens: Can you please explain to Bloggasm readers what Friday Night Date Night is and what it entails?

Sweetnicks: Ahhh, the Masterminding of Moms. Regular readers know we hang out with The Neighbors a lot, whether it be impromptu get-togethers or our regular The Neighbors Dine Over Sundays. Their daughter is nearly 3 and is our son’s girlfriend (he’s 3-1/2). Yup, they start young. They are beyond inseparable. They see each other in school, talk on the phone at night and are joined at the hip. In fact, they even “blink lights” before they go to bed, each of them blinking their bedroom light, as a last “kiss” goodnight. So, they play together Friday nights. I came up with the idea that if we took turns whose house they were at, the parents could escape for a kid-free night, so we alternate. It’s worked out really well for all of us, and we definitely look forward to Friday Night Date Nights!

Simon Owens: What are the five blogs everyone should be reading (besides your own)?

Sweetnicks: There’s a ton of food blogs I frequent daily, so it’s hard to name just five, but here goes:
White Trash BBQ. Something off the beaten path that isn’t overdone in the food blogging world.
52 Cupcakes. I don’t make them often enough, but love them, so I can live vicariously through the Cupcake Queen.
Eggbeater. Shuna is raw, honest and cracks me up sometimes.
Eat Stuff. Clare’s blog was one of the first blogs I ever started reading, and I keep coming back for more. And as the mistress of Weekend Cat Blogging and godmother of Weekend Dog Blogging, how could I stay away?
Small Farms. I love the passion Tana brings to her blog, and the exposure she keeps on the farms.

You can find Sweetnicks over here