Spicy Green Mango

UPDATE: Thanks to your outpouring of support and mouse-clicking, Spicy Green Mango has advanced to Challenge #2 of Project Food Blog. Check back soon for my next post on dishing up a classic from another culture!

Once upon a time, a little girl with an appetite fit for a glutton and a tummy fit for a food-loving fool, grew up and went to college.  With childhood memories perfumed with chilis and sticky rice, she soon found friends from near and far, high and low, who also shared in her passion with the culinary world. Okay, what she actually found were life-long nuts who happily made her cooking their college meal plan.  It was from these avid grubbers she'd realized that what she initially thought was an abnormal foodie love affair was really a true gift (dare I say talent?) -- one that she should really share with the rest of the world.

So, there began my adventures in food which has now turned into food blogging. But of course, the entire journey wouldn't even be possible without the rich, cultural traditions of my Lao heritage where in my household, the first greeting you receive from my parents even before they know your name is, "Have you eaten already?"  From them, I cultivated and nourished a huge respect for food and the memories that it imparts, such as waking up to the sweet fragrance of freshly steamed sticky rice and sweating under the heat of homegrown chilis that made its appearance at every family gathering. 

At the age of 12, I remember cooking up my first beef stir fry and then trying my hands at papaya salad.  Needless to say, both attempts were pretty sad, but I was determined to eat and eat well.  So, to this day, I live to eat WELL.  My parents taught me the art of growing our own food and until this very day, we have always had a garden in our backyard where my dad dons his green thumb and provides some TLC to luscious rows of Thai basil, young lemongrass, crazy spicy chilis of all varieties, banana trees, spearmint, Vietnamese coriander, kaffir limes and guavas.  And until recently, I, too, tried my hands at gardening. Behold, the fruits of our labor (okay, it was really thanks to my hubby), but hey, I had my fair share of watering the little buggers (whenever I remembered). Hehe.

What's Up with this Blog Post, Spicy?
What? You're confused, too? Well, dear friend:  This post marks my first official entry into Foodbuzz's Project Food Blog where nearly 2,000 amazing food bloggers compete for $10K..yes, that's right, $10K with challenges every week. (Note to self:  Imagine all the bowls of pho I can buy with that moola---oooh, the possibilities abound).  Basically, by clicking on the widget of me enjoying my papaya salad in Thailand (to the right of the page) and clicking on the cute little heart, you can you help make sure that yours truly advances to the next round.  Voting ends 6PM Pacific Time (9PM EST) on Thursday, September 23rd. Wish me luck 'cause I got some cooking to do. In the meantime, many heartfelt thanks for your unwavering support and kind words. Regardless of the outcome, you can count on many more posts dedicated to what I do best: eating and blogging (with the occasional rants and raves).