I started blogging about desserts because… I started a baking business named Jessiker Bakes, in April 2010, where I would create custom baked goods and pastries to sell at my clients’ requests. The blog, then also named Jessiker Bakes, was a showcase for my creations and chronicles about baking. While I also blogged about savoury dishes, desserts were the main focus. Over the years, I found myself blogging more about savoury dishes until I finally rebranded in August 2014 to Jessica in the Kitchen – a site that would encompass both sweet and savoury simple and delicious creations from my kitchen.

I added vegetarian and vegan dishes because… I became a vegetarian. I quickly learnt that there is such a wide variety of incredibly delicious vegetarian food available not only to buy here in Jamaica, but also, and more importantly, to make for the home chef. I actually have so much more variety in my meals now that I am constantly creating new dishes weekly in my kitchen and then decided to add this journey to my blog. I wanted anyone from a beginner in the kitchen to an experienced chef to see that vegetarian and vegan food was easy to make, delicious, and that all the right items needed were available on our local shelves.

Blogging is important to me because… I see my blog as an open recipe book for my readers. My blog’s recipe index is categorised to allow readers to easily find recipes and be able to create them, which is the exact reason why I blog about them. I see this as a documentation of my food journey and want others to not only follow along but be active participants in it. I hope years from now to have a volume of recipes to assist anyone who wants to learn about vegetarian and vegan dishes.

My passion for food has rewarded me with… many opportunities, big and small, both locally and abroad. The opportunities have been as simple as always being able to cook and bake delicious food for my family and friends, to as large as being featured multiple times in the local newspapers such as the Jamaica Observer and international resources including Huffington Post, Redbook Magazine, Country Living Magazine and Yahoo! Food.

One of the most significant aspects of my career has been… the growing commercial success I have had. This has ranged from food photography for KGN Kitchen to being a content creator and recipe developer for both local and international clients including some major ones such as Ghirardelli, Kellogg’s MorningStar, Kraft, Coca Cola and Walmart.

While working with these and other clients, this has never felt like work because of how much I love the process.

My favourite recipe that I have created on the blog would have to be… Sundried Tomato and Mozzarella Quinoa Burgers. They feature delicious, thick veggie burgers that ooze delicious melted cheese from the centre and are ready in less than 30 minutes. They are featured regularly in my household and loved by all the meat lovers and been tried and loved by dozens of readers on my blog.

Copping the Caribbean Blog Award for Excellence in Blogging for Jessica in The Kitchen was… humbling yet at the same time euphoric. This is my first award for my blog and the beautiful trophy is a physical reminder that I can look to whenever I am in a moment of doubt or uncertainty. It reassures me that my work is appreciated and that all the hard work that I have been doing has paid off and will continue to pay off.

My next move will be… to expand my food photography business line locally in Jamaica. I will of course continue to blog for years to come, but I have an equal passion for food photography and would love to work with companies locally in that field. There is an energy that I feel behind the camera while photographing the meals that I believe has been one of the main driving forces for why my blog has been successful. In terms of my next move on the blog, I have always wanted to create weekly or monthly meal plans to put the recipes into a perspective that will help busy readers and show them that they can create these delicious meals at home in a short space of time for their family and loved ones.

Black Bean and Quinoa Burgers with Strawberry BBQ Sauce

Ingredients

o 1 tablespoon olive oil

o1/2 medium onion ( 1/2 cup), diced

o 1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced

o 2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

o 1 teaspoon black pepper

o 2 teaspoons sea salt

o 7 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

o 1 cup cooked quinoa

o 2 tablespoons olive oil

o Roasted Strawberry Barbecue Sauce

1. Method:

2. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium high heat until hot, and sauté the onions, red bell peppers, garlic and black pepper and 1/2 teaspoon sea salt until cooked down, about 3 minutes. Allow the vegetables to cool a bit.

3. In a food processor, add the black beans, cooked quinoa, sautéed vegetables, red pepper flakes and remaining salt. Pulse until combined, not too much to make it mushy but until incorporated.

4. On a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, form the mixture into burgers (ensure to spray your hands with oil first – they are sticky!). They can make 3 large burgers or 6 smaller burgers. Refrigerate for about 10 minutes.

5. In a pan over medium high heat, heat about 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the burgers to it and cook about 3-4 minutes on each side, until crispy and cooked through.

6. Serve as you desire, in a burger form or in a lettuce wrap. We added burger buns, onions, tomato and lettuce and barbecue sauce.