Meet Philia from Sweet Phi

Lately, we’ve been enjoying more than our fair share of sweetness with stops by one of our very favorite blogs – SweetPhi – by sweet-as-they-come blogger Philia, or Phi for short.

Pop over to Phi’s little space on the Web for the savory (like these out-of-this-world Loaded Mashed Potatoes) and the sweet (like these delectable Mexican Hot Chocolate Caramel Cookies). And don’t forget to check out her Five Ingredient Fridays where she provides kitchen inspiration with five common ingredients or less.

We had a chance to meet up with Phi at a food blogger conference called ChoppedCon and shortly after we got the dish from Phi on her inspiration, fav kitchen gadgets and more.

What inspired you to become a blogger?
On the Sweetphi blog I share simple, sweet and savory recipes, and love to share how delicious food doesn’t have to have a bazillion ingredients or take hours to make in order for it to be great!

Even though I’ve had my blog for more than 3 years (I recently celebrated my 3 year bloggiversary!), I’d only consider myself a real ‘blogger’ for the past year or so.

You see, I’ve always loved to cook and bake for friends and family and experiment in the kitchen, but it wasn’t until the urging of one of my friends that I started my blog. I was looking for a creative outlet and loved the idea of sharing recipes and forming community through food – something I absolutely love!

Since my nickname has always been Phi – short for Philia, pronounced like ‘fee – lee – ah’ – or Sweetphi, I started a free wordpress blog. The blog was just straight up BAD! I would just make something and then write ‘I made this, you should try it’ and then would post a recipe with a horrible photo that was dark – I’m not even sure if you’d be able to tell what it was! But it’s all a learning process, right?

I was slowly plugging along on the blog without rhyme or reason, and then moved to Milwaukee, WI and met my husband. We had one of those beautiful conversations where we were talking about hopes and dreams for the coming year, and I mentioned that I wanted to work on improving my blog. He is so supportive, and after the conversation I decided to really ‘give it a go’ and have been working very hard on improving it this past year. I moved my blog over from wordpress.com to .org, gave it a little facelift and have been working on improving it ever since.

I now do consider myself a ‘blogger’ and love the experience of creating recipes that are approachable and connecting with readers!

Favorite food to eat:
Mediterranean-inspired cuisine! I could honestly eat lemon yogurt chicken with some pita bread all day long, or pita bread with some hummus? Or grilled lamb? Or couscous? And some good olive oil…yum! I’m all about the delicious Mediterranean flavors!

Favorite food to make:
Simple foods that taste great without using a ton of ingredients. My five-ingredient Fridays series has truly become something fun and that I look forward to making. Each week, I think ‘what can I make this week that only has five ingredients or less that others will enjoy?’

Sweet or savory … or both:
Good question, sweet AND savory are both faves of mine!

Favorite trick of the trade when it comes to cooking/baking:
Line your baking sheets with either aluminum foil (for roasting) or parchment paper (for baking cookies or bars) because it will save you tons of time when it comes around to clean up!

Favorite food substitute when cooking/baking:
Yogurt! I love substituting butter, eggs, or oil with yogurt – it is such a versatile ingredient!

One piece of advice you would give to novice cooks:
Cook with your eyes and ears (you’ll hear when something is sizzling) and season your food as you go…there’s nothing worse than eating something that is under-seasoned!

What is the hobby you don’t get to do nearly enough?
International travel – I’d love to eat Greek food in Greece!

Favorite kitchen gadget:
It would have to be a toss-up between my knives and my food processor – although I guess one could say a food processor is like a super speedy knife. I took a knife skills class at one of my favorite local restaurants last year that changed the way I look at knives. Now I take good care of them and use them in practically every meal and have a new appreciation for what an essential kitchen tool they are.

What’s your biggest food splurge?
I can never pass up a cheese plate….and if they have add-ons (like more cheese options or nuts or a compote) I always get them, no matter what the price is!

Biggest food flop:
The biggest food flop I had was literally that…a flop! I followed a recipe – something I rarely do because I’m usually the one creating recipes. It was for these gorgeous little frozen banana split bites. They were nearly impossible to make, the chocolate wouldn’t stick to the banana pieces and it ended up smearing all over the banana, but I wiped it off and thought that was the end of my issues. Sadly, that was not the case. I had hollowed the top of the banana piece out and added some yogurt that I froze and then topped the bites with whipped cream and a cherry. I placed them carefully in a Tupperware container and took them to a friend’s house. When I got there and opened the Tupperware container, all the whipped cream and cherries had slid off and the yogurt filling had oozed out. They looked disgusting. Best part was that she actually didn’t eat bananas…but still, it was so embarrassing!

The quote you live by:
“People who love to eat are always the best people.” – Julia Child

Favorite recipe you’ve posted:
My 5 ingredient hazelnut cake with chocolate and whipped cream frosting. I mean, it’s cake…and frosting…in only 5 ingredients. Or, my grape tomato tarts. These tarts I’ve made on so many occasions, and they are so tasty and colorful! Or, my 5 ingredient cornflake chicken. I make cornflake chicken probably the most out of any of my recipes, and it always turns out great. All are super simple to make and taste absolutely delicious!!