Book Report: Kelis’s New Cookbook, My Life on a Plate, Serves Up More than Just Milkshakes

Kelis. We knew her milkshake could bring all the boys to the yard but, until we read her new cookbook, My Life on a Plate, we didn’t know that she could whip up way more than milkshakes. We’re talking smoked bacon arepas, orange chile chicken, and oxtail putin.

But this isn’t one of those “artists pretending to be a chef” things. Kelis put in her time at Le Cordon Bleu, honed her skills in a professional kitchen, released her own line of hot sauces, and scored a show on the Cooking Channel called Saucy and Sweet. The NYC native, hip-hop and R&B artist, and can now add “legit chef” to her resume, along with the catchiest song of all time.

My Life on a Plate is Kelis’s debut cookbook and is the product of many influences, two of the most important, Kelis’s mother, who ran a catering company, and Kelis’s travels and tours, which afforded her the opportunity to experience a wide variety of cuisines and food cultures. The result is a cookbook which oozes both authentic, global flavors and bohemian cool; the recipes range from childhood favorites from her Puerto Rican/Chinese mother to more exotic dishes inspired by her travels through the Middle East.

Kelis wants her “food to move you.” And we’re sold.

Here’s what we’re serving at our next soulful Sunday supper:

SMOKED BACON AREPAS

SHREDDED BEEF SLIDERS WITH ROOT BEER ESPRESSO BBQ SAUCE

CARROT AND YAM SOUFFLE

PERNIL: PUERTO RICAN PORK SHOULDER

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES WITH SEA SALT POTATO CHIPS

Buy her book here!

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