Good morning, readers and Virginia Tech and Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) fans.  As a proud member of Hokie Nation, I enjoy showcasing some of the great accomplishments from other Virginia Tech alumni. My friend @HokieGuru has provided a wonderful and informative guest post today. Happy reading!

______________________________________________________________

The fall is getting near – and that means that ACC football is less than a couple of months away.  That means that all you Hokies need to get into practice for football tailgates.  Therefore, we have a special treat for you this morning.  On tap is our interview with Kris Schoels (you can follow her on Twitter at @yngmarriedchic and you can also see her bio at YoungMarriedChic.com.  Kris recently co-authored a cookbook Krista Gallagher called, A Taste of Virginia Tech (@atasteofvt on Twitter).  That book can be pre-ordered at Mascot Books.  Below is our Q&A with Mrs. Schoels.  Enjoy!!

@HokieGuru: When did you attend Virginia Tech?  What made you decide to attend?

@yngmarriedchic: I graduated from VT in 2005, seems so long ago! I remember going to Tech to visit the campus as a senior in high school. The first day I was so overwhelmed by the large campus- so many people! The second day I asked my parents if I could walk around by myself and when I walked over to the drillfield, while classes were in session, I looked across at Burruss Hall and thought to myself, “I belong here.” Sounds cheesy, but that’s really how it happened.

@HokieGuru: Are you coming down to Blacksburg, VA this year for any Virginia Tech athletic events?

@yngmarriedchic: Of course!! I come to all of the football games I can get down for, there’s nothing like Blacksburg on a Football weekend.

@HokieGuru: What are your most memorable experiences at Virginia Tech?

@yngmarriedchic: Every year has a different memory, but I have to say it’s probably the first time my roommate took me to the “fancy” dining hall West End. Her brother was at VT before her and had told her that the London Broil was famous and we needed to eat it immediately. We did…and it was amazing.

@HokieGuru:  Tell us about YoungMarriedChic.com.  

@yngmarriedchic:  Young Married Chic was started by me almost 4 years ago. I had been looking for a way to show the world things that I love- baking, cooking, photography, travel, and entertaining. I wanted something that would make “homemaking” cool again and I hope to have done that with YMC- as I give my readers a glimpse into my everyday life.

@HokieGuru:  Let’s talk about A Taste of Virginia Tech, a cookbook that can be pre-ordered at Mascot Books.  This is why we have you here today, lady.  How did you both decide on doing this venture (after all, a book is a lot of work!!)?  How did you research what to put in the book?  How did you decide what recipes to include?  Here’s your chance to generate a lot of free-form prose about this book that I’m sure many, many Hokies will be interested in (we can see some of the research process here at Laura’s Focus Photography).

@yngmarriedchic:  A Taste of VT was dreamed up by my partner Krista Gallagher. She was looking for a way to show people her passion for cooking and all things Virginia Tech. She started the process, found a publisher (Mascot Books), and met with the school to see if they would be interested in such a great project. Last July she brought me on as her partner, and the rest is history! We’ve had the best time creating this book together and the stories from the restaurant owners in downtown Blacksburg have been amazing- just hearing how they ended up in the ‘burg in the first place.

@HokieGuru:  Give us a couple of your favorite recipes from A Taste of Virginia Tech.  For example, give the name of one or two that we might use for tailgating in the fall   For the bachelors who read this blog, give us an example of something they could make after they get home from a long day of work – and want to watch some ACC basketball!! Might be guys that get off the Metro – go in the house – and fall down on the couch – and don’t want to do much work haha.  What is one of your favorites from The West End?  

@yngmarriedchic:  Some of my favorite recipes? Well, it’s hard to just pick a few. I would have to say that the one recipe that is going to have bachelors drooling would have to be the jalapeno peppers stuffed with cream cheese and bacon- then wrapped in sausage and cooked. Perfect tailgating food. Two of my favorites from West End would have to be the Old Hickory Burger and (of course) the London Broil!

@HokieGuru: Does your book include any recipes that are on the low-fat side, healthy, anything for vegans?  If so, please tell us about some of those.

@yngmarriedchic: We do have healthy recipes that could be catered to vegans, thanks to Pita Vera and Gourmet Pantry in downtown Blacksburg. They believe in using fresh ingredients and healthy fats to make dishes- olive oil chickpeas, lentils, and herbs really dominate these delicious dishes.

@HokieGuru:  Let’s close here by asking – what do you want to tell us about A Taste of Virginia Tech?   

@yngmarriedchic:   I think that it’s hard to describe to people what exactly being a “Hokie” means, and why Virginia Tech is so special. Krista and I hope to show them how amazing it is with this cookbook- from the dishes at Tech, the local merchants that make Blacksburg so great, to the huge tailgating groups that gave us their game day recipes. It truly was a labor of love and we hope that you will follow along on our journey- almost at the final chapter (yes, pun intended) with the book coming out in August!

We thank @yngmarriedchic for her time here at The Vitamin Bee – and again, you can pre-order A Taste of Virginia Tech at Mascot Books.

Go Hokies!!!