I love the international flavors involved in cooking. People ask me what's my favorite kind of food to cook. It's hard for me to answer. I love so many.

I have one easy answer though. Whenever my husband and I leave the country for an extended period of time, on the return flight I ask him what he'd like me to make when we get home. His answer is always "Southwestern."

In no other country have we found the blend of flavors that are offered through Southwestern cooking. Some might say it's Mexican, but it's not. It's American Southwestern. I can find great Indian food in London and Toronto. I can find great Italian food in just about every country. But it's hard to find Southwestern anywhere outside the U.S. I also love to cook Italian, French, upscale American, Asian, Thai, Mexican, Pan-Pacific -- you name it. But Southwestern signifies home. (Funny, since my houses are located in Wisconsin and Chicago.)

I've also discovered recently the international flavors of construction. Yep, construction.

I've just completed a 3000 square foot condo in Chicago. You'll probably hear me tell funny stories of the project for years to come. Here's my international flavors story.

You see, when you build a house -- or in my case, a house and several offices -- in Wisconsin, you probably have a 100% American crew. Not so in Chicago. In Chicago I listened to the Italian guys fight while they installed kitchen tile. (It took me a minute to pick up on the accent, but I finally recognized it. It could have been that and the hand gestures flying while they argued.) The Irish guys were the laborers -- some of the sweetest guys on the planet hauling heavy loads, grunting and never complaining. The Hispanics installed the drywall. If they complained, I could not understand it. I speak some Spanish, but most of the time they were talking too fast for me to keep up. Some Lithuanian guys installed the carpeting, and there were a few American carpenters tossed in for flavor. A great crew all around.

But watching them was sort of like eating. You could almost smell the international flavoring while you listened to their speech. And on hot days -- well, some things did get a little pungent, but that's all part of hard work. I spent many days with drywall dust caked on my face and most of the rest of my body. I looked like something the cat dragged in, but I was in heaven. I'm almost sad to see it all come to completion. I just might have to keep my punch list going to keep working on the project with my wonderful landlord, Kevin. What a pro.

For today's recipe, I thought I'd throw in a little international flair. I came up with this recipe last night after driving back to Wisconsin from Chicago. Many of you have been asking for international recipes. Here's a FAST and easy one. This also fits the bill for the low-carb lifestyle eaters, and it's low fat too!

Zippy Szechuan Chicken and Veggies (Serves 4 and can be doubled or expanded easily)

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves cut into 1-inch cubes
4 Tbl cornstarch
2 Tbl vegetable oil or canola oil
3 cloves of garlic minced (jar garlic works fine)
7 Tbl soy sauce (lite, low sodium is good)
2 Tbl rice wine vinegar or white wine vinegar
1 packet of Splenda sweetener (if you're diabetic or low carb; you can also use 1 tsp of sugar instead)
1/3 cup water
6 green onions cut into 1/4-inch disks, white and light green parts
2 handfuls of green beans (Just pick the ends off. Don't cut them up.)
1 cup of pre-cut matchstick-sized carrots (or cut your own)
1 red pepper cut into small chunks
1/4 tsp of cayenne or to taste (This makes it zippy.)

Take the chicken cubes and corn starch and throw them into a plastic bag. A food storage bag is good. Seal it shut or hold it shut and toss around the chicken so it gets coated with the cornstarch. Take your colander and set it in the sink. Dump the chicken and cornstarch into the colander and sift it so the excess cornstarch falls through the openings. Just bounce it around.

Heat your oil in a large saute pan and put in your chicken. (If you use a coated saute pan, you can use less oil.) Cook for 2 minutes until it starts to brown. Add the garlic and continue cooking a total of 4 minutes so the chicken starts to color up some more. Add everything else. Cook another five minutes. Stir regularly. Stop now if you want your veggies crisper. You can cook it a little longer to get the veggies softer if you want.

Serve with rice. I make flavored rice from one of the packets you can buy pretty much ready to eat. Enjoy! And tell me how you like it.

Cheers! Zola