"The 'Cupboards are Bare' Giveaway"

This is what our kitchen......looks like now. We live in this room and have wanted to remodel for years.

We've got lots

of space.

And pretty

good light

through the

windows but

the cabinets

really darken

the room.

Plus...

Some of the cabinets...like this weird one in the corner...are

designed so poorly it's so tough to get anything in or out at all.

We're going to keep the brick work. That's my favorite part of the kitchen. And our oven is fairly new so we'll keep that.

But the microwave's got to go. Can you see the crack in the picture on the right. That can't be good. I hate to think of the radiation leaking out of that think.

If you've been following along, you know we've been counting down to construction, which starts tomorrow. And giving away cool stuff along the way. Today the grand prize giveaway.

And it begins with a rhyme:

The cupboards are bare

not a thing is left in them...

...Except a little brown dog
doing last minute sniffin'.

I packed up my pans

I packed up my pots.

I know in my heart

I will miss them a lot.

I packed every herb

I packed every spice.

I packed all the extracts,

that make my pastries taste nice.

In a box go my tools

for making cookies and pies...

Oh, and here making boxes

is my favorite guy.

So long to bay leaves, to fresh nutmeg,

And cinnamon sticks

Pepper, curries and saffron,

What are your favorite picks?

A question about flavors

I feel a giveaway coming on.

I'm just not sure how much longer

This rhyme can go on.

Let's see...

I picked up this Dutch oven

That's pretty and blue

And I really would love

to give it to you.

For stews and for pot roast

there's no better pot.

You can braise, you can sear

You can roast and what not.

No kitchen's complete without

a Dutch oven.

And now you can have one

If you are spice lovin'.

So, what is your pleasure

sage, rosemary or thyme?

Tell me your favorite flavor or seasoning

you don't have to rhyme.

Leave your comments right here

the same old rules apply.

If I don't get lots of takers

I'll just sit down and cry.

The contest expires

on Friday at noon.

Just think what you could do

with this pot and a spoon

And a nice cut of beef

and an onion or two.

And a carrot and garlic

oh, I'm starting to drool.

GOOD LUCK!!! CONTEST EXPIRES FRIDAY AT 5 PM CST

"The 'Dinner is Served' Giveaway"

Aren't these lovely serving pieces? I think I love anything with color. It's all about color...color...color.

Couldn't you just dish up something fabulous with these?

I spotted them at a cool interior design shop called Nola Home in North Minneapolis. They've got all sorts of one of a kind things from far away lands such as Africa and Asia.

So, since we are celebrating food as I count down to next Tuesday's kitchen demolition (yikes) I was thinking...what if I did a giveaway based on food from far away places.

Hmmmm...okay, I've got it. Just leave a comment telling me the one place in the world where you would love to travel for the food. Of course, if you're like me there will be many places, but if you had to choose one country to eat your way through, what would it be? It can some place you've already been. Or some place you've always dreamed of going.

Let's have some fun with this one.

I'll select one entry at random. Winner gets this beautiful serving set. The contest expires Friday at 5 PM Central Standard Time. I'll announce the winner on Saturday. You'll have two days to respond or I'll draw again.

Good Luck and Bon Apetite!

"Where Food and The Arts Intersect..."

...That's where you guys hang out.
Otherwise you wouldn't have been able to come up with so many great titles in the "Name the food based book, movie or blog contest."

Who would have guessed that Dr. Scarpetta had her own book of culinary favorites? I can only imagine what Patricia Cornwell's got her carving up.

Several of you mentioned The Big Night.

I took a cooking class once that was built entirely around
this film about the final brilliant meal prepared

in a restaurant before in closes its doors.

The movie played in the background as the

chef/teacher helped up prepare every

dish they prepared in the movie.

It was so much fun.

And delicious.

You listed some....

...of my all time favorites.

And you listed...

...a few I'd loved but forgotten about. (Speaking of Eat, Pray, Love I heard an interesting interview with the author about her new book. Hop over to the "You've got to See This" tab and I'll link you to it).

And then there were a bunch...

...I have yet to discover. Thanks for turning me on to them.

But what you really want to know is who won the contest for...

...these beautiful bowls.

Each of you who submitted a title or titles was entered in a drawing...one entry per person.

And the winner is...

Queen Jolene!

Jolene's suggested titles were Julie and Julia...the ultimate food movie...and Fried Green Tomatoes...which, you should see if you haven't already.

Congratulations!

Contact me at trish.vanpilsum@foxtv.com to let me know where to send the bowls. Leave the subject line blank. Our security filter has been overly aggressive and I'm not getting all my emails.

For those of you who didn't win, fear not. There is another chance coming very, very soon.