Cooking
I'll admit it, even though I find most of the recipes atrocious, I am fascinated by the Pillsbury Bake-Off. Every two years the contest is held with much fanfare and prizes, including a million dollar grand prize. The judges are generally food editors and choose recipes based on taste, appearance, creativity and consumer appeal, but because the recipes use packaged "convenience" foods, they often end up sounding bizarre. Samosa Taquitos with Apricot Chutney Sauce, anyone? Or Huevos Rancheros Pizza?
The Ungarnished Truth, A Cooking Contest Memoir "A Woman, A Chicken Dinner, A Million Dollars" is out now in paperback and I devoured the book in two sittings. Bake-off grand prize winner and author Ellie Matthews is smart, funny and very engaging. Her story gives an almost unbelievable level of detail on her road to the win. But even if she never won anything, you would want to read about this quirky and down to earth woman (who shocked everyone by not jumping up and down or screaming when she won).
In some ways Matthews is a most unlikely contestant. With a scientific mind, and a passion for the outdoors, she is not who you'd imagine even entering contests, but enter she does. Perhaps her amazing eye for detail comes from the fact that she is fully expecting not to win. In fact, she tells herself, and her readers that her first appearance in the Bake-Off is just a practice run.
In addition to sharing everything about the contest and her recipe development strategies, Matthews also shares intimate emotional elements and how the contest wove its way into to her life, even helping her reconnect with a very dear friend she met during a dramatic tragic event in the mountains. But enough about it from me, just read the book, it's an absolute pleasure.
- Pillsbury Bake-off & Baking From Scratch
The Pillsbury Bake-Off represents the American Dream--it doesn't matter who you are, or where you come from, create a great recipe and you could win a million dollars. It's a celebration of creativity and excellence, or at least it should be....
- Help Me And Win!
It's time for a blog redesign! Cooking with Amy is going to be redesigned by the talented designer who created the current look several years ago. I've got lots of ideas but would like to hear yours too. What do you like best about the site?...
- $1000 Giveaway!
Just a quick reminder to let you know that today is the last day of the $1000 Mother's Day giveaway on Glam Dish. All you have to do to enter is comment on how you would spend the prize on mom. Check it out! So far the comments have run the gamut...
- Jammin' Contest
Not too long ago I interviewed local jam entrepreneur Carolina Braunschweig over at Bay Area Bites. You can find her yummy jams all over and they are just now making their debut at Macy's Cellar in New York. Carolina's jam company, CMB Sweets...
- Keep Guessing...
So dear readers, here's the deal--only one person has correctly guessed all of the items in Thursday's Itty Bitty Contest. Instead of announcing the winner today as I originally planned I am extending the contest one more day. There's still...
Cooking
The Ungarnished Truth, A Cooking Contest Memoir: Book Review
I'll admit it, even though I find most of the recipes atrocious, I am fascinated by the Pillsbury Bake-Off. Every two years the contest is held with much fanfare and prizes, including a million dollar grand prize. The judges are generally food editors and choose recipes based on taste, appearance, creativity and consumer appeal, but because the recipes use packaged "convenience" foods, they often end up sounding bizarre. Samosa Taquitos with Apricot Chutney Sauce, anyone? Or Huevos Rancheros Pizza?
The Ungarnished Truth, A Cooking Contest Memoir "A Woman, A Chicken Dinner, A Million Dollars" is out now in paperback and I devoured the book in two sittings. Bake-off grand prize winner and author Ellie Matthews is smart, funny and very engaging. Her story gives an almost unbelievable level of detail on her road to the win. But even if she never won anything, you would want to read about this quirky and down to earth woman (who shocked everyone by not jumping up and down or screaming when she won).
In some ways Matthews is a most unlikely contestant. With a scientific mind, and a passion for the outdoors, she is not who you'd imagine even entering contests, but enter she does. Perhaps her amazing eye for detail comes from the fact that she is fully expecting not to win. In fact, she tells herself, and her readers that her first appearance in the Bake-Off is just a practice run.
In addition to sharing everything about the contest and her recipe development strategies, Matthews also shares intimate emotional elements and how the contest wove its way into to her life, even helping her reconnect with a very dear friend she met during a dramatic tragic event in the mountains. But enough about it from me, just read the book, it's an absolute pleasure.
- Pillsbury Bake-off & Baking From Scratch
The Pillsbury Bake-Off represents the American Dream--it doesn't matter who you are, or where you come from, create a great recipe and you could win a million dollars. It's a celebration of creativity and excellence, or at least it should be....
- Help Me And Win!
It's time for a blog redesign! Cooking with Amy is going to be redesigned by the talented designer who created the current look several years ago. I've got lots of ideas but would like to hear yours too. What do you like best about the site?...
- $1000 Giveaway!
Just a quick reminder to let you know that today is the last day of the $1000 Mother's Day giveaway on Glam Dish. All you have to do to enter is comment on how you would spend the prize on mom. Check it out! So far the comments have run the gamut...
- Jammin' Contest
Not too long ago I interviewed local jam entrepreneur Carolina Braunschweig over at Bay Area Bites. You can find her yummy jams all over and they are just now making their debut at Macy's Cellar in New York. Carolina's jam company, CMB Sweets...
- Keep Guessing...
So dear readers, here's the deal--only one person has correctly guessed all of the items in Thursday's Itty Bitty Contest. Instead of announcing the winner today as I originally planned I am extending the contest one more day. There's still...