Cooks for Books

By Nancy Pardue

Live chefs … local celebrities … and a community focused on boosting education.

The nonprofit Garner Educational Foundation will hold its second annual Cooks for Books fundraiser on Tuesday, Jan. 31, from 5:30 to 8 p.m., at Garner TV & Appliance on US 70 West, offering a star-studded night of fun and fine cuisine.

“Celebrity chef Elise Johnson, the 2011 Cooks for Books champion and star of Cooking With Elise, and other noted chefs will work in Garner TV’s fabulous show kitchens,” said event chair Amy White. “We’ll match the chefs with local media personalities Ken Smith and Elizabeth Gardner of WRAL-TV, ABC 11’s Barbara Gibbs and Don ‘Big Weather’ Swenneker, and NBC 17’s Sharon Delaney and Bill Reh.

“Those who attend not only get to enjoy the cooking competition, but also get to engage with — and eat with — the celebrity hosts. And the best part is that the money goes to the Garner Educational Foundation!”

Judges reprising their roles from last year are Jeffrey Bane of the N.C. Chefs Academy, Jeff Hadley of the Wake Tech School of Culinary Arts, and Garner Mayor Ronnie Williams.

Three live kitchens will be in operation at Garner TV, with competition between the three networks on a signature entrée of their choice. Attendees will have the chance to sample and vote on the entrees, as well as enjoy other complimentary hors d’oeuvres and beverages.

Each popular vote for an entrée will cost $1 and attendees may vote as many times as they’d like. Awards will be presented for the popular vote and an official judges’ vote coordinated by the N.C. Chefs Academy.

Also, businesses, non-profits, schools and individuals may submit a signature dessert for judging in the Garner: It’s a Sweet Place to Be Dessert Challenge. Entry fee is $25.

Garner Educational Foundation, begun in 1990, serves all 11 Garner area public schools. Cooks for Books, GEF’s only fundraiser of the year, drew more than 350 people in 2011 and raised $15,000, monies earmarked for literacy enrichment programs.

“Literacy is crucial to success in school and life,” said GEF Executive Director Mary Lib Perry. “We are helping children gain the tools and knowledge that will empower them long after they have graduated from our schools.”

Tickets for Cooks for Books are $25 or two for $40; a VIP pass including one-hour exclusive access to the chefs and celebrities is $40. Tickets are available at Garner TV & Appliance, the Garner Chamber of Commerce, Bingham Law Office, or at the door.

For more information, contact Amy White at singforHim@nc.rr.com or (919) 201-1211.

Read more: http://www.carymagazine.com/triangle-east-magazine/cooks-for-books#ixzz1kPKpcn4o

Quick Meal Cooking Tips

How much action does your apartment kitchen get? If you wish you could do more cooking but feel like you just don’t have the time, you need some quick meal preparation strategies.
These cooking tips will make it easier for you to prepare delicious, quick meals in your apartment kitchen whenever you want them.

Strategic shopping
If you want to make quick meals on demand in your apartment kitchen, set yourself up by doing some strategic grocery shopping.
Shop for items that you can cook quickly. Foods like frozen vegetables, ready-made pizza crusts, and pasta are all great options for quick meals. Keep in mind that buying foods that are a bit more expensive — like boneless chicken parts or pork tenderloin — will help you cook faster. When these items are on sale, buy extra and freeze them for later quick cooking.
Strategic shopping and cooking can help you come up with quick meals for the whole week. Buy extra food and you can prepare week-day meals in advance. Soups, for example, are quick meals that you can make ahead on a weekend and freeze to enjoy throughout the week.
You can also get creative with leftovers. If you buy a whole package of chicken breasts, for example, and cook them all on Sunday night, you can make several meals out of the chicken: Sunday might be chicken breast and vegetables; Monday night, chicken fajitas; and Tuesday could be pasta topped with chicken.

Helpful post-grocery store prep
Prepping food immediately after you bring it home from the store is another good quick meal strategy. If you perform most of the labor-intensive food prep immediately after a weekend shopping trip, the food will be available for you to use quickly in the middle of the week when you’re busy and tired. Here are some helpful post-grocery store prep tips:
•Wash and chop fresh vegetables and produce as soon as you get them home. Dry them thoroughly with paper towels, and store food safely for quick use during the week.
•Prepare individual serving snack bags of your favorite treats, like chips, apple slices, nuts, and candy, for easy grab-and-go snacks.
•Separate large portions of fresh meat into easy-to-use packages. Ground beef, for example, can be shaped into individual patties which you can store in small plastic bags. Keep the ones you’ll use immediately in the fridge, and place beef you’ll use later in the freezer.
Following these cooking tips may mean that you eat up more of your free time on the weekend, but you’ll appreciate the ease and convenience of having already-prepared ingredients on hand for your weekday meals.

Quick recipe collection
Sometimes your biggest cooking obstacle may be that you simply do not know what to make. Another good quick meal strategy is to gather easy meal plan ideas that you can execute without much time or fuss.
Start by cruising the Internet, looking for recipes for quick meals. (FoodNetwork.com and FoodandWine.com both have entire sections devoted to quick meals.) Look for easy recipes for traditional favorites like soup, one pot dinners, and no-bake desserts. Concentrate on finding recipes that not only have quick cooking times but also use just a few ingredients. Fewer ingredients make for less intensive prep.
Print out your favorite recipes and compile them in your own special quick meal plan binder. Taking the guesswork out of what to choose for dinner will help you prepare food faster.

Apartment kitchen tools for quick cooking
Another way to ensure that you’ll always be able to cook fresh meals quickly and easily is to stock your apartment kitchen with basic cooking tools. There’s nothing worse than making pasta only to realize that you don’t have a strainer — or buying canned veggies only to find that you don’t have a can opener. Having to leave your apartment in the middle of your food prep to go buy a basic tool is a real waste of time. Stock your kitchen with good tools, and you’ll set yourself up for cooking success.
With the right kitchen tools and some basic quick cooking tips, you’ll always be able to cook quick meals in your apartment. You’ll be able to prepare the nutritious, flavorful food that you love — whenever you want it.