I NEED YOUR HELP!!!

As a member of the IACP I was invited to submit one of my recipes with photo, for a chance to win my own $15,000 iOS culinary app from MobileSkillet.com.   If I win, my app will be placed on iTunes for the world to see and purchase.  

I found out a few days ago that I was a semi-finalist and the photo I submitted (above), would be posted on the Mobile Skillet page of Pinterest.  As part of the contest, they've asked us to invite our family, friends and your friends, to "like" and "repin" our photos. The top 10 with the most points and who meet other specified criteria, will make it to the finals.

Of course, I'd love to win this app.  It would be so exciting, to be able to take my passion to the next level - having the opportunity for others, worldwide, to view my recipes from their iPhones and iPads as they walk through the isles at the grocery store, and while cooking in their kitchen.  "At Home with Vicki Bensinger" could literally be in homes everywhere.  It would be AMAZING!

If you have 2 minutes to spare please click  HERE. Where you see the photo above, click "like" and "repin" to a board on your Pinterest page.  If you aren't a member of Pinterest no worries, you can easily join and then "like" and "repin" my photo. 

If I WIN, I promise, I will find a way to reward everyone that voted for me.  I haven't decided what that will be, but I promise to do that.  You can hold me to it! The winner will be notified mid November.

Thank you so much for helping me. I really do appreciate it!  

Mother's Day Culinary Class

I know, Mother's Day isn't until May 8th but, it's time to start thinking ahead. If you're like me, even though you may have children of your own, when it comes to celebrating Mother's Day, it just seems easier to celebrate at home.

Rather than taking your mom and mother-in-law out to eat, having it at home is more relaxing, and let's face it, it's easier on the pocketbook.

So I've decided to put together a culinary class that I'll be offering in the Westport Plaza area. Unlike my in-home culinary classes this will be a demonstration class.

Besides having a wonderful meal to share with your family on Mother's Day, this entire menu can prepared in advance, so that you too, can enjoy your special day!  Think of this as Mother's Day out on the terrace!

Date: Wednesday, May 4th, 2011
Time: 11:00am - 1:30pm
Cost: $60.00 per person

Mother's Day Menu

Tomato Bruschetta
Poached Salmon
Cucumber Ribbon Salad
Confetti Potato Salad
Lemon Curd Trifle with fresh berries

Plus some other nice treats and surprises!

Space is limited! If you are interested in signing up for this class please contact me at 314.799.1633 for further details.

LeCreuset GIVEAWAY!

If you've ever cooked with a LeCreuset French Dutch Oven, enameled cast iron cookware, you know how wonderful they are, along with the rest of their products.  Not a whole lot compares to its performance.  Perfect heat retention and even heat distribution make every dish spectacular. 

Just in time for Easter and Passover I'm offering a LeCreuset 3.5 French Round Dutch Oven valued at $280.00 to Giveaway.  If you've never tried one before you don't know what you're missing.  This perfect vessel will help you create an incredible dish for the holiday. 

The French Dutch Oven can cook rice, beans, soup, chicken, beef, stews, cake or whatever else you can think of.  It's truely amazing and it comes in a variety of fun colors to match your kitchen or your mood.

Besides having the opportunity to win one for FREE you also get to select the color of your choice.  So what are you waiting for! 


To enter the random drawing for the LeCreuset 3.5 French Dutch Oven you MUST follow the directions below!

1. Under the comments section of this blog post, tell me why you would like to win the LeCrueset French Dutch Oven.  Plus if you win it, what color do you want for your kitchen?
2. Sign up as a follower of my blog on Google Friend Connect by clicking the follow button.  This is located on the right side of my blog just above "About Me".  If you're already one then please let me know.
3. "Like" my facebook fan page, by clicking on the "like" at the top of the page.  If you already do please let me know.
4. "Like" the LeCreuset fan page, located at the top of the page then, post on your FB wall, "I just entered a GIVEAWAY on At Home With Vicki Bensinger to win the LeCreuset 3.5 French Dutch Oven, and you can too!

All of these MUST be done in order to have your name entered into the drawing.  However, don't forget to leave your contact information so that I can reach you in the event you win. 

One contest winner will be selected at random and notified on this blog and by email on Friday, April 8th, 2011.

The winner will have 48 hours to respond to my email otherwise your name will be removed and another name will be selected at random.

Don't miss your opportunity to win this amazing LeCreuset French Dutch Oven. 

Good Luck!

Below is a fun and simple recipe for making bread in the 3.5 LeCreuset French Dutch Oven created by Jacques Pepin from his book   More Fast Food My Way. 

However, the recipes are endless for what you can create in your new LeCreuset French Dutch Oven should you win!

Slow & Easy Bread In A Pot
make a 1 pound loaf of bread

This is perfect to start in the evening and then pop in the refrigerator overnight so it's ready in the morning to bake.


Ingredients:

 2 1/4 cups tepid water (about 90 degrees)
1 tsp of yeast Rapid Rise)
1 tsp of salt (or a bit more)
4 cups of all-purpose flour (about 1 pound 5 ounces)

Directions:

In the 3.5 LeCreuset French Dutch Oven mix the above ingredients.
Stir them up until the dough is thoroughly blended and gooey. Cover the pot with blended ingredients and let set at room temperature for about 1 1/2 hours.

The dough will be puffed up a lit bit. Knock it down by mixing it up again with a wooden spoon for a moment, you don’t have to do too much. Then cover it and put it in the refrigerator overnight (10-12 hours).

The next day, preheat your over to 450F degrees. Once preheated, take the dough out of the refrigerator, and take the cover off (it should have risen again overnight).  Place the pot directly into the oven and bake for approximately 40 minutes.

After forty minutes, remove the pot from the oven. You will see that you have a perfect crust poking out from the pot. Let it sit and cool for a few minutes. 

Flip pot over and remove the bread.  Now how easy is that?

Enjoy!

AND THE WINNER IS:

  SANDRA DEE


Congratulations Sandra Dee!  I hope you enjoy your new LeCreuset 3.5 French Dutch Oven

FANTASTIC GIVEAWAY - JUST IN TIME FOR SPRING!

Sprng is here again in Missouri.  I can hardly believe it.  I'm hoping it will stick around a while this time so that I can finally enjoy grilling season!

Have you ever prepared a meal, waited and waited for the meat to get done, then finally pulled it out, placed it on the table, only to find that it's undercooked?

I HAVE A GREAT GIVEAWAY that I can't wait to share with you!  It will take the guesswork out of cooking.

I decided on this because so many of my students ask me how to tell when their meat is properly cooked.  Besides the touch method that I blogged about in July of 2009, there's a tried and true method which simply uses a temperature probe.

For the past 10 years I've been using the same temperature probe.  It works perfectly and still after 10 years looks like new.  Of course, I take care of mine and have followed the cleaning instructions so it doesn't get damaged.  I still like to use the touch method as well however, but for true accuracy of internal temperatures a probe never lies.

I especially love it when I'm grilling and hanging out with my guests outdoors waiting for the food.  It alleviates running back and forth to the grill, opening and closing it causing the heat escape.  With the long temerature probe you're able to view the gauge on the outside of your grill and know when your meat is done.  It also works great for the oven or even on the stovetop with its special clip attachments for pots.

Since I love the Polder Classic Cooking Thermometer so much I'll be GIVING THREE (3) OF THESE AWAY so that you too can have perfectly done meat everytime. 

In order to WIN one of the three Polder Classic Cooking Thermometers ($24.99 value) here's what you need to do:  




Mandatory Entry:  To get your name entered into this drawing simply tell me in the comments section below, the first thing you will cook using your Polder Cooking Thermometer if you win one.  (worth 1 entry) If you're in the sharing mood feel free to share that recipe with us, we might want to try it!

The mandatory entry MUST be done otherwise the bonus entries if you choose to do them, will not count. However, you can enter just the one time, or to increase your chances of winning you can enter any or all of the bonus entries.

Bonus Entries (leave a separate comment for each entry.  If you’re already a fan or follower, just say so in your comment).  Each one will count for the # of entries I've posted.  Your name will then be entered that many times for the giveaway.  The more entries you have the greater your chances of winning!

Here are the the other ways to enter:

•  "Like" At Home with Vicki Bensinger on facebook and leave your name in your comment. You can leave first name and last initial if you don’t want to leave your full name. (2 entries)
• Subscribe to my blog, (3 entries)
• Follow this blog.   (3 entries)
• Sign up for my monthly newsletter  My newsletter comes out the first week of each month. Please be sure to leave your first name, email address and the state you live in. (1 entry)
• "Like" Polder Housewares, Inc. on facebook and leave your name in your comment below. You can leave first name and last initial if you don’t want to leave your full name. (2 entries)
• Follow me on twitter and tweet about this giveaway. Leave your twitter handle and a link to your tweet so that I can verify it.  (How to get the URL of a tweet). (1 entry)

You have the chance to be entered 13 possible times for this giveaway. This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only (I apologize to my international readers ).

Please be sure to let me know which entries you made so that I can be sure I don't miss any.  I will check out all entries.  Also be sure to leave a proper email address so that I can contact you if you win.


Three (3) winners will be chosen at random sometime on April 1st, 2011. Once the winners are selected, they will be notified via email and posted on my blog.  If a winner does not respond within 48 hours, that winner forfeits the prize and another winner will be selected at random.


Note:  The winners (3) will receive their Classic Cooking Thermometer mailed directly from Polder Housewares, Inc.  just in time for the spring/summer grilling season!.

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE THREE (3) WINNERS FOR THE POLDER CLASSIC COOKING THERMOMETER, BASED ON A RANDOM DRAWING.  THEY ARE:

#1 - Lanie
#18 - Loretta
# 24 - Suzitravel
Each comment was given a number in order of sequence.  To view click on the comments below.
Here is how the Random numbers came up:

Random Sequence Generator

Here is your sequence:

1

18

24

34

15

6

35

10

33

25

12

30

17

27

29

11

32

3

21

19

13

2

8

9

14

28

23

16

4

26

5

7

22

31

20

Timestamp: 2011-04-01 13:41:17 UTC

Vietnamese Vegetarian Summer Rolls

It seems that when spring arrives everyone starts eating a bit healthier. Maybe it's in anticipation of summer coming and knowing you'll be putting on a bathing suit. Either way, healthy eating shouldn't just be reserved for the warm months of the year, but year-round. A refreshing recipe that you can make and take to work, pack in your childs lunchbox or have as a snack or appetizer is a Vietnamese Summer Roll. It's even a great way to eat a salad on the run! Whether you add seafood, chicken, beef or just prepare it with vegetables and herbs it makes for a delicious and light treat.

This month I will share from my Asian Appetizer Class how to make this healthy roll, in a video. If you're looking for a fun culinary class check this out. For more information please contact me: vkb2@hotmail.com

WARNING: This is the first video I've ever done and edited myself using my Flip HD video. Click on the arrow below to view.