Saturday October 6, 2007 - 6pm
Auburn High School - Lake Ave, Auburn - Doors Open at 4pm

TICKETS STILL AVAILABLE!
CALL TODAY! 315-253-5311

Tickets are $10 each and are available at The Citizen, 25 Dill Street, Auburn, NY 13021, by phone 315-253-5311 ext 213 (with a credit card), and by mail (before September 21,2007) Taste of Home Cooking School, c/o The Citizen, 25 Dill Street, Auburn, NY 13021.

Tickets will NOT be sold at the door, so you must purchase them ahead of time.

Please make all checks payable to The Citizen.

The Taste of Home Cooking School Blog

10/3/07 Excitement is in the air

Not only are we being blessed by this b-e-a-utiful weather, there is only 76 hours (or 3 days, 3 hours and 52 minutes) until the Taste of Home Cooking School 2007. But who's counting? ;)

We've finished stuffing all the canvas bags with your fun giveaways and samples and some REALLY good coupons. You're going to love it!

We have a new national vendor this year. Kraft foods will be displaying some of their classic products and I think a new one. I would definitely go to their booth if I were you.

Tickets are still available although they are going fast! You can purchase them at The Citizen 25, Dill Street, Auburn. M-F 8am-5pm or you can call me at 315-253-5311 to order them by phone.

This may be my last post for the Taste of Home Cooking School Blog – I'll try to get one more in on Friday, but I can't guarantee it. If not, you've been a great audience., thanks for reading!

If you liked reading this, check out The Citizen on Wednesdays. The Lake Life section is dedicated to Food and there are some great columnists there with fun recipes and some very helpful cooking tips!

Happy Cooking & See you Saturday!

-Jess :)

10/1/07 Vegetable Soup

I know I promised you my fabulous vegetable soup recipe last week. I shouldn't have done that. I knew how busy I have been. What with stuffing bags for the Taste of Home, confirming vendors, making phone calls and selling tickets I haven't had time to even think about cooking for myself let alone typing out a recipe for my blog.

This past week has been crazy and I'm certain that this coming week will be even worse. But that's what I live for and that's why I cook. I don't know about you but when I cook I'm in my own little world (although I would say that friends and family would contest that this state of mind may be a more regular occurrence) and away from all those other stresses. So when I get stressed out a batch of cookies, applesauce, or the occasional pot roast ;) can be more relaxing than a nice glass of red wine and a good book.

So, without further ado, here is my de-stressing, very tasty, super good vegetable soup. FYI: for this, I don't really measure, I kind of just eyeball it.

Jess's Vegetable/Minestrone/Super Good Soup
1 can (32oz or something like that) Tomato Juice – Lower Sodium if you can find it
Fresh:
Onions 1-2 medium (in my opinion the more the better)
Celery – 2-3 stalks
Red Potatoes – about 5-6 good size ones depending on how much you like them

Canned: (1 regular size can each)
Carrots (No Salt Added)
Corn (No Salt Added)
Green Beans (No Salt Added)
Diced Tomatos (No Salt Added)
(You could add other veggies as you see fit, fresh and canned)

Salt/Pepper to taste
Italian Seasoning to taste
Fresh/dried Parsley to taste
Splash of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Grab a big pot and put the olive oil in the pan. You'll need enough so that your first veggies don't stick but not too much. Add your onions and celery and cook until onions are tender. Then add everything else except the pepper, spices, and parsley. Bring the pot up to a boil and then turn down the heat so that it's simmering. Because most of your veggies are from the can they are already soft, so you'll just need to cook it until the potatoes are done enough for you. I would say this will take you about half an hour to 45 minutes. I like to add the spices later on in the cooking process that way all the veggies have had some time to intermingle and you can taste where you're at and determine what to add.

Now, I”m sure you have some great soup recipes! Send them to citizenpromotions@gmail.com and I will add them up here!

Happy Cooking!

-Jess :)

9/25/07 And the band played on...

When you arrive to the Taste of Home, please be careful. You will hear the wonderful big band sound of The Auburn Maroon Vanguard Marching Band, as they will be practicing while you are driving in.

If you've been to the Taste of Home Cooking School before you will note that we have let people in only at the side entrance. This kept things somewhat orderly however created a long line and waiting time.

This year, with the band practicing on that side, we would like to stay out of their way as much as possible. So we will open the front doors for people to enter through as well.

There will be limited parking at the side entrance so you will have to park out front or in the student lot anyways.

Hopefully by opening up two entrances we can get people in the high school quicker so you can have more time at the booths.

Don't worry – I'll put some signs out for those who aren't familiar with the high school.

Happy Cooking! :)

-Jessica

P.S. I just made a fantabulous vegetable soup. I'll post the recipe this week for you!

9/21/07 Come Hungry Leave Happy

Hello and TGIF!

I wanted to update you on some of the vendors that will be at the Taste of Home this year. In particular the food vendors. :)

Last year we started a chili cook-off at the Taste of Home because we wanted to include some of the great local diners and restaurants that offer this fall time favorite. This year we will once again hold a chili cook-off at the Taste of Home and this year we will keep all the participants together in one area. So if you want to vote on your favorite, you can go there and try them all in one area. The contestants so far are: Auburn Family Restaurant, Brenda's Diner, Burritt's Cafe, Cato Diner, JB's Wall Street Grill, Magee Diner, the Mill Stone Golf Course Restaurant, and Villano's Deli.

For those of you who are not chili lovers, and I have to say I didn't really like chili until about two years ago so I can sympathize with you, there are many other ways to get your fill.

As always, our Master Chef Sponsor Wegmans will once again put on a tremendous spread of their offerings. Last year they highlighted their Ultimate Chocolate Cake which is totally worth waiting for in my opinion, and they offered a number of salads and other very tasty things to try. Now, I don't know what Wegmans will bring this year, but the company just introduced their Ultimate Carrot Cake, so here's hoping. :-P

In addition to that the chef from Keuka College will be bringing some of their culinary creations to the show. Also, worth waiting for in my opinion. (Can anyone tell that I like to eat?) Some other vendors who are expected to bring food samples are, Tastefully Simple, Infused!, and The Cookie Tray.

In the mean time, I want to hear your ideas for what you'd like to see at the Taste of Home next year. Heck maybe we can even put something into action this year, although Saturday October 6^th is coming very close, but it doesn't hurt to try.

So, I look forward to and welcome your comments at citizenpromotions@gmail.com.

Happy Cooking!

-Jess :)

9/19/07 Tickets still available

I hope that everyone who is reading this has already purchased their tickets!

If not, don't worry there are tickets still available! I'd let you know if we were about to run out. :-P

Tickets are $10 each and include your admission to the show, FREE Canvas goodie bag filled with FREE samples and fun stuff, FREE food samples, Vendor booths, DOOR PRIZES, chili cook-off and much more!

Tickets are available by calling 253-5311 or by stopping at The Citizen at 25 Dill Street Auburn.

-Jess :)

9/11/07 They call me “Crazy”

I learned a lot about cooking from my grandmothers. Grandma #1 was always in the kitchen making something, even if no one was around to eat it. (Think breads, cookies, cakes, and the occasional Pot Roast) Grandma #2, on the other hand, specialized in quick and easy meals for one, leftovers, and one heck of a meatloaf. Now in my “I really do have to fend for my own” stage of life, I've taken each grandmother's talents to heart.

From Grandma #1, I learned that you should make what you want to eat, when you want to eat it no matter if it's 100F or 10F outside. Case in point, I have been known to crank my oven way up on any given terribly hot & humid day in my little, second floor apartment. (It's these kinds of actions that make my friends and more notably my father, tell me I'm crazy :-P)

From my Grandma #2 I learned that you can make anything for one (or two), that it's OK to not want to cook sometimes, and that you can freeze some of that sensational meatloaf and use it as a base for chili later on.

So this summer I have adopted a new favorite dish that combines the “are you crazy” with the quick and easy. It includes all the great tastes of summer that I've been picking up at the Farmer's Market and I've added it here below for you to try.

Jess's Super Fun Summer Pasta Dish

Makes enough for 2-3 people although you can easily alter to feed more.

1 small yellow squash

1 small zucchini

1 onion

1-2 cloves of garlic (more or less to taste)

1 can diced tomatoes (I like the “no salt added” kind)

- or you can use fresh diced tomatoes too.

Salt & Pepper to taste

½ box thin spaghetti

Parmesan cheese

Cook and drain spaghetti.

Saute the onions and garlic in olive oil until tender. Add zucchini and squash and cook until just about done. Add your can of diced tomatoes and salt and pepper and simmer until heated through.

Combine spaghetti and vegetable mixture in large serving bowl.

Add Parmesan cheese and mix through.

*Sometimes I like to add some fresh Basil and Parsley to the dish.

**We like to serve this with some Italian bread too.

Now it's your turn, what was the best cooking tip that you've ever learned or what's the craziest cooking things you've ever done?

I'll post a few of the great tips you leave me.

E-mail me at citizenpromotions@gmail.com

Happy Cooking!

-Jess :)

9/7/07 My Favorite

My favorite Taste of Home memory was from the 2004 show. I was new here at The Citizen and we were approaching the end of long day in which, for coordinating my first show, I thought went extremely well. We were handing out door prizes and all of a sudden I see my boss riding down the aisle of the auditorium on a 10 speed bike! Needless to say this was not in my plans for the evening. Fortunately there were no injuries and the audience was just as surprised as I was.

Oh and then in 2005 we tried to provide bags of popcorn for our attendees. Well, the popcorn machine got too hot and the oil burned. The hall smelled like smoke for the remainder of the afternoon. We're luck the fire department didn't show up :-P

Other than these major things, I miss a lot of FUN stuff that goes on at the event because I'm busy running around and (sometimes literally) putting out fires.

So, I would love to know your favorite Taste of Home memory. Whether it was a big event like your friend winning a door prize or something small, I would love to know what your remember most from the show.

E-mail me at citizenpromotions@gmail.com.

Hope to hear from you soon!

-Jessica :)

8/29/07 A Challenge

Tickets go on sale on Tuesday September 4^th bright and early at 8am and I couldn't be more excited. I have had so many phone calls this year asking about tickets and show details, I know that Tuesday will be a busy day!

In addition to seeing your smiling faces, Tuesday will mark only 32 days until the doors open for the Taste of Home Cooking School. I know I can't be the only one who's super excited about that!

Now, many of my colleagues tell me that the first year The Citizen sponsored the Taste of Home Cooking School, there was a line down the end of Dill Street of people waiting to purchase tickets.

So, in hopes to recreate this memory, the first 50 people to purchase tickets at The Citizen on Tuesday September 4^th will receive a FREE Stainless Steel Travel Mug from The Citizen. (One per person)

See you then!

-Jessica :)

8/14/07 Hello and Welcome!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to our Taste of Home website! My name is Jessica Harkins and I am the Marketing and Innovation Leader here at The Citizen. I'm in charge of coordinating events such as the upcoming Taste of Home Cooking School.

Since I know all of our attendees love hearing about all the great stuff we have going on at the show, I'm going to blog (basically keep an online diary) about some of the things we have going on here. That way you can stay informed.

I don't have a way for you to communicate with me on this forum yet, BUT please send me an e-mail at citizenpromotions@gmail.com with any of your questions or ideas or anything about the Taste of Home Cooking School.

I'll be adding something whenever I can, so check back often!

-Jessica :)

Once again The Citizen is hosting the

Taste of Home Cooking School!

This year's theme is Great Gatherings with a savory mix of quick and easy dishes and yummy deserts, you'll love all that this year's show has to offer! The show is two hours long and the Taste of Home Cooking School Culinary Specialist Michelle Goggins will be walking you through ten recipes complete with tricks of the trade to make your cooking experience smooth as ever. At the end of the night each of these dishes will be given away to ten lucky members of the audience!

Door prizes are abundant at the Taste of Home Cooking School. Local advertisers supply the show with many GREAT prizes! Past prizes have included, restaurant gift certificates, a Lazy-Boy recliner, a bag of groceries, bushels of apples, certificates to area day spas, bakeware, and most notably a kitchen table! Buy your tickets today and come see what you can win!

The show will be held at Auburn High School on Lake Ave, Auburn. (Click Here for directions.)

Vendors will line the halls with free samples, crafts, literature, and good times.

Last year's Chili Cook-off was such a success we are bringing it back this year! One sample per person, then you vote for your favorite. The winning restaurant will be awarded advertising space in The Citizen to boast of their new found glory and three winners from the cookoff voters to win gift certificates to the particiapting restaurants.

Food vendors will be abundant with new dishes for you to try!

(One sample per person please.)

MAP to Auburn High School Click to Enlarge