CULINARY STUDIO | Chicago
Macy's Culinary Studio on the seventh floor of the State Street store, 111 N. State St., offers cooking classes. Registration required. Call to get dates and times for classes.
FYI: (800) 265-COOK
Mother's day events | UNO Chicago Grill locations
From May 6 through May 11, participating Uno Chicago Grill locations will be distributing Mother's Day coloring cards and crayons to young guests. Children who complete the coloring cards will receive a prize for a free kid's meal on their next visit. On Mother's Day, May 11, each participating location will offer to take digital photos of the family. Families need to give their name and mailing address to the photographer, and a keepsake photo will be mailed to them.
AMELIA'S | Winfield
The Cooking School at Amelia's, 10839 Randolph St., is offering a spring price special for cooking classes in May. Participants who pay the $30 per-class fee can bring a friend for free. Upcoming: Youngsters will have a chance to make Mother's Day cakes from 6 to 8 p.m. May 8 and from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. May 10. Fresh spring fruits and veggies will be the topic from 6 to 8 p.m. May 13 and 15 and from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. May 17. A family pizza party the "Apian" way will be offered again from 6 to 8 p.m. May 20 and 22 and from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. May 24. Spring fruits and veggies again are on the menu for cooking classes from 6 to 8 p.m. May 27 and 29 and from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. May 31.
FYI: (219) 661-5582 or www.ameliasmarket.com
GOURMET WINE CELLAR | Chicago
Interact with renowned Chicagoland chefs and sommeliers at Gourmet Magazine's sixth annual "Gourmet Wine Cellar" from 6 to 9 p.m. May 15 at The Field Museum, 1400 S. Lake Shore Drive. The culinary event is a benefit for The American Institute of Wine and Food. Included in the evening's activities are wine and food tastings, live cooking demos, discussions and seminars. Chefs scheduled to appear include Gourmet's executive chef Sara Moulton, Grant Achatz of Alinea, Douglas Rodriguez of Delacosta, Homaro Cantu of Moto, Martial Nougier of One Sixty Blue and Christophe David of NoMi. Tickets are $90, if purchased before May 1 and $100 after May 1.
FYI: (800) 679-0397 or www.gourmetscoop.com/winecellar
Recipe contest for college scholarships | Nationwide
The folks at www.mealstogether.com are sponsoring a kids' recipe contest.
Five families will win $5,000 college scholarships; 400 first-place winners will receive a cookout carry-all. (We're not sure what that is, but, hey, they could give us a pair of tongs, and we'd be happy.)
Here are tips for making mealtimes a family tradition and encouraging kids to start cooking:
1. Each week, design a few meals to share with the family. Breakfast, lunch or brunch work as well as dinner.
2. Work as a team to prepare the meal.
3. Learn fancy ways of folding napkins to make the table look special.
4. Experiment with foods from around the world. Then, provided your kids haven't reached the roll-their-eyes-at-Mom's-dorkiness stage yet, encourage them to dress in costumes that match the cuisine.
5. Check out "My A to Z Recipe Box: An Alphabet of Recipes for Kids" (Chronicle Books; $17) and the book "Lunch Lessons: Changing the Way We Feed Our Children" (Collins; $23).
For contest rules, see www.mealstogether.com; click on the contest note. Deadline is Oct. 31. -- MCT
Mushroom recipe contest | Nationwide
Think your wild, fresh or dried mushroom recipe is as good as it gets? MarxFood.com is calling all home chefs and mushroom enthusiasts to enter their best recipe by Thursday, May 15 for a chance to win two pounds of fresh, wild morel mushrooms. Fresh, wild Pacific Northwest morel mushrooms have been popping up and the season has inspired the staff at MarxFood.com to host a mushroom recipe contest with a goal of collecting new, mouth-watering cooking ideas. The contest is not limited to morels -- recipes can incorporate any variety of fresh, wild, or dried mushrooms. Each recipe will be judged by the staff at MarxFood.com on deliciousness and originality.
FYI: Submit original mushroom recipes online to MarxFood.com
PANCAKE BREAKFAST | Lowell
Tri-Creek Band Boosters Annual "All You Can Eat" Pancake Breakfast will be May 10 at the Lowell Senior High School cafeteria, 2051 E. Commercial Avenue, Lowell. Serving begins at 7 a.m. until noon. Carry-outs will be available. The Jazz Bands from the High School and the Middle School will be performing during breakfast hours. Tickets are adults (13 and up) $6, children (6 to 12) $4, children 5 years and under are free, no ticket needed. Tickets can be purchased by Lowell High School Band member. Lowell Middle School students will be accepting orders for tickets prior to the event, and tickets will also be available at the door.
FYI: (219) 696-7733 ext. 3180 or (219) 696-7701 ext. 2303
Web site helps you fight cancer | Nationwide
A new Web site from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center offers tools to help you add more fruits and vegetables to your meals. At www.mcancer.org/recipes, you can click on your favorite fruits and veggies, add your dietary restrictions and see which recipes the site has to offer. Or you can record your produce preferences and have the site create a customized menu.
The recipes are developed by healthy-eating crusader Graham Kerr, the original "Galloping Gourmet." Kerr appears on brief videos demonstrating a number of the recipes. -- MCT
