Banding together
Like many cooks, Vicki Mager of Bloomington started to accumulate more ingredients in her kitchen over time, things like Stevia, flaxseed, jasmine rice or coconut flour. Often sourced in co-ops, they get stored in Mason jars or other containers. And funny how most flours look alike! So Mager came up with Eye-D Bands, reusable stretchy labels. Now they've been selected by Martha Stewart and her panel of judges as a finalist in the design category of the 2015 Martha Stewart American Made Awards. The bands "provide order and a structure for simplifying the process of storing and finding ingredients." A vote by the public will determine the winners in various categories, but you need to vote by midnight Oct. 19. To vote, visit marthastewart.com/americanmade/nominee/103681/design/eye-dbands. (Or go to marthastewart.com/americanmade and type Vicki Mager in the search field.) To learn more about the bands, visit eyedbands.com.
Alton Brown in … May
Tickets now are on sale for an evening with Alton Brown, the Food Network Star known for "Good Eats," "Cutthroat Kitchen" and "Iron Chef America." But be patient. His "Eat Your Science Tour" comes to the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis on May 8. Brown will bring his slightly wacky culinary science antics to the stage. Be ready for a mélange of stand-up comedy, food experimentation, multimedia lecture and live music. Visit HennepinTheatreTrust.org or call 1-800-982-2787 for tickets and more information.
Stomping out child hunger
Spontaneity alert: The Kick Off Your Shoes fundraising event at Parma 8200 in Bloomington is Oct. 15 — like, now — with its Crush Child Hunger Wine Fest. Event participants can "channel their inner Lucille Ball with a little old-fashioned grape stomping." A cleanup station and plastic foot covers will be available for stompers, with prizes awarded to top liquid producers. Tickets are $40 at the door; $20 out of every ticket will be donated to VEAP (Volunteers Enlisted to Assist People) and No Kid Hungry. To learn more, visit parma8200.com and click on promotions.
Wild game feast in Two Harbors
Bison, boar and beers are on the menu Oct. 24 for this year's Wild Game and Brewer's Feast at Grand Superior Lodge in Two Harbors, Minn. The buffet-style meal will feature buffalo ravioli, wild boar smoked ribs, bison prime rib, walleye roulade, venison churrasco, smoked pheasant potpie and much, much more. Seasonal taps from Castle Danger Brewery will complement dinner. Seating is at 6 p.m. at the lodge, near Gooseberry Falls State Park. Tickets are $80 per person, $150 per couple. For reservations, call 1-800-627-9565. For more details, visit http://bit.ly/1OojZSp.
Cookie contest deadline tomorrow!
Hurry. The deadline for our annual Holiday Cookie Contest is looming. Here's what we need: a cookie recipe with your name, address, daytime phone and e-mail address. Please include a description of why this cookie is part of your holiday tradition or, if it's a newly developed recipe, why baking is important to you during December. It helps us to have a photo to see how you envision the recipe to look, but if you don't have one, don't fret. Simply send in the recipe.
Enter via e-mail at taste@startribune.com (please write "Taste Holiday Cookie Contest" in the subject field). Deadline is noon on Oct. 16. Finalists will be notified by early November. Our annual cookie issue will be published on Dec. 3. The winner and four finalists also will be invited to bake for the public at the Mill City Museum in Minneapolis on Dec. 5.
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