Tickle (or tout) your ribs The Maplewood Community Center is seeking vendors who know their way around great BBQ and great sauce for its first Suds, Sauce and Soul event on June 11. Entry fee is $100, with 80 percent of sales going to the vendor and 20 percent to the Maplewood Community Center. Judges will select the best wings, ribs and sauce. If you've thought you have the goods for a side business, this could be your chance. All vendors must comply with health, insurance and vendor licenses. For details and guidelines, go to www.ci.maplewood.mn.us and click on the Suds, Sauce and Soul icon.
A new cutting edge We've been trying out a ceramic blade knife provided by a Canadian company, Starfrit, for the past several weeks. Views differ. On the one hand, nothing seems to faze it: tomatoes, sourdough bread, onions, grapefruit, boneless chicken breast give way with ease. Starfrit claims that ceramic blades will stay sharp up to 10 times longer than a steel blade. But another touted advantage -- its lightweight feel -- has taken some getting used to. Some online reviews note the possibly fragile nature of a ceramic blade, advising against using it on chicken bones, to smash garlic, or in a twisting motion. On the plus side, fruits also oxidize or turn brown less rapidly when cut with knives made of ceramic instead of steel. So perhaps a ceramic knife may be considered part of your knife wardrobe. Did we just say that? Starfrit knives are sold at www.Amazon.com.
Local flavors make good Last year, SuperValu stores invited its 160,000 employees nationwide to come up with their "dream" flavor for its private-label Stone Ridge Creamery brand of ice creams, sherbets and frozen yogurts. Among almost 1,500 entries, Minnesotans are two of the three winners. Tom Lindberg, of Plymouth, won for his Twisted Pretzel flavor, which is sea-salt-infused caramel and crunchy dark chocolate-coated pretzel pieces in vanilla ice cream. Amy Youngblood, of St. Louis Park, won for her Red Velvet Cake flavor, which is deep red and infused with the flavors of chocolate and cream cheese frosting. The third new flavor is Italian Kiss, a blend of chocolate ice cream, hazelnut and dark chocolate chunks. The new flavors are in stores now.
KIM ODE
