Chef Stone was in Charleston promoting his new book, What's For Dinner:
The chairs set out for the event were surprisingly comfy and my good friend Heather from I'd Rather Be Changing Diapers and I settled in to wait, along with a crowd of over 200 other fans! They had to keep bringing in more and more chairs...Heather was smart and rather stylish in her fabulous purple cowboy hat - which shaded her face and kept her cooler... unfortunately I skipped the hat and neither of us put on sunscreen ... so two hours of baking in the sun took it's toll... good thing Curtis didn't have Lobster on the menu...
I unfortunately chose a sleeveless sundress... so back, shoulders, arms and a nice V-Neck shape on my chest are all getting the aloe vera treatment tonight...
but it was all worth it!
Before Chef Curtis made his appearance, we had a chance to wander around and check out some great local food trucks
keeping us entertained was the Tarlatan Acoustic Duo:
And then it was on to the MC - Chef Miles Huff from the Charleston Culinary Institute:
and finally, the chef of the hour ...
whose able assistant Tiffany was never far away!
Checking out the overhead mirror... which was a great place to check out his butt the cooktop:
Once he'd chatted, he got down to business and showed us four recipes ... my personal favorite was the Blueberry Bramble... sounds like a dessert right? Nope, a great sipping cocktail:
He also made a yummy chicken salad, a quick flank steak stir fry and chorizo and pepper quesidillas... but he had me at Blueberry Bramble:
Into a cocktail shaker put:
Handful of Blueberries
A few slices of cucumber
Small bunch of mint
Lemon or Lime Juice
Muddle the ingredients together to break everything up a bit and add
"Small" pour Creme de Cassis (sweet Blackberry Liquor)
Small pour of Gin
crushed ice
Shake your booty shaker ... Chef Curtis prefers Gagnam Style, but whatever works for you... and pour unstrained into a highball glass - serve with additional crushed ice and garnish with mint or cucumber...
Like I said, I got a chance to meet with, chat with and have my picture taken with Chef Stone after the demo, but due to time constraints all the photography was done by a local pro, so I am waiting for her to upload my brush with culinary stardom...
Chef Stone is heading to Raleigh, North Carolina for a demo and book signing April 14th and will continue to criss-cross the nation (and Canada!) promoting What's For Dinner!
Even if Chef Stone doesn't come calling in your neighborhood, my US readers can enter to win a fabulous trip to LA to meet and eat with Curtis Stone:
A Taste & Style Experience Getaway. Enter to Win our Foodies' Dream Trip & Dine with Chef Curtis Stone April 1-28, 2013! You could win a chance to dine with Curtis Stone just for experiencing the best Tanger Outlets has to offer this spring! Enter to win a 3-day and 2-night trip for 2 to Los Angeles, California and sit at the chef's table and dine with Curtis Stone on May 20th, 2013, PLUS a $1,000 Tanger Shopping Spree.*
*No purchase necessary to win. Register at any Tanger Outlet Center. Look for registration boxes or visit Shopper Services upon arrival. Winner must be able to travel from May 19-21, 2013. See official rules at Shopper Services orwww.tangeroutlet.com/foodies
or if you are going to 'just' miss him, you can also shop at Tanger Outlets to receive a great set of measuring spoons:
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. I was given VIP tickets and a promotional item in exchange for participating in this USFamilyGuide promotion.
