AIWF Chicago Korean Market Culinary Tour

Have you ever wanted to try Korean food but were afraid to try? AIWF Chicago board member and culinary instructor Rebecca Wheeler will be leading a Korean culinary tour this Sunday, beginning at Super H-Mart in Niles and ending at San Soo Gab San Korean Restaurant on Chicago's Northside. Super H-Mart is a huge Korean/Asian superstore that offers a wide array of Korean foods, produce & fish. Rebecca will discuss kimchee (spicy, pickled cabbage), Korean noodles & dumplings, spices including gochujang (red pepper paste), and the tofu making process. Lunch at San Soo Gab San will involve Korean BBQ (bulgogi), mandu dumplings, kimchee stew, rice, and banchan (side dishes). Pictured is Korean spicy squid (ojingo bokkum) from Kuma's Asian Bistro in Naperville.

Sunday, March 27th 10:30am (please allow 3 ½-4 hours for the tour). $55 non-members, $45 AIWF members. http://www.aiwf.org/chicago/

Aladdin Collapsible Salad Set

 Aladdin introduced the Collapsible Salad Set at the International Housewares Show. The set consists of a collapsible plastic salad bowl, a strainer, and three leak-proof containers to transport salad dressing and salad toppings. The company representative said that research with women found that they many frustrations about lunch. One issue: women wanted to eat more salad at lunchtime but did not like the existing storage containers. This set allows women to take a big salad with multiple toppings (just like at restaurants) to work but carry home a much smaller container for the bus/train trip home. 

Iron Chef Cat Cora at Housewares

Met Iron Chef Cat Cora at the Starfrit booth at the International Housewares Show. She was at the booth to sign copies of her cookbook, Cat Cora's Classics With a Twist, and promote her new Cat Cora line of cookware. The marketing materials promote the line as "Professional Chef Tested. Modern Mom Approved"- I didn't realize she has four boys.

Lucky Magazine Launches Lucky Kids

You can tell the economy is improving. After pulling the plug on Cookie magazine for affluent moms in October 2009, Conde Nast again sees an opportunity to reach moms & advertisers. Lucky magazine, the shopping resource for style conscious women, launched Lucky Kids magazine in March 2011. Lucky Kids will be published only twice in 2011, with the second issue coming out in time for back-to-school. Actress Angie Harmon and two of her daughters (Avery, Finley) are on the cover.

CND's Ambassador Anne Clarizio

Anne Clarizio, CND Education Ambassador, and owner of Head to Toes Salon in Arkansas, did my beautiful nails using CND's Shellac gel nail polish.

CND's Shellac Nail Polish

I got Shellacked at the CND VIP Room at America's Beauty Show in Chicago last Monday. Shellac was introduced in spring 2010 as a gel nail polish with 14-day wear. It is applied like a nail polish but cured under a UV light so no drying time.

I wanted to try a lot of different colors. On my left hand the colors are Hollywood, Masquerade, Decadence, plaid (Black Pool, Cream Puff, Iced Cappuccino, with Romantique as the base), zebra (Black Pool, Cream Puff). On my right hand the colors are Wildfire, Hot Chilis, Tropix (1/2 Iced Coral), Tutti Frutti, and Hot Pop Pink.

Nordstrom's Beauty Director Jules

Last Saturday was Julianne "Jules" De'Chaump's last Nordstrom Oakbrook Trend Show. Jules will be leaving her job as Midwest Beauty Director to take on another role at Nordstrom's Seattle headquarters. Jules, we'll miss your energy and sense of humor.

Nordstrom March 2011 Gift Bag

I won a goody bag of the Clarins (Gentle Eye Make-Up Remover Lotion, Instant Smooth Line Correcting Concentrate, Moisture-Rich Body Lotion) and Elemis (Absolute Eye Serum, Tri-Enzyme Resurfacing Gel Mask) items pictured. All attendees of the Nordstrom Oakbrook Spring Trend Show received the cream "lace" bag filled with the items in the plastic bag (samples of Antica Farmacista Orange Blossom, Lilac & Jasmine candle, Caudalie Vinoperfect Day Perfecting Cream SPF 15, Clinique Long Last Lipstick in Creamy Nude, Miss Dior Cherie eau de toilette, and Prada eau de toilette pour homme).

Disclosure: I won a goody bag from Nordstrom.

Box Appetit Lunch Box

I saw a lot of options to carry lunch to work at the Housewares Show. I took today as a vacation day to recharge after all the trade shows in March.
The Box Appetit was designed by black+blum in London. The box comes
with an inner dish, a sauce pot for dressing, and a fork/knife. The
clear lid has a sauce dipping area for sushi. The product is made of
Eastman Chemical's Tritan and is dishwasher and microwave-safe (for up
to two minutes).

Disclosure: I received a sample from the Eastman Chemical booth.

Caudalie's Mathilde Thomas

Met Mathilde Thomas, founder of French skin care company Caudalie, at
Nordstrom OakBrook's cosmetics trend show. This was her first
appearance at the show. She is holding her Beauty Elixir. Attendees who purchased two or more Caudalie items on that day received a gift of Caudalie Vinoperfect Radiance Revealing Mask.

SCOTTEVEST

I visited the SCOTTEVEST booth at The Travel Goods Show in Chicago. The multi-tasking vests and
jackets have multiple pockets for cellphones, passports, snacks, even
the iPad (on the larger sizes) so you don't have to check baggage.

Top Chef Fabio Viviani at Housewares

Bravo's Top Chef Fabio Viviani was at the Bialetti booth at the International
Housewares Show in Chicago. Fabio is the new spokesperson for Bialetti USA. At the show, he demonstrated Bialetti's Aeternum Cookware - a non-stick, nanoceramic cookware line.

Emeril at Housewares Show

Emeril Lagasse was at the Zak Designs booth at the International Housewares
Show to introduce a new line of serveware and kitchen prep items. He was also scheduled to do a cooking
demo at the All-Clad booth.

Nintendo 3DS Demo

Chicago commuters are trying out the new Nintendo 3DS at Ogilvie
Center. The demos will take place until April 3. The Nintendo 3DS will be in stores on March 27 for $249.

Dog Grooming by Wahl at Housewares

Cute dog was getting groomed at the Wahl booth at the International
Housewares Show.

Iron Chef Morimoto at Housewares

Iron Chef Morimoto was in action at the culinary stage at the International Housewares Show in Chicago.

The Laundry Pod at Housewares

This booth caught my eye at the International Housewares Show
yesterday. The Laundry Pod is a non-electrical laundry "machine" that
can be used on camping trips, on boats, in dorms, or by parents who
don't want to use a washer to wash a small load of baby clothes. You
just turn the handle a few times to wash and spin.

Le Creuset Booth at Housewares

I'm inside of a custom-designed Le Creuset car at their booth - new
for this year - at the International Housewares Show.

Snazzy BBQ Grills at Bodum

These are the most stylish BBQ grills I have ever seen. Was surprised
to see BBQ grills at the Bodum booth because I associate the company with the French coffee press.

Helen Chen at Housewares

I talked to Helen Chen at the International Housewares Show in
Chicago. Helen, daughter of Asian food expert Joyce Chen, has her own
cookware line - Helen's Asian Kitchen. Even though we've been taught
in the US that Chinese traditionally use woks made of carbon steel, Helen
said that consumers in China now use non-stick woks that are flat-
bottomed. She said that today's American and Chinese consumers are too
busy to season their woks.

Chef Ming Tsai at Housewares

Here's me with chef Ming Tsai at the International Housewares Show at
the Kyocera booth. He signed a copy of his newest cookbook, Simply
Ming One-Pot Meals.

Chef Michelle Bernstein at Housewares

I'm at the International Housewares Show in Chicago. Just met chef
Michelle Bernstein at the Fagor booth S3425. She is cooking sliders
with melting cheese and bacon bits on her new Michelle B cast iron cookware.