Meet the presenters

Staff reports

Ready for the whirlwind holiday season, the season where you’re expected to do your day job and turn out chef-quality holiday meals?

It’s a little overwhelming to think about, huh?

Before you resort to twisting open a jar of olives and calling it an appetizer, we’re here for you with the Salt Marketplace and Cook Show.

“Salt Marketplace and Cook Show replaces the Taste of Home cooking school that The Lima News has hosted in years past,” said Pamela Stricker, publisher of niche product division for Civitas Media. She and Brenda Burgy, director of public relations at Apollo Career Center, are emcees of the event.

“The timing really coincides with going into the holidays. We’re all doing a lot of food preparation — baking and entertaining. You’ll come away with lots of ideas,” Stricker said.

Featured chefs include Carrie Hamilton-Prince, instructor of high school culinary arts at Apollo Career Center and adult culinary arts degree at Rhodes State; Brian Keegan, demonstrating chef at Chief Supermarkets and wine steward at Old City Prime American Steakhouse; Carol Braden-Clarke, president of the United Way of Greater Lima; Lauren Harvey, chef at The Met; Andrea Chaffin, food editor of Salt magazine; and Lora Abernathy, editor of Salt magazine and director of editorial digital strategies for Civitas Media.

Each presenter will demonstrate a recipe, and the audience will have chances to taste-test the dishes. Door prizes like bags of groceries and a gas grill will also be given away.

Come early to shop the vendor booths.

“Come ready to get holiday shopping done,” Stricker said.

“Even if you don’t love to cook, you’re going to be entertained,” she said. “Apollo has just gone through a $53 million renovation, and you’ll want to come and view what an awesome career center it is.”

The show will be held at the Apollo Career Center, 3325 Shawnee Road, in Lima. Tickets are $40 for VIP seating and $15 for general admission.

VIP tickets include seating near the stage, premium tote bags, a Salt apron, a gift card and other goodies. General admission tickets will also receive goodie bags.

Major sponsors include Otterbein, Allan Nott Honda, Chief, Lima Memorial Health System, Tracy’s Appliances and Apollo Career Center.

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MEET THE PRESENTERS

LAUREN HARVEY

Lauren Harvey graduated from Elida High School in 2013 as well as attending Apollo Career Center for two years in culinary arts under the direction of Carrie Hamilton-Prince.

She graduated from Sullivan University with an associates degree in culinary arts in Louisville, Kentucky. While in Louisville, she worked as head cook at Molly Malone’s. She moved back to Lima in December 2014 and worked at Holiday Inn, heading up the kitchen. She became the chef at The Met in February 2016.

She started her love for cooking at a young age from watching cooking shows and cooking for her family. Lauren will marry her fiancé Sept. 16, 2017.

Q&A with Lauren

1) What’s your go-to ingredient to take a dish from drab to fab?

Garlic.

2) What kitchen gadget could you not do without?

I would have normally said a chef’s knife, but more recently it has been a timer. When you have so much going on, I tend to be forgetful, especially when I am baking.

3) What’s the one dish your family constantly asks you to make?

So, I got lots of different responses to this question. Some said anything and everything. My fiancé said spicy brown sugar chicken tenders and my mom said stuffed shells.

4) What food did you hate as a kid, but now can’t get enough of?

Cottage cheese and beets.

5) Describe the craziest mess you’ve made in the kitchen.

Everyone can also tell when I have been in the kitchen. My coworkers call me “Tornado.”

6) At what age did you start cooking and what dish did you first attempt?

I was probably 9 or 10 when I started cooking. My dish was probably macaroni and cheese.

7) Which co-host would you choose to do a cooking segment with if you were a guest on “The Chew?”

Michael Symon because he is very well known, and I could definitely learn a lot from him.

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BRIAN KEEGAN

Brian Keegan has been cooking, in one form or another, for more than 50 years.

Primarily self-taught, he has been influenced by authors Julia Child, Paul Prudhomme, Marcella Hazan and many others, and by his collaborations with local chefs Alisa McPheron and Christopher Glass.

While serving as director of Veterans Memorial Civic Center in Lima, he developed his Movie/Dinner events which paired foreign films with matching cuisines, a project that lasted more than 20 years.

He holds a bachelor’s degree from Old Dominion University and a master’s degree from Bowling Green State University in dramatic arts. He currently works as a demonstrating chef for Chief Supermarkets and as wine steward for Old City Prime American Steakhouse in downtown Lima.

Q&A with Brian:

1) What’s your go-to ingredient to take a dish from drab to fab?

For a multitude of uses: fresh lemon juice.

2) What kitchen gadget could you not do without?

I would say my chef’s knife, but since that may not qualify as a gadget, my immersion blender.

3) What’s the one dish your family constantly asks you to make?

My signature dish: chicken alla alba.

4) What food did you hate as a kid, but now can’t get enough of?

Raw oysters.

5) Describe the craziest mess you’ve made in the kitchen.

My first attempt to make pizza dough. It was a long time ago and there was sticky dough everywhere.

6) At what age did you start cooking and what dish did you first attempt?

My first memory is making spaghetti. I was 16.

7) Which co-host would you choose to do a cooking segment with if you were a guest on “The Chew?”

Carla Hall.

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CAROL BRADEN-CLARKE

Carol Braden-Clarke is a 28-year United Way professional and became president of the United Way of Greater Lima in August 2015.

She started her United Way career on the campaign staff at the United Way in Columbus. She served as the campaign director in Evansville, Indiana, for nine years before becoming president in 1999.

Prior to working for United Way, she was a television news photographer in Roanoke, Virginia, and Champaign, Illinois. She is a graduate of Eastern Illinois University. She is married to Aubrey Clarke and they have two grown children, Christine and Ian.

Carol finds cooking therapeutic and enjoys creating new dishes. She has a few signature dishes like lasagna, barbecue and jambalaya. She rarely uses a recipe.

Q&A with Carol

1) What’s your go-to ingredient to take a dish from drab to fab?

Garlic and dill.

2) What kitchen gadget could you not do without?

I’m not a gadget person. A good sharp knife and a sturdy spoon for mixing.

3) What’s the one dish your family constantly asks you to make?

Lasagna.

4) What food did you hate as a kid, but now can’t get enough of?

Asparagus.

5) Describe the craziest mess you’ve made in the kitchen.

I’m not a baker and I bake really only once a year at Christmas. One year, I decided to create an assembly line with different cookie doughs to speed up the process. I got distracted and forgot where I left off in adding ingredients and added a double amount of cream of tartar in the snickerdoodle dough. The cookies had a sour taste but my family continued to eat them. Each time they would eat one they would throw two away.

6) At what age did you start cooking and what dish did you first attempt?

Age 10. I don’t really remember but I would guess fried chicken or spaghetti.

7) Which co-host would you choose to do a cooking segment with if you were a guest on “The Chew?”

Carla Hall.

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CARRIE HAMILTON-PRINCE

Carrie Hamilton-Prince is a graduate of Avon Lake High School. She obtained a bachelor’s degree in home economics education, food service management concentration, from The Ohio State University, and a master’s degree in curriculum and supervision from Wright State University.

She has worked in many restaurants, but a highlight was to be a part of the opening crew and kitchen manager of Jimmy Buffet’s first Margaritaville restaurant in 1987 in Key West, Florida.

She has been teaching in the culinary profession since 1994 and at Apollo Career Center since 2000. She is also managing and teaching at Rhodes State, leading the associates of applied science in culinary arts degree program. She taught at OSU-Lima in the hospitality management division and Lorain County Community College, associates of applied science in culinary arts degree.

She is a certified secondary food service educator from the National Restaurant Association and a ServSafe certified instructor and proctor.

She has a WLIO cooking segment, “Cooking with Carrie,” at 6:25 a.m. Tuesdays.

Q&A with Carrie

1) What’s your go-to ingredient to take a dish from drab to fab?

Pesto. I use it in pastas, soups and eggs. Love it.

2) What kitchen gadget could you not do without?

A chef’s knife. Not sure it’s a gadget, but I certainly could not function without it.

3) What’s the one dish your family constantly asks you to make?

Spaghetti and meatballs.

4) What food did you hate as a kid, but now can’t get enough of?

Beans. Mainly Lima beans. My mom made them in a huge pot and served them over buttered bread. I now make them and add sour cream and dill. Delicious!

5) Describe the craziest mess you’ve made in the kitchen.

This is a difficult question. I hate to say this, but there have been many. I was blending split pea soup and didn’t realize at the time I shouldn’t have filled the blender with the hot soup. The top popped off and I had split pea soup everywhere.

6) At what age did you start cooking and what dish did you first attempt?

I grew up in the kitchen with my mother and grandmother. I made egg salad for my brother’s lunches at age 6. It was full of shells!

7) Which co-host would you choose to do a cooking segment with if you were a guest on “The Chew?”

Carla Hall or Michael Symon. I have had the honor of meeting and working with them both and they are both knowledgeable and fun in the kitchen.

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LORA ABERNATHY

Lora Abernathy has been the editor of Salt magazine for nearly four years. She also serves as the director of editorial strategies for Civitas Media, the parent company of The Lima News and Salt.

She has a political science degree from Marshall University and a passion for learning new things — especially trying new recipes.

When she’s not sidelined by injuries, she can be found training for her next triathlon. Her favorite pastime — besides eating something delicious or sleeping — is driving around in her truck with the windows down listening to either ’90s grunge, Bing Crosby or Dwight Yoakam’s greatest hits.

Q&A with Lora

1) What’s your go-to ingredient to take a dish from drab to fab?

Lemon. Lemon juice, lemon zest, absolutely lemon every time. I like to grate a little fresh lemon zest in my store-bought pancake batter. It brightens up the pancakes.

2) What kitchen gadget could you not do without?

My Microplane grater. I use it to grate lemon zest, ginger, garlic and nutmeg.

3) What’s the one dish your family constantly asks you to make?

Spaghetti — and it’s my least favorite dish to make because it’s not even a recipe. It’s just spaghetti, ground beef and store-bought sauce. I like to create “art.” My husband loves it, though, so I do it — begrudgingly.

4) What food did you hate as a kid, but now can’t get enough of?

Tomatoes. I like to grow my grandma’s heirloom tomatoes and just eat them off the vine.

5) Describe the craziest mess you’ve made in the kitchen.

Even though I didn’t start cooking until later in life, I tried to make my grandma’s famous “mashed potato icing” when I was in high school, just so I could pull it out of the fridge and eat it anytime I wanted. It’s super sweet but looks like mashed potatoes. I completely messed it up, but it still tasted pretty good. So, instead of trying to get it right, I made more of the messed-up version and even added food coloring.

6) Which co-host would you choose to do a cooking segment with if you were a guest on “The Chew?”

I have loved Clinton Kelly since he was on “What Not to Wear.” He’s witty and hilarious.

7) At what age did you start cooking and what dish did you first attempt?

I was 30. I know, right? Once I started, though, I made up for lost time and constantly tried new recipes. I also got addicted to the Food Network. The first thing I made was a mac and cheese dog casserole, courtesy of Rachael Ray.

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ANDREA CHAFFIN

Andrea Chaffin discovered at an early age that the best place in every home is the kitchen.

Her cooking style is best described as home cooking with modern experimentation, but she prides herself with carrying on the family traditions of canning and gardening.

She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from The Ohio State University. She has served as the food editor for Salt magazine for three years and is currently the editor of The Madison Press in London, Ohio, where she lives with family and dogs, who are the first taste-testers of every dish — no complaints yet from those two.

Q&A with Andrea

1) What’s your go-to ingredient to take a dish from drab to fab?

Just about any savory dish that calls for garlic, in my opinion. If it it already calls for garlic, I usually double the amount.

2) What kitchen gadget could you not do without?

My 6-inch, flat-grind chef’s knife. If I’m going to help cook at someone’s house, I always bring my own knife. Diva!

3) What’s the one dish your family constantly asks you to make?

Friends and family can’t seem to get enough homemade guacamole. No one realizes how easy it is.

4) What food did you hate as a kid, but now can’t get enough of?

Where to start? Mustard, sauerkraut, balsamic vinegar, cabbage and onion. I like everything now.

5) Describe the craziest mess you’ve made in the kitchen.

The first time I canned grape jelly it was a disaster. Concord grapes stain, of course, and I couldn’t figure out how to strain them. I even tried a pillowcase, per my grandmother’s suggestion. My hands, clothes and counter tops were purple for a week. Do yourself a favor and invest in a metal canning sieve.

6) Which co-host would you choose to do a cooking segment with if you were a guest on “The Chew?”

Carla Hall. She obviously has more fun than anyone.

7) At what age did you start cooking and what dish did you first attempt?

I was always looking over Grandma’s shoulder in the kitchen as a young child, but started making my own grilled cheese sandwiches and scrambled eggs when I was about 8. I was 13 when I made my first real, real dinner: roasted chicken, mashed potatoes and a chocolate meringue pie from scratch.

Salt Magazine

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