Thank You and The Winners

How do you start to say thank you when your heart is overwhelmed with gratitude? We set a goal of raising $1,500 for the Rheumatoid Patient Foundation and we didn’t just make our goal, we far exceeded it by raising a total of $1,700!!!

Therefore . . . . .

• To family, friends, Rheum-mates, and strangers I don’t even know who donated . . .
• To those who shared our Wish on Facebook . . .
• To those who Tweeted and re-Tweeted our wish again and again . . .
• To those who took the time to link to our wish in a blog post . . .
• To those who came along side us and promoted and supported this Wish as if it was yours . . .

. . . . . a huge, genuine, heartfelt Thank You!!!

Before we get to the winners, I want to look at some of the numbers behind our Wish.

• 38 total donors.
• 16 messages of love and encouragement left on our Wish page. I couldn’t keep track of similar messages on Twitter and Facebook.
• This blog post was viewed 276 times in the last 7 days!
• The same blog post was shared on Facebook 88 times and on Twitter 46 times in the last week!
• The same post was viewed in 8 different countries around the world.
• $1,700 raised for the Rheumatoid Patient Foundation!

Lastly, by far the hardest part about doing this Wish was the self-promotion. I loath asking people for stuff that benefits me or something for me personally. That was hard. I didn’t like bombarding my Facebook and Twitter feeds with requests of “give” and “share”. I know many of you feel the same way. So thank you for allowing us to “blow up” the feeds over the last few weeks and thank you for taking the time to share it on your own feeds even if you felt uncomfortable doing it.

Let’s talk about the prizes. Below are the names of the winners. For the boxes, the first name chosen will get first choice, second name gets second choice, etc. I will be contacting all winners privately. Should a prize go unclaimed or if I cannot reach a prize winner, I will select another winner and they will move to the bottom of the list. I have set a 48 hour time limit for the winners to contact me about claiming their prize. Same rules will apply for the kitchen gift set.

And now without further ado, the winner’s list . . . drum roll please.

The winners of the boxes are:

• Brex Wollin Jr.
• Janet Graham
• Sarah Fitch

Two of the first three winners did not claim their prizes so I picked two new winners.

The winner of the kitchen gift set is:

• Sandy Schelthelm

Wish Update And Another Giveaway!

So here we are with only one week left until our Wish for Kim’s RAD anniversary is done! We are currently just over $500 away from reaching our goal of raising $1,500 for the Rheumatoid Patient Foundation. When we originally announced in this post what we wanted to do, we told you that we would be giving away prizes as an added incentive.  For a minimum $25 donation, you would get the chance to win one of three prizes valued at over $100. Today we are revealing what the prizes will be. Below are the pictures of the actual prizes that will be awarded to three lucky individuals who donate to Kim’s Wish by December 12, 2012. The boxes in the following three pictures will be awarded to three lucky winners who have generously donated a minimum of $25 to our Wish. Click on the pictures to enlarge them. Plus if you pull them up in the gallery, scroll down a little bit,  and on the bottom right hand side there’s an option to view the boxes full screen.

Quarter-sawn ash with cherry accents and a wenge pull on the top.

Wormy butternut box with walnut lid and a mesquite pull.

Birds-eye maple box with a cherry lid, cherry accents, and a mesquite pull

One of the things that we have learned as we have done this is that the biggest thing we need is promotion. We have to get the word out about our Wish. We are exceedingly grateful to those of you who have spread the word through Twitter, Facebook, and have blogged about it. We can’t thank you enough. However, with only one week left and the fact we are currently short of our goal by $500 or so, we have decided to sweeten the pot a little.

We are having another giveaway that will take place over the next week. Here’s what we are asking you to do; simply spread the word. Just share the link to our Wish page or to this blog post on Twitter, Facebook, or by blogging about it between now and next Wednesday, December 12, 2012. That’s it. We would love if you would share this on every source you have available for every day between now and next Wednesday, but that is up to you. In return for you sharing our Wish or this post, one person will win the prize package pictured below.

Wine glass holder, large maple spatula, small walnut stir spoon. The maple spatula and the walnut stirring spoon are my “go to” kitchen utensils when I cook. Love them both and have made some to give away. The wine glass holder is the holder only. We get to keep the glasses and you have to buy your own wine!

Here are the details:

• We will work on the honor system. If you say you shared it, we believe you. [Besides, the guilt you would feel if you lied about it and then actually won would drive you crazy so just be honest!]
• You must share our Wish or this blog post at least once, but we would love it if you shared it every day over the next week.
• After you share either our Wish or this post, you MUST leave a comment in the comment section below telling us where you shared it (Twitter, Facebook, blog, etc.). That is the only way we will be able to choose a winner.
• While many of you have shared our Wish information over the last several weeks, past sharing will not count for this giveaway. You must spread the word again.
• In case you missed it, here is the link to our Wish page. Kim’s Wish

So there you have it. Spread the news, make sure to leave a comment below, and cross your fingers that you win next week!

Risotto — A Lovely Thing

If you like unbelievably creamy flavorful risotto that can be used as a side dish or as part of the main dish — than this is the recipe for you.

Tips: Have everything ready to go before hand. The prep time is very short; maybe 5 minutes. Cooking time is about 35 minutes. Warning number 1! You can’t walk away from this while it’s on the stove top. Would you give a toddler a piece of chocolate cake and the freedom to eat it while they wander through your living room? I think not. This is like that except that the toddler and your living room can likely be salvaged. A risotto left unattended cannot be. Warning number 2! This makes a lot so don’t make it for two people. Have guests over. They will love you. They will also be smitten by you and your incredible risotto. (It’s true. I can provide proof.) I have an absolutely lovely 12″ steel non-stick skillet with 3″ high walls. This recipe almost fills it so don’t start with a 10″ frying pan. A nice enameled dutch oven would work well. Here goes. My running commentary is scattered throughout.

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup minced or finely chopped onion
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt
• 2 cups Arborio rice (Don’t even try to use any other rice. If you only have long grain rice you might as well not even get the onion out. Our local grocery store sell a brand called, Village Harvest. It’s just under $4 for 30 oz, which is by far the cheapest I’ve found, but it is excellent.)
• 1/2 cup white wine (Whatever you have on hand. Don’t use cooking wine. Ever. Only cook with wines that people drink. I buy an inexpensive white wine like a Pinot Grigio and it works great.)
• Approximately 6 cups Chicken Stock or 3 cups canned low-sodium chicken broth mixed with 3 cups water, simmering (I use 6 cups of hot water with 1 tablespoon of chicken base added in. Make sure you have this ready to go! You do not want to be whisking your chicken stock together while your rice is cooking. Warning! Do not substitute beef stock. That was an utter failure in taste and execution.)
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over moderate heat.

Add the onion, garlic and salt and sauté until the onions are soft, about 8 minutes; do not let them color. Stir in the rice and cook, stirring, until the rice is hot, about 2 minutes. Add the wine and simmer, stirring, until it’s absorbed. Begin adding hot broth 1 cup at a time, stirring often and adding more broth only when the previous addition has been absorbed. Adjust the heat to maintain a simmer. It should take about 20 minutes for the rice to become creamy and al dente. You may not need all the broth; if you need a little more, use boiling water. (I have always used exactly 6 cups with no issues.) Remove the risotto from the heat and stir in the butter and cheese. Season with pepper and serve immediately.

Serve it just as it is as a side with beef or chicken. Otherwise substitute it for your pasta and cover it with your favorite pasta sauce. Even sauted mushrooms and garlic are a huge hit over the top. It’s very versatile. Bon appetit’!