Registration opens tomorrow (Monday, November 2) for a Drop In & Decorate Special Event -- a collaboration between Rhode Island School of Design, the Rhode Island Community Food Bank, and Drop In & Decorate.

On Saturday, January 30, 2010, 1-4 pm, please join us on campus at RISD (downtown Providence, Rhode Island) to help decorate hundreds of cookies for the Food Bank's Kids Cafe program, which provides hot meals for kids at risk of hunger.

Here's the RISD course description of this event:

Channel your inner Jasper Johns or Martha Stewart at a Drop In & Decorate® cookies-for-donation event offered in conjunction with RISD Dining and Catering to benefit the Rhode Island Community Food Bank's Kids Cafe program. Popular RISD|CE cooking instructor and food writer Lydia Walshin founded the local nonprofit organization Drop In & Decorate, which has donated more than 10,000 hand-decorated sugar cookies to food pantries, domestic violence shelters, and programs serving families in need nationwide. She teaches several simple techniques for "painting" cookies with flair, using squeeze bottles of colored icing to create edible art. The ultimate goal is to donate the cookies created in class to more than 500 low-income Rhode Island school children for Valentine's Day. No experience necessary; practice cookies will be available and you may decorate as many cookies as you wish. There will also be recipes and cookies for participants to take home. Inside- or outside-the-lines decorating welcome! All materials generously donated by RISD Dining and Catering. Note: Participants are encouraged to "drop in" at their convenience anytime between 1 and 4pm. Children must be accompanied by an adult aged 18 or over, and adults and children must register separately.

Now, all of this fun can be yours for only $5.00 per person! The fee will help pay for decorating supplies, and if this will be your first Drop In & Decorate® event, we'll teach you how to do what we do.

Everyone gets some cookies to take home, too.

Please sign up for this wonderful event, generously hosted by RISD, and bring your friends and family, too. Let's make some kids happy for Valentines Day!

HOW TO REGISTER for this event (course # 2010/CW-CULIN-0143-01)

1. online: http://www.risd.edu/apply_ce.cfm

2. in person: Register at the RISD|CE office in the Washington Place Building, 20 Washington Place, Providence, during office hours: Monday-Thursday, 8:30am-7:30pm (when classes are in session), 8:30am-4:30pm (between semesters); Friday, 8:30am-4:30pm; Saturday, 8:30am-12:30pm (when classes are in session).

3. by mail: Mail your completed registration form with check (payable to RISD|CE) or MasterCard/VISA number to:
RISD|CE
Two College Street
Providence, RI 02903-2787

4. by fax: Fax your completed registration form with MasterCard/VISA number to 401 454-6218 (payment by MasterCard or VISA only).

5. by phone: Registration phone lines are limited. You may have to wait or redial before getting through, so we encourage you to register by the methods listed above. If you do choose to register by phone, please fill out the registration form in advance and have your MasterCard/VISA number ready. Note: A registration fee is assessed for registrations made by phone. Call 401 454-6209 during these hours: Monday-Thursday, 10am-5pm; Friday, 10am-3pm.

[Note: We are setting up a registration process for corporations and organizations who would like to send a team or group to this event. I'll post the details here, or you can get in touch with me by email (lydia AT dropinanddecorate DOT org).]

Just in time for holiday eating and baking.

And if you're anything like me, you can't help but remember the kitchen disasters of the past. The undercooked turkey. The cranberry sauce that slid down the drain instead of onto the serving platter. The pie crust that didn't hold back the onslaught of runny apple filling.

Have no fear, friends. There are still a few companies that offer the instant gratification of telephone helplines. Print this post and stick it on your refrigerator as you plan your holiday feasts.

1-800-BUTTERBALL (1-800-288-8372). The Butterball® Turkey Talk-Line is open annually in November and December.

1-877-FOR PIE TIPS. The Crisco hot line, for answers to all of your pie crust questions.

1-800-662-3263. Ocean Spray Cranberry Hotline. Weekdays, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

1-802.649.3717 (not a toll-free number). The Bakers' Hotline at King Arthur Flour, for all questions about baking. Monday – Friday: 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Eastern Time, Saturday – Sunday: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern Time

Cooking Your Book: How to Create + Publish Your Own Cookbook
Saturday, October 3
10 am - 2 pm
Course code: CULIN-4298
This class meets at RISD in Providence (wheelchair accessible), and will help you get started on the ultimate holiday or family gift: a full-color cookbook of your favorite recipes. Learn how to use online on-demand publishing to create the one-of-a-kind cookbook of your dreams.

And there are only 2 spaces left in the tapas class, section 02 (section 01 is sold out; waiting list only):

Tapas: The Popular Little Dishes of Spain
Course code: CULIN-3314
Saturday, October 17, Section 01: Vegetarian tapas, including eggs and cheese
Saturday, October 24, Section 02: Tapas made with fish/shellfish, meats and vegetables
10 am - 1 pm
Course code: CULIN-3314
(You can register for one session, or for both sessions; the menu for the two sessions will be different, but each session will feature some dishes that were included in the April tapas classes.)
This class, which sold out two sessions in April, meets at the Ninecooks kitchen* in Glocester, Rhode Island. Maximum 8 students per session.

*We have two adorable cats in residence; folks with cat allergies please take note.

All registration for these classes is handled through the RISD Continuing Education office and web site.