This weekend I was lucky enough to attend Alton Brown's demonstration at the NYC Wine and Food Festival. The demo was a part of a Kidz Kitchen series, so the studio was packed with aspiring young cooks.

In person, Brown — who's a bit weary-looking with longer, shaggy hair — is comical, scientific, and jokingly insulting. Watching a chef cook live is an interesting experience, especially when they answer the audience members' questions.

To get up close and personal with Alton Brown and find out what he had to say, read more

On Friday, I caught a quick glimpse of Nigella Lawson on the Today show. She featured a Fall fruit fondue recipe so delicious looking I had to try it! Seasonal fruit (apples and pears) served with a delectable caramel fondue make for a simple but stunning dessert. This unconventional caramel sauce is quick, easy, and doesn't require sugar chemistry knowledge or a candy thermometer! All of the ingredients are kitchen staples except for the golden syrup. Since I was unable to find this common British product, I substituted a mixture of corn syrup and molasses.

Don't be disappointed if initially the cooked sugar and butter have a grainy consistency. Once the cream is added the caramel's texture will become smooth, rich, and sheeny. To try something new with fondue, read more

Along with some of New York's top chefs, the stars of Food Network were busy partying hard this weekend at the Food Network's NYC Wine and Food Festival. The Macy's Culinary Council party on Saturday night (which I attended — more details to come!) drew the largest crowd of celebrity chefs.

Gail Simmons mingled with friends, while Bobby Flay danced with fans. Tyler Florence chatted quietly on the 10th floor rooftop, but Johnny Iuzzini got angry when the bouncer wouldn't let him access the too-crowded roof.

To check out a gallery of the celebrated chefs at the party, read more

Animal-rights activism group PETA has come out with yet another inflammatory campaign. This year, they kicked their off Halloween festivities a few weeks early: On Saturday, more than 100 people gathered outside a Herald Square KFC dressed as blood-drenched zombies, holding signs that said, "I'd rather be dead than eat at KFC!"

The protest was part of the Kentucky Fried Cruelty campaign, which addresses concerns about KFC suppliers' treatment of chickens on farms and slaughterhouses. "Even flesh-eating zombies have nothing on the Colonel's cruelty," says PETA's Dan Shannon. "We're urging consumers not to set foot inside a KFC restaurant until the company stops these abuses."

Did any of you see the protest? Do you consider it to be effective at sending an important message, or is it just another obnoxious PETA ploy?

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Amid slipping sales, Starbucks Coffee has unveiled several plans to boost holiday consumer spending.

This year, the coffee titan will sell five $20 gift cards for the discounted price of $80 — the first time ever that Starbucks has offered a gift card for less than face value. These gift cards, available only at discount retailer Costco, have been flying off shelves. In the promotion's first month, the company has sold nearly 1 million gift cards.

Starbucks is also rolling out its new gold-card loyalty program. The gold card, which can be purchased for $25, allows cardholders 10 percent off most items except gift cards and digital downloads. The company anticipates that millions of gold cards will be sold to customers who are existing cardholders of the regular Starbucks card, as it will save them more money.

Holiday gifts will also be at a lower price point this year. Many stores will also have $10 or less gift tables, and some items, such as CDs and coffee samplers, will retail at a price that is roughly 13 percent lower than similar items last year.

Do you think these promotions will increase sales, or is Starbucks trying too many different things at once? Will you be signing up for the gold card, or racing to Costco for the discounted gift cards?

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These days, virtually every celebrity — from Lauren Conrad to Jessica Simpson — has his or her own womenswear, footwear, accessory, and fragrance line. But celebrity lunchbags and farmers market totebags? Lately we've seen the celebrity, fashion, and food worlds collide, with all sorts of celebrity-designed carryalls for everything from our groceries to our lunch.

PartySugar and I might have been on to something when we said that we prefer to carry our farmers market goodies in style. It seems others were thinking the exact same thing. First, Whole Foods announced Sheryl Crow would be custom-designing its latest green grocery bag. Then celebrity chef Mario Batali jumped on the design bandwagon, randomly unveiling his own line of sleek lunch bags. The latest? A collaboration between Jennie Garth and the Sierra Club.

While I'm a bigger fan of some of the designs than others, if this trend encourages shoppers to be more eco-friendly — wasting less resources on plastic and paper grocery bags and lunch bags — then it's for the better. What do you think of the trend? Would you buy Sheryl's, Mario's, or Jennie's bags?

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If you've got skirt steak left over in your fridge, transform them into a quick meal for a busy Monday night: fajitas. Not only are skirt steaks the cut of choice for fajitas because of their smoky, deep flavor, but they are also thin enough that they cook extremely quickly. To get this easy, breezy, in-a-jiffy meal onto your table, read more

When I moved out of my parents house they were kind enough to give me a wide selection of kitchen tools. However, the peeler I ended up with is older than me! After struggling to peel one too many apples, the time has come for a shiny, new peeler. Can you help me find it? Look for a durable, dishwasher-friendly peeler that can slice through the thick skin of butternut squash. Bookmark the peelers in the Yum Market on TeamSugar with the keyword tag, Peeler. I'm curious to see your discoveries!

Read geeksugar's guide to bookmarking to better understand how to this fun feature works.

To see where I like to shop for all my culinary needs, read more