Kentucky Food Bloggers Association Inaugural Networking Dinner

Way back when I started this blog, I thought that the only people who would care what I was cooking up was my mom and maybe a friend or two.  I quickly realized that this food blogging thing was bigger than I ever imagined.  It's a whole community of people willing to cook and share and help whenever possible.  I was lucky enough to meet a fellow food blogger, Lori at Fake Food Free, in the infancy of my blog.  I was living in France and she in Brazil, but we connected over food and the fact that we were both ex-pats.  I returned to Kentucky and a few months later, she moved to the small town bordering mine.  Crazy! 

Last spring, we started to realize that there were quite a few food bloggers in Kentucky.  She knew Melissa at My McDonald Meal, and I knew Sami from A Teenage Gourmet.  We started talking about organizing a group of Kentucky food bloggers...because surely, if there were four of us in Central Kentucky, there would be more.  Sixty (yes, 60!) food bloggers later, we have a strong and talented group.  (Go check us out on Facebook if you haven't already!) And it doesn't stop there!  In the spring, Alltech, a Kentucky company, approached Lori to see if we would be interested in hosting a dinner sponsored by them.  Of course, we were!  And that dinner finally happened last Friday night.  At Jonathan's at Gratz Park nonetheless.  And there was food.  And swag.  And raffles.  And tickets to the Incredible Food Show.  And laughter, always laughter.

From left to right: Carolyn from Bourbon & Beans, Lori from Fake Food Free, and Jessica from Urban Sacred Garden.

Jonathan Lundy and his staff created an amazing menu for us, featuring Alltech products.  And man, was it good!  We started with a little appetizer of Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale Beer Cheese on Fried Cornbread.  Beer Cheese is something I had never had before moving to Kentucky, but I love it!  A cheese spread with a kick to it...what's not to love?!

Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale Beer Cheese on Fried Cornbread

The next course was a Pearse Lyons Reserve – Molasses Marinated Alltech Angus Flank Steak with Arugula & Crispy Sweet Potatoes.  I love arugula and I love steak...and now I love crispy sweet potatoes!

Pearse Lyons Reserve – Molasses Marinated Alltech Angus Flank Steak with Arugula & Crispy Sweet Potatoes

The next course scared me as I'm not a huge fan of shrimp.  Weird, huh?  But I ate this Shrimp Corn Dog (Kentucky Ale Beer Battered Fried Shrimp) with Hot Mustard down to the tail.  And if I could have licked that mustard off of the plate, I would have.  The sauce was amazing!

Shrimp Corn Dog (Kentucky Ale Beer Battered Fried Shrimp) with Hot Mustard

Now, I mentioned earlier that I was a steak girl, and the next course fulfilled my every steaky desire.  The Grilled Alltech Angus Ribeye with Horseradish Creamed Collard Greens was done to perfection, and I wish I could have taken a tub of those collards home with me.  This steak was so huge that none of us could finish it...but we had to save room for dessert, right?!

Grilled Alltech Angus Ribeye with Horseradish Creamed Collard Greens

And what a dessert it was!  Jonathan served us a Bluegrass Sundown Chocolate Pot Pie with Jonathan’s Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.  It was so pretty that I didn't want to break into it, but once I did, the crusty chocolate cake was filled with gooey chocolate filling.  It was messy and rich, but I managed somehow to finish the whole thing!

Bluegrass Sundown Chocolate Pot Pie with Jonathan’s Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

I came away from the whole experience with a renewed sense of food, blogging and just being with people who love the same things I do.  We're a diverse group, from college students to moms to professional chefs, but we're all in it together.  And I can't wait for our next get-together!

From left to right: Me, Carolyn (Bourbon & Beans), Megan (The Art of Homemaking), Amy (Pappardella), Fiona (Crazy Englishwoman Cooks), Candy (Candy Girl), Cavan (ManCaveCuisine), Sarah Jane (BraveTart), Melissa (My McDonald Meal), Stella (BraveTart), Danielle (A Day in the Life), Meagan (Meagan's First Kitchen), Lori (Fake Food Free), Jessica (Urban Sacred Garden), Jennifer (Kentucky Foodie)

We were also lucky enough to receive a signed copy of Jonathan's cookbook Jonathan's Bluegrass Table from Alltech, "swag" from Kentucky companies, and quite a few raffle items.  I can't wait to try all of this out in the kitchen!  (This picture is minus the beer cheese, which I ate before taking the picture!)  :-)

A big thank you to all of the organizations and companies who sponsored and supported this event:

Alltech
Jonathan's at Gratz Park
Incredible Food Show

Swag:
Alltech
Bourbon Barrel Foods
Bauer's Candies
Herb'N Renewal
Weisenberger Mill
Whole Foods Lexington
Howard's Creek Authentic Beer Cheese
Elmwood Inn
Holly Hill Inn

Raffle Items:
Whole Foods Lexington
Lexington Chocolate Company
Americandy
Marksbury Farm
Lori Rice
Kentucky Cutting Boards
Bleugrass Chevre

Disclosure: The foods and products reviewed in this post were given to me free of charge. I was under no obligation to post about them and received no compensation for doing so.

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