Contest Winners

Winner of Your Best Soda Fountain Recipe

June 15, 2011

Congratulations to inpatskitchen, whose A Tribute to Woody (Homemade Ginger Ale Float) won this week's contest for Your Best Soda Fountain Recipe, earning her big prizes from Viking, OXO and Tiny Prints, and a spot in the next food52 cookbook!

inpatskitchen  A Tribute to Woody

Q&A with inpatskitchen

  • Describe an early food experience that has influenced the way you think about food and/or cooking. 
  • I was always amazed at how my Mom was so organized when preparing for large dinners or family get-togethers. She was an amazing cook and I watched carefully. Every year she would do a sit down dinner for 10 to 12 on Christmas at 1 pm and then at 4:30 would open up the house for 30 to 40 more for a large buffet. She taught me how to cook and plan ahead and to this day if I can prepare anything ahead of time, I do. I inherited her "Betsy Clark" recipe file book in which she wrote many of her recipes (although not too precisely) and refer to it frequently. It's well worn and very stained but so many good things are in it, as well as so many memories.
 
  • What's your least favorite food?
  • I'll eat them but I'm not crazy about Sloppy Joes.
 
 
  • Describe your most spectacular kitchen disaster.
  • Actually this past week ... I made pork hand pies for the street food contest but they turned into "bricks". Tom tossed a piece of pork into the dog's bowl and it literally bounced! Oh well, you win some ... you lose some.
 
  • What is your idea of comfort food?
  • Roast chicken and then the next day chicken noodle or rice soup from the leftovers.
 
  • Apron or no apron?
  • No apron ... just a lot of Zout and Shout!
 
  • What's your favorite food-related scene in a movie?
  • I'm not much of a movie-goer but I did get a kick out of Darryl Hannah eating the whole lobster (shell and all) in Splash until I found out it was all tofu!
 
  • If you could make a show-stopping dinner for one person, living or dead, who would it be?
  • Probably my mom ... I think she'd actually enjoy my cooking.
 
  • You prefer to cook: a. alone, b. with others, c. it depends on your mood
  • I prefer to cook alone but it's probably because of the size of my kitchen.
 
  • When it comes to tidying up, you usually: a. clean as you cook, b. do all the dishes once you've finished cooking, c. leave the kitchen a shambles for your spouse/roommate/kids to clean.
  • I usually clean as I cook but I have been known to leave the kitchen in shambles.
 

See what other Food52 readers are saying.

  • lastnightsdinner
    lastnightsdinner
  • lorigoldsby
    lorigoldsby
  • Sydney
    Sydney
  • mymomisagreatcook
    mymomisagreatcook
  • TiggyBee
    TiggyBee
inpatskitchen

Written by: inpatskitchen

I think I get my love for food and cooking from my mom, who was an amazing cook. She would start baking and freezing a month before Christmas in order to host our huge open house on Christmas afternoon. I watched and I learned...to this day I try not to procrastinate when it comes to entertaining. My cooking style is pretty much all over the place, although I'm definitely partial to Greek and Italian cuisine. Oh yes, throw a little Cajun in there too!

35 Comments

lastnightsdinner June 16, 2011
Congratulations on your win, and thanks for sharing this "taste of home" :)
 
inpatskitchen June 16, 2011
Thank you lastnightsdinner...take road trip for a Coney and a Float!!
 
lorigoldsby June 15, 2011
Congrats! Fun recipe that brought back lots of memories. And we love Vernor's ....a great soda so different from the other gingers!
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thanks lorigoldsby... It really is!
 
Sydney June 15, 2011
Congratulations inpatskitchen! A Tribute to Woody is an amazing recipe and it made for fun competition. I also really enjoyed reading your Q&A- I laughed out loud when I saw your answer for question 7! I remember that scene from Splash all too well! Hahaha tofu who knew! Anyways, Congrats again! :D
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thanks so much..... Beauty School Knockout is an amazing recipe!!
 
mymomisagreatcook June 15, 2011
Congratulations Mom! You deserve this recognition for your amazing recipes!!! Thankfully, I am one of the lucky ones that gets to try a lot of them :)
 
hardlikearmour June 15, 2011
wow! nice endorsement for your mom's cooking, mmiagc!
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Is that you Jess? If so thanks very much...I knew that someday I'd make you proud!
 
TiggyBee June 15, 2011
Yay!!! Congrats and so nice to read your q&a!!
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thanks so much TiggyBee!
 
Sagegreen June 15, 2011
Congrats, inpatskitchen. SO nice to learn more about you. Great recipe idea, too! It will be fun to make it this summer.
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thank you Sagegreen...your recipes are always amazing!
 
EmilyC June 15, 2011
Congratulations on your win! I'm anxious to try your float! And wow, I'm in awe of your mom's ability to host so many people in one day. That takes a lot of skill and grace. What a wonderful thing to have learned from her.
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thanks...and sort of befitting..Mom's favorite pop was Diet Vernors!
 
healthierkitchen June 15, 2011
Great job, inpatskitchen!
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thank you!
 
Kitchen B. June 15, 2011
Congratulations...............thank God for mothers and their legacies. I love ginger and this sounds absolutely heavenly. Well done
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thanks so much Kitchen Butterfly!
 
BlueKaleRoad June 15, 2011
Congratulations! It's so nice to read more about you. I will definitely be trying this float!
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thank you...please let me know what you think.
 
gingerroot June 15, 2011
Loved reading a little more about you, inpatskitchen! My husband is a big ginger ale fan and I'm thinking these will be a part of our Father's day. Congratulations again!
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thanks...do you have Vernors out there...it really is as they say "deliciously different"
 
SKK June 15, 2011
Congratulations and it is a wonderful recipe!
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thank you SKK...I really appreciate your kind words.
 
Midge June 15, 2011
Congrats inpatskitchen! Nice to learn more about you.
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thanks Midge!
 
mrslarkin June 15, 2011
Yay! So nice learning more about you, inpatskitchen!
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thank you mrslarkin...I'm an open book!
 
drbabs June 15, 2011
Congratulations! I'm sure we've all had our share of Food52 contest disasters!
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thanks!! Yes...but this was a BIG disaster!
 
hardlikearmour June 15, 2011
Congratulations! I was thrilled to see your recipe in the winner's box, as I have fond childhood memories of Vernors (both parents are Michiganders, and my dad really loved the original Vernors.) He will be visiting me next month, and I am definitely making this for him.
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thanks...please let me know what your dad thinks ( and you too!)
 
boulangere June 15, 2011
What a gorgeous concoction to be proud of!
 
inpatskitchen June 15, 2011
Thank you boulangere...I was so excited when I found my concoction to taste so much like the real thing!