Florida Times-Union - “Y’all want to unload the truck?”

With that, Paula Deen, the “Queen of Southern Cuisine,” rallied Second Harvest Food Bank employees Thursday to unload 30,000 pounds of donated hams from the 18-wheeler backed up to its Jessie Street loading dock in Jacksonville.

Then the Food Network celebrity hefted hams down the line for food banks and agencies that help the needy in North Florida. It’s all part of Smithfield Foods’ Helping Hungry Homes Tour.

With need jumping from 7.5 million pounds of food shipped annually in 2008 to 17 million pounds this year, Second Harvest Executive Director Thomas Mantz said the delivery is

By MARY FOSTER (AP), The Associated Press - NEW ORLEANS — As the thick oil from the BP spill bubbles through the Gulf of Mexico, threatening sea life and wetlands, foodies are taking up knife, fork and wine glass to defend the equally vulnerable reputation of the coast's seafood industry.

The New Orleans Wine and Food Experience, an annual celebration of the city's love of all things tasty, is pairing wines from around the world with the cooking of some of the city's best chefs to help deliver the message:

Louisiana seafood is still safe, available and delicious.

"What's at stake is a whole way of life," said John Besh, a

Ecorazzi - Looks like the Savannah, Georgia public school system has hired a new “Deen.”

News broke this week that Paula Deen — the television chef known for her maniacal affinity for all things unhealthy — has partnered with Savannah’s public school system on a new culinary arts program.

According to SlashFood.com, Paula Deen Academy students
will follow a “curriculum based on state guidelines, American Culinary Federation standards and Deen’s recommendations” So basically: butter, cheese, lard, butter, fries, pork, beef, butter, sugar, butter, butter, butter.

A release issued by the school system says, “Paula Deen is an internationally recognized chef with the expertise and ability to

PR Newswire (press release) - CHEROKEE, N.C., March 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Harrah's Cherokee Casino & Hotel today announced its partnership with Paula Deen Enterprises and the opening in late-2010 of Paula Deen's Kitchen, the property's first new restaurant to be introduced as part of a $633 million, three-year expansion program.

Created as a full-service, 404-seat restaurant, Paula Deen's Kitchen at Harrah's Cherokee will serve a la carte breakfast, lunch and dinner, and will be reminiscent of the decor and ambiance of her legendary home and kitchen in Savannah. The a la carte aspect of the restaurant is a first for Paula Deen in the Harrah's brand,

PR Newswire (press release) - New York, NY, USA - The Los Angeles Regional Foodbank, which distributes millions of pounds of food to the hungry in Los Angeles County every year, today received more than 30,000 pounds of meat to help feed local families, thanks to Smithfield Foods' 10-city Helping Hungry Homes(TM) Across America tour, an initiative led by celebrity cook Paula Deen.

The tour's goal is to provide one million servings of meat to the nation's hungry families, including those in Los Angeles and surrounding communities. Nearly one in 10 people in the county are at risk of hunger, with children and seniors being disproportionately affected, according to Los Angeles

Batesville Herald Tribune - Batesville, IN, USA - Rachel Paytee said she was nervous upon being selected by the Food Channel’s Jamie and Bobby Deen as one of the winners of America’s Second Harvest Empty Bowls contest, but she soon came close to stealing the show.

“I wanted to meet the woman who uses not one, not two, not three, not four but five cheeses in her macaroni,” Jamie Deen said upon calling Paytee’s name for her selected recipe of Rachel’s Amazing Mac & Cheese, which actually uses anywhere from six to a dozen cheeses.

As Jamie described how his wife would rather eat a box of Kraft macaroni than

TV with MeeVee - Burlingame, CA, USA - Variety is running head-to-head reviews of "Hell's Kitchen" and "Top Chef," but they've ignored a strong contender in "The Next Food Network Star." Hosted by Food Network giants including Paula Deen and Giada de Laurentis, "Star" hasn't got the audience share that Hell's Kitchen or Top Chef do, but it's still doing quite well. One advantage, a commenter at Duckyxdale points out, is that the players know they need to be likeable if they're going to succeed as TV chefs, so the show is short on backstabbing and long on food.

GordonramsayOf course, if you tune in just for the backstabbing,

Toledo Blade - Toledo, OH, USA - Paula Deen is coming to northwest Ohio, thanks to the 2007 Food & Wine Celebration at the Culinary Vegetable Institute in Milan, Ohio.

The annual event, which begins at 5 p.m. on July 21, benefits Veggie U, the institute's hands-on educational program for fourth-graders.

Ms. Deen, who is a celebrity television chef, restaurant owner, author, and Emmy Award nominee, will be joining three other guest chefs. Chef Walter Scheib III, who was the White House chef for 11 years, is the author of White House Chef (Wiley, $24.95). Chef Jeff Henderson of the Bellagio in Las Vegas is a public speaker and

Earthtimes.org - USA - The 34th Annual Creative Arts & Entertainment Emmy Awards were presented on Thursday, June 14th at a black-tie gala hosted at Hollywood's Hollywood & Highland Ballroom. The event awards performers, producers, and craftspeople in daytime television including drama, talk shows, children's programming, game shows, and lifestyle programs. More than 1000 people from both the East and West Coasts participated in the event.

For the first time, Savannah's own Paula Deen was presented with two Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lifestyle Host (Paula's Home Cooking) and Outstanding Lifestyle Program (Paula's Home Cooking).

"This has clearly been the most surreal week for me," commented Paula

Savannah Morning News - Savannah, GA, USA - Oprah Winfrey still reigns as queen on Forbes' 2007 list of the 100 Most Powerful Celebrities, but Savannah's butter-loving restaurateur and chef, Paula Deen, is gaining ground.

Deen made the list for the first time, ranked No. 99 in power and 96th in wealth.

The rankings are based mostly on the prior year's income. Deen's earnings equalled about $4 million, according to Forbes.

That put her ahead of fellow Food Network chef Bobby Flay, who was No. 100, but behind cooking phenom Rachael Ray (No. 66) and "Bam!" man Emeril Lagasse (No. 87).

Lea Goldman, editor of the Celebrity 100 list, said Deen was

PR Newswire (press release) - New York, NY, USA - Celebrating independence is something one of America's favorite Southern cooks, Paula Deen, knows a lot about. Hers is a true American success story -- starting out with just $200 and two teenage sons when she launched a catering service out of her home, eventually becoming a highly successful businesswoman with a huge and loyal audience.

But above all, Deen underscores the importance of family. She has partnered with Smithfield to promote the value of cooking dinner and sharing meals together. This partnership encourages families to prepare and enjoy home-cooked meals as a way to promote nutrition.

"A key part of rounding up

KTBS - Shreveport, LA, USA - That's the title of Food Network's Paula Deen newest book and today she was in Bossier City shooting Paula Deen Live before a live audience show in which she cooked, chatted, and shared life stories with more than 5,000 audience members.

Before the show Paula did a Meet-and-Greet with about 200 hundred local fans. The group got upclose and personal with the Food Network Super-Chef.

They were selected by Brookshire's Grocery for being top shoppers.

Paula Deen told the group Louisiana is one of her favorite places to visit.

Deen says, "Out of all the styles of cooking, that Louisiana, that's my second favorite.

The News Journal - Wilmington, DE, USA - For the grits cakes: Combine all the ingredients except the canola oil in a medium bowl, stirring to combine. Form 2 biscuit-size cakes, about 3/4 inch thick.

In a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat the oil until it shimmers. Add grits cakes; cook 5 to 6 minutes on each side, until crisp and golden brown.

Meanwhile, make the sauce: In a large sauté pan or skillet over medium-high heat, add olive oil and butter. When the butter has melted, add onion and cook, stirring 5-8 minutes or until it becomes translucent. Add the ground thyme, then the white wine, mix

ABC News - USA - Paula Deen isn't the only one in the family who can cook. She and her sons, Bobby and Jamie, opened the hugely successful and popular The Lady and Sons restaurant in Savannah, Ga., in 1996, featuring their homestyle Southern cooking.

Have a sweet Memorial Day weekend with the brothers' peach cobbler recipe below.

Deen Brothers' Peach Cobbler                                                                                              Makes 6 servings

Our family finds it hard to choose what to do with ripe summer fruit. Do we make a cobbler or a pie? Cobbler is a little easier, so here's the recipe for one of our favorites. Substitute any ripe fruit for the berries