We thought we had done and seen it all, but the past few days have been a whirlwind of great memories. It all started Saturday night: It was our daughter Shelbi’s junior prom, and she looked as beautiful as her mom as she left to enjoy her amazing and memorable night.

As the sun came up on Easter Sunday morning, we got up and started packing for our flight to Washington, D.C., to attend the annual White House Easter Egg Roll. As soon as we landed, we were like kids on Christmas morning. We arrived at our hotel and turned in early so we would be ready to roll first thing the next day.

The car arrived promptly at our hotel at 8 a.m. Monday, and it was only then that our excitement started to turn to nerves. We were going to the White House. Not just for a group tour, but to meet the first lady as her official guests at the White House Annual Easter Egg Roll. We were also invited to host two cooking demonstrations for all of the guests, as well as the first family — that’s enough to give anyone a bubbly stomach.

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It’s time for 12 Days of Cookies, Food Network’s annual virtual cookie swap. Each day, visit us here on FN Dish for a peek at new holiday cookies, party-planning tips and top techniques for rolling, spooning, slicing, baking and decorating delicious sweet treats to give — or keep — from favorite Food Network chefs. Visit Cooking Channel’s blog for even more great takes on holiday baking from Cooking Channel chefs and Food People alike.

While I cannot confirm this for sure, I imagine that Santa’s favorite cookies are gingerbreads, with a classic holiday taste, warm spices and fun shapes. Let your kids help you roll out the cayenne-infused dough and leave a few of the reindeer cutouts on Santa’s plate. Gina Neely prefers the pig-shaped cookies, telling Food Network Magazine that her home has a “pig parlor” with many pig decorations.

Get The Neelys’ Spiced Gingerbread Piggies recipe and check out 12 Days of Cookies for dozens more recipes and baking inspiration. Then, join the conversation: Tell us what you’re baking this holiday season and what your all-time favorite cookie is.

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Co-owners of one of the most popular barbecue restaurants in the South and hosts of the hit TV show Down Home with the Neelys, Pat and Gina Neely are excited to introduce their new cookbook, The Neelys’ Celebration Cookbook, to fans just in time for the holidays.

In their second cookbook, the Neelys provide 146 recipes for every occasion, including welcome home dinners, graduation day, tailgate parties, romantic nights in and all the big holidays including Thanksgiving. Broken down by the month, this dynamic duo will have you salivating over their famous barbecue, hearty Southern mains, comforting sides and crowd-pleasing desserts.

You can order a copy right now, but we’d like to give you a chance to win one. All you have to do is comment on this post by telling us which one of Pat and Gina’s Thanksgiving recipes is your favorite and why. We’re giving away five copies of their cookbook to randomly selected and very lucky commenters.

Find out how to enter here »

On a sometimes wet but beautiful fall weekend in New York City, for four days Food Network personalities traveled from far and wide for a cause: to end hunger. Now in its fourth year, this has been the focus of the New York City Wine and Food Festival, which brings together the best of the best and celebrates food in its finest forms: meatballs, burgers, fried chicken, sandwiches, tacos, desserts and more.

We caught up with Giada, Bobby, Paula, Duff, Anne, the Neelys, Marcela, Sunny, Jeff, Marc and Claire to talk about what this festival means to them, share some of their secrets and find out what they are excited about.

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Guests were graciously invited to be part of the Neely family this weekend, at the Neelys’ brunch NYCWFF event hosted at their recently opened New York restaurant, The Neely’s Barbecue Parlor.

A cheerful red chandelier hangs in the entryway, the centerpiece of the restaurant, while curved wooden steps lead up to the sunny, welcoming parlor area, vibrantly decorated with orange checkered tablecloths and orange flowers. Jazzy music from a guitar and harmonica player duo lazily wafted through the restaurant Saturday, while brunch cocktails, candied bacon and deviled eggs greeted hungry, eager eaters as they trickled in and claimed seats.

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This past weekend marked the third annual Atlantic City Food & Wine Festival, featuring numerous events that showcased the talents of Food Network and Cooking Channel personalities like Sunny Anderson, Guy Fieri, Robert Irvine and The Neelys. With over 30 events, cooking demos and seminars to choose from, I certainly had my hands full. However, over the course of four days, these five moments struck a chord and were most memorable:

1. Watching Guy crown the first-ever female winner, Nicole DiZio, during his popular Cheesesteak Battle on Friday night.

Sunny Anderson sings, Crazy Susan’s cookies and more photos »

Pat and Gina Neely will take the stage at the New York State Fair Sunday, September 4 to demonstrate their barbequing skills and emcee the Best Burger Contest hosted by the New York Beef Industry Council. The Neelys have been busy lately, having opened their first New York City restaurant, Neely’s Barbeque Parlor, last week. View the red carpet photos of the grand opening.

Find out what Melissa and Paula are up to »

Giada De Laurentiis, Paula Deen and The Neelys are scheduled to appear at the 2011 Metropolitan Cooking and Entertaining Show in Atlanta, taking place April 30-May 1. In addition to presentations, there will be book signings featuring all 3 headliners. Plenty of other offerings will be available throughout the 2-day event with over 200 exhibitors, cooking classes, cooking demonstrations and food samples. Visit Metrocooking.com for calendar and ticket information.

Alton Brown will give the 2011 commencement address for the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont. Alton, the host of Good Eats, is a 1997 Graduate of NECI. The Burlington Free Press reports the graduation ceremony is planned for June 4th in Montpelier.

Find out what Claire Robinson and Ted Allen are up to »

Bacon is the secret ingredient in Claire's creamless creamed corn

Forget those green cans! It’s summertime, and that means creamed corn made from fresh, sweet ears. Though all four of these easy from-scratch creamed corn recipes come from Food Network chefs with Southern roots, they offer very different takes on this classic side dish. Whose is your pick for summer corn season?

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It’s road trip time! We happened to get our paws on some tickets and hotel accommodations to The Food Network Southern Food & Wine Festival at Gaylord Opryland in Nashville, TN. So enter our “Photo Caption This” contest here on FNDish.com, and get together a road trip for July 31/August 1 (or if you live in or around Nashville, TN then you’re already good to go)!

Photo Caption THIS:

Here’s how you play:
Take a long, hard look at the picture above. Write an original and creative photo caption for the image, and enter it in the comments section of this post. A little humor doesn’t hurt either! We’ll pick one (1) winner next Thursday, July 23 (at which point we’ll ask you to fill out an entry form). You are eligible if you: a) can travel to Nashville, TN on either July 31st or August 1st AND b) are 21 years of age or older. (See full contest rules here).

Here’s the PRIZE PACKAGE:
One (1) night accommodations (double occupancy) at Gaylord Opryland Resort in Nashville, TN, on July 31 or August 1, 2009
Two (2) tickets to a cooking seminar with Bobby and Jamie Deen (Friday, 7/31) or The Neelys (Saturday, 8/1)
Two (2) tickets to the festival exhibit hall featuring food and wine vendors, food samplings, cooking competitions, kids’ area, wine tastings and more!

By submitting a comment on this post you agree to these contest rules.