Honey Pie...it's time to vote!

Today you can officially vote for your favorite Project Food Blog Challenge #1 entry. Click here to read mine.

Of course, I'd love to have your vote, but if my blog isn't your forte, I encourage you to peruse all the other fabulous entries.

Vote here...and enjoy all the virtual eating.

Voting is open through 6 p.m. on Thursday, September 23.

Song: Honey Pie
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Glass Onion

I really struggled with this one so went to my Facebook buddies for help. Their suggestions helped me come up with the crystal ball approach.

Can you see your future in the glass onion?

Song: Glass Onion

Sgt. Pepper

This was one of my favorite albums as a kid. I loved the whimsical, carnival-like feeling.

I associate this name so much with The Beatles that I didn't even notice the food connection at first. My daughter pointed it out. Sometimes it takes a newbie to notice these things I guess.

Song: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

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Project Food Blog Challenge #1: Food and Art

We interrupt our regular scheduled programming for my Challenge One submission to the Project Food Blog competition. The goal...to find the next food blog star! To learn more about this fabulous competition visit Foodbuzz.

The first challenge to is to answer this question:

What defines you as a food blogger and why should you be the next food blog star?

The combination of food and art define me as a food blogger. My love of art drove me to blogging and my love of food provided the focus. The result is a fresh perspective of food through whimsical illustrations at “The Lunch Box Project”.

My blogging adventures focus on four food dimensions:

1. Personal food stories. My blog is a way to share my relationship with food, good or bad, big or small, serious or funny.

2. My simple recipes. Okay, I am an amateur in the food world, but that seems to work for me. I think my readers enjoy the naivety and simple approach.

3. Highlighting fellow food blogger’s recipes. I LOVE illustrating food posts from other blogs. It gives me a chance to learn something new, offers some fun recipes to my readers, exposes other food bloggers to a new audience, plus allows others to see their food on an art level. I especially love grouping recipes around themes (cupcakes, pancakes, etc.). This approach is a nice way to collect the best from several sites into an illustrated, focused “menu” of sorts.

4. Food in popular culture. I often pick monthly themes to encourage a new look at what we eat. It’s a great way to view food in an innovative way. Themes include (honestly): gnomes, The Beatles, strawberry circus, ABC breakfast, The Tomato Chronicles, Ice, and many others. To add a fun twist, I often ask for feedback from my readers through Facebook and Twitter.

I should be the next food blog star because of my creative and novel approach to eating. I’m definitely not the best chef, but I value a fun and unique way to communicate food idiosyncrasies.

Imagine a blog that changes themes monthly, highlights fabulous recipes with an amusing twist, demonstrates the basics, and includes quirky, personal foodie stories. All of this pulled together by fresh, whimsical illustrations. Good news…that blog is “The Lunch Box Project”!

You can VOTE here!

{oh, and did you know most of my illustrations are painted on playing cards?}

Mean Mr. Mustard

I'm not sure what to say...except that I love mustard and my kids hate it. What's with that?

Song: Mean Mr. Mustard

Drank-a-Cup

Woke up, fell out of bed,
Dragged a comb across my head
Found my way downstairs and drank a cup...

This was probably a cup of tea, but you can image a cup of coffee if that helps.

Song: A Day in the Life

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Egg Man

I swore that I would not draw an egg that looked like a man for this one, but my daughter insisted that I draw Humpty Dumpty. I guess that's not too literal. :)

Song: I am the Walrus

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Marmalade Skies

As a child I was always intrigued with Beatle phrases such as "tangerine trees and marmalade skies". I think the whimsical aspect of Beatle music has influenced my art more than I know.

Anyone have any good marmalade recipes?

Song: Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds

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Tangerine Trees

Here is a healthy snack from "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds".

Speaking of trees, have you seen my new garden blog...Topiary & Tiramisu?

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Strawberry Fields

After many weeks of prodding from my nine-year old daughter this month I bring you....{drumroll please}...Beatle Food.

On a five hour car ride to Wisconsin, while listening to Beatle music, my daughter started noticing all the food references in their songs. This month is the list of titles she jotted down in the car that day. And by the way, recently she proclaimed she was a "Beatle-Fan-in-Training"...so this is just the start of her craziness.

Let's start with an easy one...strawberry fields.

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