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Menu for Hope has been extended until December 31st!

Even if you read elsewhere the 24th, it is definitely continuing until the 31st, and you can see that it’s still going by the FirstGiving donation page which is still accepting donations!

We’re currently at $46,000, which is about half of last year’s total, but it’s still a great demonstration of the care and interest of our community in this cause! Bravi! Can we get it to $60,000 before the end of the 31st?

There are 28 prizes on the Menu for Hope Europe Prize page! Are you sure you’ve seen them all??  Check the Menu for Hope Master Prize list on Chez Pim for all of the prizes!

Remember to check back on ChezPim.com on January 12th for the results. I will re-post the Europe Prize winners as well.

Thanks to all Ms. Adventures in Italy readers - I’ll be spending the beginning of the New Year in Istanbul, so please have a great New Year’s Eve and we’ll talk in 2009!!

• Give the Gift of A Menu For Hope
• Menu for Hope V & Your Europe Regional Host
• London, A Menu for Hope, the Tour del Gelato
• A Plea for the Menu for Hope
• Poll: Italian Goodies for the Menu for Hope Basket

UPDATE: Menu for Hope has been extended until December 31st!

Looking for some last minute gift ideas? Below are some ideas for Cookbook lovers, Food Lovers’ Boxes and Baskets, Travelers, Aspiring Food Bloggers, Art Lovers and Shoppers!

Donate in someone’s name, then grab one of the Menu for Hope Gift Vouchers I posted about yesterday and attach it to an email or print it out and stick it in a gift card!

Make sure you click through the prize donor’s site to get exact information on shipping before bidding!

For Cookbook Lovers

• UE32: Autographed Cookbooks: Pierre Herme, Patricia Wells and Dorie Greenspan From the lovely Dorie Greenspan
• EU09: Signed copies of Clotilde’s two books Offered by Clotilde Dusoulier of Chocolate & Zucchini
• UW18: Baker’s Delight from Amy from Amy of Cooking With Amy a huge selection of cookbooks, tools and chocolate!
• EU22: The Veg Lovers Book Collection Offered by Sophie of Mostly Eating, this prize is a set of three books on cooking with fresh, seasonal produce, perfect for somebody with a regular veg box delivery, CSA membership or just anyone keen to fill their diet with veggies in the New Year.
• UE33:$50 gift card to Sur La Table and autographed copy of Jose Garces’ new cookbook - Latin Evolution from Cooking In Stilettos
• UW20: Her upcoming book The Foodie Handbook, hot off the press right into your hands! from Pim
• UW31: Three Cookbooks from Ten Speed Spress From Chubby at Bunrab (US only)
• UE08: Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill Cookbook From Rachel of Coconut and Lime Blog
• UE09: Cupcake Lollapalooza From StickyGooeyCreamyChewy
• UE36: Autographed Copy: Foods and Flavors of San Antonio Hosted by Foods and Flavors of San Antonio (US only)
• UE16: Gourmet Book Club Membership Each month Gourmet magazine choose a book for their book club. The winner of this prize will get a copy of each month’s selected book sent to them for the whole year.
• UE37:Autographed Copy Recipe for a Cookbook! Hosted by Cookbook Cuisine (US only)
• UE38: Private Cooking Class and Yum-Tasty Recipes From Culinary Greats Cookbook From Dining Dish
• UE20: Hand-crafted Marshmallows and Barefoot Contessa autographed cookbook From Foodie Tot.
• UE29: Paella Kit A paella kit from Tienda.com hosted by Andrea of Andrea’s Recipes
• EU02: A Big Box of Swiss Chocolate Offered by Maki from JustHungry.com
• EU06: Damian Allsopp chocolates Offered by Abby from Eat the Right Stuff.
• EU15: Signed copy of “In Etna’s Shadow: Culinary Adventures from Eastern Sicily” Offered by Karen of South of Rome
• EU17: 660 Curries Offered by Meeta of What’s for Lunch, Honey?
• CA02: An autographed copy of A Day at El Bulli From Hungry in Hogtown
• CA04: Giada’s Kitchen cookbook From Hooked on Heat (US & Canada only)
• CA06: The flavours of Canada From Seven Spoons
• CA07: Great recipes from famous Canadian authors From Seven Spoons

Food Lovers’ Boxes and Baskets

• EU07: Italian Artisan Goodies Basket Offered by me, Sara of Ms. Adventures in Italy
• UW07: Best of the Ferry Building Gift Basket - the very best from Sf Ferry Plaza From Anita at Married with Dinner
• UW24: Scharffen Berger Chocolate Gift Package From Chuck of SundayNiteDinner.com (US only)
• UW29: Gourmet Gift Basket From Jenny of Foray Into Food (USA only)
• UE04: 2 boxes of Parisan style macarons from Petites Bouches From Veronica’s Test Kitchen
• UE23: The Big, Bad Bakers’ Bundle From Miss Ginsu.
• EU16: A French and Italian Hamper Offered by Sara from Kitchen Pantry, A French and Italian hamper (EU only)
• EU26: Fair Trade Delight Box Offered by Elena of Comida de Mama (EU only)

For Travelers

• UW09: Blogher ‘09 conference pass I had a great time at BlogHer this past year, and it was a great experience!
• EU12: Florence Walking tour with lunch at the Market for 2 people ($250 value!) Offered by Judy of Over a Tuscan Stove
• EU14: Milan Walking Tour with Breakfast, Open-air Market, Food Lovers’ Highlights and Aperitivo for 2 people Offered by Sara, Ms. Adventures in Italy and Sara from Mele al Forno
• EU05: Customised Food Tour in London, UK Offered by Abby from Eat the Right Stuff
• EU18: My Italians Wine Tasting in Rome with Sommelière Hande Leimer of vinoroma Offered by Hande of Food Vagabond and Vino Roma
• EU23: A Taste of Nice Food Tour for two people: (€160 Value) Offered by Rosa of Les Petits Farcis
• WB10: Wine Travel Guide Voucher The main raffle prize on offer from Wine Travel Guides
• WB15: Labor of Love In The South of France Planning a trip to southern France? Why not spend a day learning what it’s really like to own a vineyard or work in a winery!
• WB25:A Night of Wine and Food in Florence for Two with Award Winning Sommelier Services Enjoy an evening for two persons in Florence, Tuscany in a historical Trattoria with a complete menu from “crostini” to their typical biscuits and soups and meat and eveything you can expect from a Trattoria that’s been running for more than 100 years
• AP06: SYDNEY: A day behind the scenes on a food styling shoot with Australian Gourmet Traveller This is something money can’t buy and you can read how Jackie at Eating with Jack got on last year.

For Food Bloggers

• UW13: Two Lowelgo Sweet Sets from  Sam from Becks & Posh (worldwide)
• UW10: Set of Lowel EGO Photo Lights from Kalyn’s Kitchen (US only)
• UW17: I Wanna Be A Food Writer Package From Faith at Blog Appetit - a great set of books

For Art Lovers

• UW22: One 12×18″ Original Nature Photograph, matted and signed by photographer From Jennifer Yu of jenyu.net
• EU25: 6 prints of Florence and Venice Offered by sculptor and artist Kelly of Fine Art by Borsheim, These 6 prints are various scenes of Venice and Florence.
• EU19: A Paris Map dated 1937 Offered by Lucy of Lucy’s Kitchen Notebook
• WB12: Giant Wine Map of California

For Eco-conscious Shoppers

• UE25, UE26: Set of 3 RuMe Reusable Grocery Bags (two prizes) Deb of Smitten Kitchen
• EU11: A set of 6 Flip & Tumble reusable tote bags Offered by Clotilde Dusoulier of Chocolate & Zucchini

How to Bid for a Prize

1. Note down one of the prize codes above.  Or choose another prize from the list at Chez Pim, or the regional European list here at Ms. Adventures In Italy.
2. Go to the donation site at First Giving and make a donation.
3. Each $10 you donate will give you one raffle ticket toward a prize of your choice. You must specify which prize you’d like in the ‘Personal Message’ section in the donation form when confirming your donation. You must write-in how many tickets per prize, and please use the prize code. For example, a donation of $50 can be 2 tickets for EU07 and 3 tickets for EU14. Please write 2xEU07, 3xEU14 and so on.
4. If your company matches your charity donation, please check the box and fill in the information so we could claim the corporate match.
5. Please allow us to see your email address so that we could contact you in case you win. Your email address will not be shared with anyone.

• Give the Gift of A Menu For Hope
• Holiday Baking Kama Sutra
• Menu for Hope Extended until December 31st!
• A Plea for the Menu for Hope
• Poll: Italian Goodies for the Menu for Hope Basket

UPDATE: Menu for Hope has been extended until December 31st!

There are only a few days left until December 25th arrives. If you’re still scrambling around to find presents, why not consider giving gifts that give back?

We know that not everyone is a blogger, and not everyone is online and not everyone has heard of the Menu For Hope. But that doesn’t meant that you can’t give the gift of the Menu for Hope to everyone you know!

Luckily, I’ve created two easy ways for you to share the Menu for Hope with others. Donate in their name, send them an email explaining you’ve donated in their name and attach one of these images, or print it out and slip it inside a gift card! Each of the files is sized 8.5×11″ and has space to list which prize(s) you’ve bid for, and a reminder to check ChezPim.com on January 12 to see if they’ve won!

Here’s a full-page explanation of the Menu for Hope with some of the Lesotho Photos. You can download it as an image (jpg) or as a PDF.

In case you’d prefer just a little token of your gift, here’s a page with 2 “coupons” to cut out and insert into gift cards! You can download it as an image (jpg) or as a PDF.

There are really a ton of great prizes available for the Menu for Hope! Check out the Europe Prize List here on this blog, or go to ChezPim.com to see the Menu for Hope Master Prize List! Check the progress of the fundraiser at the Menu for Hope Firstgiving page! Can we get it to $50,000? What about $70,000? Get donating, now!

Was this helpful? Please let me know!

• Poll: Italian Goodies for the Menu for Hope Basket
• Menu for Hope Extended until December 31st!
• A Plea for the Menu for Hope
• Holiday Baking Kama Sutra
• London, A Menu for Hope, the Tour del Gelato