It’s been a mad rush of a week.

My tomato plants are waist high. They are beginning to flower and they look healthy and happy.

Scott talked briefly about pinching off (or not pinching off) some of the branches that begin to form at the joints where the leaves connect to the main stalk. I am growing mine in pots, so I think my tomato support choices are limited. In fact I am choosing a very basic pyramid of 3 bamboo stakes per pot. Because of these limitations I am choosing to pinch my side shoots. Besides it’s a nice way to start each day. I take my tea out there and I pinch away.

I like the way it makes my fingers smell too!

I’ll be bringing Scott back next week for some real advice, about support systems. In the meantime, wasn’t there a contest or something here at SippitySup. Aren’t you curious how that came out?

Well, had a great response to our TomatoMania recipe contest. I am so honored by all the talent and love out there.

Every single entry was fantastic. I wish we had the budget to print up all 46 entries and pass them all out at the Los Angeles Garden show. But the reality is we do not! Besides what kind of contest would it be with out winners! Everybody loves a winner. And here they are! Congratulations and Thank-You all...

TomatoMania ContestI know it’s not Monday. So I should not even be uttering the word Maniac. But I just wanted to remind you TomatoManiacs to get to work on a tomato recipe.

I know you want thousands of new tomato loving foodies to discover your blog. As I stated in the tomato recipe contest announcement, I can help 6 people do just that. Because I am going to be handing out recipe cards at the Los Angeles Garden Show printed up with your recipes and your logo and/or url!

Dig back in your blog. You must have something. The only thing I ask is you not steal the recipes or the photos. Make these recipes your own, or have permission. Better yet, turn in a great recipe passed down in your family. What a great way to honor your Great Aunt Tilda!

TO ENTER: Send an e-mail to greg [AT] sippitysup [DOT] com (ONE entry per person, please!) with the following information by MIDNIGHT, Monday, April 20  PDT:

• First name
• Blog name (or hometown if you don’t have a blog)
• Blog URL (if you have a blog)
• An ORIGINAL Recipe (Word Document preferred))  300 words or less
• AN ORIGINAL photo of your tomato recipe, at least 400 px wide (preferably square)
• A one-line description of your recipe
  
• I will contact the winners for their logo and url on April 21st or 22nd
• THANKS GREG
  

As you may know I am right in the middle of my tribute to mustard. As long as the hills near my house are bursting out golden-yellow from the blooms of wild mustard plants, then I am posting mustard ideas.

But it is Maniac Monday so I will divert momentarily so that all you TomatoManiacs can get your weekly fix of tomato info.

Tomorrow it’s back to the business of mustard with something everybody can love. Grilled Cheese (with mustard)!

Scott Daigre is off to another TomatoMania event and will be back with more growing tips next Monday. But I am going to use this time to tease you with a tomato contest we will soon be announcing. More on that very soon…

I also want to give you a little background about the tomato from a culinary standpoint!

Despite its firm place in European cooking the tomato has it’s origins in the Americas. It was cultivated by the Aztecs and was an important part of their diet as far back as 700AD.

It was brought back to Spain by merchant vessels. Though the British deemed the fruit “poisonous”, it quickly caught on culinarily throughout Southern Europe where growing conditions were ideal.

And for the final Cookstr/Jamie Oliver Contest winner... I choose an old friend here at SippitySup. I choose Nick at imafoodblog. I admit at first I was a bit put off by his entry.

I mean have you seen his posts on Brioche?

He pits 3 master recipes against each other and prepares all 3 in his own kitchen. He then meticulously records the results and reports back over 5 separate postings! This is mighty!

But then I have one little contest and he turns in a recipe for TOAST!

Toast. I thinks he is messin' with Sup. This calls for retaliation.

And you know what the best retaliation is? I'll send him the Jamie Oliver game. I think I know how his mind works. He'll get that thing in his hot little hands and he won't be able to put it down.

He won't have time for anything else! No more Brioche. No more Beer. No more BLOGGING!  Ha!  I am sooo evil...

(watch video) My second winner really dropped a bombshell on me. It comes from a man named Jonathan who lives in Niles, Illinois. Jonathan is not a blogger. He is a food lover (of sorts). He is a food lover with a very particular passion. That passion is Julia Child.

He “collects” information, books, letters, photos. Whatever he can get his hands on about the iconic chef. He regularly surfs the web for any little tidbits he can find out about her. I knew there were Elvis fans, and plenty of the Marilyn Monroe maniacs. But Julia Child? Who knew?

Anyway, in trawling for Julia Child mentions he discovered SippitySup.

I recently wrote about my mother. I passed along my memories of how Julia Child really influenced my mother, and therefore, was an important part of my childhood.